Sticky blogging: What is it and how can you use it?

You have started blogging and are fully aware of how an online blog works. You are confident you have created blog content that you are sure everyone will like.

However, there’s one thing lacking that eludes you: How do you let your readers actively respond and stick around to your own site?

Successful bloggers’ most relevant posts have goals for their blogs that may be similar to yours. To increase traffic and page views, draw in new visitors, create a loyal readership, and of course, earn from them.

Your site needs to be sticky so they would not leave your side through thick and think.

What is a sticky blog?

A sticky blog compels readers not to want to leave. They feel that they are obliged to stay, read and share posts.

A sticky blog immerses readers and will make them devoted fans. They will want to share your content, thus increasing your readership.

Sticky blogs are different from others because it provides more to the same reader, aside from the relevant posts.

A sticky blog is too good to pass up and ignore and fills up something missing inside the readers and makes them feel whole again.

A similar occurrence happened in Facebook many years ago, when it was at its peak. The phenomenon was called a Facebook trance.

Passionate people’s blogs noticed the Facebook trance and wrote about people being so entranced by the posts that they would spend hours logged in as if hypnotized. Facebook’s growth resulted from that.

Sticky blogging aims to follow this well-worn path created by Facebook’s founder Mark Zuckerberg. Once your blogs become sticky, like the avid Facebook likers, it is a way of keeping readers compelled to stay with you and devour every content and clicks you are offering.

Great tips to make your blog sticky

The goal of successful blogging is to keep many readers stick like glue to a great post. To get to that level of stickiness, here are some great ideas to create a sticky blog:

Put links from more than one post

Most blog posts seek to add more value to them, and one thing you can do is include interlinked posts. It will make your site more comprehensive and all-encompassing.

However, don’t put too many links, or else it might be distracting and irritating.

Have a strong and unforgettable site name and tagline

People will notice your site if you select a strongly worded name that espouses power and distinction and let them know what your site is all about. But remain grounded and do not go a bit over the top.

There is always a tagline that follows the site name, which must be equally strong and memorable.

Tell your blog post in various ways

People learn information differently from each other. Blogging appeals to visual learners who like to read, but you can transform your written post into various formats that auditory learners will appreciate.

There are a few ways to change your post into a video format. You can turn your post’s main points into a PowerPoint presentation or read it aloud to make it like a podcast.

Another way is to create a video commentary to discuss the blog’s salient points.

The entire point of including audio, video, or slideshows is to increase your blog’s viewership and to draw new visitors in.

Write about the good stuff in a conversational manner

First off, you need to know how to write an amazing blog post fast. Whenever creating content or new posts for your sticky blog, do it in a way like you are talking to a friend. Do not give the impression that you are too smart for your readers, or they might get turned off.

People like being treated on equal footing, so your site should have a friendly and non-confrontational tone, which will make them want to come back and read more posts from you.

Comment responses

Since online blogs enable instant feedback, some readers will want to leave provocative comments on the comments section in your new posts. In some instances, your post’s comments will be more interesting than the sticky blog itself.

A real-time conversation in the comment section is an excellent way to make your blog sticky and make them want to stick around. Respond to your readers immediately and ask them open-ended questions.

You can also re-post the most provocative comments on your social media accounts. This is one of the many ways to get more traffic to your blog through intentional blogging.

This way, your post will get another round of exposure, add more incoming traffic to your site, and keeping readers stick around.

Make your posts personal

The best posts have the bloggers include their experiences in the narration. Most readers want to read about human experiences and how people overcame obstacles in their lives.

This strategy will allow you to show your human side, which makes you more endearing to readers. However, try to be personal to a certain degree only, and sharing too much information can be off-putting.

Design your site

Your blog’s design is one of the crucial factors for visitors to stick around. Design it in a way that is appealing to the eye and corresponds to your personality and theme. You can include still photos or videos to make it look better.

However, do not devise it in a tacky way that might turn off potential readers.

How-to posts

Most bloggers write in answering what and why questions, but rarely do they do how-to posts. Readers will be more attuned if they are taught how to do particular tasks, like how to bake an apple pie.

How-to posts will make your blog sticky, and you can create an email correspondence from it, which functions as a short email mini-course focusing on different topics.

You can choose the most popular post you have written and turn it into a mini-course or an eBook. You can even turn it into a money-making venture by adding products.

Encourage further reading

Somehow you have managed your readers to stick around your posts. However, after them, they are faced with different options: to click X to close the window, go to another website, or continue to browse through your site.

You want them to remain. And to do that, you can recommend further reading in your posts.

There are many reasons why reading is important for writers, but you should also know how to convince your readers to do the same.

You can include links from other posts at the bottom of the page or use plugins that especially do these types of tasks (ex. Shareaholic, Related Posts).

Continue the experience with other social networks

Most successful bloggers also have an expansive social media presence on multiple platforms and countless followers, which can be equally beneficial.

You can also be a social media high roller and use your Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or other social media outposts to share your site content and vice versa.

Aside from sharing, there are many features in each social network that can help to spread the word about your blog, and you only have to be creative.

Put your well-known posts in your sidebar

If your website features allow you to showcase your most popular post or posts in the sidebar, then do so.

It will allow new visitors to stay further after reading your specific post since they will have something to click on.

Inviting through email

If you have an email list, it will work to the blog’s advantage. You can send mini-email courses (even an eBook or a full email course) and invitations to subscribe to your blog.

If you can individualize each email to cater to the specific recipient, so much the better. This way, they will think you have made an effort to contact them.

Give them different options to subscribe to you

Provide potential readers various alternatives to remain in contact with you. Sending emails about a new guest post will work, and some may want to subscribe through RSS feeds or via blog-based apps.

Bonuses upon subscription

If you can afford to incentivize new subscribers, then do so. Some may want to sign up with you because you are offering bonuses.

It is also an excellent way for new readers to stick around since they will look for ways to get something free from your blog.

Install plugin to allow subscribers to get follow-up comments

You can download a plugin (ex. comment Luv) that provides readers a choice in clicking to get follow-up responses. If they click it, they will get emails to allow them to comment on your blog.

Write helpful blog posts

No matter what you have chosen as your blog theme or topic, look for a way to make them able to offer practicable functions to the readers. People will want to read something that they can become handy in the future.

Keep your content lean

Every word on your blog post should serve a purpose, do not write it there for mere fluff.

Most online readers do not want to dillydally and waste time. Your blog should provide them with the info they need so they can go on with their lives.

Do not use complicated prose

Most of your blog visitors are only casual readers and will not put in much effort to understand difficult writing. They might find it unappealing and might leave.

When typical online users visit your page, they will only scan the article and only read about twenty percent. If it is littered with complicated prose, it will cause them to want to get away.

Excellent sticky blogging is easy-to-understand writing that does not use complex and grandiose words that only a few people comprehend.

Experts have recommended writing at an eighth-grade level since that is the typical education level most readers understand.

Write topics in an interesting and unexpected manner

Writing about popular and clichéd subjects might not seem to be a good idea since many bloggers might have written about it already. But if you can write about them in an interesting way and an unexplored angle, then it can be sticky.

Take an often written about the subject matter and look for a way to approach it differently. Find another perspective to write about it that will surprise the readers.

Be specific about describing ideas

Try to think about the articles that you read before that made an impact and impressed you.

Generic and bland articles that have obscure information would not oblige the readers to take action.

But well-written blogs that offer relatable insight coming from real-life situations will make the reader want more.

Try to be specific in describing whatever you are writing about. It is like painting an accurate picture in the minds of your readers. Use the five senses (feel, touch, see, hear, and smell) to describe situations.

It will make readers appreciate your efforts and want more from you.

Link important data to back up your articles

Another way to make your blog sticky and compelling to read is to put links coming from expert sources littered throughout the blog.

The best bloggers do this trick to make it more trustworthy and reliable to the readers. You must do this if you are writing about subjects that deal with facts and figures.

If your blog intends to give advice, then this information must back you up. Also, your readers need to comprehend the reasoning you are trying to uphold is based on truth.

If you want your ideas to be taken to heart, then look for ways to include trustworthy sources.

Evoking positive emotions

Just the beginning, you may have chosen a good topic and know how to write an engaging blog. But to make it sticky, you need to make the readers feel something as they read it.

You can include videos, quizzes, quotes, or images to arouse the necessary feelings in the readers. The best kinds are the positive ones, those feel-good emotions.

Story narration

If you know how to write a good and compelling story, you can apply this talent to your blog. The reader will like to read something with a direction: a beginning, middle, and end.

The best bloggers write like they are taking their readers on a journey. The readers will feel appreciated that you are including them and will want to come back for more.

Other sticky blogging great tips

• Get a Google Analytics plugin to track blog traffic from search engines.
• Set up an editorial calendar to manage your content.
• Do frequent community shout-outs on your blog.
• Take the sticky SEO online course.
• Use your blog to promote and follow up on products.
• Find ways to optimize your blog for search engines.
• Republish excerpts that were popular before.
• Think about using Facebook Notes feature for microblogging and Facebook updates.

Questions to ask yourself before posting your first sticky blog

Now you know everything there is about sticky blogging. But you still have to apply what you have learned in posting your first blog entry.

Here are a few questions you need to ask yourself before writing it:

How fast do my readers comprehend what I am writing about?

If you want the entire blogosphere to notice your blog, you need to be sure that new visitors will quickly understand it. This way, they will stick with it and would not leave.

Internet readers will usually stay for one minute, browse through your page and look for something interesting to read.

After passing the one-minute mark and they still cannot find something that catches their fancy, they will click the X mark on your window and look for something else.

Follow all the above-mentioned recommendations about keeping your blog sticky, and your readers will remain loyal to you and get more traffic.

Does my blog provide something new and unanticipated?

It is estimated that there are more than six hundred million blogs on the internet today. And each blogger will say that they are offering fresh and original content.

All the excellent blog topics and themes may have been used by someone else already, so what can you do to make your blog novel and refreshing?

The only thing new is yourself and your voice on different issues and subjects. Use your unique perspective in writing about old-hat topics, and put a new spin on something done before.

Also, try to write honestly, and your readers will appreciate it.

Is my blog helpful?

It does not necessarily need to be the focus of each blog you are going to post. But you still need to include something that can help in a way or uplift someone’s spirits.

Most bloggers blog because they want to help people, so their blogs are all about giving advice. The best ones strive in giving a positive impact on the world. And it is always better to have that in mind when your write.

Bloggers like to write how-to posts, and while those are great, you should not do them all the time. You can add extra digital flourishes that make them comprehensive, like charts, infographics, or videos.

Why will my readers trust me?

Establishing trust is essential in blogging. When readers trust you and what you are offering in your blog, it means they will stick around.

Readers will judge you from your content and how you present yourself. Be sure to write reliable and truthful info, and do not make things up only to make it engaging to read.

Does my blog talk to people on a human level?

As mentioned earlier, evoking positive emotions is key to create a sticky blog. The people who read your blogs will appreciate it more if it tugs at their heartstrings.

If they feel an emotional connection to you and your writing, it is another reason for them to stick around and want more.

Does my writing explain clearly what needs to be explained?

It goes hand-in-hand with the question above. Whenever you choose a topic to write about, it may be about a current news story or an experience, try to make your intentions clear as possible and explained correctly.

Am I accomplishing what my readers expect of me?

Try to remain consistent within your blog’s pre-established style, theme, or outlook. Readers will come back to your blog if they know the stuff you like writing about.

Avoid deviating from what your blog is all about. This way, they will stick around looking for more.

Conclusion: A sticky blog compels readers to stay

Sticky blogs tread a fine line between engaging and unappealing and are like catching fire. If you want to remain relevant in the blogosphere for a long time, you must know to traverse it without getting burned. This way, you would not make the mistake of becoming boring very quickly.