The surf-crazy town of Encinitas California. Spicoli clones popped up everywhere in this world-renowned surfing community. I spent hours watching the swell at revered Swamis with Yogananda’s temple next door, overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

No new blogger knows how to connect with your readers.

You and I think we know what it takes to connect as beginners.

But we usually want readers to buy something then hit the road.

Connection is not in the mind.

We want transactions not connections.

I thought this way as a beginner blogger.

I clocked it. Readers show up. Folks read a post. Customers buy my stuff. Customers exit stage left. I get paid. The customer rides off into the cyber sunset with an online course and eBook to improve their lives.

Rudely awakened with alarming speed, I learned that blogging almost never works that way.

Readers buy from trusted bloggers. Earning trust requires bloggers to form strong connections with readers.

I changed my tune after understanding how connections create success.

People need to be able to communicate with you for connections to form.

If they cannot contact you and share their thoughts why would you expect a large group of people to trust you?

Blogging dictators rarely go far in this world. Some experience success. Yet if they do not form a strong emotional connection with their readers….what’s the point?

I need to make things abundantly clear. Blogging dictators are rare individuals. Almost every pro connects deeply with readers to figure out what readers want. Publishing content aligned fully with what readers want drives organic traffic and blogging income.

Almost across the board, without connections you will struggle mightily to drive organic traffic and blogging income.

How can you get inside of your reader’s minds without connecting with them?

Keyword research only takes ya so far, my Young Blogging Padawans.

Decide How to Connect with Your Readers By Joining Mentally

Mentally join with readers.

How do people think? What motivates someone to stick around? Why do people drop genuine blog comments. Why do people buy products?

Readers want connection.

People want to be recognized. Readers want to form bonds.

Thinking like readers is the simplest way to connect with your audience.

I tweak my user experience based on thinking like a reader not a blogger. You want me to connect with you. More importantly, you want to have the means necessary to connect with me.

Don’t worry guys; the means are below.

Get into the proper mindset. Join mentally with your tribe. See your blog from the perspective of a reader. Consider strategies to increase blogger-reader connections.

Everything comes down to ways to keep in touch.

If we can keep in touch consistently we connect.

Bonds. form. Trust builds. Referral traffic increases. Referral business grows.

Why?

You did what it took to establish connections.

Follow these tips to connect with your readers.

A1: Maintain Social Media Handles

I do not care if you hate social media.

5 billion human beings basically have a phone number called “social media”.

I speak to people consistently on Facebook and X. I do not have their phone numbers. Yet I connect with them effortlessly through our social media profiles.

Think it through.

Do 5 billion people subscribe to your email list? Do 5 billion people follow your blog? Do you want to drop 5 billion phone numbers into your contact list?

Or is it easier to join Facebook and X where everybody knows each other’s user name and messages or video calls each other (with permission of course!) seamlessly?

Maintain social media handles across Facebook and X at a minimum. Check messages and replies daily to connect with your blog readers.

Perceive Facebook as a phone not a cyber scourge.

Connect seamlessly with your tribe.

1: Share an Opt-In Form to Build an Email List

Build your email list.

Use the most convenient means to connect with readers.

I cling to a love-hate relationship with list-building. I have published daily blog posts for months. I feared blowing out my teeny weeny list with daily emails. Emailing only active subscribers made sense at the time.

But I pumped the brakes on publishing posts daily. Now I ship posts every 5-7 days. Few people get annoyed at receiving weekly emails, methinks. Hence the subscribe link at the bottom of my blog sidebar.

Yep; I am actively building my email list once again.

Embed an opt-in form. Publish detailed content. Entice readers to surrender email addresses willingly.

Never use fear to scare readers into signing up for a list. Allow your content to sign people up. Trust your blog posts to finish the job for you. Share a link or opt-in form to collect email addresses.

Email valuable content. Solve reader problems. Simply point links to long-form blog posts or send beefy text updates to gain rock solid credibility.

2: Feed Reader (Feedly)

Followers connect with bloggers through Feedly.

Remind readers to add your blog to their Feedly – or feed reader – of choice.

Use this easy strategy to be seen and heard.

Guide readers to drop your blog into readers. Followers get notified, not unlike reading a newspaper online.

The downside to this approach; it is not instant notification like via emailing your list.

The upside? Followers scan your content at their leisure.

Some people enjoy consuming content from multiple sources during a set time frame. Enter feed readers.

I liken it to following ESPN Dot Com to scan the latest sports news concerning your favorite events.

3: Comments (Read and Reply to All)

Keep blog comments open for at least 1-2 weeks after posts go live.

Extend time frames if readers drop comments on older blog posts.

Barely anyone dropped comments on aged Blogging From Paradise posts, except spammers, of course. I closed comments after 1 week because 99% of blog comments popped up within 7 days after my new posts go live.

Read every comment. Reply to all comments. Build connections. Make your blog a two way street not a broadcasting platform.

Establish bonds the old-fashioned way. Listen to readers. Spot pain points. Reply compassionately. Share practical tips.

Receive blog post ideas through blog comments. Scour thoughts with a find-toothed comb mentally for a steady flow of blog post ideas.

Readers share exactly what they want you to blog about. Develop the skill of seizing blog post topics from thoughtful comments to establish rock-solid connections with your tribe.

4: Embed a Contact Form and/or Email Link

Embed a contact form. Add a social media link while you are at it.

I prefer to share a link to my email. I got slammed with spam through my contact form. Legitimate bloggers reach out to me via email along with a steady stream of spam messages.

Form instant bonds. Give followers the opportunity to email you seamlessly.

People cyber live in their inbox.

Allow readers to connect with you via the most convenient online medium.

5: Bookmark and Check

This strategy puts the ball in the reader’s court exclusively.

Remind readers to bookmark your blog. Guide readers what to do. Use kind Jedi Mind Tricks. But refrain from desperately calling followers to take specific action. Gently nudge loyal followers resistant to other methods.

Drop casual reminders here and there.

Believe it or not, readers bookmark and check Blogging From Paradise Dot Com. I have that effect on people.

Jokes aside, this is a subtle way to maintain connections in a “Hey…..don’t forget about me too quickly,” kind of way.

Conclusion

Think like a reader not a blogger.

Connect with readers by following a few basic strategies consistently.

Be patient.

Build bonds with a long term mindset.

Your Turn

How do you connect with your readers?

What tips can you share?

Related posts:

How to Get Blog Readers to Take Action: 8 Tips Why Closing Comments on Old Posts May Be Best for All of Your Readers 10 Ways to Send Readers Away from Your Blog Do You Use Social Media for Readers or You? Do You Speak to Your Readers? Do You Look Past the Wrong Readers for Your Blog? Do You Put Your Readers or What You Want from Them First? Do You Give Your Readers What They Want?