Like pretty much everything else on the internet, blogging is meant to share things, whether it’s information, opinions, products or passions. A good blogging platform like WordPress provides various options that cater to every level of social connectivity that a user may desire. Whether you’re talking about loose interactions with people who care about what you care about, or fully fledged social networking sites, WordPress has it all.
However, newcomers to the world of blogging may find it difficult to understand where to begin. There are spaces of the web with interesting information and content that never get visited simply because their distributor doesn’t know how to maintain a network. Here is a stepwise description of the various things you can do to ensure your blog sparks the formation network of like-minded people around you.
1. Utilize your Reader well: The page you look at when you log-in to your WordPress account is called the Reader. On it is usually a list of good blogs arranged category-wise under ‘Recommends’. Peruse the ones that are related to the content on your blog, and pick up cues from them about your target audience. Use your statistics to do the same.
2. Connect with People you know: WordPress needs your permission to connect with your other accounts and collect a list of blogs maintained by your contacts from those accounts. Your friends will be more inclined to want to support your efforts. Commenting and regularly viewing each other’s’ blogs is an excellent way of attracting mutual friends who may be more interested in your content than their friends’. This leads eventually to a domino effect, with more and more people looking into your blog.
3. Integrate Your Accounts: There are a range of options to connect your blog to Facebook and Twitter and use these accounts to popularize your blog. Many blogs have Facebook comment and Like options that you can install which spread news of your blog on these social networking giants.
4. Allow Success to Rub Off on You: When you’re established and have a small base of regular readers, go to the successful blogs in your area of interest. If you followed step 1, you would know enough about them to comment well on their posts. Your fan-base probably reads the same major blogs you do, and their support will get you noticed. If you’re lucky you could establish major contacts, perhaps connect your blog to theirs using an RSS feed, and grow.
5. Social Networking Site: If you’re seriously thinking about connecting people together, turn your blog into a social networking site. Plug-ins like BuddyPress and WPSymposium do this very effectively. You can control what features your network will need and what they want. This is an excellent way of connecting a niche interest group, for example lovers of British Folk Music, using the interest you already kindled in your blog.
