So you know you should blog to promote your book. But you worry it will be a waste of your time and effort. The solution? Group blogs.
Why Authors Should Consider Group Blogs
First, let’s define group blogs. These are individual blogs on specific topics that have multiple authors, each contributing posts.
So, in other words, you might create a group blog on, say, weight loss. Then you might have five different authors who each have written books on diet, exercise, etc… who regularly contribute to this blog with their own individual posts. People who visit the blog would be able to read all the posts in chronological order, or simply read the ones by the contributor they are most interested in. Each of those posts would also include promotion of the individual titles that each author has written and/or links to their personal site.
The benefits of group blogs for authors like you is numerous, including:
- You can expose yourself to a new audience. In other words, people following one of the other blog contributors are likely to see your posts as well.
- The shared responsibility of keeping the blog updated doesn’t sit solely on you; it’s a team that keeps it alive and kicking.
- More posts = more traffic = more book sales. It’s simple.
Creating or Joining Group Blogs
If group blogs sounds more palatable to you than blogging on your own, how would you go about doing it?
First, see if there are already any group blogs created in your genre. Do some Google searching to identify any that may be out there, and then reach out to those bloggers about becoming a contributor.
If there aren’t any group blogs in your genre, you can start your own if you’re willing to take on the responsibility. Start by setting up a blog for free at WordPress.com. Post one or two entries yourself to set the tone and theme. Then reach out to other authors in your field (if you know them personally, great; if not, a simple search should allow you to find authors promoting themselves) and ask them if they’re interested in being a contributor. Create posts on Facebook and/or LinkedIn pitching group blogging — you can link to this blog post — and asking those who are interested to reach out.
Group Blogging Tips
If you are going lead a group blog, here are some tips and things to keep in mind.
- You can add authors and contributors easily through WP Admin. Go to Users → Invite New to invite others to join your team to be contributors or authors (more on this distinction below).
- Decide if you want final authority over everything posted on your group blog. If you give contributors “author” rights, they can post and publish instantaneously. Or you can decide to make them “contributors,” in which case you would be able to review each post before it goes live.
- Make sure to have each contributor create a user profile and gravatar. This will allow visitors to easily differentiate between each contributor.
- You can also have each author be his or her own “category” of posts, making it easy for readers to sort posts by contributor.
- Have all your contributors follow the same guidelines about tagging blog posts, optimizing them for keywords, etc… Consistency is key.
- Use the super-cool author widgets that WordPress offers. Consider “Author’s Widget” — “an easy, direct way to display your team, as shown on The Smoke-Filled Room. When configuring the widget, you can adjust some settings, from a custom widget title, to the number of posts to show for each author, to the ability to specify avatar size.” Or try “Author Grid,” which brings in the photos of each of your authors/editors.
Have you tried group blogging? What worked for you? What pitfalls did you face? Share them with us!