A New Generation Marketer

Whether you write or read blogs (or both) you have probably noticed the massive increase in available data right at the click of the mouse. At this point it becomes hard to filter all this data down to only what you need.

Like most of you, every day I send and receive tons of emails, receive eNewsletters, tune into webinars, read through my Google Reader subscriptions, and read blogs that friends share on social media. Boy does that get exhausting after awhile!

I now find myself putting up strict filters in my mind when I am scanning for important data. I am constantly searching for new types of information to write or learn about, but it sometimes can get buried by other less relevant information, and search engines cannot filter this out for me at all times.

What I have found very effective to combat this overwhelming feeling is to write down a list of topics that you are truly interested in reading about so that you are not taken off track when scanning through blog articles.

You can also set up Google Alerts for particular keywords or phrases to receive targeted email results with links just to these topics. Personally, this helps out tremendously when I am about to write a blog post and need specific resources.

With more data being published on the Internet also comes repetitiveness. People may scan an article and say, “Oh I like that topic I’m going to cover that too!” However, when someone enters a keyword search term in Google and your article shows up among hundreds if not thousands of similar posts, you will easily get lost.

Instead of covering a topic that a hundred other bloggers have already done, why not do a twist on it or compile a unique set of data to give a completely new aspect on a subject?

For example, say you are interested in the social media explosion during the World Cup. While this is a hot topic (and Twitter trending topics can prove this) it is nothing new to write about. Instead, why not write about something else less prominent yet still fascinating that is going on during the World Cup. You could instead write about how South Africa’s businesses are fairing during this crowded time in their country. This is certainly a less frequently covered topic yet still relevant. You will still appear in search results and will stand out since you cover a different topic.

In general, if you want your link to be clicked on (and for the reader to stay on the page once there) write incredible and fresh content by immediately drawing them in via your title and subtitle, and then create a compelling story backed by interesting data.

Put yourself in your readers shoes. If you subscribe to several tech blogs and find that may are covering the same topics and events, you will hardly read all of them. Instead, wouldn’t you be interested in learning something new from your sources? The same goes for your audience. Give them something different and interesting aside from whatever else they read.

This will keep current readers interested (and hopefully subscribing to your blog) and will attract new visitors as well. You can easily track how effective this is for you by checking your site analytics on a weekly basis to see the percentage of new and returning visitors and what keywords they are coming in for.

Don’t let the data explosion bury your blog. Stand out from the rubble and scream to readers “I have the latest and most interesting news, read me!”

How have you differentiated your content to increase site traffic and loyalty? What have been some of your tactics? Tell me your examples in the comments section below.