How To Do A Blog Post That People Will Be Eager To Promote For You

Most of us aren’t out here blogging just for our own amusement; we really want to provide value to our audience.  So the question of how to do a blog post that people want to read and engage with quickly becomes a hot-topic.

There are a few key tips you can quickly implement on your blog that will not only help attract more readers, but also make them eager to promote your posts for you!

1. Add Social Sharing Buttons

Your blog visitors can’t help promote your posts if they can’t share them.

Make sharing as simple as possible by adding Social Sharing Buttons in multiple places on your posts.

I recommend having the following available:

1. Generic “follow me” social buttons on the top right of the sidebar
2. Share buttons at the bottom of each post
3. Share buttons on the side of the screen that “follow” visitors as they scroll through the post

Another key is to make the share counts visible for your social buttons.  People are more likely to share something if they see someone else has already shared it.

So how do you get those elusive first shares?  You do it yourself!

Make sure you get rid of any “0 shares” by sharing on your own social media.  This also rolls into the final tip for social sharing buttons: avoid too many social choices.

Providing a share button for every social network available not only looks unattractive, but it’s overwhelming for visitors.  If you give people too many choices, they will choose to move on, and that’s not what you want.  Only provide social networks that you’re active on personally.

 

2. Use Engaging Plugins

Take advantage of some of the amazing plugins that are available to help increase engagement on your blog posts.

Some of the ones I use and love are:

1. Better Click To Tweet – Bite-sized, shareable  quotes tagged to you and linking to your post
2. What Would Seth Godin Do? – Provides personalized offers based on  return visits to your blog
3. AccessPress Instagram Feed – Insert your IG feed directly into your pages or sidebar
4. CommentLuv – Entices comments for your post by back-linking to their latest post
5. Monarch – Social network buttons that follow visitors along the left side of the screen

Whatever you can do to make social sharing as easy as possible for your visitors makes it significantly more likely that they’ll engage with you.  I definitely notice an increase each time I add one of these elements to my posts.

3. Optimize Images for Social Platforms

Did you know that each social network has its own image specifications that provide optimal results?

It’s true!

Here are the optimal image sizes for each social network (check out this article on Buffer Social for more details):

Facebook – 1,200 x 628
Twitter – 1,024 x 512
LinkedIn – 700 x 400
Google+ – 800 x 1,200
Pinterest – 735 x 1,102
Instagram – 1,080 x 1,080

If you’re using other sizes, it’s likely the images will be stretched to fit the allocated space.  In general, it’s best to have a vertical and horizontal image for each blog post.  You can use the following generic sizes to cover the most social networks:

– Vertical (Portrait) – 800 x 1,200
– Horizontal (Landscape) – 1,024 x 512

As a rule of thumb, be sure to use horizontal images for Facebook and Twitter, and vertical images for Google+ and Pinterest to ensure the best results.

4. Provide Great Content

This tip is the easiest to overlook, but it’s also the most important!

You need to create content that people are interested in learning, and makes them eager to share.

Everyone wants to look like they know something, or provide help to others.  If you create a platform for your visitors to do so using your blog posts, they’ll keep coming back for more.

Most people just getting started will find themselves wondering how to do a blog post that people want to read.  The easiest way to uncover this is to ask yourself ” what do I know now that I wish I knew before?”  There’s always something the your younger-self could learn from, and there’s always someone else who doesn’t yet know that piece of golden information.

Stop hoarding those gems, and put your value into the marketplace!

Stop hoarding your knowledge and put your value into the marketplace! Click To Tweet

5. Make Your Posts “Reader-Friendly”

What do I mean by “reader-friendly”?

Make sure your posts are visually pleasing to your readers.

Posts with short sentences and lots of whitespace are much easier for people to scan and decide if they want to read and share your content.

Try to use a big, clear default font.  Size 12 works for printed material, but you’ll want at lease size 14 for online viewing.  Also, make sure the font-family and colours you choose are easily readable.  Don’t provide any eye-chart challenges for your readers!

Lastly, try to break up the post with sub-headings.  Short sections are more likely to be read as readers feel their progressing quickly through your post.  Think of it like reading a book with short chapters: lots of quick-wins are better than one prolonged challenge.  Make it difficult for them to “tune-out”.

How To Do A Blog

Was this helpful for you?  If so, please share it with a friend who you think would get value!

Be sure to comment below and let me know what goals you came up with for your website!

P.S. If you’d LOVE to start Your Own Blog with “Just 3 Clicks”, check THIS out!

Resources

Here is a list of the resources mentioned in this post:

Blogger’s Jumpstart Guide – Download my FREE guide outlining how to successfully start your own blog

Blogger's JumpStart

The Essential FREE Guide to get your blog online quickly and securely,
so you can grow your business TODAY!

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Gift Guide for Smart Travelers

The FREE Gift Guide for Smarrt Travelers to help you find
the perfect gift for your special someone TODAY!

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Google Analytics Dashboard Templates

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Google Analytics reporting TODAY!

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Unique Gift Ideas forHome Business Entrepreneurs

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Google Analytics Setup Guide

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Google Analytics account to work for you TODAY!

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Google Analytics Goal Setting Guide

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True Value in your website TODAY!

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