Social Media

10 Tips for Syndicating Blog Content

Blogging is hard work. It takes much time to research a topic, write copy, and find useful images, videos, and infographics.

But writing a post is only the first step. For content to gain greater visibility, syndicate it — making it easier for search engines and people to find.

Here are 10 ways to syndicate content in hopes of getting it seen, read, and shared by others.

1. Share Content on Social Networks

There are many ways to do this. Here are three.

  • Include social sharing buttons in your blog posts. This makes it easy for others to share your content. It can help grow readership. Read “Top 10 Social Sharing Buttons for Your Website,” where I recommended sharing options.
  • Create social network profiles. You likely have profiles on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Add Pinterest and Google+ to the list. Both are growing in popularity and Google+ is especially useful where search engine marketing is concerned. Read my blog post “Google+ is Not a Social Network, but a Social Layer” to better understand its importance. We also have a many articles on using Pinterest for ecommerce.
  • Use a social media management platform. Sharing content via social networks can be time consuming. That is why I recommend using social media management tools such as HootSuite, dlvr.it, Sprout Social, or Postling. Each of these enables sharing through a single dashboard to multiple social network profiles.

2. Use Online Press Release Services

Create a press release based on a newsworthy post and distribute it to services such as PRWeb, PitchEngine, PRLog and others. Not only will it help get media attention, but search engine attention, as well. There is a cost associated with each of these, so use them selectively.

3. Include Blog Posts in Email Newsletters

Blogs can beneficial for email newsletters in two ways: (a) Reformat and expand the entire post in the newsletter, or (b) Include the headline and teaser copy from several posts, and link back to you blog.

4. Submit Guest Posts to Other Blogs

One way to gain attention for your blog is to submit guest posts on other blogs in your industry. The more popular the blog, the better. You may have to allow a reciprocal post on your blog from the other site.

5. Enable RSS Subscriptions

Popular blog platforms typically include an RSS feed. Make sure a link to your RSS feed is prominently placed. Using the popular orange RSS feed icon is one way. Using an RSS-to-email subscribe option — such that offered by FeedBurner or FeedBlitz — is another. Many of the social sharing button options listed above include an RSS feed icon option.

6. Include the Latest Blog Post Link in your Email Signature

Email signatures can help share important content, such as blog posts, which can be inserted manually or automatically using a service called WiseStamp.

7. Submit to Blog Directories

Blog directories exist in many industries. One of the most comprehensive and popular is Technorati. Bloggeries, Blog Flux, and Bloggernity are others.

8. Embed Links to Relevant Posts in YouTube Videos

YouTube annotations enable you to add interactive elements to video content, including links to other sources. In addition, you can include links to blog posts in the video’s description.

9. Submit Posts to Social Bookmarking Sites

Submitting links to social bookmarking sites such as Digg, Reddit, and StumbleUpon is useful for link building, which helps with search engine optimization. Both Reddit and StumbleUpon have seen recent surges in traffic. My own experience is that StumbleUpon is a leading source for inbound traffic.

10. Email Friends with a Link to your Post; Ask Them to Share It

I include this on the list with caution. Don’t over promote to your friends. If a post is newsworthy, however, your friends can be a good referral source. Offering to share their content may increase your chances.

Conclusion

Use these 10 tips to get your blog content in front of prospects you may not otherwise reach. You’ll also build your thought leadership position and increase the reach of your brand.

Paul Chaney
Paul Chaney
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