Blogging – Ways To Improve Visibility by Scott Lindsay

Let’s say for the sake of argument that you have a business blog. You have participated in online forums in your industry and now want to pass along information in a more personally directed format.

Your blog is new and site visits are not as strong as you would like. You post a link to your blog in the signature line of forum posts, but you are still hoping more people will drop by.

Starting a business blog can be a bit like starting a website – it can take a while for it to gain a following or even for search engines to index and rank the blog site.

There are a couple of things you can do to improve the visibility of your business blogging missives.

1) Duplicate posts on one or more social media blog. This idea is useful when you have social media pages that include the ability to blog. Your presence on these sites may align you with a different audience than those who might visit your primary blogging site. In many cases you can cut and paste information and allow it to reach out to other potential customers.

With the linking capability in social media it is entirely possible your blog may be visited by those outside your network of friends as visitors click from one profile to the next in search of something interesting. Perhaps they will find something used on your social media blog.

2) Use your established connections on forums or message boards to your advantage. Beyond simply placing a link in the signature line of your forum posts make sure to see if there is a ‘water cooler’ or ‘open line’ section on your favorite forums. If so you have the capability of posting a summary or teaser in those general discussion areas with a link to your blog. This may resonate with those who are already familiar with your personality on the forum and they may be inclined to learn from your expertise. Make sure you abide by the rules of any forum you may use to implement this strategy.

You may encounter forums that do not allow outside links in posts or any posts that gives the hint of being business oriented. Know the rules of the forum before you utilize this strategy.

Your business blog can be an important way to reach out to others. This is true for those who may already know of your business as well as others who convey trust based on the sense of trust already extended by other forum members.

In essence you can use social media and forums to grow your blog presence as you wait for search engines to help make it easier for others to find you online.

The growth of business blogging would seem to be a strong indicator that this form of information marketing is not only a valuable resource, but also a great way to improve site traffic to your primary business site.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategies remain the most useful key in the visibility of any site, but while you wait why not use every available tool at your disposal. In this case that would be forum and social media for improved blogging visibility.