Networking With Local Bloggers

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All of us know that networking is the key to getting repeat and lasting business and client referrals. Meeting new people and building relationships with those people will help you create a presence and become the person they think of when they need real estate help.

We often think of networking as doing things like joining community groups, attending chamber of commerce meetings, and even getting out on the streets and knocking on doors. And yes, these are all good ways to network with others – but you can also network with local bloggers without even leaving your house!

One of the easiest ways to start networking with bloggers is through blog commenting. Blog commenting is one of those things you’ve probably heard about if you read any blogs in the small business internet marketing niche. Mostly known as a way to getting more backlinks and ranking higher in search terms for your keywords, blog commenting can also be an excellent way to start meeting new people and building slowly over time a relationship with them. The key is finding local targeted bloggers to meet and to focus on quality over quantity.

How to Find Local Bloggers Near You:

Search Google: This one might take a little more time, but you’ll likely find a gold mine if you look long enough. Simply type your city name or area you work in and the word “blog” and hopefully you’ll find several blogs about your area. You may also find several local blogging networks you can join or have your blog listed in for free.

Aggregated Blog Sites: There are many sites that collect news from blogs and post the titles and a short summary about them. Search for terms related to your geographic location and it’s a good chance that you’ll find a few local bloggers you can connect with.Twitter Search: If you belong to twitter, you can go to http://search.twitter.com and find even more locals around you by searching for local news terms or local area names. Next you can go to their profile page and see if they have a blog you can visit and read.

How to Build Relationships With Others Through Blog Commenting:

Leave Insightful Comments: You don’t have to write a novel as a blog comment, but until you’re a regular commenter you’ll want to make sure you leave insightful comments that add to the conversation. A “good blog comment” usually has between 2-3 sentences if not more – and often adds in your own experience or thoughts.Subscribe to Good Blogs: Once you’ve found a good blogs to leave comments on, you’ll want to make sure you can find it again. The easiest way I’ve found to do this is to subscribe by email – that way you get an update every time a new post is written and you can visit the blog again to comment. Do whatever is easiest for you – but being updated will help you stay on task.Don’t Sell Anything…Yet: Nobody likes being “sold to” the first time you meet someone else. So don’t worry about selling yourself or your services – just start a natural conversation and focus on the building relationship part.

Find Them on Other Networks: Once you’ve started posting on a blog regularly, see if they have an account on other popular networking sites such as Twitter or Blog Catalog for example.

Organize Local Blogger Meet-Ups: Other bloggers typically love meeting local/nearby bloggers. Check to see if there are others around you already that you can participate in and join, or organize your own.

Do you have any other tips for networking with local bloggers? Has it helped you meet new people and gain more referrals and website traffic? Share your thoughts in the comments below.