Blogging is often touted as one of the best ways to promote yourself and your brand, and there’s good reason for that claim. Blogging lets you put your ideas and expertise out there, and at the end of the day, content will always be better than an ad or sales pitch. The problem, however, comes when you’re churning out heaps of content and it’s falling on deaf ears, or even worse, falling on no ears at all. There are few things more depressing than being ignored, but the problem isn’t necessarily the content – it could simply be that you’re not presenting it in the right way!
People like to SEE things – in many cases, more than they like to read about them…
Let’s assume for the sake of this article that you’re already writing valuable, quality content that SHOULD be getting shared, but the views just aren’t there. “What else can I do?” you might ask. Well, there are plenty of little things you can do that can increase the chances of your content being shared. Here are just a few:
1. Proofread
Bad first impressions are always hard to overcome, and this is especially true on the internet. Like it or not, people will always pick out the smallest errors and use them to write you off as a source of information. Even worse, these “grammar Nazis” won’t hesitate to leave a comment pointing out your mistake to everyone – even readers who may have never noticed otherwise. Your best bet is to have at least one other person look over your posts before they go live.
2. Include Visual Aids
Let’s face it – walls of text are boring. There’s a reason why funny pictures are so widely shared on Facebook and Twitter, and there’s a reason why Instagram and Pinterest are so popular. People like to SEE things – in many cases, more than they like to read about them. A relevant picture, a funny topical cartoon, or a well-made infographic are just some of the visual aids that can inspire people to share your content with their friends.
3. Give It A Great Title
If your title doesn’t grab a reader’s attention, you won’t have to worry about any other tips, because no one will ever make it to the page. In the age of instant gratification and attention spans measured in seconds, a great, catchy title is a must-have if you want your posts to be shared.
4. Make It Shareable
Ok, so you’ve grabbed the reader’s attention with a catchy title, engaged them with a well-written article with a great infographic perfect for throwing up on Facebook – now what? Your reader gets to the end of the page and… nothing! No like button, no share button, no “tweet this” button, no call to action of any kind. If you hadn’t guessed from my tone so far, that’s not a good thing.
You have to keep in mind that you already crafted your title specifically to grab those five-second-attention-span people, and now you want them to copy your URL, open a new tab, go to Facebook, paste in your link and then comment on it? That’s not going to happen! The best way to encourage sharing is to make it easy, so make sure all your social media bases are covered by adding links to the bottom of your posts.
5. Ask!
Post everything you do on your own social media profiles – be proud of your work and let people know it! And then, don’t be afraid to ask friends and family to pass it on!
So we are asking – Please Share!
