How blogging can help your exposure.

I am sure if you have been to the Etsy forums you have read your share of threads discussing blogs and how to blog more effectively. In this post I want to talk about how you can get your name out and have fun in the process.

Before starting your blog think of what you want as the focus. The best blogs are those that grab the attention of the readers and keep them coming back for more. Keeping your posts relative to your overall purpose and interesting will be a challenge in the beginning. Just write about what interests you the most and the juices will start flowing. Make sure you tag the posts with words that will help it show in search engines. If you post about a seller, including their shop name in the post labels so it is easier to find. You may also find that adding your feeds to programs like feedburner will expose your posts to even more eyes and allow you to have readers subscribe to your thoughts.

Now that we have the subject of the blog we need a look. This is were your creativity meets your hidden writer. There are many templates that you can add and alter to make your appearance unique and eye catching. not enough room for all the info you want to add? Here is a great site for turning Standard Blogger Templates in to a 3 column blog.

Pretty graphics, wonderfully written posts.. but where are my readers? You can't show off your blog if no one can find you right. So lets tell the world about this great read.

1. Joining a social network like Blogcatalog can help give your site the boosts it needs. BlogCatalog is a directory of blogs by category and theme. Once you post your blog to the site it will update each time you add a new post. There is even a great widget to add to your blog to show who stopped by and how long ago.
2. Leave comments on other great blogs. I like to see what others are writting and if I like it alot I always leave a comment. Those comments are linked back to your profile and all blogs associated with your name. Often times the writer will return to your blog, read, and leave a comment of their own!
3. Link to blogs you have read and want to read again. I am a bit nutty but I often search for my site name to see who is writing about me or linking back to certain posts. This brings me to the site and I always return the favor with a link on my blog.
4. Add your blog URL to search engines. Here is the link to add your url to google and yahoo. It is free and it brings your site to their attention. http://www.google.com/addurl/ and http://search.yahoo.com/info/submit.html
5. Adding a sitemeter counter can help you see where your readers are coming from and when.
6. Link to your etsy shop using the 'EtsyMini' located to the bottom-left under 'youretsy' in your shop. This is a window into your store front and will allow your readers to click and view all your products.
7. Last but not least add your blog url to your business cards, etsy shop announcement, forum signatures, and forum posts. Show people where they can find you and they will come looking =)

Okay you now have tools to help your blog thrive... what are you waiting for get blogging!

Come back often.. I will be posting more info on blogging basics.


About the author: I am Amanda, owner extraordinaire of Sygnet Creations. I have been selling on etsy for over a year now and I loving it! I am a full time mom and military spouse. I tend to know a little about everything and I am always a friendly ear and convo away. Ask me anything.