Blogging Tips

Another great way to promote your blog is to become a member of BlogCatalog. Not only is it a social community for bloggers, they are also one of the largest blog directories on the internet. If you want to search blogs, connect with other bloggers like yourself, learn about blogging, and promote your blog, then you really need to check out BlogCatalog.

BlogCatalog has an extensive blog directory where you can find thousands of blogs in over one-hundred topics. They also have a blog discussion area where you can discuss topics like current events, or ask for help with your blogging questions. Another great BlogCatalog feature is the blog groups where you can join different topic groups that interest you.

As with any social networking site, you need to create a profile, and add friends. Once you have your profile all setup and have added your blog to their directory, you can send Broadcasts to all of your friends each time you have a new post, or you can send a Weekly Digest Broadcast that includes all your recent posts. These will be displayed in your friends’ Dashboards, and also are emailed to them, so remember to make your subject line something that will grab their attention, not just New Blog Post.

Using the Discussion section on BlogCatalog by searching for topics that relate to your blog, and answering questions with links back to your blog articles is also a great way to promote your blog. This not only will build your network of friends, but will increase your traffic to your blog, and possibly gain some new readership.

Using the Groups section on BlogCatalog you can find all types of bloggers with the same interest as you, including groups based solely on blog promotion. If you search comment exchange you will find pages and pages of groups that are set up to exchange comments on blogs. Find the one that best fits your blog niche and post your URL to become a part of the exchange. But remember, you have to participate by commenting on the other blogs also for this to work.

One of my favorite features of BlogCatalog is the widgets that you can put on your blog. I use the Recent Viewers Widget that shows who is visiting your blog. If they are signed in to BlogCatalog and visit your blog, their avatar picture will show up on your widget with a direct link to their BlogCatalog profile. I like to watch my visitors and add them as a friend if I see them on my blog. They also have a Discussions Widget, My Communities Widget, News Feed Widget, and the new 360 Search Widget, so there is a widget for whatever type of social connections you’d like to add on your blog.

So get to creating your profile, adding friends, and connecting with other bloggers that share the same interest as you. Join in on a discussion, and participate in a group to expand your blog readership. As always, if you’d like to connect with me on BlogCatalog my profile is here.