We all want our blogs to get more attention in the markets we are involved in. I have covered plenty of paid and free ways one can go about promoting a blog. But wouldn’t it be nice if you could get others to promote your website for you for free? If you have written reviews on hot, new products or done killer interviews with experts in your industry, you know how to do this. The fact is, people are willing to link back to you if your post is about them or helps them in any way (in most cases). Here are 6 easy ways to get people to link back to your blog and promote it:

1. cover new startups: not all startups get the attention they deserve from top tech and startup blogs. By covering underrated startups on your website, you may get links back from them. They may even use your words to promote their products.
2. review products: not all product reviews will get your blog links and mentions from product makers. If you review products of a large company such as HP, chances are you won’t even register on their radar unless you have a large following online. However, reviewing exciting, new products by less known companies might do your blog wonders.
3. create mega lists of superstars in a niche: let’s face it. We all have egos and would love nothing but to be included in “top lists” by others. Creating lists on superstars in your niche market (or any other market for that matter) could lead to valuable incoming links from some of them.
4. interview people: killer interviews do go viral online from time to time. You should pick the people you interview carefully. Don’t just focus on heavy-hitters though. If you identify and interview upcoming superstars, you are golden.
5. link to others: want other authority sites in your niche market to link back to you? You can get the ball rolling by linking to them. You should do it for that purpose alone. But many bloggers do return link love you send their way.
6. modify other people’s work: this is a useful tactic among coders, designers, and pros in those types of fields. People are willing to link back to you if you take their open works and make amazing changes to them.

Getting others to link back to you and promote your blog for you does not have to be hugely complicated. It does require hard work and dedication. The above tactics should make the process more easier though.

[Image credit: mzacha @ Stock.xchng]

Credit: lsgc

My blogger friends often ask me what they can do to drive more traffic to their websites. Some are even interested about learning new ways to make money online. We all would love to make money from our efforts if possible. As they say, sometimes you have spend money to make money. Here are 5 ways you can spend money to bring more attention to your blog:

• invest in infographics: infographics can cost you from $500 to a couple thousands of dollars each. We have tried the cheap ones and the more expensive ones. I can tell you from experience that you usually get what you pay for. Spending a $1000 on an infographic may seem expensive to most bloggers. But infographics can drive a ton of links to your website (especially if you take time to promote them the right way).
• develop a native iPhone/Android app: having a high quality iPhone/iPad or Android app developed for your site will not be cheap. But it can give your blog more credibility and provide it with another traffic channel.
• hire content creation agencies: there are companies out there that promise to create videos and articles for you for $100 or so. Then there are some that actually develop high quality, unique content for a decent sum of money. If you do not have the time to expand your content marketing efforts by yourself, hiring someone to do it is not a bad idea. Just make sure you stay away from scammers.
• throw giveaways: not everyone is willing to spend a few thousands of dollars on giveaway prizes. Giveaways can bring your site more attention and get people to link to you. As the host, you get to choose the rules. You can ask people to link to you or post your banners on their sites to enter. The sky’s the limit.
• invest in tool development: hiring developers to make unique tools for your site won’t be cheap by any means. But unique tools will differentiate your blog from others in your market. They can also keep bringing your visitors back for more.

Spending thousands of dollars on giveaway prizes, infographics, and tools is not something every blogger is comfortable with. But don’t think of these as costs but rather investments in the future of your business.

Interacting with your readers and getting them involved will make your community more solid. The longer people stay on your website, the better off your blog will be. These 5 tactics can help you keep your readers interested for longer:

Add a forum: your bloggers don’t want to just listen to you talk all the time. They want to have a say in your community too. Most bloggers let their visitors comment on their posts. That is a good way to keep your visitors engaged but is limited in some ways. By adding a forum to your website, you can empower your visitors to take charge and bring their own topics of interest to your community.

Start a chat room: chat rooms let you and your visitors connect with one another and engage in lively discussions. Services such as Wibiya allow you to create Twitter and Facebook chat-rooms on your website. The sky’s the limit.

Encourage Q/A in your community: adding a Q/A section to your website gives your visitors yet another way to contribute to your community and get answers to their questions. Your Q/A section could get indexed by the search engines, leading to more free traffic for your website.

Recruit your visitors: I have seen this approach used on many top sites. If your community has been going for quite a while, you have probably had a chance to identify the top contributors on your website. There is no reason not to ask your top commenters to submit guest posts to your site or help you moderate it more effectively.

Start video/photo contests: these types of contests can be quite powerful and bring a lot of attention to your blog. Make sure you provide your visitors with a good incentive to participate in your contests. Putting up a couple of hot gadgets up for grabs is a good way to start.

We all want to provide our readers with as much value as possible. But boring them to death is the wrong way to do that. By throwing contests and getting your visitors more involved in your community, you can strengthen your business and grow it faster over the long run.

Credit: penywise

Most of us are passionate about our blogs and the topics we are covering on them. But passions won’t last forever. Some people do get tired of their blog and start neglecting them. Life changes can also affect bloggers. Neglecting your blog is not the best way to go though. If you have been blogging for a few years already but don’t have the time or drive to continue improving it, you may as well hand it over to someone who does. That’s when selling your blog may not be such a bad idea.

Many bloggers get too attached to their sites and don’t want to let go. Your blog is just another asset though. If you do not take time to add content to it and improve it, it is going to lose its value. Most people do not like selling their favorite blogs. But here are 6 signs you may be better off doing it:

1. Your passion is not there: passion can’t last forever. Sometimes people assume they love a topic but get tired of it after blogging about it for a year or two. People do change overtime as well. There is no reason to continue talking about a topic you are not excited about anymore. Instead of allowing your lack of passion to affect the quality of your posts, you are probably better off selling your site.
2. Unfavorable trends coming your way: not everyone chooses the right topic for their blog. Sometimes people get excited about certain products and industries that can’t possibly go forever. Let’s say you started a blog covering only netbooks a couple of years ago. Your blog is probably worth less these days with the netbook market dying. Had you sold your blog a year ago and focused on a different topic, you probably would have been better off.
3. You have new goals in life: people do change. I am not the person I used to be 10 years ago. There is a good chance you are not either. We change and our goals change with us (sometimes). If your blog does not fit your life goals anymore, why not sell it?
4. You can’t handle the load: we have sold a few blogs in the past few years. Some of those blogs covered topics that I was personally excited about. But we just did not have the resources or time to do those blogs justice. That’s why we decided to sell them to someone who could take them to the next level.
5. You are not the man/woman for the job: this is very hard to admit. When you start a blog about a topic, you most likely feel you are the right person for the job. The reality can set in quickly as you struggle to come up with new topics to cover on your site. Here is an example: a blogger may be interested in teaching people about ways to use Twitter and Facebook to grow their business. Not everyone can be a social media guru though. Some people realize that fact too late. There is no shame in turning your blog to someone who could do better work on it.
6. You have got an offer you couldn’t refuse: we did receive such an offer for one of our blogs. At the time, I was quite confident that our blog had much more potential. But the offer was quite remarkable. This is a very subjective matter. But everyone has a price.

I am personally not a fan of selling my blogs. Some people are in the business of flipping sites. Our company is in the business of publishing content. But if you can’t handle your blog anymore, you are better off selling it. Why let a valuable asset go to waste?

Blogging may sound a lot of fun to those who are working 9-5 shifts and can’t wait to become their own boss. As long as you are passionate about the topic you are planning to write about, you can overcome many obstacles. However, no matter how dedicated of a blogger you are, you will face moments of doubts in your career. Staying fully motivated all the time can be quite challenging for bloggers and writers. All bloggers need to change their routines and try new things on a frequent basis to keep their fire burning.

As someone who deals with an extreme form of sciatica, I have experienced many days in which I did not feel like writing my blog posts or tackling new projects (pain does that to you). Giving up is easy but it won’t get anyone anywhere. By adding some variety to your routine, you can keep your motivation sky high and work towards achieving your career goals faster. Here are just 5 ways bloggers can keep themselves motivated for longer:

• take a break: I use the Pomodoro technique to get more done each and everyday. I take many short breaks and some long breaks too. If you feel burned out, you can always take a vacation. A change of scenes can recharge your batteries and get you ready for new challenges coming your way. We all get 24 hours in our days. Research has shown that working more than a certain number of hours each day can make us less productive over long run. That’s why taking breaks matters.
• attend fun and networking events: this should go without saying. Every blogger needs to attend social and networking events from time to time to build new connections and meet up with old connections. You should not limit yourself just to blogging and industry events though. Try something completely unrelated to your niche once in a while. It can do wonders for you.
• read a book: reading books can relax your mind and make it sharper. It is also a good way to kill time. There are plenty of e-book readers around these days. I personally prefer using Kindle or paper books to tablets.
• go out of your comfort zone: many of us do not want to go out of our comfort zones unless we are forced to. Taking risks and trying new things could help you re-focus and find new ways to take your business to the next level. This depends on your comfort zone of course. For instance, if you have never covered an event in person, that’s one way to go out of your comfort zone.
• have side projects: I personally tackle many projects that are related to my blogging business. But I still have my hobbies and side projects that are completely unrelated to my day business. You don’t want blogging to kill your fun activities, do you?

Not everyone can stay motivated all the time. The above techniques have worked wonders for me though. What techniques do you use to stay motivated as a blogger?

[image credit: Stock xchng]

Credit: Stock.xchng

Most bloggers start their careers with shared hosting plans. Shared hosting plans are cheap and do the job for blogs in the early stages of the game. As soon as your blog starts getting a tiny bit of traffic, you’ll start realizing that your hosting plan may not be enough for you. Dedicated servers are expensive and can cost you a ton of money on a monthly basis. If you have enough revenue to cover the costs of those, then you may be able to justify going in that route. For most bloggers, a decent VPS hosting plan will do.

Not all VPS plans are created the same. Some companies are just more reliable than others. Before picking up a new host for your business, you want to do your research and find out more about the reputation and track-record of web hosts you are interested in working with. Choosing an expensive host for your blog would not necessarily guarantee 100% up-time or more speed for your websites. You can’t cut corners here.

Here are 4 advanced hosting plans that I have tested and found worth trying for bloggers:

Rackspace: brings the power of cloud to your business. No web host is perfect but Rackspace has an incredible track-record and is trusted by many businesses for its reliability of service.

VPS.net: the web server that we are switching to in the next few months. Our blog network has outgrown our previous web host. VPS.net offers us a lot of control and has a good reputation in the blogging world.

DreamHost: the first ever reliable host that I got to try a few years back. Our company has had our ups and downs with DreamHost. It is still a decent choice, considering the support that it offers.

Media Temple: Media Temple offers you a lot of bang for your buck. It is another virtual private server host with a decent track-record. Its plans are not that expensive. Good choice for small to medium size communities. I have not tested their dedicated server plans, so I can’t make a judgment on that.

Are you using a VPS service for your blog? Which company are you working with?

We have all been there before: being excited about a new project and ready to go but not knowing how to name our project. That happens to start-ups and small businesses all the time. What you don’t want to do is pick a name that does not feel right for your business only to have second thoughts about it after you have put a decent amount of effort branding your project. Changing the name of your blog after a few month may not seem like a big deal, but it could turn your readers off. Besides, it could affect your search engine rankings if you do move to a new domain.

Naming a blog is not going to be too easy. Almost all those obvious and cool names are taken. But as long as you are creative, there is no reason you can’t have a short, catchy name (and domain) for your blog. Choosing the right name for your blog may not seem like a big step forward, but it will come back to help you in the long run. Once your blog is popular, you’ll thank yourself for spending time to pick the right name for it.

If you are stuck and have no idea how to name your blog, here are a few things you want to keep in mind:

• Short names matter: I absolutely hate those blogs that have super long domain names. Nobody likes to write a sentence in their browser every-time they want to visit your website. Remembering those long domains can be tricky too. Then there is the social media factor. Those long domains eat up precious characters (you can always use a redirection service but it’s not the best option). How long is too long? If you are going beyond 12 characters or so, you may want to rethink your domain name.
• Pick a catchy name: have you ever wondered why some brands are easier to remember than others? The values they offer matter. Having a catchy name for your blog helps too.
• Get a brandable domain: every blogger should take time to brand his/her blog. If you want to be a full-time blogger and keep growing your business, you need to have a brand that distinguishes you from all copycat bloggers out there. People can copy your content but they can’t steal your brand. Having a domain that is easily brandable can really help you achieve your blogging goals faster.
• Own your domain: so you have come up with name “X” for your blog. Make sure you own X.com (and other variations). These domain tools can help you figure out whether your favorite name is up for grabs. You would not want to go with a name without owning the domain for it.
• Use name generators: I usually do not recommend this to new bloggers. But if you know what you are doing and can think long-term, there is no reason you can’t use name generators to come up with a unique name for your blog. At the very least, these tools can give you some ideas.
• Avoid keyword spamming: it is true that having the right keywords in your domain can help you dominate rankings much more easily. You will still have to build links to your blog and offer impeccable content to your visitors. But a keyword-rich domain name can give you a leg up over your competitors. With that said, you do not want to choose a name and domain that seems to be chosen for the search engines instead of your audience.
• Just do it: I can’t emphasize on this point enough. Wasting days and months just trying to come up with the “perfect” name for your venture is not a smart way to approach your business. If you want to make it in this business, you need to be thorough and agile at the same time. There is no perfect blog name out there. Once you realize that, you’ll get moving faster.

Picking a catchy, short name for a new blog may seem difficult on paper. You may have to spend some time figuring out the right name. But it will be worth it in the end. Just don’t forget your ultimate goal.

Many new bloggers struggle to get enough number of comments per each post. That is usually the case until your blog becomes somewhat popular. Once you start getting more than 30K visitors to your blog on a monthly basis, those comments start adding up. A lot of it does depend on the type of content you write and how you position each and every post on your blog. Some publishers consider the number of comments on their blog to be a success indicator. While that is partly true, there is much more to your comments than meets the eye. Smart bloggers use every little feedback and discussion to improve their blog and provide a better community for their visitors.

Many super bloggers use the comments they get on their blog to come up with new blogging ideas or learn new things. Sometimes, asking your visitors a thought provoking question can turn your post into a classic. If you have been ignoring your comments so far, here are 5 ways you can get the most out of them:

1. Use your visitors’ feedback to your advantage: this is a no brainer. A lot of people do not handle criticism well. That should not be the case for bloggers as long as the criticism they receive is constructive. There is a difference between a troll and someone who genuinely wants to help you improve your blog. So ask your visitors to give you feedback and do not get defensive when people question you or your articles.
2. Learn from what your readers are doing: your readers may or may not have their own blogs. But that does not mean they don’t have something unique to offer. There may be things they are doing that you can learn from. Listening is key here.
3. Come up with new ideas: I can’t tell you how many times I have gotten ideas for my future posts by going through some of the comments I get on my blogs. Sometimes people tell you exactly what they are looking for. Some other times, you will have to pay more attention. Either way, don’t forget to go through the comments you get on your blog to try to identify needs and wants of your community members.
4. Form relationships: all bloggers can use their websites to connect with others and network with other bloggers in their niche. That’s why all bloggers need to take time to participate in discussions on their blogs. You never know who you are going to meet through your blog. The more people you get to know on your site, the more doors will be opened for you.
5. Hire your readers: that’s right. What a better way to expand your community by hiring your readers to help you manage it. Sometimes, you get lucky and find someone who has a great post to share on your blog. A few top bloggers actually pay their readers to do some work for them. Going through your comments should give you an idea about who you may want to offer a job to.

The comments you get on your blog do matter. Not all of them are going to be useful to you. That does not mean you should not be listening or paying attention.

Credit: jaylopez

Almost all bloggers that I know have had trouble coming up with new ideas for their blogs from time to time. Newbies have to deal with this issue more than experienced bloggers. These days, there are just so many tools that one can use to come up with new blogging ideas. You just have to learn how to use them. Twitter is one of those tools. It’s a powerful social network that connects you to the world and gives you access to millions of people. Many bloggers use Twitter to drive traffic to their blogs and push products. There is nothing wrong with that. Don’t forget that there is a lot of value in listening to what others have to say on Twitter. It’s not hard to miss things when you are the one who’s doing all the talking.

If you are ready to listen to what others have to say on Twitter, here are 5 ways you can use this network to come up with new ideas for your blog:

• Track top stories with Topsy: lots of Twitter fans use Tweetmeme to find the top stories in Twitterville. I personally prefer Topsy. It’s a powerful Twitter search engine that lets you find out what’s trending and what people are talking about online. It even shows you who the influential players are. Great tool to gather information for your next blog post.
• Ask Questions: if you are too impatient, you can just ask questions on Twitter. There are tools that let you share polls and questions with the Twitter community. Just make sure your question is to the point and something worth answering (that goes without saying).
• Track keywords: tools such as tweetbeep to keep track of your favorite keywords on Twitter just like you would on Google using Google Alerts. You’d be surprised how many ideas you can get by looking at your Twitter alerts.
• Pay Attention to Trends: this is really a no-brainer. Keeping track of what’s trending on Twitter is a must for every blogger. It’s even more helpful if you are struggling to come up with an idea for your next post. twendz is one of many tools you can use for this purpose.
• Integrate Twitter into your blog: I have seen this done many time by top bloggers. Here is how it works. You ask a question, gather feedback, organize them all, and turn them into a post. Don’t forget to give credit to those who have contributed and add your unique take to it as well. We have all seen those “top blog posts for this week” type of stories. There is no reason you can’t do it for Twitter.

What are your suggestions? How do you use Twitter to come up with new blogging ideas?

When you search for a term on Google these days, you are going to see a variety of search filters on the left side of your screen. Here are just a few that bloggers will need to pay attention to:

• Blogs
• Books
• Images
• Videos
• Maps
• News
• Updates
• Discussions

What does it all mean for bloggers? It’s really simple. If you want to maximize your traffic, you need to show up under all the above filters. That means you will have to upload images, capture videos, upload your own books, become a news source, and much more. Here are 10 ways you can go about enhancing your presence on Google:

• Upload Your Videos: videos are the present and the future. If you are serious about pro blogging, you should have your very own channel on YouTube.
• Become a News Source: you do not necessarily have to break the news all the time. But as long as you have a multi-authored blog that is updated regularly, there is no reason not to add your blog to Google News.
• Optimize Your Images: you should take time to upload your images to get them ranked on Google. Don’t just use free images you can find online. Take some of your own, optimize them properly, and give them descriptive names.
• Add Your business: don’t forget to add your online business to Google and Google maps. You may not have a local business, but you can still use your headquarters address to get the job done.
• Enhance Your blog: pay attention to keyword phrases and terms that you target on your blog. Spending a little bit of time to optimize your posts for search engines never hurts.
• Upload Your Book: not all bloggers have their own books. Those of you who have blogged for long enough have probably some ideas on how to write your very own e-book. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Once you have written your book, you may want to upload it to Google to get some more traffic.
• Be Involved In Forums: not only you should add a forum to your blog (if you have the resources), you should also be involved in other people’s forums.
• Take Advantage of Google Products: if you sell products online (mostly for business bloggers), being listed on Google Products does not hurt.
• Blog Often: don’t slack off. Fresh content does matter. You may not be able to write for your blog everyday, but that does not mean you should only write one post a week. Do as much as you can handle without bringing down the quality of your posts.
• Become More Social: social media matters. I am not suggesting you should spam Twitter or Facebook. You do, however, need be involved in those communities.

These are just an overview of what all bloggers need to do to maximize their presence on Google. It’s much easier on the paper. Nobody said blogging was an easy job.