7 Ways For New Bloggers to Reach Their Audience and Build Readership

There are many good reasons to start a blog, especially as a writer. With a blog, it’s possible, over time, to connect with your audience and build your readership. This could lead to anything from having one of your posts picked up for publication to simply forming a supportive community around your writing. If you’re looking for a place to start, follow these seven tips:

1. Create or find a niche

Don’t try to cover too wide of a subject area with your blog. It’s best to narrow the subject area down as far as you can. It will give you more focus when choosing content and will even affect the design for the blog. You want your readers to know what to expect, and being the resource for something particular will help you build that readership faster.

2. Have an editorial calendar

Use a calendar, spreadsheet, or some other method you like and plan your blog post topics as far out as possible. This will make it much easier on you and allow you to take a more strategic approach to your writing, giving you a bird’s eye view.

3. Put your readers first

When you put your blog readers first, it means you are not blogging to sell books or market your writing. That will happen organically if you continue to write with your readers in mind. You can still write about what you want within your niche, but stay true to your fans.

4. Design readable blog posts

Readable means that you don’t drone on for 1,000 word paragraphs. Break up your text with shorter paragraphs, and even use sub headings when possible to make your post scannable. Bullet lists help with readability, and adding images to posts can help increase the appeal as well.

5. Track your blogging success

Make sure you can track how many followers you have. One of the best ways to do this is to set up a mailing list that followers can subscribe to. Another way is to use Google Analytics to determine how many visitors you are getting. And, simply by engaging with your audience through the comments section and social media you will also get valuable insight into your readership.

6. Plan your posts ahead of time

Yes, you have your editorial calendar to guide you on a macro level, but it’s also helpful to plan your posts before you start writing to the extent possible. Try outlining your topic and then fill in the blanks. This can also help create the framework for a more readable post, as your outline can easy translate in to sections and subtitles.

7. Develop a blog post promotion plan

This is where you can start to dabble in social media marketing. Tweet about your new post, and post on Facebook and encourage others to share as well. Make sure you have social media buttons on your blog. The more consistent and systematic you are with sharing and promoting, the more success you will have.

Blogging alone isn't going to do you much good if you aren't putting your content out there. Though not the same as marketing your book, you need to distribute your content in order to build readership.

As you’re getting started blogging, following these seven simple tips will help you get your feet wet. These are fundamentals on which you can build as you get more experience. With perseverance, you will become a natural blogger and attract all the readers you deserve!