With the influx of new members and the things I run into, I thought it's time for another little chat.
Self promotion! We all do it. It helps us spread the word about ourselves and about our blogs. But what are the ways in which we can promote ourselves and which roads should we walk?
Non-intrusive ways
Once you write your blog and you hit that Post button, you're hoping your article gets noticed by many people. You dream of the riches that follow big upvotes. But wait, not a few minutes later, your post has disappeared all the way down on the New feed. Who will find it now? There's a chance your followers will still find it, but you might not have that many yet!
Steemit chat
For these situations, you can use the steemit.chat channels to promote your post! Create your account there, look for appropriate channels and post your link inside them. An appropriate channel would be the Postpromotion channels or a channel named after the subject of your article. Be sure to post the link just once per channel. Don't be a spammer.
Discord
There are a few Discord channels to post your links to. I am not sure how to create links to discord channels (I might just not have the right permissions), so for this one, you'll have to use the search bar on the top of the Steemit site. Search for posts about Discord and follow the link(s) there. This works about the same as the Steemit chat. Find the appropriate channel and post a link to your article there. Again, be sure to post the link just once per channel. Don't be a spammer.
During discussions in comments
If you feel one of your posts truly adds value to a chat you're having in the comments on someone's post, you can drop a link to it in your comment, describing why you think it adds value. Be sure to use this one wisely though. Don't do it to gain traffic, do it because it actually adds someting to the conversation.
In your own posts
Nothing wrong with a bit of link dropping inside of your own posts. Reference an older article if it fits the story you're telling. However, don't just write a new post in which you just drop all of your new links. Let's atleast try to keep things interesting. You new post should add value to the platform in its own right.
Bad ways to self promote
The above screenshot was the last straw for me to start writing this article. It was a private message send directly to me through Steemit chat. First of all, private messages are for actual chats, not for self promotion. Second, I am not a bro, I am actually very much female. Do your homework.
So what ways of self promotion should you avoid? It is very basic stuff, but it appears not everyone understands this.
Don't comment on someone else's post, just to try and get them to look at yours. Most people will not like this and it will make them less likely to visit your page. Your comments should add value to the post, they should not be about shameless self promotion.
Don't write private messages to people, simply because you want them to check out a post. It makes them very annoyed and it will make sure they do not check out your post.
Don't try to guild-trip people into following or upvoting you. It is great to hear that you upvoted an article of mine or that you started following me. That does not automatically mean I like your posts aswell. I follow people, because their content is interesting to me, or because they provide good conversations through comments. I will not follow you, simply because you followed me aswell. Don't ask for it, because I am very stubborn and will never comply in that way.
Your followers and upvotes need to be earned through good content and conversations. Aim for those if you want to be truly successful on Steemit!
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Header image taken from this post by @samstonehill. Check out his other Steemit images!
