The key to attracting locals to a blog is really quite simple: provide content they want to read and follow on a regular basis. In other words, providing what they are desperately trying and failing to find everywhere else.
Yes, there are tons of other things to consider, such as where to market your local blog to get targeted visitors from your area and all the other things all bloggers have to worry about. But the main thing is giving people what’s sorely, embarrassingly lacking on the web today: hypergood, hyperlocal content.
Take your own personal experience with local search as the best example. Have you ever walked away from a search for something in your area pleased as punch? If so, have you been satisfied with what people call “local content” more often than not? That’s pretty doubtful considering local sites and pretend local sites really don’t cut the mustard for the most part.
The formula for success in local blogging is finding out what people in your area desperately want to see, hear, and read on a regular basis. Stuff they’ll tell others about, sending you more traffic and fans.
Sound hard? It shouldn’t.
There’s only like a trillion bazillion tools to help you find what people are searching for right now in your area.
Chief among them is Twitter Search. Just this one instant gratification search tool will give you ideas beyond your ability to act on them all this year.
Use different keyword phrases and really drill down to things like “where can I find (your city or area name).”
Click this search to see what I mean: “where can I find seattle“
Your audience awaits you in places like Twitter. They are ready to give your blog a chance. They just need to find you, which is a simple Tweet away when you answer their questions and link to your blog for more info.
In many ways having a local blog has advantages over having a blog like this one.
The tools local bloggers have to drill down to the square inch anywhere in the world are mind bogglingly cool and getting better. There’s no way I can get the same kind of demographic data for my “big tent” topics as fast as a local blogger can when searching on a geo-targeted level.
Just remember, knowing what to search for is the key to finding what you really want. In this case, that is ideas for content that are going to drive people your way. People from your area. With content that speaks to them on topics the big un-local portals never will.
—
Want to find out more about local blogging?
Join me in building the world’s largest, true hyperlocal blog network. It’s global, but it’s on-the-ground content locals respect and follow!
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks, I was thinking about developing a local blog for my business.
Sometimes people doesn’t realize that all thing just under their nose which they can’t see. We need a great post like this to make people start taking action…yes taking action!
How simple it is and how easy it can be done you still need to do something to make things happen sooner or later you’ll get it.
I use twitter search now it works great.
I enjoy listening to your radio show.
Keep blogging
Randy