My Top 3 Misfit Marketing Tips.

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Ahhh MizFit, INK. I need to return to ye.

 

Im not sure what it is (school starting? Cooler temps so we are all out FROLICKING not blog-reading?) but recently everyone seems to be lamenting a lack of traffic to her blog.

Heres where I say BE ME! BE ME! Never look at your analytics.  Allow people to tell you that youre completely unprofessional because you dont know your precise numbers offhand.  Make that lack o’knowledge part of your brand!

I have no answer to the “how to get additional traffic quick fast and in a hurry!” query (and probably endorse the living not blogging notion a weetad too much).

I do have a few marketing tips to share.

Misfit Marketing tips if you will as, since I have no ads on my blog (oooh kinda foreshadowing! Im *so* utilizing that English Lit degree!!), my goal for bringing in new readers is to trap em, keep em, and coerce em hope they join our community.

(translation: Im not hoping to drag people here in an effort to make money from impressions or ad click throughs.)

Misfit marketing tip #1:

Do not be afraid to be the first.  With anything.  Your approach may not unfold as anticipated (hello New Coke! Greetings MizFit bracelets circa 2008!) –but you will never wonder “what if??” *and* I guarantee you will learn something for your next marketing endeavor.

Also remember just because something hasnt been done before does not mean it wont work!  And, if you discover it’s just too freakin expensive much to your chagrin there’s indeed a reason why—you can still always tweak and morph your plan into marketing marvousnessment (technical term) down the road.

Ive seen it happen.

Misfit marketing tip #2:

People frequently ask me what *I* think of marketing ideas and approaches.  In my opinion it all depends on your brand.

I believe nothing is too zany or too outside the box (to employ an overused term) if it fits your brand!

I believe readers/potential readers only do the movie’esque double take if a marketing approach does NOT fit the blog or site branding/voice.

For example a highly serious, super grammatically correct marketing endeavor up in herre? I think not.

For example, back when I was a freelance personal trainer I decided it would be a great idea to iron-on the letters TRAINER! to the back of my raggedy sweatpants (this was before the proliferation of letters on bumbums we see today).

LongstorySHORT? I am a woman who lacks both ironing skills and the crafting gene.  I ended up with very askance, highly sloppy TRAINER ironed to my bumbum & dripping down my legs.

LongstoryLONG? I acquired many clients as a result of that marketing ploy.  Women rightfully assumed I must be a misfit if *that* was my approach to selling myself.  They extrapolated (correctly) from there I must be a slightly off-beat personal trainer as well.

(unnecessary aside? Im so SAD I no longer have those sweatpants!)

Bottom line: Anything works—no matter how seemingly quirky—if it meshes with your brand.

Misfit marketing tip #3:

Be a fist.  Or more aptly phrased: make yourself a member of a fist.

Im a huge believer in the power of community.

Im a huge believer in the face we are NOT competing with each other over readers/readership (which is what makes me sad when there are blog cliques)—but all benefit if more people, in general, are reading blogs!

It was for that reason I happily ponied up the cash to place an ad over at No More Bacon and why I love both the fact he’s fearless (doesnt worry linking to other tribemembers will lose him readers) and creative (pay what you choose).

Whether you place an ad on another blogger’s site or merely dedicate one day to linking and promoting other blogs remember when you market others you help yourself too.

 Alone we arent as powerful as we are together.  When one community member gits him a spike in readership—we can all benefit from links and referrals.

Hold on loosely (sing it with me!) to your readers—THEY wont let go.

* Runs to get a protein-rich snack to replenish after her brain-dump*

As you can plainly see above, I posses nary a marketing secret.

For me self-promotion or marketing is not simply stumbleupon or Triberr  or any of those more mass pursuits as my goal is to create a community

For me giveaways to arent an approach to gaining readership—but a way to share what I love with my peeps.

For me what works with regards to marketing is not letting the norms control my growth.

For me marketing (and fitness and LIFE)…isn’t about fitting in.

Now YOU.

Whats your best self-marketing tip?

Do you stumble and connect and pinterest in a way I do not?

Are you happily a FINGER while I sing the praises of a fist?

 

 

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Comments

  1. markting?? are we supposed to be marketing our blogs?? lol
    I don’t think of my blog in those terms. I write what I feel like writing, I only “promote” those brands I really believe in and use myself – I starting writing my blog with the hope that my story (GOING FROM FAT TO FIT, LOSING 110+LBS) inspires people to embrace a healthy life- and let peeople know You Can Do It!!

    I’d much rather read blogs than the newspaper. Is that wrong of me??? 🙂

    I dont stumble or pinterest or tribe….or any of that stuff. Between my blog, training, work, family, and other stuff, that is really all I have time for.

    Nice pants!!

  3. I just want to write.
    I want people to read, but to come because they love my writing not because they stumbled upon me 🙂

  4. I do not blog yet, but don’t see the point for ads and all the marketing stuff.

    When I start my blog it will be for me to read and anyone else would just be extra.

  5. Also 🙂
    I like you have no ads here.
    I’m not sure who it is (BlogHer?), but someone is doing big pop-ups and I can’t stand those.

  6. One of my ‘Needs Improvement’ tasks is self-marketing. Not so much for the blog (though that would surely benefit) but for growing my home-based business. Two or three clients aren’t really going to do it for the long haul. 🙂

  7. I am torn.
    I wish I had more readers, yet I think I do not want random Google traffic on my blog.

    I like Ryan’s ad idea because it keeps a reader ship you know.

    I hadn’t seen Ryan’s blog before.

  8. I love the different views on this subject. I really just post about what I want to post about. I enjoy people reading because they like the content. I try not to focus on traffic/numbers, etc

  9. I am a reader and do not usually comment but here goes:

    I don’t blog because I do not have the time to market it I know it requires.

    Why write if you are not attempting at least slightly to bring in others to read?

    Good post!

  10. I don’t wear anything brazenly emblazoned with a brand name – no Abercrombie or Hilfiger for me. For that reason, I had a hard time designing a sticker (remember when the free stickers went around blogland?) – most bloggers were putting their blog name on it, and I was thinking “cute, but I’m not going to display that anywhere, so why would I think anyone would want something with MY blog name on it” – which is why I ended up doing the half marathon phrase.

    So I guess I pretty much suck at self-promotion, lol. But I figure word of mouth will get people to my blog…I’m writing it for me mostly. (haha, completely obvious with my week’s worth of palooza)

    Also, I don’t like most ads. I was in line for a blogher ad and turned them down because A) it’s my blog and I don’t want anyone telling me what I can post on it; and B) those ads are just too big. I have a couple word ads on my blog that are about to expire and I’m not planning on getting any more. And while I’m a bit jealous of bloggers who make actual money with their blogs, I’m not willing to change how I do things with mine…which is why I’ll always be a small-time blogger. And that’s ok with me. 🙂

  11. I can not stand blogs with big ads for crap that typically is anti-what they are saying.

    Frequently blog who say “eat what you want!” sort of messages end up with Jenny Craig ads.

    It’s funny to a point.

    I love that you don’t have ads here, but how do you may money?

  14. Hi, this was a great article. While I don’t pay to market my blog, I use twitter to promote it and I import all posts on facebook for my friends to read. I don’t write for financial gain; however, I do feel sad and frustrated when no one comments on my blog because I prefer feedback from my readers and it shows me that actual people are reading my blog. My only annoying marketing technique is posting my blog at the end of comments on message boards, this has been helpful at times but on one particular occasion someone got pretty mad at me for doing so. Thanks for your time.

  15. You honestly just amaze me & I love you in every way & especially this post – LOVE! You know, I have always linked to others or shred or whatever & I know I have lost some readers but I don’t care cause what I share is something I love & believe in – I love all your points but especially that last one! Why can’t we all share – I know it is tough out there but I guess I am just old fashioned… going to read this again after sleep! 😉

  17. I totally agree with you on #3. I hate when it seems like people are competing for readers. Personally, I love the community and support of the healthy bloggers.

  18. I think when it comes to marketing a blog the important thing is to… UNAPOLOGETICALLY BE YOURSELF! 🙂 And also do what interests you. It’s difficult to not market yourself if you’re doing something you love.

    In the beginning I think it can be very useful to do things like give out business cards, use a lot of social media, tell people about the blog etc. etc., but once that’s all been ESTABLISHED, then it’s necessary to simply continue doing what you love doing. And if you find yourself going in a direction that you don’t really feel HAPPY with, then there’s something wrong with that.

    Also! Slight side note: it seems to me that whenever people decide to “get serious” about their blog, or START paying attention to things like getting ads and building traffic, that’s when it STOPS BEING FUN. They feel like blogging is a chore. Major problem with that! You should be blogging and marketing yourself because that’s what comes naturally.

    Anyways, that’s my two cents (or maybe closer to two dollars. This was a pretty long comment after all).

  19. I think the best blogs are the authentic ones. People whose blogs are from the heart are the best in my opinion. Sure, I would LOVE to make money from blogging because as a SAHM I could certainly use the supplemental income but it would have to come naturally from sponsors that I really liked.

    All that being said, if you want to increase your blog stats…blog about Jenna Elfman’s new haircut. I swear I mentioned it twice and it is now 75% of my hits. LOL

  20. Interesting timing since I just scheduled my blog post for tomorrow and actually used the word “brand” in it. I’m not sure what my blogging objectives are… I do it because I enjoy it, but do I care if I grow my readership? Yes, and no. I’m not sure. So I don’t pay much attention to marketing. I will admit that I started with twitter and FB for the blog persona because of this. To connect with others, to be more “out there.” But I’m just not consistent with them and tend to forget to spend time there. Thought provoking topic for me today.

  22. This is also interesting to me since i don’t think in terms of marketing. My writing wouldn’t change if 1 person read it or 1000!! That said, I am about to start looking for sponsors for my trip to ITU Worlds (triathlon) next year and i’m realizing outside of “faculty mom triathlete who blogs” I don’t really have a clever niche or brand.

  23. I really just started working on my blog daily (before it could be months between a post…). Do I want more readers? Yes. Mostly because, like someone above said, I want comments and for me, a bit of validation that others experience the same things that I do… (a sad commentary on my life, maybe?!?)

    I don’t plan to add ads to my blog, unless I’m able to specifically choose what will be up there. Which I doubt will ever happen… But, I’m still trying to figure out how to get myself “out there”…

  24. Interesting! The timing is perfect as I contemplate what “it” all means… Traffic? Why should I care? I don’t do ads and blah blah blah. Will I sell something? Hmmmm – not sure…. Does traffic make me cool? Maybe a little, but I’m fond of my quirky kewl self already… Can I maybe help myself more or help others more with more traffic? Probably – ye old group therapy session….
    I do like the building a community – this resonates with me – not sure why or what my self-interest is – but I like it… Somewhere, deep down. But it requires time… a lot of time… and since I’m not a pro, I’ve really had to think about what “this” all means.
    Yes, i do stumble – I’ve had VERY good results with that – but it changes the type of visitor – in other words – I’m getting more traffic, but they’re not repeaters. I have not converted….
    But again, WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?
    Alas… I will have some water and coffee and will contemplate – ha! xoxo

  25. See i probably would have been too emabarassed to wear the pants 🙁 so sad…. I think it is amazing that you did! I agree with all points here. I used to write ad copy and design brochures etc… Interesting work.

  26. It’s all about community, I agree. The right community for the right people. Turns out people who hang out online are seeking some very specific things, information, education, learning, socializing and validation amongst others. If we are able to do these without even realizing it we marketed ourselves.

  27. Great tips!

    It’s hard being “first” at something sometimes. Being controversial in any way can go either really well or be awful.

  28. Don’t really market myself at all. Just write what i want, when i want.

    This first-cousin-to-a-Luddite stumbled on the page that showed reader stats once, and never went looking for it again. Don’t want to bother, i write what i need to say.

  29. Yeah, I don’t have any tips, as I don’t really do anything myself. I have a hard enough time getting blog posts done and reading others posts and commenting, that I don’t know how people do it!?!

  30. Still searching for my blogging groove. I rarely look at numbers, however, I do want to eventually drive more traffic to my blog more to connect with others out there that share my passions, interests, and who can relate to who I am. That’s why I started blogging but I am so technology deficient I still haven’t figured much out. Then, my schedule recently became so busy with the kid’s starting school that I haven’t blogged at all in the past couple weeks. When I find a bit of time, I’m either too tired, I can’t think clearly enough to get my thoughts down into words, or I am too overwhelmed by the realization that I still don’t know how to fully use wordpress. So, no tips here! But I can sure use tips from others!

  34. Love the tips!!

    I tend to write just for me, but have been known to get caught up in the numbers of it all. I, like you, don’t care for the cliques so have let much of that go.

    I Am Me…take it or leave it!!

  35. I just think of my blog as the diary I leave open for others to read…no marketing, no branding, no nothin’.

    But, I have received wonderful support, insight and dare I say friendship through my blog.

  37. I don’t worry about traffic at my blog (and this is probably obvious) but the one blog marketing tip I’d suggest is this: create the kind of blog you’d like to visit.

    I’m turned off by ads on blogs so I tend to stay away. Not only that, if a blog has a lot of ads, I won’t add it to my blog roll.

    I love your blog MizFit.

  38. LOL the ONLY reason I know my stats are for the co’s that have me review products…til then I was oblivious to them nor did I care about them!
    hmmm funny I market other people’s business/services yet somehow don’t market my own! go figure!
    lovin you & your blog!

  39. You are YOU and that’s what makes you so amazing. Watching your brand (which is YOU, which a brand should be!) over the past 2.5 years has been amazing. I like that you are focused even though you cover so many topics. Not sure the previous sentence makes any sense. I guess what I most admire is that you are you without confusing your audience/readers/followers. It all makes sense in a Mizfit kind of way… 😉

    I seem to be all over the place lately (which is very me), and I think I may be confusing people a bit… Anyway, great post. I also re-read your post on blog cliques, and I like the points you make. I’ve become friends with quite a few people through my blog, but it does usually take time. And I often feel totally intimidated by the “real” bloggers and “big” social media people… 🙂

    Thanks for being you! 🙂

  41. First time commenting on your blog Miz – I just want to inspire the world to fitness that is all. If I can make a little cash whilst doing it that would be awesome. Ie I have no clue where to start!

  43. Hey, Miz. Loved this post. Your tip #3 is viable for absolutely anything that has to do with online marketing. Thanks to social websites, businesses that wish to sell their products or services rely fully on the community now.

    That’s why Facebook allowed the creation of business pages and so on. Business owners now interact with their clients, offer them news about any new product that may have, and solve the problems that may arise with their products or services.

    Versie, Marketing Toronto

  44. I have not checked in here for some time because I thought it was getting boring, but the last several posts are good quality so I guess I’ll add you back to my everyday bloglist. You deserve it my friend 🙂

  46. Mus be the change in seasons…I have writer’s block, so I’m catching up on my favorite blogs. Great tips…if I ever have anything to write about anytime soon 🙂

  47. I like talking so I do it online through my blog too, and I’m thankful that people choose to read it sometimes. 🙂 I also like giving away cool stuff that I like so I do giveaways sometimes. And I like posting pictures of myself doing awesome stuff so I can look back later and remember the awesome stuff I did. 😉
    I definitely don’t have a marketing plan, but I like where I am…that’s a good start, right?

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