I feel like i'm being annoying when i try to promote my blog
Does anyone else feel this way? Going on Reddit or any SN site and promoting my blog feels like I'm a virus trying to spread.
I hate having to sit through advertisements on YouTube, yet I feel like when I try to promote myself that I'm becoming the thing that I hate. I certainly don't spam, I try to promote myself on Reddit following the guideline of being a redditor with a blog not a blog with a Reddit account.
Yet even if I were to only share something once every few months in between commenting and/or posting on Reddit I still feel like a spammer.
Anyone else get this? If so, how do you get over this feeling? Maybe I need to just get over this feeling. 19 π¬π¨
OzFreelancer I love the idea of being a Redditor with a blog, not a blog with a Reddit account. That's my approach too but I never thought of it in those words.
What I do is try only to link my blog where it is a natural, useful and organic part of the thread. So if it is relevant to what is being discussed and adds to the discussion I'll link.
I'm not stingy in quoting other sources when relevant either. There's nothing worse than someone who is constantly self promo-Ing so it sounds like you're on the right path :) carlonathan I totally get that – it's a particularly prominent feeling on Reddit, though, isn't it? We're generally a community that stands for genuine engagement and we shy away from advertising that seems forced or disingenuous.
Yet, I think to an extent, we just need to toughen up and realize that as long as you're actively trying to provide value when you're sharing your blog or promoting a post, that the people who call you on self-promotion probably aren't worth worrying about.
As long as you're being real about it – making an effort to engage, connect, and interact – then don't worry too much about it. You clearly have the right mindset when it comes to promotion, and you're self-aware at the very least. You'll be fine :)
davidzet This is a good answer. I've been blogging for 8+ years, and I've "spammed" my stuff in many places, usually b/c the post I link to gives a far better answer than what I could write on the spot. It's ALSO already my opinion, so why work twice?
I feel that these days it's REALLY hard to get in front of people trapped by "social" media, so I don't even know if spamming might work. That's kinda sad, given the pap on FB…
simgooder Yes, I used to get this. Create content you feel proud to share. Create content that creates value for the people you're trying to put it in front of.
It took me a while to understand this, and to actually find the balance between quality and marketing. So much garbage is being strewn about on the web, it's hard to shine through. As long as you're not pedalling spam, you shouldn't feel bad!
TLDR; Write for your people, not for Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
kionay βοΈ
Create content that creates value for the people you're trying to put it in front of.
A few people have said something like this. Unfortunately my blog isn't about anything in particular. Even the posts themselves don't have a linking topic matter. The closest thing I can think of would be motivational advice? maybe? Even then that just doesn't feel like i'm aiming at that.
Really the issue is that when I feel like writing something, it's something that I've been thinking about. A small seedling of a thought bouncing around in my head until i decide to let it out and give detail to it. The problem with that is that thoughts in peoples heads aren't nicely categorized, and mine is no different. I wish it were possible to post to an r/all or r/misc subreddit. I have no idea where my content belongs.
simgooder How about writing? Do you write for the sake of writing kionay βοΈ I like to think of writing as being a nice secondary thing. I'm probably not very good at writing (i poked my head into writing prompts briefly before i realized what good writing looks like then shied away like a hermit crab lmao)
I hope that the process of writing things will make me better as a side effect, but I don't go about it with that goal, no.
thesoaringmoa Yeah I totally do. I'm new to Reddit and I'm still so cautious about saying anything about my blog, even if it is relevant. One person asked for my site details and I hesitated even posting a link. On other Social Media, I feel like I need to say more so people see me as a presence, but the more I say, the more I feel people will unfollow. deleted You can't please everyone and you shouldn't even try. You should, however, try to please the audience you create for.
If your work is genuinely helpful and relevant to a conversation on social media; you shouldn't be ashamed of using it to further the conversation.
It becomes annoying spam when you simply plonk links down all over the place without trying to deliver help to the audience. Joining a group on any form of social media just to drop a link makes you a user. Joining a group to give help to others makes you a contributor. Contribute don't use and you'll be fine.
thirdeyemastermind Any easy way to turn that around is to find the confidence in yourself that you're bringing MASSIVE value to people when you go out and 'advertise'. If you're not sure you're bringing that massive value, of course you'll feel a little bit like a sham, like you're trying to sell people short. What changed that for me was finding something that I LOVE to use, that's EASY to use, and most importantly, it works. I don't care how much confidence you have in it, if it doesn't work when you go promote it, people WILL feel ripped off and you WILL feel that come back your way. If however, you know you have something that's PERFECT for the target market you're going after…If you KNOW their life WILL be better for having found you and your product, then share away. Don't be a ten-second Tom, always trying to get your message out to as many places as fast as possible, neglecting care and attention in your messages. There are specific components you can build into a marketing message to make it more appealing, compelling, and overall more effective. Of all those components, I've found storytelling to be the #1 to start with. If you have a story behind what you're selling, a WHY behind your efforts, that WILL show through your marketing messages and resonate with the right people who are ready to take the same actions you took to find the same success you found. For example, I didn't learn all this on my own, or even from one book. I learned it from raw experience, from being around a group of people already entrenched in what I was trying to accomplish myself, and by focusing on those people who WANT what I have to offer instead of chasing after those who might not even care. For example, instead of leaving a link here for people to click through to, I can improve the quality of the leads and responses I get by actually asking people to message me directly, reach out to me with any questions about how I used a blog to turn my life around and make the $3k/mo I needed to define my life as free from employers and schedules. I don't need to spam the link, because if I do my job in communicating properly, the right person, with the right motivations, WILL reach out to me with questions. If then I find that I can help them by assisting them in solving problems and reaching goals, then I've got a new loyal customer that's going to last far longer than just one sale. Hope this helps, please actually message me with any questions about how you can learn so much more than this, all from the same community I pulled it from. deleted Well, as long as most of your posts are valuable content and not just promotions of your blog, then you're good.
Actually I have that dilemma myself. I'm still trying to find that balance between adding value and promoting my own site. But since I'm new to Reddit, I focus more on self posts and commenting to posts relevant to me. I don't put links to my own site just yet.
But in your case, yes, just keep doing what you do. As many people have said below, you can't please everybody. Focus on the people significant to you, that is, your niche audience. They're the ones that matter in the end. deleted I can relate how you feel. That's why I only post links to posts on my blog that I know are genuinely going to help people. Recently, I posted on Reddit a post of mine titled "Over 30 Entry Level General Transcription Work-At-Home Jobs." on a work-at-home forum. The response that I got was phenomenal , with many comments of people thankful for my post. Even though that Reddit post has resulted in over 500 unique visitors to that specific post the amount of money that I have made from the post through Amazon Associates is minimal, probably not much more than $10. I feel really good though that my post has helped people.
When I post a link to my blog on Reddit I always make sure that I am clear that it is a link to my blog. If there are affiliate links on that particular post I'll write a disclaimer that the post does include some affiliate links.
I think that people appreciate this and it makes me feel a lot better about posting links to my blog on Reddit.
The vast majority of my posts on Reddit have included no links whatsoever to my blog so I am a genuine Redditor. Promoting my blog by no means is my sole reason for participating in Reddit forums. KennyLee This is very much in our mindset. I have that too.
I was very reluctant in promoting my blog during the first few months (Reddit, Social Media or anywhere), for the reason that you highlighted and also the feeling of inadequacy.
But then I ask myself, am I putting 100% in what I'm writing? If I said Yes, then I'll just blast out my content.
There will always be people liking or disliking our post. Can't let that stop doing what is best for the blog. After all, what's the point of creating content if we are not getting it to the readers?
