You're there. You've identified what you want to do with your blog. You carefully stay focused. You've identified your target audience and you're blogging with purpose. You've found the right blogging voice. You're putting yourself in your readers' shoes and blogging for them and their needs.

But?

No one is reading your blog posts. Well, hardly anyone, it seems. Those posts you've toiled over for so long are lying there dormant. Unloved, even. You're getting discouraged. How can you solve people's problems when these same people aren't even reading your posts?

Yeah. That is a problem. After all, unless a person's blog is private, everyone somewhere who owns a public blog somewhere down deep inside wants someone to read what they have blogged about. It's not vanity or ego [although it very well could be]. It's the other half of writing publicly.

And it's especially important for you ~ Cousin Hunters, Genealogical Societies, and Professional Genealogists ~ who are blogging. You have an agenda. Not a bad one, mind you, but you're blogging with purpose.

And, oh yeah, you want it to happen, like, yesterday.

I got this.

Here are 3 ways to increase traffic to your genealogy blog:

• Make sure your blog is listed on Geneabloggers.com, which was founded by Thomas MacEntee. It's been around for a while. It has great Search Engine Optimization [SEO ~ something we'll talk about later]. Just know that this means when someone searches for the term genealogy bloggers on Google, Geneabloggers.com is on the first page of the search results. And if you've listed your blog for FREE with Thomas' site, then it's categorized several ways where [And this? This is the important part.] people can find you.
• Get into the blog readers or email inboxes [for those who subscribe by email] of bloggers who have weekly "Top Blog" lists. No, I'm not saying to craft your blog posts so that they end up on the list. That should happen organically. What I am saying, or asking rather, is, "Are they even reading your blog?" You can write the most fantastic post about whatever, but if you're not on their "To Read" list, then you're missing out on the chance of one of your blog posts being spotlighted by a genealogy blogger with more readers. You know, readers who might actually have a need for what you're blogging about. And, again, let me stress that this should happen organically. Don't hound bloggers to read your blog. That's so easy. Be different. [And more genuine.] Comment on their blog posts with sincerity. Meet up with them on an online social network. And just be you. Some bloggers who have spotlight lists to consider: Randy Seaver with Genea-Musings, Lynn Palermo with The Armchair Genealogist, and Lisa Frank with 1 Ancestry 2 Little Time. [There are more. I challenge you to find them.]
• There is no better way to say this next suggestion. Create better blog post titles. When one writes with purpose, one usually knows where one is going in said writing. And this definitely applies to you. You are blogging with purpose. Write your title first. Be clear. Concise. Don't be vague. Tell them what you're going to give them, and then deliver it. Don't be too cutesy. [And I've been known to be too cutesy with my blog post titles.] People are busy. They need help with whatever genealogy problem they have ~ be it finding cousins, finding a genealogical society that can provide assistance with their research, or a professional genealogist who can help them solve a tough research problem on the other side of the world. There are times to break this rule, but we'll talk about that later. For now, stay focused and create better blog post titles. [And, yes, I followed my own advice on this blog post title.]

Now, please take notice. I'm not promising you'll get more readers. I am promising that if you do nothing else but the 3 suggestions I listed above, you will increase your traffic to your genealogy blog, and then a percentage will fall in love with your blog post title and feel compelled to stay for a while and read. And then a certain percentage will come back. It's like the state lottery's slogan, "You can't win if you don't play." Your blog won't grow in readership if you don't ever strategically expose new people to your blog.

Further, there are many more ways to increase traffic to your genealogy blog. What do you do or suggest others to do to increase traffic? Let me and everyone else know in comments below. Please. [I want comments. I love them, in fact.]

~Caroline

The Concept ~ It's Not About You Anymore
Content is King! This is an oft heard phrase in the blogging world, but what does it mean? And more importantly, what does it mean for you?

Well, simply put it means that you can have the best looking blog header, the most pleasing color combinations on your blog, all the latest and greatest widgets, RSS, and subscription sign-ups in the world, but if what you are writing about in posts is not relevant to your readers, then you might as well not even have a blog that is meant for others to read.

Harsh words, I know, but it's true. Let me ask you a question. How many times have you landed on a blog, and stopped reading after the first paragraph because it wasn't helping you out with the problem that caused you to start searching for help on blogs in the first place?

You are no longer blogging for yourself. You are blogging with purpose, and this type of blogging requires you to write like you are the reader. It's no longer what you feel like blogging about, but what your readers need to read. It's what they are needing help with.

How do I know this? Because 41.67% of you indicated in the poll in my sidebar you were interested in learning more about blog content (posts). And if I had to guess (which I do because I didn't ask about content particulars), I bet you want to know how to come up with topics to write about. I'm also going to guess some of you want to know how to write the content as well. [And I really didn't want to talk about content today, but I'm here for you.;)]

We'll work on the second one another time. However, the topics? That's easy. Take yourself and your needs out of the equation. Write like you are the reader. What does your reader need help with?

The Breakdown
Cousin Hunters
Your readers want to know if you are related to them and how. Therefore when blogging about a particular person in your tree, be explicit as to how this person relates to you and make sure you mention this relationship more than once. Also, be sure to have a surname page or post that not only mentions surnames from your tree, but at the very least the migration of this surname. 'Smith from Iowa' is not helpful. Remember: It's not about you any more, it's about your readers, which are hopefully potential cousins who will contact you.

Genealogical Societies
Your readers are either members or potential members. Your current members and potential members do not want to navigate to a site that hasn't been updated since 2001. Make sure your site is fresh with even fresher blog posts. Relevant blog topics include: upcoming events, how to join, special projects, collections in your library, education, field trips, and just about any aspect about your society that you can think of. You are selling your society with each and every blog post. What makes you different than all the rest? Why should your readers join your society? What are the benefits to them? You'll notice that some of these topics are covered on other parts of your blog. That's okay. Some things need to be covered multiple times. They are that important.

Professional Genealogists
Your readers are either clients or potential clients. You need to make a list of all the details of your specialty (specialties). Then you need to take each one and break them down into bite-sized teachable steps. If you know all there is to know about Johnson County, IL because you've done quite a bit of research there, then let your readers know this by creatively presenting an easy-to-understand blog post (or 2 if you need to break it up). Don't just tell them one of your geographic research specialties is Johnson Co, IL because you have 25 years experience performing research there for multiple clients. Save that for your bio. Show them what you can do there with an example in your blog post. However, don't forget that many of your potential clients do not know the first thing about researching so do not make it jargon-heavy. With a click of a button they can be gone like that. *snaps fingers*

The TakeAway
Make sure you keep in mind your purpose with your blog and tailor your posts for that purpose. While content is king, if the subjects cannot understand what the king is saying, then the king becomes irrelevant. Long live the king.

~Caroline

BTW, specifically, what would you like more help with in regards to blog post content? Topics, structure, keywords, etc. We're going to cover everything, but I'd like to cover what you want to know about right now. Cuz it's all about you.

Concept ~ The Right Blogging Voice
Yes, I know what you're thinking, "Blogs don't have voices. They can't talk for goodness sakes."

Oh, but they do. Blogs can have such beautiful voices that they make you think you've died and gone to heaven. Or they can make you feel like you're in hell. From word choice to punctuation, blogs can speak.

My Dad used to have me edit his writing back in the day. I'd take my red pen and mark it up. Then I'd ask him, "Dad, why did you make all these mistakes? You know better."

My Dad looked at me and replied, "Caroline, I write like I speak. It's who I am."

And in looking back at when I was so strict about my grammar and writing, I realized that my Dad really wasn't making grammar mistakes at all. He was writing with his voice. My Dad was a compelling speaker. He was one of those who commanded a room, and when speaking, everyone listened carefully. Additionally, he was a terrific oral storyteller carefully commanding his audience and orchestrating the suspense with each word and pause.

And that's how he wrote.

And how I write now is definitely not how I wrote back then, at least for certain audiences. You see, your voice in blogging is tied to your audience. We've already established you want to take your blogging to the next level so you're not reading this blog because you are only blogging for yourself. With your blog, you are talking to your audience. This mindset affects your word choice, your punctuation, and, in fact, all of your grammar.

This is a difficult concept for most, at least it was for me, because in school we're only taught one way to write usually ~ formally. However, we don't [or at least I don't] speak formally all of the time. There is a time and place for formal writing and for informal writing. They both can be extremely powerful when used in the right situation.

Which one is the right one to use for your blog? I don't know. I'm a Texan. Hardly a phrase comes out of my mouth that doesn't have a contraction. And I tend to start many phrases with 'and' and 'but'. One thing is for sure, if you read my blogs, you don't have to meet me in person at a conference to know what my voice sounds like. But that's because I predetermined who I was going to talk to with my voice, and how I was going to write so that you could hear my voice through my writing. You see, I wanted to talk to you so I used the words in my writing in the way that I would use them if we had met in person. I may be wrong, but there aren't too many people walking around and speaking formally with one another.

The Breakdown
Cousin Hunters ~ This category is easy. If you were to meet a newly-found cousin for lunch, would you speak to them conversationally or would you speak to them formally? Which one do you think they would respond to better? My money is on 'conversationally'. When blogging, you want to not only snag a potential cousin's attention, but you want them to contact you. So don't bore them with how smart you are. They're going to think you're smart already because you have a blog with photos and stories about some potential common ancestors. You've already caught their attention. So don't scare them away with formality. [And if you need someone to say it out loud, here you go: "You can break the grammar rules on your blog if you want! You're free!]

Genealogical Societies ~ This category is a little trickier. You don't want your members and potential members to think you don't know proper grammar. I mean, you want any and all people to join your society who want to, and that includes those who are sticklers for grammar as well as those who, um, like to break the rules a bit. A good gauge might be how your members talk in an in-person meeting. I live in southeast Texas. I've not been to a society meeting where someone spoke formally. And this is why a blogging voice for a genealogical society can be tricky. You will need to find that middle ground. Opting for all formality will scare away potential members, especially young ones. My advice? Remind yourself who you are talking to when blogging. How would you speak to a member or a potential member in person?

Professional Genealogists ~ You have formal writing down to an art form. After all, it's what you do for a living. And it's very important that your reports are formal. If you were to meet your potential client in person [and maybe you do], would you [do you] speak in the same formal voice that you write your reports in? I know. You're in a tight spot just as genealogical societies are. You want to make a good impression, but you don't want to scare away potential clients with a formal voice in blogging. My advice? Pretend you have just walked in to your local Chamber of Commerce [Remember those?] for the monthly breakfast meeting, and you're there to network ~ to meet potential clients as well as to meet other business people. [After all, you never know when you might need a helping hand from a fellow business person.] What voice would you use when speaking with them knowing you'd like to be their genealogist if and when they need one?

The Takeaway
Don't just find your blogging voice. Find the right blogging voice that will help you attain your blogging goals.

~Caroline

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