Getting Blogs to sell - Stuff I learnt from Godin!

How to get traffic for your blog

My friend Fred, a talented blogger, asked me for advice the other day. Here's a partial answer, with a few apologies to Swift: (and when you're done with this list, feel free to read my post about shark attacks).

1. Use lists.
2. Be topical... write posts that need to be read right now.
3. Learn enough to become the expert in your field.
4. Break news.
5. Be timeless... write posts that will be readable in a year.
6. Be among the first with a great blog on your topic, then encourage others to blog on the same topic.
7. Share your expertise generously so people recognize it and depend on you.
8. Announce news.
9. Write short, pithy posts.
10. Encourage your readers to help you manipulate the technorati top blog list.
11. Don't write about your cat, your boyfriend or your kids.
12. Write long, definitive posts.
13. Write about your kids.
14. Be snarky. Write nearly libelous things about fellow bloggers, daring them to respond (with links back to you) on their blog.
15. Be sycophantic. Share linklove and expect some back.
16. Include polls, meters and other eye candy.
17. Tag your posts. Use del.ico.us.
18. Coin a term or two.
19. Do email interviews with the well-known.
20. Answer your email.
21. Use photos. Salacious ones are best.
22. Be anonymous.
23. Encourage your readers to digg your posts. (and to use furl and reddit). Do it with every post.
24. Post your photos on flickr.
25. Encourage your readers to subscribe by RSS.
26. Start at the beginning and take your readers through a months-long education.
27. Include comments so your blog becomes a virtual water cooler that feeds itself.
28. Assume that every day is the beginning, because you always have new readers.
29. Highlight your best posts on your Squidoo lens.
30. Point to useful but little-known resources.
31. Write about stuff that appeals to the majority of current blog readers--like gadgets and web 2.0.
32. Write about Google.
33. Have relevant ads that are even better than your content.
34. Write posts that each include dozens of trackbacks to dozens of blog posts so that people will notice you.
35. Keep tweaking your template to make it include every conceivable bell or whistle.
36. Write about blogging.
37. Digest the good ideas of other people, all day, every day.
38. Invent a whole new kind of art or interaction.
39. Post on weekdays, because there are more readers.
40. Post on weekdays, because there are more readers.
41. Write about a never-ending parade of different topics so you don't bore your readers.
42. Post on weekends, because there are fewer new posts.
43. Don't interrupt your writing with a lot of links.
44. Dress your blog (fonts and design) as well as you would dress yourself for a meeting with a stranger.
45. Edit yourself. Ruthlessly.
46. Don't promote yourself and your business or your books or your projects at the expense of the reader's attention.
47. Be patient
48. Give credit to those that inspired, it makes your writing more useful.
49. Ping technorati. Or have someone smarter than me tell you how to do it automatically.
50. Write in English.
51. Better, write in Chinese.
52. Write about obscure stuff that appeals to an obsessed minority.
53. Don't be boring.
54. Write stuff that people want to read and share.

Starting a blog can be a huge improvement to any website or online business. While technical websites and detailed, professionally written web content is great for some customers, a blog is a place where ALL people can come together around a business. It doesn’t matter what your business is, because anyone can benefit from blog marketing.

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How can you build your reputation if you will remain anonymous?

IMO, its not a good idea. Seem like your spamming your own blog.

Its very contradicting. I think its better to post at any time is the right word.

Why Chinese writing is better, as if i know English is the "universal language" in the world how other people from different parts of the world understand your post if you concentrate writing in Chinese? I am very much confuse in your advise. How effective is that if i will follow what you have said?

I can only talk about the last point - more people know chinese than English....

Josh

Nice list, I'll implement some of the advice.

:xeek: I can't believe your saying that.

This is right more than 70% people understand English they can't read the Chinese language.

Some interesting points there, although some of its a bit too generic.

Guys....appreciate the effort......atleast he did added all those in one list..as a reminder...i admire his owrk......go go dear...8)

I think that more of the population can speak and read English than Chinese.

Now i'm confused, Should i be writing my post in English or better in Chinese?? how peculiar! may half of it is in English and the other half is Chinese! lol