7 Reasons Your Blog Isn't Attracting Attention (and What to Do About It)

#1: Your Titles Suck – Your title should do 3 key things: #1 provide enough information on the topic that they reader knows what to expect, #2 tease them with the promise of something worthwhile and #3 grab their attention so it stands out from all the other buzz.

The good news is that writing interesting titles (or headlines) follows a simple formula. The key objective is to create curiosity that compels readers to click. Check out The Headline Formula for more tips on writing compelling headlines.

#2: Your Social Networking Isn’t Working – This is where quality over quantity is important. If you have a lot of social media connections that don’t really fit your audience profile, chances are not many of them will click through to your posts.

Get strategic about who you connect with in social media. If you notice an increase in comments from a particular segment – let’s say, business coaches, for example – make it a priority to seek them out.

#3: Google Can’t Find Your Site – Organic traffic is the gift that keeps on giving. If readers who are interested in your blog topic are able to find you by typing in a few key search terms, you have it made!

The key is finding the search terms your readers are using to find topics that you cover on your blog and ranking high enough in the search results that they see you. It’s easier said than done and often this is where bloggers make a lot of mistakes!

#4: Your Articles Aren’t Interesting – Are your titles overpromising and your posts underdelivering? There is nothing worse than anticipating an insightful, interesting post only to get a lame rehash or a brief summary!

One of the key ways more people will find your blog is if their social media friends share it with them, which they aren’t going to do if your content is lame and humdrum. Share your best stuff and people will go to the effort of sharing it with their social network.

#5: Your Blog Isn’t Sharable – If it’s more than a single click, placed strategically in a prime location, people aren’t going to go to the effort of sharing it. Yes, perhaps your mother and your most dedicated super fans will make the extra effort, but everyone else will move on without sharing.

Stay on top of the latest social media plugins and share widgets because you may bee missing an important opportunity to tap into a new audience. For example, simply adding a Pin It button to MOMeo Magazine has increased our Pinterest sharing from almost nothing to a steady flow of new shares.

#6: Your Design is Ugly – Let’s face it – people DO judge a book by it’s cover so if your site looks slapped together and amateurish, people aren’t going to stick around long enough to read your post (and they definitely won’t bother coming back).

It doesn’t have to be elaborate, but it should contain a few key design elements, such as brand personality and web-friendly copywriting. For tips on the web design basics, read “Is Your Web Site an Embarrassingly Ugly Business Card?”

#7: You Don’t Have Enough Supporting Marketing – How are you generating interest in your blog beyond social media and Google? What is your marketing plan for your site? Does it include other forms of marketing to draw in new readers?

Go back to your traditional marketing mediums and use tactics like press releases, speaking at conference and writing guest posts to generate additional interest in your site. For tips on becoming an expert source, read this post on generating free publicity.