Social Media and Blogging: Four Ways to Mix the Ultimate Promotional Cocktail
The social media world has reinforced one truth surrounding blogging: it is horribly ineffective when used in isolation. News bloggers, political pundits, and editorial content mills have all shown us that blogging, as a communications method, is simply too long-form to survive when placed beside short-form social media services such as Facebook and Twitter. As length increases, interest fades, and potential readers tend to move elsewhere.
However, when paired with an effective social media presence – despite the common arguments, blogs are not considered part of standard social media – a blog can be a highly valuable, very visible tool. Paired alongside short-form social media services such as Twitter and Facebook, a blog can become an even more powerful outlet – a long-form companion to a micro-blogging service or news feed.
These four tips will help you get the most from your blog+social media combo. Whether you are active on Twitter or Facebook, Myspace of Friendfeed, give these strategies a shot and watch as your exposure, influence, and blog-related income increases.
Use an Auto-Tweet Script
There are several auto-tweet scripts and plugins out there, each designed for a different platform and offering a slightly different set of features. Some crop headers, others use post titles, while a smaller amount paste the entire first sentence into a tweet, occasionally auto-cropping important details and extra content.
Whichever you pick, be sure to configure it alongside your blogging software. WordPress – the most popular blogging platform – is easily configurable to operate with auto-tweeting, status update, or social media conglomeration software.
Crop Posts Titles for Twitter
The best bloggers do not treat Twitter as a deep communications platform, they treat it as a platform for luring in long-term readers and creating new relationships. Your tweets should be treated as you would a newspaper headline. Craft them for maximum attention, ensure they are related to and relevant for your story, and give the reader a reason to click through after they have read the headline.
Use Images in Your Initial Paragraphs
Many of the top social media platforms automatically crop and include images in post summaries, previews, and feature boxes. If you are using Facebook to distribute your content to a wider audience, ensure your posts are properly formatted and media-heavy to avoid disrupting or breaking the standard media box. Images have been proven to increase click-through rates, so make sure you have had yours formatted and included properly.
Model Your Posts on TV News Stories
TV news stations have mastered the art of drawing viewers into a story. The headlines build tension and interest; the story satisfies it, and the follow-up coverage keeps viewers invested in the story beyond its initial running time.
Treat your posts similarly, especially in their distribution phase. A well-crafted strategy will ensure consistent traffic and blog growth, especially with a measurable social media presence by your side. Spend time building a process-driven blog and you will end up enjoying long-term readership and truly successful publishing efforts.
This article is written by Roko Nastic from WebmasterFormat.com – place where webmasters go to master the ever changing web and to find the best web hosting company.
Thanks for the tips. I really need to use images more often. I am getting better but I have a long way to go still.
Nice Blog! Thank you for sharing tips about social media and blogging. It is very helpful to know and understand well about social media.
Very nice post, thank you for sharing!
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I’ve been using an app called AutoTweeterPro for some time. It’s actually a small and very easy to use software, which tweets from my computer. I am using unlimited trial version, which is as good as free. Hope you will find this tip useful. http://bit.ly/autotweeterPro1