If we were having coffee today, I would tell you that I have been having an extraordinary week and a fabulous start to the new year. I had implemented a few new things over the past few weeks and it seems that my new focus and determination is paying off.
After having switched platforms and blog names several times, I was afraid that I had irrevocably harmed my chances of harnessing huge pageviews again. I am thrilled to see results and it has given me a much needed boost of enthusiasm for my blog again.
Honestly, this post is not to toot my own horn but to infuse you with excitement as well. I do not want you to feel discouraged by my stats but inspired to press forward. I know how it feels to read about other bloggers’ success with oodles of pageviews or thousands of dollars and think, “That could never be me.”
I am here to tell you that it can be, you just have to be patient. It takes time to build an audience and a comfort level with your writing that transcends and connects to your reader.
I know what you are thinking and saying. I have thought it many times myself.
All the big, successful bloggers blog about blogging.
And while that appears to be true on the surface, I assure you that it is not necessarily so. Most successful bloggers, even if their niche is not about blogging, have some posts on their blogs about blogging. In fact, so do I. And I bet that most of you think that is where a majority of my views come from. I want to show you that in fact, my blogging posts are not even in my top 5.
Look at those titles. I bet you are surprised by some of them. But I hope most of all, it shows you that you do not have to blog about blogging to get massive pageviews. In fact, I find it easier to get traffic to my non blogging posts. There are so many new bloggers now blogging about blogging that it is so difficult to get noticed and carve out your slice of the pie. Which means that in your niche, whatever that is, you have a better chance of standing out and driving traffic to your blog.
Check out my income report here.
So how do I drive traffic to my blog…
3 Ways To Boost PageViews To Your Blog When You Don’t Blog About Blogging
1. Create a lot of content
I know that the trend now is to write fewer posts but while I think that this strategy works for niche specific blogs, like blogging about blogging, the opposite is true for lifestyle or journal type bloggers. I like to suggest to new bloggers that they will not get into a groove with pageviews until after they have published their 100th post.
There are several reasons for that:
- not every post you write is epic but within 100, you should have a few stand outs
- 100 posts starts to yield you important information about what type of posts you should be writing
- you should have found some blogging buddies or mentors at this point that will support your journey and give you advice
And most importantly, the more content you have, the more your readers have to choose from. It’s simple math really.
More Posts = More Hits
I have almost 200 posts and almost every post gets a hit every day. That is 200 pageviews, without breaking a sweat.
2. Create a social media strategy
Without a concise and focused strategy, I can tell you right now, you are probably wasting all of your time on social media, throwing darts at a board and hoping something sticks. How is that working for ya? I bet not.
This was one of the main changes I implemented this year. I was determined not to waste so much time on social media. And not just because that could be time well spent on my blog but because after the social media and blogging duties and blogging clients, there was no more time left for me. No time for real life.
How sad is that? Isn’t blogging about sharing your real life? No wonder I had nothing to write about anymore. I wasn’t doing anything anymore.
That has all changed now that I have created a super effective checklist to keep me on track. You can download and print it for free by clicking the image.
3. Harness the power of Pinterest
I know I say that a lot but I can not stress enough how Pinterest has been the driving force behind my success.
Those are my refers for one week. ONE DAY. That could make a huge difference to your stats too right?
Blogging is so much more fun within a community. And I don’t want to lose any of you this year due to stress or giving up. Please try my tips and let me know if there is anything I can help you with. I want us all to look back on 2017 as our best blogging year yet.
52 comments
After I have started joining big non-blogging-related groups on Fb I have seen a huge difference in page views. I share a lot of my own articles in ‘topic corresponding’ groups, which always guarantees a lot of visitors from social media. Last week, for instance, I re-published a 2-year-old post about the Canarian Carnival last week in some tourism & travel related groups. The feedback was AMAZING. Within a few hours almost 80 times re-shared and over 25K views. I shared the very same post 2 years ago solely in blogger-groups. It gained ‘so-so-attention’ then … Interior design groups are also great and grateful for inspiring blog posts. There are huge beauty related groups, they love beauty blogs. Of course, I respect group rules, interact with others and don’t spam groups. I think, all this works differently for everybody. We need to find out ourselves what works best for us, as with all else in life.
That is amazing and a great idea. This is exactly what we mean when we say, if you need to find where your audience hangs out and then participate in an engaging and positive way. Well done!
I want to learn more about Pinterest. I’ve tried several times to do the “rich pin” and promote what I have, to no avail. I know you write a lot about this. Will have to study more.
My free course will take you through rich pins and if you need more help, PM me.
I am printing this list as we speak. My mind is so ADD-riffic that I get lost in each and every social media day to day, overwhelming myself. Will be using this until I develop a routine of more positive habits for sure!
Sometimes you just need someone to tell you to stop. STOP! You can have a good social media presence without having to live online. Let me know how you make out.
What struck me the most in this post, Elena, was your statement about having a focused strategy on social media or you are wasting your time. Ugh! I’ve just printed your social media strategy sheet, however, it looks daunting to me. How much time do you spend doing the checklist? Do you think Google plus is worth it? I don’t see it adding much value. Maybe it is because I don’t like it myself I can’t imagine anyone else hanging out there. And Stumble Upon is a mystery to me, though I had my highest page view on a post that went stumbling – no engagement but high views. Another question about Facebook. Somewhere along the line I’ve gotten the message that FB punishes you for posting the same blog post twice, so I stopped reposting old blog posts there. Is that an old wives social media tale?
Shallow Reflections, i’ve not heard about FB punishing you for reposting the same blog twice, but from my experience that might be true. My FB page has been deleted twice as it was considered as “spam”. I don’t get it.
I don’t think it punishes you as much as it gives “weight” to content that gets engagement. If you keep sharing a post that sees no likes, comments, shares or click-through, I think the algorithm thinks it’s spam. Conversely, if you re-share a post that sees lots of engagement, it more than likely shares it better to your followers.
I actually don’t share my own stuff very much on the social media platforms anymore but I do others everyday. I break up the tasks throughout the day but it doesn’t take me more than half an hour. Making sure i post on google plus with keywords seems to help my organic search results and that’s why I do it more than direct and yes, a lot of people do hang out there. StumbleUpon is a great place to find content and share it to other platforms, so think of it that way. And Facebook likes posts that have a proven track record so if you are going to share old posts there, share the ones that have gotten engagement there and not the ones that have totally flopped. All you have to keep in mind when you are using social media, is to use it as much like a “regular” person and not a blogger and you will see better results.
This is so reassuring for bloggers who write about other aspects of blogging – I worry sometimes that I have to make my posts more suitable for the blogging tips topics in order for them to be seen
I know blogging seems like a really large niche to blog about but in reality, there are many niches that get a lot more activity and engagement outside of the blogger world. Once you tap into that, the pageviews are limitless.
Great post as always, Elena! I’m curious, how long did it take you to start seeing solid traffic from Pinterest? I’m using Tailwind and it’s helped, but I’m not getting a lot of traffic from it yet. Thanks for sharing!
I did see some immediate results but a solid good daily number of refers, I would say 6 months to a year. You have to keep tweaking your strategy, group boards, pins, and titles till you see what clicks with your audience.
thanks for the valuable info! I was wondering about bloggers that are doing well =their blogging content only! good to know other content is interesting and can do just as well ; )
As long as you are reaching your target audience, you will see traffic.
For some reason, I started letting Pinterest slip. Time to get back on the wagon.
It’s so easy to do. I let a lot of things slip over the summer.
I really hope it isn’t the case but it sure looks like it at times. Pinterest is something I struggle with and just can’t seem to master so I’ll be back to look at your pinterest course
It takes a bit to get your head around how Pinterest works. But when you do finally get it, the rewards are great.
I never really thought about this until I read this post. Good post Elena
Thanks Blondie!
This was one of the best articles I’ve read in a long time. I’ve been wondering if I need to write posts about blogging just to get views on my lifestyle site. Great advice thank you!
Thank you for reading!
A very timely post as I do not get many page views. I’m not sure how Pinterest could work but I definitely need to give it more attention. I am encouraged by the name of your post, Elena because sometimes it can be perceived that only posts about blogging do well. Thank you and it has certainly made me think. X
If you are not maximizing your Pinterest, you are definitely losing traffic! PM me if you have questions.
Very heartening to hear Elena. I have been blogging for five years and blogs about blogging offer nothing new to me. I generally avoid them now. However, my blog is very niche and I think that the interest in it is very small, therefore I expect fewer hits. But every now and then I write a blog that just clicks for a lot of people. Overall the trend is still rising. The reason for this, I believe, is that I have produced at least one blog every week for five years.
I shall spread this motivational post!
Thank you so much lovely! I know that many posts advise to blog less now but I believe at least once a week is crucial. I agree with you.
I cannot tell you how much I needed this. How did you come up with that particular strategy – I know that’s too long for a blog comment reply. Just wondering.
Send me a PM if you want to chat Cathy.
Love, Love, Love these tips! Thanks again 🙂
OK – I seriously need to FIGURE OUT PINTEREST!!!
Yes, you do! Let me know if you need any help.
I wish I could be as organized as you are. I am just a hopeless hot mess. Thank god, I don’t have to make a living out of blogging, I would have fun … but starving. 🙂 Funny how a while ago I was obsessed by stats and hits and views, which was the wrong approach. Now I don’t give a dime anymore, I have not even looked at the analytics for months anymore … as wrong I guess. LOL, I really should pay more attention to all this, it just bores me to death.
You have a very healthy attitude towards blogging. If you are happy not looking and it helps you focus on what your blog is about, then continue with your strategy. I read your blog and I am sure many others do too so you are doing lots right!
I don’t spend a lot of time on Pinterest, however, I need to check my analytics to see where most of my traffic is coming from and spend more time there. Great tips, thanks for sharing.
You are very welcome and you should definitely check out your analytics.
This is a kick in the pants. After a long slog with Pinterest it is now my top referrer. Best to get back to it.
Glad to see you are back at it. I missed you!
I like when you post “tips” for blogging because your results speak for themselves. If I have to read one more “How I reinvented the internet and got 20 billions views” blogging post or how to become an SEO ninja I’m going to puke!
The part that they leave off on that title you wrote is, “for one post, for one day and it was a total fluke and I am not really sure how that happened really.” Now that would be honestly. I am glad you like my posts and don’t lump me in the same category as the rest.
Posts on blogging always seem to perform well on link parties for some reason – I guess they are generic and appeal to all bloggers. I love that you are saying that you can perform well with any type of post if you write it well and promote it well. I need to work on Pinterest a bit more – I’m not all that engaged there from a blogging perspective, but it certainly seems to generate views for you!
You totally must up your Pinterest game! And yes, I do think that is why they do well at link parties. Sometimes it is hard, especially when not a midlife linky, to find something to share.
It is possible to get the numbers you do with excellent content (which you have) and targeted sharing. I found you last year via a Linky (MostlyBlogging?).
Thank you so much for sticking around!
Thanks for your interesting post. I need to examine all my posts and see which ones got the most hits. I also need to jack up my Pinterest account.
Yes, you should see what posts do best and do some extra promotion of those as well as maybe do a few posts expanding on the topic or maybe coming at it from a different angle. Definitely, do more Pinterest too.
Isn’t it funny how posts about blogging consistently perform better? I have that same experience! I chalk it up to blogging being a leisure activity that still fits within my niche! Whenever I post about blogging, it gets fab page views, reblogs, new followers, and performs the best at link parties. Keeping new readers interested is all about writing great content and posting consistently, like you say.
You have almost had the same journey! I am thrilled to have you in my circle!
A very informative post. Thank you for sharing. 🙂