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Where do you find all your followers for your Blog?
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Nic
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May 13, 2012 12:26PM
Hey guys, I was just wondering, Where do you find your dedicated Book blog Followers? Yes yes.. I know, there's tons of places you could find followers. But let's put aside all that "i'll follow you if you follow me" Because I don't want 1000 followers in which 20 read my blog weekly. So i'm a fresh book blogger at http://www.bookmark-reviews.blogspot.ca/ with 5 followers, which I consider them "dedicated followers." So I ask you this.. Where do you find all your Dedicated Blog followers?
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Usually your best bet is to comment on other blogs. Some people will click on your name and follow you if they like what they see.
Hmmm... let me think about this one. I do have a blog, but I only blog when I have something to say, so can I answer this from the POV of a blog follower? I follow about 5 blogs. I've originally come across them via links posted on Twitter. If something has an interesting title, I'll have a look. If it captures my imagination enough for me to read the whole thing, then I'll remember the name. If I then come across another article by the same person, and like that, too, then I'll probably follow the blog. So I suppose my answer is, make the titles of the posts interesting, don't make them too long, and post the articles on Twitter.
Thanks, i'm guessing it's a good way to go by. Although it seems like a tremendously long proceedure :)
..... and, make sure you're following (& hopefully thus getting followed back by) the people who are likely to want to read them. In other words, not 400 people who list their interests as football and mountaineering
Nic wrote: "Thanks, i'm guessing it's a good way to go by. Although it seems like a tremendously long proceedure :)"Nothing in the writing world is immediate - it takes time to build up a following. But the more you put your stuff out there, the more people will read it. I agree with what Michael said. One of the blogs I follow, I discovered through a comment they'd left on someone elses. Just keep posting links - and keep interacting. if you read someone's stuff and comment on it, they're more likely to have a look at yours, too.
Firstly, add as many 'follow' options as you can - I follow most of my favourite blogs by RSS, so I can sit down every day with my Google Reader and comment on any posts that are interesting/relevant to me. Email is a good option but I'll be honest and say I don't read most of the emails I get from blog subscriptions as they clog up my inbox.Use Twitter! Follow bloggers and readers, interact with them as much as possible and they'll become regular followers as they get to know you more as a person rather than just a blogger :)
Comment, comment, comment then comment again. People will start to remember you and comment back on your blog, but only if you make it easy to follow.
Quite honestly I think dedicated book blogs (if you mean a specific book - or even of you mean a blog only dedicated to books and book reviews) are not likely to get many followers however hard you try. And when you do get followers they will probably be other writers more interested in getting their books plugged rather than readers/buyers.It is far better to have a personal blog or a writing blog or a combination of both. Where you can place general articles and let people get to know who you are and develop a relationship with you over the years.
A blog that is solid writing/book oriented - unless you have amazing credentials and backing from other influential literary sites - is likely to be very hard work to keep drawing readers.
My own blogs range from daily visitor numbers between 1 (on my dedicated book blog) to over 6,000 on one of my blogs once (my funny poetry blog) and the reason I get large numbers of visitors when I do is down to regular posting. Good tags on my posts so search engines can find them easily, and plenty of content so people turn up after finding you on a search for one thing and then start browsing to see what else you have.
Now and then popping a link onto twitter and facebook helps too. I agree commenting on other people's blogs helps as well. But to get large numbers it is important to be found on search engines. You can't comment on thousands of people's blogs to get reciprocal traffic - there isn't enough time in the day.
Building a presence online takes time. But if you enjoy what you are doing - you won't notice it so much. If you enjoy doing your blog - people will enjoy it with you.
......Just thought of a better bit of advice for you! Find a book by an Indie author that you like. Preferably one with about 3000 Twitter followers. Tell them you are going to review their book. When it's written, let them see it. They will tweet the link to all their followers. Hey presto, loads of people are now aware of your blog!
@Michelle Hey thanks for the set of advice, I guess your right! Although blogging is an enjoyable thing for me, but if readers read and like what I do is of even greater joy! @Terry Hey thanks, never thought about that idea! I will be sure to make myself a twitter real soon. I'm waiting for a friend to make an original image for me to post on my facebook fanpage goodreads blog etc so I can be have an image that goes with what I do. Thanks for all the interesting advice!
Or you could write a review of one of Terry's books - she has over 1,000 followers and one of my books - I have 2,382 at the moment and that might get you some visibility :)One tip - if you agree to review poetry you will get many followers as most reviewers avoid it like the plague so poetry readers and writers don't have much of a choice.
I have a modest 34 followers on my blog, but I know probably half of them are dedicated to reading my posts. But I mainly blog about writing and provide tips and motivation, drawing from my own experience as a newly published writer embarking on writing his second novel. I think it does take time to build a following, I average about one new follower for each post I make. Just be relevant, truthful to your topic, and make the blog visible by updating on forums and Facebook and twitter.Good luck!
Michele wrote: "Or you could write a review of one of Terry's books - she has over 1,000 followers and one of my books - I have 2,382 at the moment and that might get you some visibility :)One tip - if you agre..."
I see, so it's kind of like competition vs demand :) Well I don't have much of a sharp eye for poetry so I think i'll stick with what I enjoy best. Also i'm wondering what does it take for a small reviewer like me to aquire novels before the release date, by this I mean popular books. On a scale of 1-100 what are my chances and would there be any specific ways to going about in doing this?
David wrote: "I have a modest 34 followers on my blog, but I know probably half of them are dedicated to reading my posts. But I mainly blog about writing and provide tips and motivation, drawing from my own exp..."Thanks David, I beleive the key is to be honest and just go along with what you enjoy. Could you link me your blog so Ican check it out. I always like to open my circles and see different things. Thanks
Michele wrote: "Or you could write a review of one of Terry's books - she has over 1,000 followers and one of my books - I have 2,382 at the moment and that might get you some visibility :)One tip - if you agre..."
Michelle - yes yes, review us, ha ha! Nice one! Good point about the poetry. :)
Hi Nic,I find my followers on Twitter, Goodreads and by blogging, oh and leaving comments. Also my blog posts are so varied that they can attract a wide range of different followers. It's great to attract readers if you can. I write for children, but my blog posts are not all about my kid's books as I'm also an animal lover, so my last post was about Cruelty to Animals.
I mainly find followers on Twitter and I use RSS feed and also leave an option for folks to receive my updates via email. I prefer to read other blogs from my email and check them out if they're interesting, so definitely have that option on your blog. I sometimes do author interviews, but try not to do too many together. Give the readers a surprise. I also do book Giveaways and add what I'm working on. It's not always my children's books.
I'm a klutz, so when I comment on other blogs, I sometimes post something weird that happened to me. Like once when I entered a competition on a bloog, I accidently sent the wrong story.
I panicked and then posted on that blog: Could you please delete my entry and let me post again? When I clicked send, my mouth dropped and my face must have looked like I'd seen a monster. I've sent the wrong story. Can I have another go and send the right one, please?
I hadn't planned it, but that day I received a lot of hits to my blog. Plus new followers. LOL.
However, twitter is the way to go, plus it's fun and you make many friends. I've sold many books to twitter friends and now have them as fans. Plus they sometimes join Goodreads too. Twitter away, you'll love it. Good luck!
http://trish-mollygumnut.blogspot.com...
Patricia wrote: "Hi Nic,I find my followers on Twitter, Goodreads and by blogging, oh and leaving comments. Also my blog posts are so varied that they can attract a wide range of different followers. It's great t..."
Thanks for that awesome reply Patricia, I'm wondering. As I have not done any personal twittering before, where would I find any twitter friends interested in my work. Is it like facebook, if so I'd have to advertise my twitter page a lot on my blog, which wouldn't help me if I didn't have many followers off the bat? Anyways Thanks everyone for their greatly appreciated advice!
Nic, dedicated followers are the goal of most book bloggers. I have found that the key is to have constructive reviews, and post regularly (but not just memes).Regarding ARCs (advanced reader copies) Netgalley.com is the best site. Most big publishers use it, and several smaller ones too. All the ARC are ebook copies.
Sarah wrote: "Nic, dedicated followers are the goal of most book bloggers. I have found that the key is to have constructive reviews, and post regularly (but not just memes).Regarding ARCs (advanced reader cop..."
Hello Sarah, Indeed I think dedicated follwers are the most important. As for the site, I thank you a lot. That's exactly what i'm looking for! I'll take a look at it tommorow. Thanks
