How do I push traffic to my blog?
December 11, 2010 4:23 PM Subscribe
How do I drive traffic to my value investing blog?
I have set up a value investing blog. I'm doing it because I think it is fun but my ultimate goal really is to get noticed by potential employers. My dream job would be to work on the buy-side for a value-oriented hedge fund.
My goal is to make my posts as intelligent and in-depth as possible, so I only plan to post once every week or two. My first post generated <200 hits after linking to it from a Yahoo message board as well as another, slightly larger blog. With posting as infrequently as I will, I think it will be tough to get sustainable traffic unless people subscribe to might site via RSS.
So what can I do to generate sustainable traffic to my blog and "get noticed"? Also, if any of you know of any really good value investing blogs, please suggest them so that I can reach out.
I have set up a value investing blog. I'm doing it because I think it is fun but my ultimate goal really is to get noticed by potential employers. My dream job would be to work on the buy-side for a value-oriented hedge fund.
My goal is to make my posts as intelligent and in-depth as possible, so I only plan to post once every week or two. My first post generated <200 hits after linking to it from a Yahoo message board as well as another, slightly larger blog. With posting as infrequently as I will, I think it will be tough to get sustainable traffic unless people subscribe to might site via RSS.
So what can I do to generate sustainable traffic to my blog and "get noticed"? Also, if any of you know of any really good value investing blogs, please suggest them so that I can reach out.
I would think that having a visible and fleshed out "about me" page that gives background on your advice, your outlook, maybe some definitions, etc. would help to retain traffic for sure.
Also, comment on things that are relevant to things people might be searching google for at any given moment. If someone gets arrested for a ponzi scheme Monday, put something up. Doesn't have to be as in depth as your straight advice, but that will broaden your appeal.
posted by gjc at 4:48 PM on December 11, 2010
Also, comment on things that are relevant to things people might be searching google for at any given moment. If someone gets arrested for a ponzi scheme Monday, put something up. Doesn't have to be as in depth as your straight advice, but that will broaden your appeal.
posted by gjc at 4:48 PM on December 11, 2010
Best answer: If your blog is worth people's attention, and if you just keep on making posts that are worth people's attention, you will get traffic. By contrast, if what you're doing is based on facile attention-grabbing bullshit designed to grab people's attention in the short term, you will sink soundlessly into the rolling seas of spam.
Time you spend promoting your own work is time not spent improving it, and in my opinion is also time wasted. The most widely recognized stuff on the Web is stuff that other people promote because they have found value in it. So I suggest you just keep on making posts that are worth people's attention because they are good posts. By the time your back catalog is deep, your reach will be wide.
Yes, this is a long, hard slog.
If it were easy, everybody would succeed at it.
posted by flabdablet at 4:56 PM on December 11, 2010 [2 favorites]
Time you spend promoting your own work is time not spent improving it, and in my opinion is also time wasted. The most widely recognized stuff on the Web is stuff that other people promote because they have found value in it. So I suggest you just keep on making posts that are worth people's attention because they are good posts. By the time your back catalog is deep, your reach will be wide.
Yes, this is a long, hard slog.
If it were easy, everybody would succeed at it.
posted by flabdablet at 4:56 PM on December 11, 2010 [2 favorites]
It builds slow. There's no way to shortcut the process, and attempts to do it fast end up hurting more than helping.
All the blogs you've heard of that have huge traffic began small, and it took a long time, years, before they got big. All the bloggers you've heard of that got hired by big companies or publications to blog for them were independent unpaid bloggers for years before they got hired.
What won't help is spamming your URL all over the place. Just don't go there.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 5:10 PM on December 11, 2010
All the blogs you've heard of that have huge traffic began small, and it took a long time, years, before they got big. All the bloggers you've heard of that got hired by big companies or publications to blog for them were independent unpaid bloggers for years before they got hired.
What won't help is spamming your URL all over the place. Just don't go there.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 5:10 PM on December 11, 2010
Post more. Have interesting things to say. Use other social media (Facebook, Twitter, comments on more widely-read blogs and forums) to drive traffic to your blog.
There isn't a magic bullet for this--you have to do the legwork.
posted by Sidhedevil at 5:13 PM on December 11, 2010
There isn't a magic bullet for this--you have to do the legwork.
posted by Sidhedevil at 5:13 PM on December 11, 2010
Is that it in your profile?
It's generic. No personal touch, no personal investment in the design, it looks like any old template used by a multitude of scammers and spammers.
posted by fire&wings at 5:34 PM on December 11, 2010
It's generic. No personal touch, no personal investment in the design, it looks like any old template used by a multitude of scammers and spammers.
posted by fire&wings at 5:34 PM on December 11, 2010
Response by poster: Fire&wings -- I feel that way too but I don't really have a flair for design. Any suggestions?
posted by prunes at 5:37 PM on December 11, 2010
posted by prunes at 5:37 PM on December 11, 2010
a value investing blog whose first post is CTO isn't really breaking new ground I'm afraid. You've sort of chosen a crowded field.
posted by JPD at 5:47 PM on December 11, 2010
posted by JPD at 5:47 PM on December 11, 2010
Send me a MeMail. I run a financial news web site. We can discuss whether your material is a fit for our site.
posted by dfriedman at 5:48 PM on December 11, 2010
posted by dfriedman at 5:48 PM on December 11, 2010
One way I've seen lesser known stock bloggers get attention is by challenging higher profile positions held by "star" money managers. Just blogging stocks that are on the "value" investor circuit ain't going to get you anywhere.
posted by JPD at 6:00 PM on December 11, 2010
posted by JPD at 6:00 PM on December 11, 2010
Best answer: You've written one post so far, so it's really hard for me to gauge your overall writing skills, but one thing I might say is that you might want to think about how writing for the web is different from writing for other media. Copyblogger is a pretty well-known resource for people who are trying to blog professionally.
And yes, you should hire a designer. And given you're trying to enter an already crowded field, you might want to consider one who is well-versed in SEO strategies. I like using Wordpress because over time I've gotten familiar with all the little tweaks you can do to make your content extra friendly to search engines.
Ultimately, if you produce quality content and publish on a regular basis you will gain a following. Just keep writing and putting yourself out there. Once you have more content you could work on becoming a contributor for other financial news websites. I think you could probably find some readership on Seeking Alpha.
posted by mere at 7:15 PM on December 11, 2010 [1 favorite]
And yes, you should hire a designer. And given you're trying to enter an already crowded field, you might want to consider one who is well-versed in SEO strategies. I like using Wordpress because over time I've gotten familiar with all the little tweaks you can do to make your content extra friendly to search engines.
Ultimately, if you produce quality content and publish on a regular basis you will gain a following. Just keep writing and putting yourself out there. Once you have more content you could work on becoming a contributor for other financial news websites. I think you could probably find some readership on Seeking Alpha.
posted by mere at 7:15 PM on December 11, 2010 [1 favorite]
Also, belonging to communities (online) which cater to your intended readership can help. Design, as stated, and especially intuitive navigation is a must.
I would highly recommend Squarespace as a great (if currently understated) blogging platform. They have amazing stats/visitor/referrals info at the touch of a button, and offer some really interesting business options.
posted by noella at 1:15 AM on December 12, 2010
I would highly recommend Squarespace as a great (if currently understated) blogging platform. They have amazing stats/visitor/referrals info at the touch of a button, and offer some really interesting business options.
posted by noella at 1:15 AM on December 12, 2010
Interesting thoughts so far and the main thing is you are writing good content.
So sone tactics I'd use:
- get a su.pr account and "stumble" all your posts.
- use good search engine friendly titles. Remember people use the web to solve problems- give them the info you are looking for.
- think about the words you would use to find your content in google. Search then comment on the top hits. Leave thoughtful and relevant comments so people go visit.
- mine the comments and look for common queries or clarifications. Write your own post to answer and post a link to a comment reply.
- get on twitter and search for people with problems. Engage and be helpful and they will visit.
- make it clear for people to join your rss list
- capture emails and send them extra content as a reward for being on the "inside".
Hope this helps!
posted by theDimsumKid at 3:56 AM on December 12, 2010
So sone tactics I'd use:
- get a su.pr account and "stumble" all your posts.
- use good search engine friendly titles. Remember people use the web to solve problems- give them the info you are looking for.
- think about the words you would use to find your content in google. Search then comment on the top hits. Leave thoughtful and relevant comments so people go visit.
- mine the comments and look for common queries or clarifications. Write your own post to answer and post a link to a comment reply.
- get on twitter and search for people with problems. Engage and be helpful and they will visit.
- make it clear for people to join your rss list
- capture emails and send them extra content as a reward for being on the "inside".
Hope this helps!
posted by theDimsumKid at 3:56 AM on December 12, 2010
None of the self-promotion matter unless you have a library of good posts in your archives. The best way to be successful at this is to spent several months writing about the subject, consistently providing quality articles.
When new financial bloggers ask me to pimp their sites (which happens all the time), I usually go visit. If you were to e-mail me your site, I'd dismiss it as spam. No joke. It has a generic template, one article, and no personality. Because you've posted at AskMe, I can spot glimpses of a real person behind the article, but otherwise, there's no sense of anything real there.
My advice? Put up some articles about why you like value investing and what it's all about. This content would serve as the foundation on which all of your "how" posts could be built.
posted by jdroth at 8:35 AM on December 12, 2010 [1 favorite]
When new financial bloggers ask me to pimp their sites (which happens all the time), I usually go visit. If you were to e-mail me your site, I'd dismiss it as spam. No joke. It has a generic template, one article, and no personality. Because you've posted at AskMe, I can spot glimpses of a real person behind the article, but otherwise, there's no sense of anything real there.
My advice? Put up some articles about why you like value investing and what it's all about. This content would serve as the foundation on which all of your "how" posts could be built.
posted by jdroth at 8:35 AM on December 12, 2010 [1 favorite]
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posted by cortex (staff) at 4:32 PM on December 11, 2010