Today we have a guest post from Justice Wordlaw IV, the creator of Generation-Y Rants. He is also an internet marketer and a huge fan of all Apple products.
3 Ways to Build a Community While Sleeping
Community is all you hear about nowadays online, but no one ever tells you how to do it or why you should do it. Yeah, you don’t want to be considered the blogger that spams, but why should you build a community? If you are looking to start bringing in revenue with your blog, or start receiving more freelance positions, or public speaking gigs then a community is something you need to start focusing on right now.
I think I started to understand the value of community growth while I was developing my personal blog and how I was not receiving any views, nor comments which is very depressing when you’re a blogger. If you look at any successful company or blog they have a very loyal community that is always around and willing to purchase or read anything that they come out with. Now, that did not happen overnight and it wasn’t free either. Building a strong community takes a lot of attention and focus on your brand and long hours and a good team of people around you for support.
But, for me I am all about systems and automation to help me along the way since most of the people that read these blog posts are small companies under ten employees or solo entrepreneurs that aren’t making a lot of money. There has been three main strategies that I have been using that have assisted me with building a very strong and growing community that I am going to share with you.
Well, before we get into that let me state that if you have an existing community now, or you’re looking to build one that you really understand your vision, mission, and purpose of your brand. What are you trying to offer? How will you be different? What kind of funds are you willing to invest? Are you ready for sacrifice? Answer those questions as you think about building a community in your sleep.
Triberr
Triberr is a platform that you can be a part of that sends out your blog posts to direct tribes that you are within on Twitter. This is a great way to start expanding your readership so people can read your blog posts and see what you are all about. I started using this platform earlier this year and within thirty days my readers increased double and my community grew very fast. I started getting more requests for guest blogging positions and speaking positions. If you place yourself with the right tribe you are going to open yourself up to an endless amount of blogging opportunities. Now, this is an invite online platform so someone is going to have to invite you within to start out. If you are interested in joining let me know I am always looking for great bloggers to add to my tribe.
Guest Blogging
Most people never understand the importance of guest blogging and how this is a vital step in building a strong community. When your first starting out no one knows who you are or what you’re about. Also, when you are a distinguished blogger you still need to make sure you are placing a stamp within your niche so people know who you are, so guest blogging is something that you should have within your blogging business plan. Also, if you don’t have a blogging business plan create one! What I advise you to do is search the internet for twenty blogs that contain the keywords that you are trying to rank for and guest blog on those sites. Write up two to three posts per week and submit them to those sites. You should be trying to get exposure coming in from every angle.
If people are seeing you blog on multiple sites in your field, then they are going to see you as an expert and want to start following you and be a part of your community.
Facebook Ads
You’re not going to always be there to market your blog so you need some platform to help you do it for you. This past quarter for the first time ever Facebook Ads surpassed Google Adwords for pay per click campaigns. That tells you more people are on Facebook which means more people for your brand. I suggest that you run two campaigns directing them to your blog and your blogs fan page so that you can build a solid brand and get some more attention. The reason you want to run two or more ads and not just one is because you want to expose your brand as much as possible so people can see who you are. Also, you want to test out which ad performs better, so that you invest more money in that ad so that you get more clicks, views, and a better community.
Building your community is not going to be something that will happen overnight. It is going to take money, time, and sacrifice. But, it can be done while you’re asleep which I love. Try setting these things in place during the day so that your hardest work is done while you’re sleeping so that you have time ONLY for engaging and closing deals. It took me awhile to understand the value of a community and how it really does matter for building a loyal community.
How did you begin building your community? Were there any tools that you used to help you? Do you feel that building a community is important for being successful online?
Thank you for guest blogging on your site and sharing my ideas and thoughts on this issue.
It was a pleasure! Thank you for having me!