Despite the hubbub that the holidays bring, December was a pretty good blogging month for me. I thought my page views would go down because December is a time for a gift shopping (consult Amazing Gift Ideas Under $50 Practically Everyone) spending time with loved ones, & celebrating the holidays & new year. It's a busy time for most people, including my readers. However, compared to November, I increased my page views by 28% even though I posted 30% less. Here's how I did it: I started posting less & promoting more.
Read my yearly freelancing anniversary updates from Years 1, 2, & 3!
Post Less, Promote More
Whether it's taking photos, curating a collage, writing a post, editing photos or text, finalizing campaign details with brands, or brainstorming ideas, creating blog posts is time-consuming. In case you're wondering, I take photos on my iPhone & Sony a6000. Rather than post three times per week, I averaged two posts per week in December. With the time I saved from not working on a post, I had the opportunity to promote my posts more.
Related reading: How to Find Blogging Inspiration & Blog Topic Ideas
How I Increased My Page Views by 28% By Posting 30% Less
1. Share Posts to Communities
I started off engaging more in Facebook & Google groups (liking & commenting on updates), then began sharing my own posts. My posts received exposure & direct link clicks, giving my blog more page views. Tip: Make sure you post relevant, engaging posts not just willy nilly promotional.
2. Schedule Regular Tweets Promoting Old & New Posts
I scheduled 3-4 tweets per blog post to go out over the course of the month. I did this with both new posts & previous posts. Scheduling these tweets throughout the month at various times of the day helped me get page views as well as more Twitter followers & engagement.
3. Focus on Quality
Rather than posting more, I was able to focus on the quality of the post. I started using my Sony a6000 & editing in Photoshop. I asked myself: Is it something my readers can find value in? Are the photos clear & captivating? Is the content interesting? Am I posting just to post or because I have something to say that can benefit others?
4. Optimize Older But Relevant Posts
I didn't post as much, but I did edit & update my old ones. Instead of creating new Christmas wish lists or seasonal trend posts, I utilized ones I already had. I received more organic search traffic from Google by optimizing old posts (updating the content, making sure old links still worked, resizing photos, etc.)
The amount of time spent tweaking & promoting older posts was approximately equal to the amount of time it would've taken to create a post from start to finish. I spent my time optimizing posts in order to create increased page views, engagement, & sponsored posts, a method I will keep in mind in the future.
Was this helpful to you? How do you increase your page views?
Nice post ... Very Informative and educative. I need something like this and its coming at the right time. Thanks girl.. Happy new year you.
ReplyDeleteBrendascouch.com
These are all great tips! It's all about social media networking now. Hope you had a great new year xx
ReplyDeletewww.diaryofanexpatgirl.com
Great post, Carmen! I think that is is very important to focus on the quality of what you are sharing rather than posting everyday for the sake of it. It's good to engage with the community more as well :)
ReplyDeletewww.lindseyginge.com
That's so true - about promoting old and new posts! My old posts get lost very easily and I should pay more attention to them! Lovely tips! xx
ReplyDeletehttp://uneditedbytes.com
These are such a great tips. Thank you for sharing. And Happy New Year.
ReplyDeleteMarch and May
Thanks for sharing these awesome tips! Creating new blog posts can definitely take up a ton of time. And it's difficult to always promote them when creating new content. I think that promoting existing ones really would help, like you said. It wouldn't work to keep creating new content if no one knows about it.
ReplyDeleteI hope you have a wonderful new year!
~Andrea Tiffany~
aglimpseofglam.blogspot.com
Thanks for this! It's really helpful and I'm going to try and do this for the new year.
ReplyDeletexoxo
Serein
http://sereinwu.com/
That's some amazing tips you shared! I'll definitely had to keep that in mind x
ReplyDeleteJessica — NinetyCo
love these ideas! definitely coming in handy this year! thanks!
ReplyDeletePam xo/ Pam Scalfi♥
Great post and thank you for sharing your blogging guides!
ReplyDeletehttp://zunera-serena.com/
Such a helpful post, i'm definitely going to try some of these!! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeletex Emily
http://shedoes.com.au
Great tips, I might try some of them <3
ReplyDeletex Caroline
www.silverstories.dk
OMG! I so need to use my g+ more. I almost never go on it >_<
ReplyDeleteAngie | Chocolate & Lipstick | Beauty, Fashion & Lifestyle Blog
This is such a great post! Thank you for all the advice, I must try some of these out!
ReplyDeleteCaitylis | www.outofocus.co.uk
Very helpful! I've recently moved my blog to a new platform and am slowly updating and reacquainting myself with old posts that I can share again.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing,
Inma | sunshineandglow.com
Great tips!! I will try them!
ReplyDeleteSteal4Style.com
I started promoting my blog last summer and it made a huge difference to my page views! I must also try to improve my photography but this dull weather is not working for me.
ReplyDeleteYiota
PinkDaisyLoves
I totally agree on focusing on creating quality posts. Ever since I started doing it rather than keep up with at least 3 posts a week my pageviews increased. Especially when I wrote how to spot fake kylie lip kits when Kylie Cosmetics was barely new yet knock offs was already starting to appear online and on local Asian markets. My views increased 150% and got mentioned by sites like Buzzfeed. But the down side is a lot of people has been copying my posts. Some even word by word, including my photos :( Anyway, what groups did you join in Google?
ReplyDeleteSTYLE VANITY
I completely agree with you on this one, hon. Quantity isn't everything sometimes & proper promotion and engagement + time spent making your older work better is more than valuable. I've only posted 4 blog posts in December (I know, sounds awful) because I was away most of the month and then there's work, of course. When I travel, I want to enjoy every moment and not sit glued to my laptop screen, hence lack of posts. BUT! I hit the most page views I've EVER had.
ReplyDeleteI do love writing and plan on posting more (because I love it and I want to produce more content, not because I have to). What groups did you find helpful on Google?
Keep up great work, babe!
P.S. Happy new year!!! :)
xox Nadia
www.mielandmint.com
Great tips, thank you for sharing :)
ReplyDeletehttp://beseenbepopular.com
I love these tips! I'm graduating from high school soon, and school takes up a lot of my time, which means I'm barely able to get more than one post up per week. I absolutely agree that quality is extremely important, which is why I only post so little, but I think it's definitely the right way to do it, instead of posting lots of bad quality posts.
ReplyDeleteXx, Lora | Cherry Cola Style
This is really clever, I've recently changed up my blog design and with it comes a lot of back-end work. I'm planning to go back and optimise all of my old posts and hopefully promote them all as well!
ReplyDeleteJulia // The Sunday Mode
I really need to get into Google Communities, it isn't something I have really dipped my toes in yet. Thanks for the tips. :)
ReplyDeleteGreat post! Esp the point to optimize previous posts! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeletexoxo, Vanessa
www.WhatWouldVWear.com
I am glad that you wrote this! I have often heard that posting more would increase views but I always felt that focusing on quality posts helps more. Thanks for the other tips especially engaging more on Google communities.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great post!! I really need to spend more time promoting my posts and optimizing the ones I already have. Thank you for the tips, I really want to put them to work now and see if I can get some traction :) happy new year babe!
ReplyDeletexx, Amy
http://www.theluxilook.com
Some good advises. I also only post 2-3 posts a week, but I should spent more time with advertising. google+ is not so popular in Germany, we use facebook for promoting our blogs. But that is getting worse, too...
ReplyDeleteThank you for reading, Brenda. I have a full blogging/social media section with even more tips: http://www.itscarmen.com/search?q=social+media :]
ReplyDeleteThanks Lexi!
ReplyDeleteI've been following this method for the last month & my views are still up. It's helped me craft better content with less stress (of feeling the need to post post post!) :]
ReplyDeleteThank you for reading, Benny. I have a full blogging/social media section with even more tips: http://www.itscarmen.com/search?q=social+media :]
ReplyDeleteThank you for reading!
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely. I've even found that some old posts continue to perform, so optimizing them would help even more! I have a full blogging/social media section with even more tips: http://www.itscarmen.com/search?q=social+media :]
ReplyDeleteYou're so welcome. I have a full blogging/social media section with even more tips: http://www.itscarmen.com/search?q=social+media :]
ReplyDeleteGoogle+ is so helpful for getting more views! I have a full blogging/social media section with even more tips: http://www.itscarmen.com/search?q=social+media :]
ReplyDeleteIt's very time consuming but it helps your blog in the long run. :]
ReplyDeleteDull weather doesn't help, that's for sure. Thank you for reading, Yiota. I have a full blogging/social media section with even more tips: http://www.itscarmen.com/search?q=social+media :]
ReplyDeleteThat's wonderful, Alyssa. The same for me - ever since I stopped posting 3x week & instead posted less frequently but focused on my photos, context, & promotion, my views are up too. :]
ReplyDeleteThat's great news, Nadia! It goes to show that readers enjoy good posts & will come back for more because of it. I'd recommend searching for key words that relate to your blog. The communities will show related groups & you can pick from there. I searched "beauty," "vegetarian," etc. :]
ReplyDeleteGoogle Communities definitely helps with views! I have a full blogging/social media section with even more tips: http://www.itscarmen.com/search?q=social+media :]
ReplyDeleteI understand the struggle, Lora. At one point I did school full time, part time work, part time internship, & I blogged. Ugh. :]
ReplyDeleteKeep it up, Julia! Sounds like you're on the right track. I have a even more blogging/social media tips: http://www.itscarmen.com/search?q=social+media :]
ReplyDeletePosting more can definitely help with page views, but there are other things that help too. It's all about balance. When I posted 3x week I didn't have time to promote anything. Now that promotion is also a priority, I can see the difference in my views. More blogging/social media tips: http://www.itscarmen.com/search?q=social+media :]
ReplyDeleteDo it! :]
ReplyDeleteExperiment with social media platforms. Pinterest gives me the most views, so I started posting more frequently there. More blogging/social media tips: http://www.itscarmen.com/search?q=social+media :]
ReplyDeleteThank you for the post! As a new blogger this is very helpful :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for this! I almost give up my blog. I only earn less than a dollar a day.. i will now focus on promoting and quality of my post.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great reminder to give some extra TLC to oldr posts. I'm definitely guilty of neglecting them and not promoting as well as I should because I'm always eager to work on the next! Great post and advice! Glad to see it worked out for you. :)
ReplyDeleteIt is a great confidence booster to read that I am doing all of these. Overall I am relatively happy with my progress as I am purposefully taking things slowly. x
ReplyDeleteThis is some great information since I'm having some difficulty on my blog! I'm going to have to utilize these methods so I can hopefully boost my blog views!
ReplyDeletewww.wandering-dog.com