I am a brobdingnagian reader and Considering massive amount of Information we consume everyday from various online sources like blogs,emails,Twitter and more .There is huge competition among a lot of passionate ,hard working bloggers trying to make their own mark and in this huge competition every blogger wants to be some body .
No body reads my blog and no body comments these are most common complaint bloggers have.after some serious thinking I cam up with this Idea keep your subscribers close and Readers closer. The first impression matters and that's where you have to make your impact.
with huge data around people are no longer read posts other old school way,they filter your blog and skim you posts and when they find the cream that came from skimming is good then only they will proceed to read it thoroughly .You have to adopt yourself to the changing situation and Improve your chances.The 10 Second Rule
Count your Subscribers not your Visitors :
Be happy with what you have I have a little over 100+ lovely subscribers (thank you guys),because these are the most lovely people when a person subscribes to your blog it means he is your new friend and he is loyal and you have to treat him right and Promise an ongoing relationship.they are the ones who make you confident by subscribing they are showing a lot of faith in you.
“Among millions of blogs I am subscribing to your blog means I have a lot of faith and expectation in you” This is what a subscriber is telling you and its up to you to keep that promise and faith.
Keep the Subscribers CLOSE :
Every subscriber needs appreciation they are the ones in long run will be your most loyal visitors and 20–80 principle applies to them ,20 % of visitors make 80 % of your business and this is the most Important point to Remember and this is a key to keep them coming back for more .
1. Send a Personal Email : Send a Personal Email thanking your New Subscriber ,tell them how much you appreciate it and what it means to you.and this will help you strengthen your relation with your subscribers.
2.Give Incentive to Subscribe : Give a Incentive for subscribing to your blog give away a free ebook or some Worth reading report which helps the reader,Freebies or some other incentive to those subscribing to your blog’s feed or newsletter and you could give some readers the little extra incentive to connect that they needed.
3.Don't Disappoint your Subscribers : When a Person subscribes to your blog he expects quality and Quantity from you,Post regularly and to a particular rhythm and don't keep them waiting give your best in every post and post it regularly.
Every Visitor is a Potential Subscriber :
Yes Every new visitor is a potential subscriber and difference between successful blog and stagnant blog is the conversion ration ,all the success of a blog lies in this conversion ratio ,try to convert every new visitor in to a subscriber and each subscriber into a loyal reader.
first time visitor (Casual Reader) turn him into Subscriber (regular reader) = Loyal Reader (most Valuable Reader)
Following are some tips and Suggestions of how to gain new visitors and how to make them come back to your blog (How to Make Your Blog or Website Sticky )
Attract More Visitors !
1. Content is king : people Content is king other stuff also matter no matter how bog your army and cavalry is still you need a king to lead your way,With out Quality content no blogger can be successful and no blog can survive in the long run .Give valuable content and people will come to visit your site.
When a visitor comes to your blog looking for some content he should be satisfied ,give value to people through your content they will definitely show appreciation and love towards your blog.
2.Valuable Content : Content is of different kinds we all know that and I would like to take a example of Amit Agarwal’s Blog Labnol . This is a Digital Inspiration blog where he produces amazing content and most valuable information about Technology for daily use and Guides and more value added posts which will educate readers . Create such Content in your own niche.
3.Interact with your Readers : When you make your readers interact with your blog in some way ,as the have invested some thing here and more likely they will come back to your blog.
a) use POLLS like Darren Rowse
I am a Problogger fan like many of us here ,every time you visit his site one thing you will definitely find is a Poll .As of now this is his poll Where is Your Favorite Place to Blog? . He is making his readers Interacting with his blog .asking a question in a poll will definitely make your readers interact with your blog .
Some of the free polling sites are vizu.com and polldaddy.com. Create a one-question poll to encourage people to take the step and interact by answering your question.
b) Ask for Comments : Ask you readers a Question or request a feed back on your post via comments like “Please let me know what you think about this. leave your Comment now”.The moment you make your readers Interactive they will stop being Passive Readers and turn active. , and that can help bring them one step closer to becoming a Subscriber or loyal reader.
Make commenting simple and clear ,make it easily visible and try to respond to comments ,engage with your reader via comments and take the discussion to next level.
4. connect the dots with Social Media : You may have Excellent content but you need to tell to people that you have written a wonderful post.This is where Social Media comes more than handy .While I prefer to read blogs using an RSS readers like Google Reader others may use many other modes like Technorati , FaceBook ,Twitter ,FriendFeed ,and many other sites like this will help you develop a brand Image.Invite your Readers with connect with you.
5 . Readers begets readers : Reading others blog, sharing their valuable content in you social media profiles and commenting on their post and engaging in conversation about their posts will help you build a relation and help you make new friends and this will also help you attract more visitors and trackbacks.
6. Post Regularly : this is very Important ,post regularly and don't give a hug time gap between post and post .many readers subscribe by seeing the post frequency and to keep your existing subscribers and gain new visitors you have to post frequently and develop a posting rhythm.
Good Blog Design
1. Make Subscription option Clear and Easy : See any Popular blog From Problogger,Copyblogger,Labnol, all these blogs have a prominent call to action for readers subscribe to it.In fact I’d recommend having more than one invitation – one prominent one above the fold and prominent in your sidebar or navigation area and then a second one below your post.
Above Fold Make sure of having Standard RSS button along with Email Subscription form,not all people will know what is rss feed ? or how to use it ,while almost every knows what a email is and how to operate it .By the way – if you’re not already subscribed to Zen Inspiration’s RSS feed – Here it is !
2.keep it Simple : Simplicity is always beautiful ,when a new visitor comes to your blog he should not be confused ,after coming to your site with in seconds your reader will make some assumptions and if its cluttered more chances are that they will not return .
So keep it simple and don't fill your site with ads and specially above fold don't clutter it with ads ,keep it as minimalistic as possible .Don't add too many side bar elements.when content is highlighted rest all really doesn't matter much.
3.Teach them Your Blog Culture : Each and every blog is different in culture and For example Leo’s blog Zenhabits is one of the most popular blogs on planet ,but it doesn't have all the hype,its very simple and minimalistic and it doesn't have tons of subscription options and social bookmarking buttons just simple Delicious and tweet this options .
Like that every blog will have its culture of posting ,design and sharing features ,guest posting,contacting and so on .tell them who is writing posts, who are the authors ,add a excellent about me page and contact form and make your blog easily accessible in all possible ways.
4. Your Blog is Your Personification : 
@Seth Godin is master of this ,he is a personal brand and you can see his personal touch every where and in his blog he managed to create a personalized experience .Learn from a master create your own brand value and using podcasts effectively to create a personal tone to your blog.this will help your readers connect with you than with your content.
5.Power of Widgets,Plugins and Techniques :
a) Though I prefer Blogger platform ,I know Wordpress is the best blogging Platform out there and you have to make most of the Plugins and widgets WP Sticky plugin can be used to make a post into an announcement that stays at the top of your page.Also adding a Related Posts at the end of your post is a very good Idea .Which helps your reader to spend more time on your blog .
b) Show off your most Popular posts and best content don't let them get buried in your Archives add a Widget like that of Problogger Which Says best of Problogger. use these techniques to make your most popular posts always visible on home page.
c) Interlink your Posts : Don't miss a opportunity to Interlink your posts .Take techcrunch as Inspiration in this matter ,more you Interlink more chances to make your reader stick to your blog,but take care not to over do it.
6. write better headlines : funny thing in blogosphere there is a Specialist for very thing and when it comes to headlines @Brian Clark is the Guru. How to Write Magnetic Headlines
7. Use Power of Illustrations : Use Images in every post which is very relevant and this is very powerful technique,use Podcasts,Images,Videos,Graphics,charts,Info graphics where ever necessary which takes your presentations to next level.
What Have I Missed? What would you add? Have you tried any of these techniques with success? What do you consider the most important element for a successful blog sticky? Share your opinion in the comments box below! ;-)