5 Solid Strategies for Increasing Blog Views

Your fashion/yoga/Animal-Farm-Fan-Fic blog is going to blow your readers’ minds…if only you had readers. Instead, you’re tapping away, day after day, shouting into the void that is Google’s second page.

If you really want to increase blog followers, it’s not enough to create high-quality content. You have to draw readers in, keep them there and inspire them to share. You know that headlines are important, but do you know how many people ditch a blog after reading only the headline? Do you know whether visuals keep a reader’s attention or distract them? And do you know why a sheep’s pupils are rectangular? Just what is it that catches a reader and makes them come back for more?

We’ve got a few ideas that might help you answer these questions.

What Blog Followers Want

We’ll give it to you straight: readers won’t read your blog just to be nice. More often than not, readers are looking for something that benefits them. They’ll scour the internet for articles and blog posts that fit their needs, and they won’t spend time on anything less than what they want.

Don’t be too mad at them, they’ll eat your articles right up if the content hits the spot. So how do you meet the needs of readers and increase blog followers? Well, there are two types of blog followers that should be recognized, and this will help you solidify your strategy:

1. Consistent Blog Followers

Whether you own a blog just for fun (or to prove to the world your latest conspiracy theory) or you’re incorporating a blog onto your business’s website to improve your content marketing strategy, everyone appreciates the loyal group of followers who stick with you through thick and thin. These types of followers are those who consistently follow your blog and social media accounts and occasionally comment, like and share your content.

Building up a following like this takes time and consistent effort, but it has a good payoff once you get a community that looks up to you as an expert in your niche.

2. One-time Blog Followers

These types of blog followers make up the bulk of the traffic you receive. These blog followers are the ones who are searching for something specifically and come upon your article or blog post. They normally come across your blog because it intrigues them or they feel it will help them in some way.

Although these types of followers might never be as committed as you want them to be (like in your last relationship), they are a vital part of increasing blog views. They may be flaky, clueless to all the effort you put in and may leave in a blink of an eye, but at least this time, they help you in the long run.

Blog views help your website, and the type of buzz this traffic creates is important for marketing purposes, but it also increases the chance of getting new leads or new “consistent” blog followers. You might get your next customers by answering a random question they were searching for.

5 Strategies You Need To Use To Increase Blog Views

In any case, increasing blog followers and traffic is a must, especially if you are a company looking to build up your brand or identity and establish yourself as an authority in your niche. Not only do you want to increase blog views, but you want readers to stay. Here are five strategies you can implement right away to start seeing results.

1. Craft a Sticky Title

First impressions are everything. According to one study, 8 out of 10 people will read the headline on a blog. However, only 2 out of 10 will continue on to read the actual blog. What happened? Where did those other 6 people go? Your title didn’t convince them to stick around.

Sticky titles have several things in common:

• They use numbers. Whether you’re pushing “Mona Lisa’s Top 10 Tips for Taking Better Selfies” or “7 Reasons My Laboradoodle Is Smarter Than Your Honor Kid”, headlines with numbers catch a reader’s eye and suggest that you have something concrete to offer.
• They use useful words. Tell your reader what kind of information they are going to get, and how they might use it. For example, highlight your expertise with “7 Secrets to Superior Sheep Shearing”. Useful words include:
  • Tips
  • Tricks
  • Lessons
  • Facts
  • Secrets
  • Hacks
  • Mistakes
  • Resources
• They use emotional words. Your headline might play on fear. (3 Catastrophic Mistakes That Can Kill Your Vulnerable Blogging Career) It might be inspiring. (Trapped! The Daring Rescue of a Devoted Dachshund) It might even cause a scintillating stir. (Have You Discovered the Sensual Pleasures of 100% Egyptian Cotton Sheets?) Compelling copy plays on a reader’s emotions as much as it appeals to their intellect.

The options for compelling titles are limitless, just remember to not sell clickbait titles. If you really do want your blog followers to stick around or follow through with your call to action, you need to give them what they’re expecting. We’ll go more into that later.

2. Make It Easy on the Eyes

Computer screens are notorious for causing eyestrain. Couple this with the at-your-fingertips availability of something else to look at, and the result is that the moment your post causes ocular discomfort, your (ex-)reader is off to the next shiny object. We’ve got a few tips for creating a blog that readers’ eyes will crave.

Vlogging has swept the internet, but old-fashioned blogging still holds its weight. Because your blog’s main focus is the writing, make sure that your font is large and easy to read. If you can, keep the width of your lines around 66 characters per line and break text into short paragraphs of only 2-4 sentences. Give blog followers a breath of fresh air by breaking up the text even more with bullet points.

Creating a hierarchy of text through headings is a great way to establish which sections of your content is most important. For example, your title should be H1, which is the largest heading. From there you’ll use H2 for sections and H3 in subsections, which will help organize your content and help blog readers to follow along easily.

3. Make It Visual

If you think you can get away with blogging without including relevant and visually pleasing images, you might as well be handing lollipops with no swirls. Blog followers love images, as do you and I. Adding images every couple hundred words gives your readers space to digest what they’re reading, and images can supplement their learning.

Besides, a screen full of black letters on a white background is as much fun as an eye exam. Draw readers’ attention to your most important points by upping the font and adding a pop of color. Add a photo, a graphic, a chart or a diagram. According to Xerox, people are 80% more willing to read a piece of content with color in it. In addition to focusing a reader’s attention, visuals can illustrate important information and clarify confusing points. Not only will your readers stick with a post with visuals, they’re also 18% more likely to share it.

There are many websites that offer free images, or you could use Google’s creative commons to get the pictures you need. If you enjoy photography or have colleagues who do, consider taking your own images. With whatever you use, make sure your images are relevant, attractive and thrilling. Don’t forget to incorporate alt tags, as well as keywords to boost your SEO.

4. Incite Their Curiosity

In the first paragraph of your post, spark your reader’s curiosity by asking an open-ended question. Think back to those asked in the second paragraph of this post. Our brains crave completion, so when a question is asked, our attention is primed and we begin to look for an answer. That craving will make your readers more attentive and invested in what you have to say.

Ideally you can incite your reader’s curiosity about the topic at hand. However, even igniting a spark of interest in an unrelated question will prime their mind to pay attention. Remember that question about the sheep? It sparked a hint of wonder that has kept you reading through this entire post, searching for the answer. Which brings us to the final way to increase blog followers:

5. Make Good on Your Promises

If you tell readers you’re going to give them five great ways to boost their readership, be sure you deliver all five. If you promise the secret of immortality, don’t offer tips for making your weekend feel like forever. And if you make them wonder about a sheep’s rectangular pupils, you’d better satisfy that curiosity. (It improves their panoramic vision to help them spot predators.)

Get More Blog Views Today

If you’ve poured your heart into creating valuable content, don’t waste that effort. Draw readers in with catchy headlines, easy-to-read text and a post that sparks their curiosity and then satisfies it.