Dustin Stout

Social Media, Blogging, and Design Resources

5 Crucial Elements for Growing Your Readership

MacBook Pro, white ceramic mug,and black smartphone on table

Yesterday I had the privledge of being published on one of the largest professional blogging sites on the internet, Problogger. They reached out to their audience asking if anyone felt they had something to say about growing a readership. So I figured I had a couple things to say in that area.

What I ended up writing were the things I’ve learned over the years of succeeding and epically failing. There’s been quite a few lessons on both ends of the spectrum and I’ve summed them all up into Five Crucial Elements to Growing Readership.

The five elements I disucss in the full article are:

  1. Give the reader a beautiful experience
  2. Write for people (not robots)
  3. Engaging (actionable) content
  4. Compelling (sharable) content
  5. The right distribution channels

I also added a final thought at the end of the post that I believe is something that should be a given, but just had to say:

Above all else, be true to yourself. Don’t be someone or something you’re not. Be uniquely you because that is your secret sauce.

Nobody else has the perspective, experiences, and thought process as you in the same combination of skills, knowledge and insight. The more true you can be to yourself, the better you can relate to your ideal audience.

Regarding the first element I mentioned, I’ve actually written a pretty extensive post about Creating A Stunning Reading Experience that you may want to brush up on.

Having said that, I realized that there are at least four other things I want to take a deeper dive into now. I’d love to know if any of the other points are something you’d like to see me write about.

I would also love to hear your thoughts on the piece as a whole. What parts connected with you most? What would you add? What part is so good it makes you want to slap yo mamma? (Please don’t slap your mamma— it’s almost mother’s day for crying out loud!)

You can read the full post on Problogger here. You can leave your comments over there or you can leave your thoughts below by clicking here. 

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About the author

Dustin W. Stout
A social media blogger and speaker who loves helping people tell bigger, better stories online. Founder of SoVisual.co, and an unashamed coffee addict.

14 responses to “5 Crucial Elements for Growing Your Readership”

  1. Henry Okonkwo Avatar
    Henry Okonkwo

    Problogger is now updated for responsiveness, but the fact still remains that Dustn’s blog has a better user experience just like doronize.com.ng

  2. Dustin W. Stout Avatar
    Dustin W. Stout

    Well thank you very much Abigail! While I agree that Problogger could use an upgrade as far as design, you can’t deny that they’ve build a massive (and highly profitable) brand. 😀

  3. Abigail Siren Avatar
    Abigail Siren

    Love the website Dustin but find the whole Problogger love a bit hard to swallow. Darren’s blog may be popular but it certainly doesn’t give a good reading experience. It’s not even responsive and the typography is awful. Yours on the other hand is gorgeous!

  4. Dustin W. Stout Avatar
    Dustin W. Stout

    Thanks Andrew! The share bar is actually one I’m developing with a couple partners. It’s still in beta, but if you want to know when it’s publicly released you can sign up here – http://tinyletter.com/dustnco

  5. Andrew Avatar
    Andrew

    Great advice on growing readership Dustin. I enjoy reading your articles here. I’m curious, what social sharing bar are you using here? I love it.

  6. Dustin W. Stout Avatar
    Dustin W. Stout

    I’m glad you liked it Joey!

  7. Joey Gedgaud Avatar
    Joey Gedgaud

    I actually came across your original post and loved it. You put together 5 crucial elements that people need to keep in mind. I’m getting a bit tired of some people, but I have to say I need to improve on my own work as well. Thank you!

  8. Ross | Social Media Measurement Tools Avatar
    Ross | Social Media Measurement Tools

    Thanks for sharing this post. I still believe that content is king in the world of Internet marketing and it is just a matter of giving readers interesting and useful content. I also agree that it is important to use the right distribution channels to grow readership.

  9. Dustin W. Stout Avatar
    Dustin W. Stout

    Awesome Carmen! Be sure to drop your feedback over there in the comments, or back here if you want– either way works for me. 😀

  10. Dustin W. Stout Avatar
    Dustin W. Stout

    Thanks Ryan! I haven’t noticed a huge boost in traffic, but it’s great to just be able to reach out to some new commenters and share some thoughts with a new audience. 😀

  11. Carmen Avatar
    Carmen

    Congrats!
    I would like to read about all of your points – going to go over to ProBlogger and check out your post.
    I’m currently re-designing my travel blog because I felt I’ve lost track on a lot of these points. Mainly the part about engagement… I don’t think I’m giving my readers enough value any more and this needs to change!

  12. Ryan Biddulph Avatar
    Ryan Biddulph

    Hi Dustin,

    Congrats!

    Sensational post too. I’ve been blessed to be published on problogger 3 times and saw a quick surge in traffic and blogging relationships after the fact. Sure you’re experiencing the same dude.

    All the best!

    RB

  13. Dustin W. Stout Avatar
    Dustin W. Stout

    Thanks Donna! It really was an honor. 😀 I’ll have to look into the PBEvent this year. In previous years I’ve been unable to attend, but maybe this year!

  14. Donna Avatar
    Donna

    Well done on being published on Problogger – that’s awesome! I can’t wait for PBEvent again this year – Darren always does a fabulous job and it will be my 3rd one in a row. Great post – I’ll go and check it out and hope to see you on Problogger again!

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