How to Increase Blog Traffic to Your Site

In order to drive traffic to your site, you have to drive traffic to somebody else’s site.

Don’t! How many blog followers can you get per hour? How many page views do you get per day? If you divided the answer by the number of hours it took you to get those coveted statistics, would you be pleased? Odds are, you wouldn’t.

Trying to get new blog followers is like a job. How much is your time worth?

Who is a famous author? Stephen King? John Grisham? J.K. Rowling? (I am a huge Harry Potter fan.) Their currency is money. I heard at one time Rowling was richer than the queen, so I know they make boat loads of money for each hour they spend writing.

What is your currency? Blog followers? Page views? This post is about how to make your statistics high enough that it is worth the time that you spend on your blog.

I’m sure whatever you are doing to drive traffic to your blog is working for you and actually driving traffic to your blog. I even bet I could learn a lot of good ideas from many of you.

I am not judging anyone. I am simply sharing common sense that I heard, and I heard it from blogging guru Jon Morrow who is considered an authority in this field.

According to Jon, the way to drive traffic to your site, is NOT to drive traffic to your site.

To quote a song from the stage version of the musical Beauty and the Beast, “unbelievable, inconceivable,” right? Wrong. Jon’s advice actually makes perfect sense.

According to Morrow, the way to drive traffic to your site… is to drive traffic to somebody else’s site. In other words–guest post. My experiences in the time I’ve been blogging prove that to be true.

If you’ve read my About Me page, you know that I have been a guest blogger five times. I guest blogged for Jason Cushman’s Harsh Reality site. There were many benefits from that experience. First, I got new followers. Next, my writing was reblogged by his followers which also led to my getting new followers. At the time, Jason had thousands of followers. In other words, I had thousands of new eyes on my blog. I got many new followers overnight on the weekend that I wrote for him.

The benefits of guest blogging is that you expose your writing to additional eyes. You expand your blog’s reach. However, there is a caveat. The person you guest post for has to have significantly more followers than you do or you will not get the return on your investment. Your investment is your time.

All my guest blogging experiences have paid off in increased traffic and new followers. Once again, the numbers increased in direct relation to the numbers of followers the person who hosted me had. If you look for guest blogging opportunities, and I recommend you do in order to increase blog traffic, make sure the blog you write for has that criteria.

I have two more guest blogging opportunities scheduled in the next month. I am beyond excited by the possibilities.

Readers, what are your experiences with guest blogging? Do your experiences support the research? I look forward to your views.

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DreamAchieveEnjoy

Great thought – makes sense..! Let me give it a try..!

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- Janice Wald
  
  Let me know how the guest posting goes. Thanks for writing.
  Janice
  
  Reply
john doe

Where are you guest blogging

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Sara_CBB

I did a lot of guest blogging in 2013. IT was a blog tour. 1 post a week for 15 weeks. I’m still benefiting from that investment. Danny Iny is another great blogger to follow. He is the “Freddy Kroeger” of guest blogging. LOL
fyi a friend just shared a resource she put together filled with places that accept guests. Here’s the link: http://loraleehutton.com/dev/resource-guides/guest-posts-resource-guide/

Reply
- Janice Wald
  
  Hi Sara,
  Thank you SO MUCH for the tip about Danny Iny. I will pursue guest blogging for him. I also bookmarked the link you sent me and will pursue that as well. I loved the paid guest posts part!
  What a resource you have been! Thank you,
  Janice
  
  Reply
- Janice Wald
  
  PS What’s a blog tour? I’ve heard others use that term but I don’t know what it is.
  
  Reply
- lnoelonline
  
  Wow, there’s always something to learn. Thanks, Sara for highlighting areas I should pursue.
  
  Reply
annieo518

I haven’t done much guest blogging yet; this is something that I’m definitely interested in but just haven’t had the time to pursue yet. Obviously, it’s something I need to make time for though! Thanks for the tip.

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- Janice Wald
  
  I should probably write a post on where to find guest posting opportunities. Thanks for the idea and for writing me!
  Janice
  
  Reply
Brandi Clevinger

That is how I increased my followers bit by bit – guest blogging. I get to connect with other bloggers as well as gain new readers.

Reply
- Janice Wald
  
  Hi Brandi,
  I feel you have become a friend. Our Linky party has enabled me to get to know you better, and for that I’m grateful.
  Regarding Pineterest: How many times can I put the same pin on different Pinterest boards daily without being accused of Spam?
  How many times can I put different pins on Pinterest in the same day without being accused of SPAM?
  I thought perhaps you could guest blog for me on the value of Pinterest.
  Thanks for answering my questions and for all the help you’ve given.
  Janice
  
  Reply
Lauren

I completely agree! I always have a jump in traffic when I guest blog. One on my blogging resolutions for 2015 is to guest blog AT LEAST once a month. It’s a great way to get new followers.

Reply
- Janice Wald
  
  Where do you find guest blogging opportunities with enough followers to make it worth your time?
  Janice
  
  Reply
Savvy

A blogger I follow that seems to be making it got her name out there by guest blogging. For awhile she seemed to be everywhere. She has a great writing voice which I think helps too. I’ve written about 5 guest posts. Each has helped a bit. Writing thought provoking comments on other blogs helps too.

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- Janice Wald
  
  Hi, I heard “writing thought provoking comments,” helps; however, that is one that hasn’t gotten me very far. Only once did someone follow me to my site. I heard putting links in is “spammy” but it’s okay to have a “forum signature”, so I sign my name, site, and URL, but people only click “like” to my thought provoking comments; they don’t follow me back. Is there a reason you can think of? Thanks,
  Janice
  
  Reply
morningmotivatedmom

I have been thinking about this. You may have inspired me to get moving! Thanks for the tip.

Reply
- Janice Wald
  
  Thanks for writing and the kind words. Where do you find guest posting opportunities? I am always looking for new ideas. Thanks.
  Janice
  
  Reply
Carolann

That makes total sense for sure. I think I will work harder on that this year for sure. Thanks much for sharing!

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- Janice Wald
  
  I plan on finding more guest posting opportunities for myself as well. The only place I know to look is on the Internet. Where do you look for guest posting opportunities?
  
  Reply
onetipsychick

This is an interesting thought. When I think of guest blogging, one thing always comes to mind. Do I use my best idea or save it for my own blog? I guess it would depend on whether the blog you wrote for promotes you. I’ve had a friend guest post and the owner of the blog didn’t do much promoting, therefore, there wasn’t much of a ROI. Still, I’m sure that with the right blog, it could be a really beneficial experience.

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- Janice Wald
  
  Interesting. I heard the ROI is the direct result of how many followers the host has. This makes sense. It’s the shot gun effect. The more readers they have, the greater the chance that there will be a percentage that follows you to your site. Thanks for writing.
  Janice
  
  Reply
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Tiffani K

I don’t think I am at the stage of guest posting yet. How do you guest post when you are just starting out blogging?

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- Janice Wald
  
  Hi Tiffani,
  Thanks for writing this week.
  I’m trying to understand your question. Is it “how do you guest post when you are new?” or is it “how do you find guest posting opportunities when you are new?”
  As far as the second question, I actually answered it in a blog post. I explained in detail how to find guest posting opportunities. Here is the link http://wp.me/p5jxvv-rz
  As far as your first question, writing on someone else’s site is just like writing on your site. There is no difference. The advantage is that more people will see it than are currently seeing your writing. In this way, you can grow your following.
  I hope I helped. Did I answer your question?
  
  Reply
  - Tiffani K
    
    It was actually the second..how to find guest posting spots when you are new. Off to read your blog post!Thanks for the link!!!
    
    Reply
Janice Wald

Hi,
How to find guest posting spots when you are new?
1. Get to know blog writers who write about your topic. They might let you guest post.
2. Google your niche + posts and see if they have guest bloggers on them.
Thanks for writing me this week.
Janice

Reply
Keisha

This has inspired me to make finding guest blogging opportunities more of a priority. Thanks!

Reply
- Janice Wald
  
  I am always happy to help. Thank you for the follow! Welcome!
  
  Reply
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