Tipsy Tuesday - 5 Ways to Get More Readers to Your Blog / CC Martini (Feel Like A Kid Again!)

TIP:

5 Ways to Get More Readers to Your Blog

As a Real Estate Virtual Assistant, blogging, and how to make it more effective are one of the topics most often discussed with my clients. Here are 5 Ways to Get More Readers to Your Blog:

1. You've had this drilled into you since you were a little kid..."mind your Ps and Qs"...once you do have a reader visit your blog and leave a comment...if possible, reciprocate - find your way back to their blog, read some posts, comment...thank them for visiting your blog about XYZ (you can leave a link in your signature), and invite them back again.
   
   
2. Visit the competition...do a search to find out which the most popular blogs are on your topic of interest...visit them. Read and comment, again, make sure your url is in your signature. Don't hijack their blog...that's rude...but do contribute and let people who are reading that competing blog know that you are an intelligent source for info as well on this topic.
   
   
3. PING - Make sure that your blog is set up to inform / ping search engines and sites like Technorati when your blog has been updated. This definitely brings more visitors...make sure your subject lines of your blog posts include your keywords as often as possible.
   
4. When reading other people's blogs, if they happen to inspire you to write a post of your own...let them know. Use a trackback...it lets the original author know that you appreciated their content and may even result in a backlink back to your own blog...backlinks help the search engines decide how relevant your blog is.
   
5. Go where your target audience hangs out and participate! If you are a real estate agent, there are most likely neighborhood websites for your area, message boards, etc...you should be hanging out there and participating amongst your potential clients. Always have the link to your blog in your signature. Answer questions for your area on Trulia and Zillow or other sites...these are people directly looking for info on your area of expertise. And don't even think about forgetting Localism!!! You should get as many community posts for your area as possible. You are sharing your community and advertising yourself through your knowledge and insights...just remember to only post quality...if something's worth doing, it's worth doing right!!!

FAMOUS QUOTE:
“Only a man's character is the real criterion of worth.”
~Eleanor Roosevelt

TIPSY:

Cotton Candy Martini

With all the Fall Festivals and Fairs still going on, cotton candy is in abundance...and while we may feel silly walking around with a big ol' stick of the stuff (not me...I'm proud to be a Cotton Candy Fanatic!), we can make a fun and festive drink with it! Here's the recipe:

• 1 shot (oz) X-Rated Fusion
• 1 shot (oz) Kettle One Vodka
• 1 or 2 shots (to taste) of pure cranberry juice
• 1 bag cotton candy (preferrably pink for color consistency)
• martini glasses
• crushed ice

If you're serving this at a party, have all the martini glasses sitting out on a tray and fill them with cotton candy...it's a fun look when guests arrive. The recipe above makes one drink, so figure out how many guests you need to serve and make up a pitcher before they arrive. Store it in the fridge or in a carafe in a bucket of ice...you want it COLD. As they arrive, walk them to the tray of glasses, pour them a martini over the cotton candy and watch it melt...have a cool stirring stick available. It's fun...it's different...and it's yummy! (Note: If you want it sweeter, use cranberry juice cocktail instead of the pure cranberry juice...make a test batch before your party to make sure you are happy with the taste of the recipe.)

OK - please post comments and tell me what types of "Tips" you would like to see covered here in the future!!! (You can post other comments too of course...like after you try the Cotton Candy Martini!)