Ask Larísa: How do I make my blog noticed?

A regular reader and commenter of The Pink Pigtail Inn, Ghostboci, has sent me a question:

Like many blog-reader, the fate has reached me and started my own blog. http://greedygoblin.blogspot.com/

I just want to ask one question from the experienced bloggers here: how can I let other people know that it exists?

Larísa’s answer:

First of all: congratulations to starting your own blog! Since you’ve been posting comments for such a long time I’ve just been waiting for you to take the next step. I really hope you’ll enjoy it!

Advice # 1
Now to your question. Making your blog known will take some time. Matticus didn’t get over 700 subscribers overnight. He worked hard and systematically to reach it as he writes in his summary when he recently celebrated his one-year anniversary.

And it’s been the same with me. Even though I’ve got far from the reputation that he has, this inn has slowly become more and more crowded without any big efforts of advertising. After a few months of blogging you’ll probably get a better ranking at search engines like Google (don’t ask me how it works, but it does), and more and more people will find you.

If you keep writing it’s bound to happen. It’s the nature of blogs.

So my advice number one is: Be patient.

Advice # 2
Of course you should announce your entrance on the blogging scene! Actually you’ve just done it, whether you thought about it or not.

You see: Commenting on other blogs is a great way to get noticed – provided that you’re doing relevant and interesting comments (which I know you’re capable of doing, after your long commenting on this blog) and not just promoting your own blog. There are unwritten ethic rules about how to comment on a blog. Stick to them.

Commenting other blogs in your own blogposts is also a good idea. Most bloggers – new as established ones – just love when their own posts are discussed in other blogs. I assure you: if you write something intelligent, a follow-up on something you saw on another blog and you give proper credit with link to the original source, you can be pretty sure that the original poster will pay you a visit out of curiosity.

So advice number two is: comment a lot. To comment – in your own blog and on others – is in my opinion the soul, the core of what blogging is about. This is a social media, it’s like a never-ending party. Join it!

Advice # 3
Your blog is still brand new. I’d recommend you to wait a couple of weeks until you’ve produced a few more posts and have a little more clear idea about what direction the blog will take. Then it’s time to make an Offical announcement of your existence at Blog Azeroth! Just register and make an introduction.

Another spot where you should register is The Twisted Nether Wiki, which is growing day by day and currently comprises hundreds of WoW blogs.

I suggest that you join Warcraftbloggers. It’s like a huge blog reader where you get the first paragraphs whenever a registred blog publishes something. You could also try go get your blog on the new WoW-blog list at Alltop.

My advice number three is: inform about your blog in the established community forums

Some further reading
During the summer Wowinsider published a series to inspire new bloggers and one of the articles were about how to establish yourself in the WoW Blogosphere. You’ll find a few more ideas there and I suggest you check it out.

You should also listen to and read the website of the Twisted Nether Blogcast. Anna and Matticus publish posts there every week to educate and inspire bloggers. I don’t think they’ve covered the marketing and publicity area yet, but I recommend you to read the posts anyway; there are lots of great advice there for a fresh blogger. Anna also gives advice for bloggers in the shows, another good reason for you to listen to them if you’re not already doing it.

Final words
Finally I return to Matticus once again. I like the way he always remind the wanna-be-bloggers to stick to the basics. And that is simply: to write.

I just have to quote him, because it’s so true:

I’ve been there. And I’m urging you not to give up. You can get readers and fans. There are people that will genuinely be interested in what you have to say and what your thoughts are. It doesn’t matter whether your interest is in PvP, or raiding, or RPing. What matters is that you keep writing. You can use whatever blogging techniques you want with SEO optimization, and other blogger mumbo jumbo. But at the end of the day, readers will reward your perseverance. It may not be now, it may not be later but it will happen. You have to stick with it. When you’re blogging, you’re grinding reputation with all of the Internet.

If I look at blogs from the reader's point of view, I want blogs which feels alive, where the content keeps flowing. You may have the most fancy kind of layout and features, but in the end, it’s what’s inside that counts. You don’t have to publish every day. But, at least when you start, you should try to publish pretty often. Because it’s when we read your posts that we get to know you. That’s how you naturally grow into the Blogsphere.

Be confident. Trust your own voice. You will be noticed, sooner or later.