I’ve had a few emails this week, after technorati.com ranked this blog inside the world’s top 10 small business blogs for the first time.
Whilst this ranking will go up and down all the time, to have actually reached that spot is quite an achievement, for a marketing blog that’s little over a year old.
People wrote to me wanting to know how I did it, so here’s my secret!
I write exclusively for people – NOT Google!
Ask any top marketing writer (or copy writer) and they will tell you that it’s a challenge to produce material, which inspires people to take action, to; buy from you, visit you, call you, share your work, click links or email you etc. That’s because people are complex.
As a marketer, people need to find your message both interesting and motivating and that’s no easy task – Especially if you are simultaneously trying to write that same message so that Google’s search engine software likes it!
So, here’s my secret sauce for a top 10 blog
This blog is read by people, enjoyed by people and designed to help people. If I get enough genuinely useful content onto this blog, people will share my work and people will link to this blog, allowing me to reach more people. By repeating that process, people have increased the profile of this blog and it’s readership.
Notice a common thread there?
Yep – it’s all about writing for people!
I love SEO – But I write exclusively for YOU
I don’t try and get certain keywords or phrases into my posts, to score highly with search engines. If I did, it would change the way I write and dilute the effectiveness of what I share with you. As a result, 100% of what you read here is written exclusively for people.
I love SEO. It’s one of the reasons I use the Headway WordPress theme on this blog (affiliate), which is extremely SEO friendly. I also use tags for my posts to help with my SEO too. However, I do not deliberately write anything to keep Google happy.
Ironically, by writing exclusively for people, I have attracted around 16,000 links to this blog, which has gifted me a pretty good search engine ranking for many key marketing terms. For instance, people going to Google searching for marketing blogs will have been able to find this blog on page 1 for the search term; “marketing blogs” for the past 6 months.
In my experience, many bloggers spend way too much time ‘optimizing’ their material for search engines and looking for that one killer trick that will magically send their website / blog to the top of the pile.
While they are waiting for that quick fix, you and I can focus on delivering the best content we can, to people.
Thank YOU!
I would like to personally thank EVERYONE who reads this blog, links to it and shares it with their friends. As you can see, without your support, this blog is nothing.
Firstly, congratulations on a remarkable achievement, Jim. It’s a tribute to your hard work and consistent dedication.
The main focus of your post highlights something dear to my own heart. My main interests are design and business inspiration and you have summed up in a nutshell what many people forget: everything we do is about people first and last. If we ignore that, we cannot hope to be successful.
You’re right: there’s no quick fix for that. just hard work and consistent dedication.
Thanks Ash. You’re right, people are looking for the quick fix and they should be looking for the right fix / answer.
B-I-G congrats on the technorati rank. I see blogs below you that have been doing it for years. You write differently than any marketing blogger I read with more practical value and less story telling.
Kudos Mr Connelly X
Yeah Debbi – those other guys are awful
Thanks for the kind words.
You’re also willing to change your layout and design, something others are afraid to do.
You’re correct Ari. Many marketing guys online seem to think that if they alter their blogs in any way, their readers will be too stupid to realise what’s happened and run away!
The only way to improve is to test/measure new elements of your marketing.
Thanks for the comment.
I agree completely. If the web has one failing (and it has many more than one) it is SEO – the ned to have to write in a certain, unnatural, premeditated way in order just to appear high up on a list somewhere. It kills natural flow and makes so many things – articles, job posts, blogs etc. totally contrived.
Imagine if the great authors had had to write to such a formula. The world would have been deprived of so much great literature. The least we can do therefore when writing a blog is to do it from the heart, not the text book or manual.
Great point Alasdair! I love this part from your comment “Imagine if the great authors had had to write to such a formula.” Makes a valid, powerful point.
Thanks Jim. I write advertising copy, specifically related to recruitment, so careers, and you know what? Even when I write thast I pay less heed to SEO and more to how I would sell the job to someone if I were talking face to face with them in a bar. The key words come out naturally anyway during the course of my piece and I don’t have to get stressed about whether I have put stuff in the right order. What’s more, my advertising copy works as it sells rather than just tells. Plus, when writing blogs, I like to intrigue and challenge. Ask a question of the reader, rather than just state my opinion. After all, they are just our own thoughts. They are not set in stone and should be debated I feel.
You make a good point! The primary benefit for me of having a blog, is to share ideas.
Websites were all about broadcasting.
Blogs are all about communicating and sharing.
In my experience, the best blogs are those that encourage ideas and debate – rather than those that just state ‘facts’ to the reader.
Thanks for the comment.
People like interacting with people! While I do have some blogs specifically targeted to SEO traffic, my main blog (which I just started) is purely for the people. Let’s hope I can get just a small percentage of your success!
Hi Tom. If you can hold back from writing “keyword specific” copy, I think your main blog stands a great chance sir.
The time can’t come soon enough when more bloggers realize that it’s the voice of the blog that counts, not the whiz-bang tricks that the voice owner might know.
Congrats on the placement, Jim, much deserved – next stop #1 on Adage Power 150?
Hi Danny. Thanks for the kind words. You can tell from a mile away that you write for people, it’s why people like me love reading and sharing your work.
Congratulations Jim and thanks for always making me feel like I’m part of your community and keepin it real… much appreciated – YOU ROCK
You know what Mark? You were one of my first blog readers and one of my first contacts on Twitter. The fact you have stuck around this long means a lot to me. Either that, or we are both nuts
Thanks Mark!
Jim I love this.
It inspires me to keep on adding value, helping people, supporting people – rather than having my eyes fixed on numbers etc.
Even with this post, there is a hidden message. This isn’t how to ‘get to AdAge or Technorati’ – this is ‘why you should blog in the first place’
Love it.
Absolutely Scott!
If you do the things that engage people, the other stuff comes.
Many blogs focus on the other stuff first, and never reach the people.
Blogging’s about people. Focus on people. <—- 6 words that sum up the entire post.
Jim, it truly shows you write for people and offer as much help as you can, which is why I enjoy your blog and plan on telling you more this year.
I will do my best for you Anna. Thanks for the kindness of your comment.
Too funny.
Can’t recall how I got here, but I do recall reading one article and thinking “I never heard of this Jim Connolly but this is a good article” so I subscribed.
Now I read my second article… congratulations!
Oh Dave – Now I have to come up with something to get you reading a 3rd time – The pressure’s on….
Thanks for your kind words sir!
Hello Jim,
Long time reader, First time poster.
Firstly congratulation. I feel proud to read a blog that “writes exclusively for YOU”. Keep up the good work.
Regards, Dave
Hello David – thanks for taking time to post your first comment.
I hope to see you around here a bit more often now sir!!
(I will be checking…..)
Hi Jim
I love your blog and the fact that you are HONEST. You write from your heart and soul and that makes the difference. You are not merely seeking out numbers, but people who actually want to listen (and learn).
Thanks for the kind words Shaa!
Mr. Conolly:
I stumbled into your blog a few months ago. After a quick Google search for marketing blogs, this one caught my attention.
Why?
It is obvious to the first time visitor, that you write out from:
1. Experience.
2. Real interest for assisting others.
3. The heart.
That right there is a killer USP (Unique Selling Proposition).
Would I rather read a column from some famous guy in Forbes or TWSJ?
No. I want to read material from someone whom I can relate to.
Keep going, and don’t look back.
Thanks PR. Looks like I’m going to lose you when I get famous though.
Problem is, you are already famous.
I always read pieces that tout the BEST… well for a change… I like the truth. TRUTH: The opinion of 1 person is far more saleable than an SEO friendly script. I will take 10 word of mouth referrals that might just say something is okay over 1000 SEO driven page views. There is something realy powerful in the response of people. To write for people is a good thing. Keep on doing it the way you do
… for the people.
Great point Talib:
“I will take 10 word of mouth referrals that might just say something is okay over 1000 SEO driven page views.”
There’s real value there.
Congratulations Jim. I am sure you will see your blog climbing the ranks further in 2010.
Nicky
Thanks Nicky!
Good post Jim. I also use Headway on my graphic design blog. As far as SEO goes it is probably one of the best because like you said the theme can do powerful SEO in the background, letting your content be free from “google friendly” lingo. Readers come to read what you have to say, not what web spiders like to see.
Hi Jim. Great post and you make your point very well. Writing in your own style for people is exactly what we should all be doing in our blogs. It should represent who the writer is (warts and all
) as well as solid, well considered content.
Cheers
Barney
Barney Austen´s last blog ..Run your Football Club Like a Sales Team
Amazing! It’s so great to hear your refreshing point of view. I’m relatively new to blogging (just have a few on my website), and was worried that my writing style might not be “blog worthy”. But I decided that I needed to be true to myself, and to anyone who might read what I write. I agree, it’s about people…not status. I love the comment made previously: “Imagine if the great authors had had to write to such a formula.“ Excellent point.
Cheers,
Jen
It’s great that you put people first when you blog… You are doing a great job.. Thank You