There are tons of ways on how to increase the flow of traffic to your blog and consequentially boost your business. I’ve been writing about some of them in the past few weeks. Virtually all tips you find online are about how to do it online.
But don’t dismiss the offline world yet – what we used to call the real world. If you learn anything from content marketing, it is that it’s efficient when you take advantage of all relevant tools and channels at your disposal, including the offline world. Offline promotion has been proven to be beneficial for bloggers who want to promote their blogs locally or who want to expand their reader base using offline activities.
This post isn’t about teaching you something new or revealing an insider secret. I’d just like to remind you that offline blog promotion matters. It isn’t passé.
Offline networking
Networking is a great way to promote your blog. I don’t mean only via online social networks, but personally by attending networking events like conferences, especially, but not limited to those in your niche.
You can attend them or be a speaker. Many need some time to get to the point when they are invited by conference organizers to give a presentation, so in the meantime use conferences to establish meaningful business relationships. Mingle, talk to people; every one of them is worth your time. If they are not in the market for your services or products, they have plenty of friends who might be.
Here at Zemanta, we tend to attend as many conferences around the world as we can. We do it in different capacities: as speakers, attendees, or sponsors. We make sure that we catch the interest of those who may have missed us online.
Conferences aren’t the only offline promotion opportunities; take any opportunity to become visible to your potential readers/clients by accepting invitations to talk to a group of people that are not necessarily in your niche. Thus, we’ve never denied an invitation to speak to a class of students, or an association etc. It is how you can make yourselves known outside the constraints of the online world.
Business Cards
Make sure to bring business cards and whatever else you can afford (T-Shirts, pens, etc.) to make an impression on potential readers and partners. If you thought that business cards were a thing of the past – do you remember that iconic scene from American Psycho, when the boys were competing in who had the best business card? – you thought wrong.
Business cards are a must. You may accidentally meet people whose interests might match with your blog’s niche. If you are ready, you can give your business card and you can expect at least one visit from that person.
By the way, business cards are quite cheap to purchase. When you design your card, be sure to include your logo, tagline, and all your contact information. Single out your blog on your business card.
Your goal offline should be the same as your online goal: to be as helpful and useful as possible to your (potential) readers/clients.
Do you have any experience in promoting your blog offline? What advice would you give us?
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