The Top 3 Sources Of Blog Traffic That Are NOT On Social Media

The Top 3 Sources Of Blog Traffic That Are NOT On Social Media:from Business 2 Community by Richard Robinson

It’s well-documented that sharing content on social media is the best way to build readership on your blog. Social media outlets are great because you can build a following of engaged readers, instantly update them whenever you have new content, and expand your reach through Shares and Retweets. There’s no doubt that social media has made blogging easy, right? You can reach your entire audience from the comfort of your Hootsuite, right?
WRONG. While social media offers some essential tools, it can’t reach everyone. As Newsfeeds become more crowded, your post’s time to shine becomes ever more fleeting. Moreover, your network probably doesn’t include all of your target audience, and you’re definitely missing the people who *GASP* aren’t on social networks at all!    To truly maximize your reach, you need to think outside that social sharing box at the top of your page.  Consider these three tools to expand your content’s visibility.
General Blog Directories
Blog Directories catalogue thousands of blogs and make them searchable by topic and keywords. In other words, they’re Google for blogs, and they help users find the best blogs in a category by ranking search results according to size, relevance, or quality. Oftentimes, they’ll also provide a brief description of the blog and its content.   There are hundreds of different Blog Directories on the internet, but the best and biggest are: Technorati, Blog Catalog, Alltop, and Blogarama.    While blog directories won’t necessarily create huge traffic surges overnight, submitting your blog to numerous directories is  important because:

• It only takes only 5-10 minutes to submit to a directory, so it’s well worth the effort if you get even 5 new readers (1 new reader/minute is some darn good ROI).
• Readers referred by blog directories are likely quite valuable because they were knowledgeable and motivated enough to find you through unconventional means.
• Blog directories provide lots of high-quality backlinks that are rocket-fuel for off-page SEO.

How to Get Started: List your blog on the 4 directories noted above and keep adding more as you go. Try joining one new directory per week until you can’t find anymore. Though the submission process varies across directories, it is always fairly simple, and you can probably do it while waiting for your Starbucks Macchiato.
Blog Syndication Websites
Blog syndication websites curate the internet’s best content related to a specific topic and make it available to a larger, more targeted audience. Whereas blog directories catalogue every blog related to a wide range of topics, syndication websites collect only the best posts within a niche/industry. The quality of content on blog syndicators allows them to attract multitudes of valuable readers, so having your posts shared on a blog syndication website can lead to some excellent opportunities.
How to Get Started: Oftentimes, bloggers can link their RSS feed to a syndication website, thereby allowing new posts to be automatically submitted for syndication. Other times, posts must be submitted manually. In either case, editors review all content to ensure it meets the editorial guidelines, and posts that make the cut are shared with countless adoring eyeballs. The author’s bio and/or a link to their website is usually included.
Online Trade Publications With a tweak here and there, it’s easy to turn great blog posts into equally great articles. Trade publications often have stricter guidelines than do blog syndication websites, and you’ll usually have to pitch them right to the editors. However, having an article featured in an online publication is great for three reasons.

1. It cements your expertise in that field.
2. It’s some of the most targeted readership you’ll ever find.
3. You’ll probably attract readership you couldn’t access on any blog.

How to Get Started: First, find the publications with high authority and viewership among your target audience. Review each publication’s editorial guidelines and submission instructions carefully. Make sure you tailor your writing to fit the guidelines and provide value to each publication’s target audience. Then, start your pitch!   When pitching to a trade publication, it’s important that you emphasize the value your article can provide to its audience. Also, don’t be afraid to follow up; the editors want to find great content just as much as you want to be published.
Sharing content on blog directories, syndication websites, and trade publications will help you pull a larger, more varied audience of highly targeted readers to your website and blog. If you have any questions or comments about these tools, I’d love to discuss! Please leave a comment below!