MorristownMemos

As a wordpress blogger you probably think of yourself as either a writer, cartoonist or photographer.

BUT did you ever think of your self as a salesperson?

Whether or not you have thought of yourself as a salesperson, you are. Every time you add an example of your work to your blog you are presenting an item for inspection, review and opinion. You’re asking people to “buy” it.

If you want people to notice your blog, add a comment or subscribe, you are selling something. Here are a few ways you can enhance your chances of getting noticed:

Talk about your blog to anyone who will listen. If someone asks what you do, tell them you are a writer. When they ask the inevitable question, “What have you written?” You proudly say, “I write a blog on wordpress called “XYZ and Me,” substituting the name of your blog for the example. “What’s it about?” is usually the next question. The way you frame your answer will be telling. If it’s a cooking blog and you say, “It’s just a blog about cooking,” you’re not making it sound appetizing. But if you say ,”It’s a collection of  recipes from the 19th century French Indochina region that my great grandfather’s niece discovered in her grandmother’s books,” it sounds fascinating.

This is not the time for self-deprecating remarks, like “It’s just something I do in my spare time.”or “I don’t get paid for it,” say, “I started this blog last December, and in only one year I have already gotten 2,500 hits! I’m excited with that kind of response. I guess my writing, (drawing, photography) is attracting attention.”

Have business cards printed. All they have to say is the name of your blog.wordpress.com. Add your name, a piece of clip art and you are ready to promote your blog. My clip art is a picture of an old fashioned manual typewriter, under which is morristownmemos.wordpress.com and underneath that simply says Ronnie Hammer. Now when you mention your blog pull out a card and give it to the person. You will have a better chance of the person remembering the name of your blog.

Respond to everyone who comments on your blog. This added attention makes the responder to your blog feel good about responding and will be more likely to stop by again. Make your comments compelling. Don’t leave single word comments like: “Cool.” “Awesome.” “Like.” Those words don’t tell anything about what appealed to you in the blog, why you liked it, or how it taught you something. AND those comments don’t say anything about you or your style.  Always realize that your comment  is another way to attract new readers. If you say something funny, clever or insightful other readers reading your comments might check out your blog.

Learn to steer the conversation around to what you like to do, what you do when you’re not at your paying job and what you hope to accomplish.

Another point to make in conversation is the distances your readers come from and their concepts of your messages. “I had a response from a reader in India!”

Always be upbeat and positive. Blogging brings stimulating responses and different opinions. Some writers have mini-soap operas going on. Tell the non-bloggers about these experiences and let them know how much you’ve gained from the interchanges that your blog has produced. Make them want to run home, log onto their computers and access your blog immediately.

Good salesmanship!