majiknetwork

How many times have you been on a forum and read something about a blogger’s post making the front page of digg? What is digg? Well it is another social media website. I have not been a member of digg for very long but have already had two posts of mine dugg. You may have even seen the badge on some websites with a number with diggs beside. That is the number of users that have thought the article needed some attention.

Basically the website allows you to see who’s posted what and how popular the article is.  Another thing to keep in mind while using the website is the number of friends you have and how active you are determines how much weight your “diggs” are given.  Submitting others posts helps you to create friendships within in the sight but also on other social networks.

Most people who blog join more than one site to help bring traffic to their page.  Some people even go as far as hosting their own forums.  I have seen a few websites that will allow you to host your own forum on your own domain, but none that are free so far.  Anyway if you want to help boost traffic to your blog joining this website is a good idea.  Just remember that with all social media websites, if you want people to view your opinions you need to stay relevant and active.

Can websites like Facebook bring in lots of traffic to you website or blog? The simple answer to that is only if you use the website properly. You can create a page just for your blog and advertise your page through their social ads that they insert into everybody’s home page. Will you get a lot of traffic from simply having a page up with links to your blog? Only if you are marketing your product.

Facebook is a good social networking tool to keep up with your friends; but if they are not into blogging than your chances of turning them into readers are slim. However there are groups on Facebook that are for bloggers and you can find most bloggers on Facebook as well. I have not yet added any blogging friends to my Facebook profile; mostly because I don’t think it is a very good tool for advertising ones blog.

If you want to use a mainstream social media website you should look for a website with a forum at the very least. Any website that connects a blogger with another blogger should at least be investigated at the very least. Take your time while looking for a good website that offers you the ability to advertise your blog, and try to remember to add something relevant to gain others trust and respect for your opinion.

Using blog directories are a definite must in the world of blogging. Finding good directories can be difficult but if you are already networking to advertise your blog you have an excellent chance of finding one. One thing to remember about blog directories is that if you just submit your blog and never go back to the site; the blog directory will not bring in more than one or two hits every once and a while. Joining blog directories are great; but do you know how to use them.

The simplest way to use them is to submit your blog and head over to the discussion forums. This is where the action is. The people you find on blog directories are people like yourself and they can give you some advice as well as traffic. One thing you have to remember is that most people who blog belong to more than one directory and are active on more than one website. The reason I mentioned that is because every time you log into your account there is a cookie that the website leaves in your temporary folder which is unique to your own profile on the website. Most directories have a tracking widget that will show your avatar and profile name every time you visit one of their blogs.

It is important to remember that logging into you social media accounts on the web just because of the cookies that get put in your cache. Just seeing your avatar is almost enough to get others to visit you, leaving a trail of bread crumbs to your page is essential in building traffic. Adding friends and joining “Neighborhoods” will also capture someones attention. Little things can make a big difference in the grand scheme of things.

These are only a few tips to help bring you traffic with blog directories. In future I will be posting more on blog directories and how to use them to your benefit. But one thing you have to keep in mind while using different blog directories is to take part in the discussions and keep the same avatar for each directory.  Most people have a widget to display the avatar of who visited their page and if you are using the same one for each of these sites then they will always know it was you who visited their page.

One of the easiest ways to create a buzz to get your product/blog out there is by word of mouth. Word of mouth advertising is the oldest form of advertising and is sometimes the most effective. I have a business card with a list of my blogs on it and when ever I’m asked about my blog I hand it out. You can find printing companies on the web that will offer you 100 business cards for free; you just pay the shipping.

The value of a business card is hard to measure, mostly because you don’t have a way to track where direct traffic came from. An increase in your direct traffic will tell you that your word of mouth advertising is working but other than that you cannot tell for sure if anybody has found your blog from your business card.

When go out and network with your friends at parties or just at a bar, carry your business card with you. If you meet some one you are interested in you can write your number on the back of it, and if the person is interested in you they will check out your blogs on the reverse. Also remember that it takes time and paper to write down the URL of your blog. Carrying a card with URL already on that saves time and keeps your potential reader interested.

This is a tip that you should keep in mind. I have had my business cards for about two weeks now and haven’t handed very many out, but have already seen an increase in direct traffic. The website that I found to get my business card was Vista Print a Canadian company. There you can design your own business card and get the first 250 free + shipping. That’s a great deal if you ask me. Stop by Vista Prints website and get your own business card so you can continue to network while you are off line.

One of the most important parts of blogging is networking. The more you build your network the more traffic you will be getting. Traffic to a blog is like the air that we breathe; it is essential to sustaining oneself or ones blog. Social Media is becoming more and more popular among bloggers and there is a definite reason for this.

When you participate on forums you begin to gain not only friends but readers as well. There are many different social media pages out there on the Internet. In my humble opinion, any website with a forum can be considered social media. All of these forums are tools to help you get your name out there for everyone to see. You need to create an online presence using these sights to actually begin to bring traffic back to your page.

From personal experience with a few different social media pages the more you mention your blog the less traffic you get, unless how you mention it is in context with the discussion. Just creating a online presence will help drive traffic to your blog. Remember to stay active, get your name and views out there and you will keep people interested.