3 Ways to

GROW YOUR BLOG WITH GROUPS

Hello, I’m Tea (aka The Chef)

• 20+ years in marketing

• Author of “Attract & Feed a Hungry Crowd”

• Passionate about food & stories

• Proprietress of StoryBistro.com

• @teasilvestre

First, Make Sure… 1. Your blog addresses a REAL

need in the market place (do your research!)

2. You've done the requisite homework to understand your Ideal Client/Ideal Reader

Everybody deals with

Not Enough Eyeballs

You Compete w/ 80+ million blogs In 2012, there were 160+ million blogs in

existence. Today, more than 50% are inactive.

-Wikipedia

Everyone is an Influencer

Don’t discount your peers and colleagues

“Big Name” Bloggers aren’t The Answer

Today’s B & C-Listers are tomorrow’s A-Listers

#1: Twist on an Oldie

The Blog Carnival

What’s a Blog Carnival? A blog post that contains links to other articles covering a specific topic.

Most are hosted by a rotating list of frequent contributors and serve to both generate new posts by contributors and highlight new bloggers posting in that subject area.

The Word Carnival Group W

ord

Carn

ivals

.com

After 1 Year Together, We…

Rotate the Leadership

Pick a monthly topic together

Commit to writing 10 out of 12 months

Comment on each others’ posts

Share via social media

Create your own website

Start an email list (publish via RSS)

Publish eBooks to give away

What to Look For…

Quality writing!

Regular posts (2x/month)

Similar audience

Size (look at social media)

Type (same readers?)

Fresh Voice/Perspective

Be Consistent

The Leader Must Lead

Pick one day per month (e.g. Last

Wednesday)

Reminders

Membership Guidelines &

Expectations

Communication!

#2: Focus on the Writing

The Critique/ Mastermind Group

Polish Prior to Publish You could spend ALL DAY posting and emailing links to your blog. If your writing sucks, your readers …

Won’t Finish Reading

Won’t Share

Won’t Comment

Won’t Turn Into Subscribers

Fiction Writers & Playwrights

Small Groups work Best (5-7)

Gather to share pieces of their work

Give constructive feedback

Brainstorm ways to approach topics

Provide a supportive environment

Publish together

Critique Checklist Does the title/headline hook you?

Does the opening line pull you in?

Is the point of the post clear?

Does the post fulfill the promise of the headline?

Is it interesting?

Is it easy to read?

Does it tell a story?

Is it relevant to your Ideal Client?

Is there a call to action?

(Full checklist avail by email: tea@thewordchef.com)

Support After Publishing

Comments

Social Media Sharing

Mastermind larger projects (books!)

#3 Twist on Networking

The Meet-up!

Find ‘Em

Google: Your City + Bloggers

Check Meetup.com

Create Your Own

It Won’t Be Perfect

People will come and go – always be on the lookout for the right new blood

Create ways to build community (e.g., private Facebook group, team-building and purely social events)

Communicate, communicate, communicate

Questions?

• What’s one thing you will implement immediately?

• What did you find unclear or want more examples of?

• Other burning questions?

• Talk to me! @teasilvestre (Twitter)

Join Our Group:

Learn More: http://bit.ly/blog-master