A lot of you may be rather disinterested in blog commenting. After all, if you are looking to improve your site’s rankings in Google, there are better things that you could be doing. Moreover, for every blog comment you make, you probably only receive one or two direct visitors to your website from the link you leave.
So Why Bother?
I comment on many blogs. I spend a considerable amount of time doing it every week. And I don’t do it for search engine optimization purposes. Nor do I do it because I hope to achieve a heavy flow of traffic directly from the link. So why do I do it?
Because it is the easiest way of striking up a dialogue wih bloggers. Because I want to form relationships. I want to engage with people. If you have an internet marketing blog and I have commented on one or more of your articles (or have contacted you via other means), I am interested in what you have to say, I like your content, and I want to know you better. It is entirely genuine, and I have no ulterior motives.
Exposure To The Right People
When it comes to building authority sites, or really any online property that you want to hang your hat on (as opposed to straight ‘money’ sites such as affiliate and three page Adsense sites), the key to expanding your brand is exposure to the right people. Everything else follows behind that key factor – even Google rankings.
If you engage with the right people and show genuine interest in their content, they will likely reciprocate. And if they are relatively more than you in your niche, you can expect to benefit greatly from the resultant exposure.
A Recipe For Success
In conceptual terms, it is this simple – combine great content with great relationships. Consider the genuine relationship you may form with an A-list blogger over a period of a few months. In time, they will recognise that you produce great content, and will likely look to share it with their followers, without you ever even asking them to. All of a sudden, you may find yourself exposed to 10,000 newsletter readers. Those readers are loyal to the A-list blogger who is telling them that they should definitely check out your blog. This is a recipe for success that you simply cannot buy with backlinks.
Good things will come of those who aim to do nothing more than build positive relationships across the internet. I have an agenda when it comes to Leaving Work Behind – to form friendships with and help as many people as I possibly can. I do nothing in terms of search engine optimization. I do not focus on any ‘artificial’ means of building traffic (such as adding 1,000 people on Twitter in the hope that they will follow me back). My approach is what I would consider entirely organic.
A Caveat
Now I am not saying that you should take the exact same approach for your site. After all, I don’t for my niche site, Modeling For Kids. Whilst I have looked to establish relationships with modeling agencies and talent scouts to a small extent (and will look to do more so as the site’s authority grows), the majority of my efforts have been in search engine optimization. But that alone is not enough if you are looking to build a reputable brand. You need the right people to be aware of you, not just thousands of casual Google searchers.
If You Take Nothing Else From This Article…
I will leave you with what I consider to be a key piece of advice. Care less about increasing traffic – care more about nurturing relationships. The rest will follow.