It’s Annabel Candy’s last day with us on The SITS Girls. Today is she highlighting the importance of social sharing and offering some quick tips to make sure that you have all of your bases covered. You can find tips like these in her Successful Blogging in 12 Simple Steps eBook. Be sure you click over and check it out! She’s offering our readers a 35% discount off the normal price using the code, 35off.
Your most important blog readers are those you’ve already got. Make sure your blog makes it easy for them to subscribe and share your content with other people.
Offer a few different social sharing options:
- Email subscribe
- RSS Feed subscribe
- Twitter share
- Facebook share including like and share
- Any other social networks that might be popular for your target audience, such as Pinterest, Stumble, or Instagram.
Social Sharing Checklist
Wondering if you are covering all of your bases when it comes to the world of social sharing? Scan through this list of tips and see what gaps you might need to close.
- Make it easy for your readers to share your blog posts by adding social share buttons like Twitter, Like on Facebook or share on Facebook.
- Don’t bamboozle your readers by giving them too many options. Some readers may be familiar with Digg, StumbleUpon or Delicious, but if you think your target audience has probably never heard of them, then cut out the unnecessary buttons and just give them the options they are familiar with.
- Check to ensure that all your subscription options and social share buttons actually work. Try them yourself. I’ve consulted with people specifically because their RSS subscriptions were low only to find that it was because their link was leading the wrong place.
- Make sure your subscription box is above the fold where people can see it without scrolling down.
- For email subscriptions, create an incentive for people to sign up, such as a free ebook or email series that focuses on your best or most popular blog posts.
Good luck!
More From the Successful Blogging Series
- Blog Design: How to Be the Best Blog You Can
- Blog Format Counts! Learn How to Get It Right
- Social Sharing: Are You Giving Readers What They Need?
Get 35% Off the Successful Blogging Ebook Now!
If you’re a blogger, then you know how much information there is about blogging out there and how hard it is to get started. The whole process is overwhelming and confusing, which is why Annabel wanted to make it easier. To help people set up or relaunch a blog that will help them reach their goals and get the results they want, Annabel wrote Successful Blogging in 12 Simple Steps. It’s main goal is to help other small business owners and writers tap into the power of blogging. If you’d like to check out the book and receive 35% off the cover price, then simply use the code, 35off, here.
About Annabel Candy
Annabel Candy is a copywriter, web designer and teacher with an MA in Design for Interactive Media and 16 years experience in online marketing. She set up her first blog Get In the Hot Spot in 2009 and has written for Zen Habits, Copyblogger and Problogger. Annabel shares her blogging tips at Successful Blogging and writes travel stories and personal writing at Get In the Hot Spot.
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Twitter: denisedesigns
says:
Good suggestions here
I agree, there’s no need to add every social bookmarking button. Make it easy and simple… less options.
Denise recently posted..How Are You Weird?
Less is more! I think that applies to the social media buttons. Too many can be a bad thing. :-/
Hope Easter recently posted..Day 14. Do I Really Need That?(w/video)
I agree with your sentiments. I wanted to add to the importance of checking out your buttons once they are installed. It may not only use the wrong link, it may have poor formatting.
I used to use dlvr it to post to LinkdedIn automatically for posts. I stopped. You can’t use the option of a link share, and the formatting looks terrible as a plain status update. I’m using IFFT.com now to post to LI. This does have the link share ability and they look good.
One of the social networks were this can become a big hassle is Facebook. People make whole careers out of properly formatting Facebook sharing. Two tips:
1. Make sure you have a featured image for all your posts.
2. Use the Facebook Share Me Button http://www.fbshare.me/
Posts always look nice and it is easy for people to comment on them. It even has an option for a default share text, but I would advise against it.
Susan Silver recently posted..Word of Mouth Marketing for Dummies
Hi Susan, that’s a great addition, thanks. I see a lot of blogs where people have changed their Twitter handle but still link to the old one (a dead link) from their blog. Not good.
Annabel Candy, Get In the Hot Spot recently posted..Why Reverse Culture Shock is Squat On
Simplicity is key. Our lives are complicated enough without needing 8 buttons for Digg, Delicious, etc.
Kennedi Rose at Face and Fitness recently posted..Fitness Friday: The Side Plank
Twitter: anoptimisticmom
says:
Great info. I have actually been trying to think about removing some of my share buttons. This helps me.
Optimistic Mom recently posted..You don’t check your breast? Are you Serious?
Thanks for the great tips!
Hugs,
Susan and Bentley
Susan Freeman recently posted..Faded Pinks
I like the email subscription bonus! I’ll have to work on that! Thank you!
Emily recently posted..The Meeting With the School
Twitter: soaringonwings
says:
Good Stuff
Happy friday everyone!
Sarah B recently posted..Continued Disappointment Part 2
Twitter: Redhedprincess
says:
I love pinterest and Socialfollow.com has a fret button u can customize which is simple…
Just signed up for Pinterest. Works so well for creative and visual bloggers. I need to play with it more:)
Annabel Candy, Get In the Hot Spot recently posted..Why Reverse Culture Shock is Squat On
What great tips, especially the one about checking to see if they work. So many don’t.
Ah, we will miss you . . . great practical post.
Fondly,
Glenda
Glenda Childers recently posted..Mounds Bars. 31 days of Christmas Wonder (day 14)
Hi Glenda, well, you don’t have to miss me. I’ll still be checking in here and I’d love to see you at Successful blogging.com or on Twitter @bloggingmentor where I share blogging tips:)
Annabel Candy, Get In the Hot Spot recently posted..Why Reverse Culture Shock is Squat On
Great tips. Thanks for sharing.
Leigh Powell Hines (@Hinessightblog) recently posted..So, What Do I Do All Day?
Thanks for the great tips! Need to implement some of these myself!
semi-crunchy momma recently posted..Sesame Street Live #giveaway
Twitter: ScoopsofJoy
says:
Thank you for this! Going to spruce up my blog now
Maureen | Tatter Scoops recently posted..Blog Envy
Twitter: cheekypinktulip
says:
All very good suggestions! Thanks for sharing!
Maria xx
http://www.cheekypinktulip.blogspot.com
Maria @ Cheeky Pink Tulip recently posted..Yum Yum: Putanesca Pasta
You know, Annabel Candy you always teach me something… off to see if those links actually work!!! Would never ever have thought to check… Never!!! So glad to see you signed up for Pinterest… Thanks for the great series!!!
se7en recently posted..Se7en Spot the Difference Between Home and Lesotho…
Awesome ideas, I have a few of them going, but just don’t have the time yet to incorporate EVERYTHING.
Floors Of Gold recently posted..The Place Card
Love the “don’t bamboozle” recommendation! Clean and simple seems to fit some blogs more than others. But your checklist helps balance the challenges. Thank you for the reminders. Debra
Debra recently posted..In praise of avocados and Juvenile Diabetes Research