8 Ways Readers Should Engage with Your Blog Post

Are you getting enough daily site visitors?

Are you making affiliate sales?

Are people clicking on your links?

Are your blog posts being shared on social media?

These are all valid questions, and their answers should prompt you to take action to increase blog post engagement from your readers. After all, when someone visits your page, you want to make them feel like they've learned something. You want to keep them coming back every time you post something new, right? Oh, and of course, you want to make ad revenue and affiliate revenue, so engagement is key!

Disclaimer: This blog post contains affiliate ads. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a commission on qualifying purchases.

There are so many instances in which great blog posts go mostly unnoticed. People aren't sharing them, and the author is struggling to get views. Well, if that sounds like you (I'm in the same boat most of the time), then you need to change the strategy and make sure you know HOW readers connect and engage with your content.

The goal is to get your readers to take at least 2 actions from the list of 8. And hey, even if the person only shares the post on Pinterest, be proud of yourself because that's amazing too! Almost any kind of engagement is a welcome sign of progress, and don't be discouraged by small steps.

8 WAYS READERS ENGAGE WITH YOUR BLOG & WHY IT MATTERS

1. LIKE & COMMENT

When someone reads your blog post, the first action they might take before sharing is to respond directly via "like" or a comment. If you have a Wix site like me, comments are tricky because people have to sign up first to comment. I definitely should've used WordPress, but that's okay...

So, why do likes and comments matter?

If your content is engaging, people have a natural urge to respond, share their own opinion on the matter and tell you if you've done a good job or not.

Popular blogs get hundreds of comments per blog post. You don't need THAT many comments realistically, but having a few shows you that people are enjoying your content and writing style. It's encouraging to know people are taking the time to respond. It means your blog is having a positive impact on readers. That's great, right?

When it comes down to basics, blogging is about two-way communication. If you're not responding to comments and not engaging with readers, then what's the point? If you want to make affiliate sales, you want people to know you and trust your opinion. The more they feel like you're a real person with opinions, the more likely they are to click those links and try your recommendations.

Another thing is that when readers see comments under your blog post, they feel more secure about your site. "If others are commenting, then this must be a popular or trustworthy blog" is what many people think.

2. CLICK ON AFFILIATE LINKS

As I mentioned above, people will click affiliate links and try your services if they feel like you are a trustworthy blogger with a good reputation.

In order to get people to click on your links, they MUST BE INTERESTED. Therefore, make sure the links are actually links for objects or services that are relevant to your blog post and niche.

For example, if your post is about expensive lipsticks, don't add links to vacuum cleaners - it's a no-brainer.

Make sure to include links with photos when possible. If people see the items, it may pique their interest.

Here's what else you can do:

- bold the hyperlinks

- use banners

- use the Amazon links & native ads option if possible

- write interesting content near the links

- be honest about your reviews; people love honesty

- don't add too many aff links, or people will realize you're just in it for the commission

3. CLICK ON ADS

Which ads are you using? Google ads, Ezoic, Mediavine, or others? Whichever it is, make sure the ad placements work with your site layout. Don't overcrowd your blog with too many ads. People hate seeing ad upon ad. Plus, those pop-ups are really annoying!

Blog readers are not really on your blog to click on ads, but if one ad really gets them interested, they might click and even buy something. But regardless, your focus shouldn't be on getting people to click your ads. If you have good content, you'll realize that you're making some ad revenue, too, without doing much work. The more blog content and posts you have, the more places you can show ads, and the higher the likelihood people might click them.

4. SUBSCRIBE TO MAILING LIST & NEWSLETTER

Do you have a mailing list or a newsletter?

An e-mail list is most important if you're in the email marketing or affiliate marketing business. If you just have a blog but aren't really selling anything, you may just stick to a bi-weekly or monthly newsletter. It can be a round-up of your best new blog posts and some cool graphics, freebies, or some exciting information you want to share with your readers.

Did you know that a mailing list is so much more likely to get you sales than posting on social media? Yes, it's more effective because it's more personal, and people on your list likely trust you.

When site visitors see a pop-up to sign up for a mailing list or newsletter, they are more likely to do so if you let them know what the benefits are. Just because you have a pop-up doesn't mean people are interested in getting e-mails from you. Here's my advice: make it visually appealing and write some fun copy to go with it.

But the bottom line is this: if you want to sell something, you need a long e-mail list to reach potential customers.

5. SHARE YOUR BLOG POST ON SOCIAL MEDIA

This one is my personal favorite. I want readers to share my blog posts on Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter. I have a small "pin" button, but it's not working the way I want it with this Wix site. If you have a WordPress blog, you can make it SUPER EASY for people to share your content on social media via plugins.

Make sure you have a pin format image somewhere in your blog post. Then, readers can click that and "pin it" straight to Pinterest. This action gets me the most blog traffic.

Some bloggers find that they're doing better on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter than Pinterest, but they are all important. It doesn't matter where people are sharing because any share is a good share.

When people share your content, they might be bringing over new readers and lots of new visitor traffic. This can help your blog grow big time. So, the bottom line is this: make your blog posts shareable!

6. CONTACT YOU

Are you trying to sell your services? Do you want to get in touch with your customers? Make sure they can find you and contact you easily.

1) Have a contact form.

2) Provide your email address.

3) Be available for questions or a chat.

If you're trying to sell your e-book or your consulting services, then people need to be able to find contact info. Otherwise, it feels fishy, and your blog might look like a scam site, and that's the last thing you want.

I suggest you get a contact form because it allows visitors to send you a message via your email without publicly displaying your email address. When you list your email address to the public, you can get tons of spam.

There are many contact form plugins for all kinds of websites.

7. CLICK ON RELATED CONTENT & OTHER PAGES

Every single blog should have internal links, external links, and links to other pages on your blogs either at the side or under the post.

If you don't have links to your other blog posts handy - I mean, have them right under the post or beside it so that it's OBVIOUS, people might click off your page.

When you scroll to the bottom of this blog post, you'll see 3 recommended blog posts right under.

You have no idea how many blogs I visit daily (more than 25) and about 10% lack any links to other posts or content. To find something else to read, I have to scroll back up to the header and click on the home page, then do more scrolling. If you're on mobile, this is a nuisance, and you're better off closing the page.

Bottom line: Hard to find content = a bad user experience.

8. SEARCH YOUR SITE

You should encourage site visitors to click on the search bar and look for interesting and related topics. Make sure you have a visible search box so that people can easily search for keywords and terms.

Did you know that having a search bar creates a user-friendly site experience? Yes, that's right; people are more likely to come back to your blog if they can easily find things to read about. I mean, there's nothing worse than scrolling through pages of blog content and not finding the ONE thing you're looking for.

The more links people click on your site, the better. Not only does that improve the bounce rate, but it also helps if you are running pay-per-view ads. And even if you aren't (like me), people might click some affiliate links or ads on other pages, which can make you some money!

#bloggingtips #siteoptimization #blogvisitors