How The Heck Did You Do That?!? Blogger Tips and Tricks # 7

How Do I Grow My Blog? Get Comments ?

I regularly receive emails asking me, "How do I grow my blog and get more comments?"  So here are a few suggestions that have worked for me:

Make your Blog presence known 

• use social media sites such as twitter, facebook and goggle+ to promote your posts
• Make sure your profile on Goodreads has a link to your blog and that your reviews also have a link to your blog post. Do this on Amazon and other book related sites you visit. 
• Share your review post link on publishers facebook pages. (positive ones)
• Be a part of the Book Blogger community by taking part in memes, community events ie. read-a-thons, challenges etc and comment on other blogs consistently. 
• Join and participate in bookish events locally and on the web. 
• Tweet an awesome review to the author/publisher and chances are they will re-tweet them. Other like minded book lovers will find you. 
• Turn off captcha..guys this is awful and people will skip commenting to avoid it. If spam is a serious issue use the blogger approval option or upgrade to good commenting system like Disqus, Comment Luv, etc. 

Content

• Consistent content- If you only post every other week, or even once a week it will be harder for others to remember you are out there. Posting daily makes visiting your blog a habit :)
• Great content is super important. Make your posts interesting and create your own style. 

1. Reviews -should be honest, insightful and not just a recap. Tell what you liked and didn't without spoiling the book for others. If you are honest others will trust you and look to you for their book related purchases. Be yourself and let your personality into the review.
2. Memes, Book Tours and the like- add spice to your blog but don't get bogged down with daily posts of regurgitated information. Try to make them original if you choose to do them. For example provide an actual review on a tour and whenever possible ask for an exclusive excerpt or an original interview with questions provided by you. Memes are great and help grow your blog. Try and limit it to your favorites.
3. Add some original/interactive content- If you look at really successful blogs you will notice that they all have original content on their blogs. Whether it's a helpful tips post, a conversational post or a meme they created. This is a rewarding and exciting part of blogging and should truly reflect you. Start small highlighting and sharing something related to your blog that interests you. There are tons of awesome posts out there but here are some great posts for inspiration and to help you understand what I mean by content:

• Danielle @ Book Whore -does Let's Talk. Others have similar commentary posts but Danielle adds her own touches and posts weekly. She shares her personal opinions on bookish topics. They are heart-felt and often times hilarious. 
• Giselle @ Xpresso Reads does a weekly Fresh Batch featuring new book releases for the week. Yes, others do them too, but Giselle made this uniquely her own. From her header to the way she presents them. She also posts consistently every week and people look to her post for purchasing ideas.
• Let us not forget the Queen of Blogging Tips Rachel @ Parajunkee and her Blogger 101 posts. Rachel mixes in blogging tips and personal thoughts to make each of her posts original and informational. 
• Liz @Fictional Candy does a weekly Blogger on Blogger interview allowing us to meet a new blogger. There are a lot of blogs that showcase bloggers and authors but Liz uses her own unique spin making it an interesting post that people will tune into weekly. 

 Comment and Socialize -tweet, comment and be a part of the book world.  

• Make social media work for you and your blog. I talked about this on my last tip post and all of the social media sites that will help promote comments and visitors to your blog. 
• Join a book club on Goodreads and comment on reviews
• Visit other book blogs and sites. Leave meaningful comments. If you comment more then likely they will come and comment on your blog. 
• Respond to comments made by your followers. Most people who leave a well meaning comment want to engage..so comment back :) 

Milestone Celebrations- Celebrate 50 followers, a 100 followers, 300 Followers etc with a giveaway or celebration post. Ask an author you have worked with or publisher to provide prize if it isn't something you can do or share a gently used book of your own. This doesn't need to be a budget breaker. 

Give it time Grasshopper-Don't Get Fixated on the Numbers! No blog grows overnight and these things will come. If you post regularly, share thoughtful and insightful reviews and content your blog will bloom. If you look there are some HUGE Blogs with tons of followers and no comments. They tend to draw people in with giveaways, and the like but have very little interaction with followers. I personally would rather have a small following and oodles of comments. How you work your blog is up to you. For me my blog is about sharing my love of reading and the books that make it on to my bookshelf. I want to know my followers and chat bookish things with them. Oh yeah I am a chatty-Kathy when it comes to books. This in itself requires work, as socialize is a huge part of my daily life.

Tracking Statistics for Your Blog

To keep track of my blogs daily page views, first time visits, total counts I use  a free system called StatCounter. Each week they emailed a report and the website allows me to customize the information I receive. This helps me share information with publishers, see which posts attract the largest audiences and if a new idea works. It is easy to install and you can find the details here: StatCounter

Have a wonderfully bookish day! If you have a question or tip you would like answered please send me an email. Due to the large amount of emails I have been receiving I may choose to only answer your question in post form. 

Today's Stops for Fiery Hot Reads for Icy Cold Nights Hop

Check out these awesome posts and giveaways! Each day different blogs will be participating so be sure to check in daily for your chance to win and discover new Fiery hot reads!

Veronica@Mostly Reviews: Selina Fenech:Empath Chronicles 

Heidi@Rainy Day Ramblings: MIchelle Rowan: Wicked Kiss

Pragya@The Reviewing Shelf: