As more and more people become more cynical of and veer away from traditional advertising, blogging has entrenched itself as one of the most effective ways for brands to build and sustain relationships with audiences. Instead of merely selling to their audiences, brands are creating content that is either entertaining or informative and therefore is much more readily consumed and shared by people. Here are a few ways your blog can stay relevant with your audiences.
Make People Chuckle
Or at least make your readers smile. It would be to your benefit to find ways to stay relevant and still be able to infuse your blog posts with humor. In the movie "Monsters Inc." the good guys discover that laughter packs more punch than screaming. It maybe a kids movie, but it packs a powerful message.
If you can find a way to weave humor into your posts, you will discover that the monsters were right, after all. It goes without saying that laughter is a double-edged sword; if wielded incorrectly you can end up cutting yourself. So proceed with caution, but do explore the potentials of entertaining your readers.
You might embed a famous funny quote written by someone else into your article or perhaps your second job is as a stand-up comedian and you can write your own jokes, but somehow you have to find a way embed that humor into your material. And, it looks much better if you do in a natural way without looking like you are "trying too hard".
Inspire Your Readers
There's a reason Oprah Winfrey became the media titan she is today. The lady simply inspires people, both with her own story and by throwing focus on the inspiring stories of others. It's for this same reason that Jack Canfield's "Chicken Soup for the Soul" continues to be one of the largest-selling books in the last two decades.
People love to be inspired. They need to be inspired. And when they find inspiration in something they will surely share it with others. Your own story may not be as dramatically inspiring as Oprah's, and your blog may not offer the nuggets of inspiration Jack Canfield's writing does, but if you find ways to help your readers transcend their difficulties and ignite their passions, people will come and visit your blog and share it with their friends.
Help Your Readers Shine
It may not sound nice, but people are always looking out for what's in it for themselves. That is simply the reality of being human. If your blog posts empower your readers and help make them look good, then they won't even think twice about coming back for more.
Have Fun, Share Fun
Given the chance, we humans would rather have fun. Contests and freebies are among the proven ways to give people the fun they seek. The side benefit is that the more fun your audience has, the higher your level of engagement with them. And the higher the level of engagement, the better the chances of cultivating a relationship with them. It just gets better for you from here on.
The caveat to this approach is that it can be easy to offer fun for fun's sake, but you need to keep your business objectives in focus. Otherwise your audience might end up more interested in what stuff you offer rather than in the objectives of your organization.
One way to prevent this is to align your fun activities with your business. Offer token prizes, for example, to those who take you up on your calls-to-action.