How to Get More Traffic to Your Blog and Keep It There

By Jeff Goins Blogging

It happens to the best of us. At some point, each blogger faces the same issue. It's the bane of our existence. We've set up our blog, crafted our message, and now we ask: How do we get more traffic?

How to Get More Traffic to Your Blog and Keep It There

The blog traffic jam. We've all experienced it at some point. That sudden halt of visitors to your site that has you wondering, “What did I do wrong?” It may happen at the beginning, middle, or end of a blog's life, but it's inevitable.

If you're just getting started or have been blogging for a while, you've faced this nemesis. And you've asked yourself,

How do I get out of this? How do I get more traffic to my site?

To help answer that question, I came up with a simple list. But before that, let's talk about motives…

Why do you want more traffic?

So, you have a blog, but want more traffic?

First, check your motives: Is it help people, be a resource, and make a difference? Or to make you famous?

If the latter, quit blogging now. If you're blogging for self-serving reasons, then that may be the real inhibitor to your blog's growth. Because here's the truth:

People want you to talk about them, not you.

It's okay to write about personal experiences and share what you've learned from a first-hand perspective, but be careful of making yourself into some kind of blog rock star. Instead, aim to be a resource and help to others.

The irony is that if you do that, you'll end up becoming a star.

So if you want more traffic to your blog, don't focus on the traffic. Focus on the people.

23 tips for getting more traffic to your site

Here are some ideas for how to get more traffic to your blog (click the links for more helpful resources).

  1. Leave thoughtful comments on other people's blogs.
  2. Write shorter posts.
  3. Blog consistently.
  4. Write less.
  5. Be a resource.
  6. Use trackbacks.
  7. Organize your posts with lists and subheads.
  8. Get on Twitter. Tweet links to your posts and other useful content.
  9. Link out to other sites (but only ones that will help people).
  10. Share your content on Facebook (and ask your friends to share it, too).
  11. Write stuff people will want to link to.
  12. Ask questions.
  13. Be funny.
  14. Be clever.
  15. Be remarkable.
  16. Request a link from someone else to a blog post.
  17. Do some public speaking.
  18. Write attractive headlines.
  19. Optimize your site for search engines.
  20. Deliver killer content.
  21. Guest post on someone else's blog.
  22. Write in the second person (“you” not “me”).
  23. Tell stories.

Any serious blogger will eventually hit a plateau and need some help extending her platform beyond its initial reach.

This happens to all of us. And there's nothing wrong with asking the question: “How can I get more traffic?” (Just make sure that your motive is to help and not merely to make you famous.)

We all get stuck some times. This is where using a “jump starter” like this list may come in handy. (Thanks to Seth Godin for inspiring this post with his own list of tips for how to get traffic for your blog.)

If you want more help on building a blog, check out my free training on launching a blog and monetizing it.

What tips would you offer for getting more traffic to your blog? Share in the comments.

505 thoughts on “How to Get More Traffic to Your Blog and Keep It There”

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  34. Thanks, for so much good information. I can sure use it. I’m on HubPages and not the best writer. I’ve been told by someone,”enjoying your “nonprofessional” hubs.” Thanks again.

  37. 1. Leave Thoughtful Comments on other peoples blog

    And I scroll down the page and I see people linking back to their websites with comments like “awesome blog post”

    Anyways I found this blog by doing a google search for how to get more traffic to my blog and this came up. I have now bookmarked and added this post to my reading list so that I may come back to it and implement what you shared here.

    Thanks for writing a detailed blog post and list.

    -Isaiah Jackson

  45. Now, I will restart my awesome blogging journey by giving you a very thoughtful comment 🙂

    This article will be of great help for my future blogging endeavors. Thanks!
    -Mark Vincent

  46. Thank you kindly. I have done several of these steps to increase my traffic and it has worked. But I am getting the bulk of my traffic from Facebook. These other ideas are most pleasing to my brain. Of course it would be apropos for me to holler about my own blog here. I am an aspiring writer and historian. I am 26 and a neophyte blogger. But check it out kids http://billymoney.blogspot.com

  47. Great list, I believe it will help me in my new blog (townsclick.blogspot.com). I’ve also subscribed to your newsletter. Also, I love your simplified writing style.

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  57. Hello jeff as i am not new to blog recently i have made my blog healthnote.org can you tell what is wrong in my blog.

  62. A lot of great suggestions. Thank you. I will definitely be saving this page to reference later.

  64. I must admit it all makes a lot of sense – I have not done any outreach of any sort; I have just been praying for a miracle, hoping that people would stumble on moneyhero.com.hk – a financial blog, but no luck :(.
    Thank you so much for your insight!

  66. Nice post. Very useful – might have to start doing all of this stuff… I’m just starting out and am looking to get my traffic up 🙂
    I so far have just been hoping people would stumble upon
    http://www.midnightdawn13.wordpress.com
    Maybe you could check it out? Hint hint xD

  67. I like especially the sentence “write less”. I come across so many blogs with endless posts which might be great for search engines (if even), but are actually terrible to read 😉

  68. Hello! I’m a new blogger and these tips are great! Come check it out cantdescribeit.wordpress.com

  71. I’m really inspired by your tips on how to increase blog traffic. I hope I can up the traffic in my own site by following your tips. 🙂 weliveandlove.com

  72. That’s a useful blog post. I’m pretty new to this area and these tips are real useful! I’m not going to blog again until the 1st october since my main thing is hip hop beats but i’d love to give more for those who are doing business with me. Giving them tips and tricks some useful info for the producers as well! Check http://www.thisisphami.com for the best beats online!

  79. Good post. I especially like the part about making the post about the readers and not yourself. I also needed to hear the part about using “you” instead of me. Great blog. Keep up the good work.
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  83. Wow 23 tips … I wonder if you have any more? But yes all great and useful tips I will be considering as I write posts and utilise my social media platforms.

  84. There are a hell of a lot of things listed here to drive traffic and followers to your blog, which we are all very capable of doing. However the hardest part is actually in the doing. Which is what i love because it sets all the hard working bloggers apart from the ones that try and eventually quit, Cheers for the 23 tips

  94. You know what ? I liked the fact that you named the tips in a really straight forward way. Usually, people tend to write so much about one point that they just do the opposite of helping. Good job!

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