We’ve discussed how creating a blog can help organize your writing schedule, generate actual book content, and assist in ultimately marketing your published book by building platform and establishing yourself as an expert.
Guest blogger, Bobby Christmas, the Book Doctor, talks about generating blog traffic for self-publishing authors.
Q: I have started a blog, which started out slowly, but I now get about fifteen hits a day. How can I increase that number?
A: First, for those not familiar with blogs (Web logs), they are online journals. One provider of Web log space is http://www.blogspot.com. Many authors have found that maintaining a blog builds a fan base for their books and keeps fans up to date when a new book is going to be released.
I’m not the expert on blogs or driving traffic to blogs, but I will give these tips:
What are you doing to make those people go to your blog and read it now? Do more of the same.
Register your blog wherever possible, and be sure your blog offers good content that people will want to read.
To drive traffic to your blog, write articles or a column regarding your subject matter and include a link to your blog. Send those articles to any site that may post them.
Embed key words in your blog, words that readers might use to search for the type of information you provide in your blog.
In addition to my very basic advice, buy and read a book on how to increase visibility and drive readers to a blog. I noted 164 books about blogs on Amazon.com.
Bobbie Christmas, book doctor, author of Write In Style (Union Square Publishing), and owner of Zebra Communications, will answer your questions, too. Send them to Bobbie@zebraeditor.com. Visit Bobbie’s blog at http://bobbiechristmas.blogspot.com/. Read more “Ask the Book Doctor” questions and answers at http://www.zebraeditor.com.
Self Publishing Advisor 