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7-Step Social Networking Blog Promotion Strategy |
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Many bloggers believe that social networking traffic is poor quality. And that is true - when you've done a lousy job of targeting. If you must choose between connecting with 1000 people in the general audience and connecting with 10 targeted, quality people, take the 10. You will almost certainly be way better off.
And that is the bedrock on which to base your social networking choices. How can you focus on promoting by social networking when there are hundreds ... thousands? ... of social networking websites. No one has time for them all, or even for 5% of them. How can you choose the best sites to promote YOUR blog?
First, you need to know your options. Here is a list of social networking websites by category. Many of them have a bit more description which should help you decide whether to check them out. Your Overall StrategyThe idea behind social networking is ... to socially network. If you do that, you will fit in. If you go in just to advertise, you will stick out like a sore thumb. And people won't like you. So the advertising strategy is not effective. Forget it. Instead, network and build relationships. Fly under the radar. It takes some time & effort to network. That means you must limit yourself to a small number of sites that you will network on. Let's start with just two.
How do you choose the best two social networking websites for you?- Who exactly is my target audience? What are the demographics? Age? Gender? Location?
- Does this site appeal to my target audience? What demographic details can I find out about the networkers on this site? What type of content excites them? News? Long, detailed blog posts? Resource lists? You must be prepared to deliver the format that your exact target market likes best.
- For several days, monitor any site you are considering as a promotion tool. What type of content do you NOT see on the front page of that social networking site? This observation will help you decide if this site is appropriate for you.
- Keep a record of how many votes the front-page posts get ... so you know what it will take for YOU to make the front page. And does this site have rules about submitting your own content?
- Is this site tilted to favor certain veteran power users? Or is it the content that is important, rather than the person who posts it?
- Can I start my own group? It's critical to your long-term success that you be seen as a leader. You need to become a valuable, contributing member of the community ... and THEN you need to start your own group. Don't spend your time building credibility in a community where you cannot start your own group. This is a critical part of your strategy.
- When you find a site you particularly like, observe the connections of the members of this site to other social networking sites. Almost all the veterans will have more than one site they spend time on. What trends do you see here? This may give you a strong clue as to what your second social networking site should be.
Leveraging these contacts can be a huge value to you. The networking interface at some sites is way better than at others. This may be useful to you ... and it may be a major consideration of your target market when they choose a social networking site. Example: The StumbleUpon toolbar lets you share reviews and messages and links with your friends. That makes the whole networking thing pretty easy. Use this simple 7-step strategy to cut through the social networking clutter and choose the most productive places to focus your time. |
