Boost Your Blog Traffic via Wordless Wednesday

Guest post by Pete of mygpscameraphone.com  

I've seen many bloggers enter into a schedule of topics in order to produce more predictable posting patterns for their readers. Some people can hang with it, while others (me) have a major issue with being oppressed by a schedule. What I've done with some success is committed to one day where I almost always post the same topic. This topic is called Wordless Wednesday.

For the uninitiated, Wordless Wednesday is a big link list of blogs that have posted a photo with no words. You post your entry and then add your blog to the link list. Other participants do the same and everyone visits each other. It's a great way to find new blogs and an easy way to knock out a post. Wordless Wednesday became so popular that they are now wordless every day, but the most participation comes from the Wednesday edition. 

I've met many people through this and seen many great photos. If you want some of the action, here are a few "secrets" to becoming a blogging supernova (or at least a dwarf planet).

1. Add your link to the list early - the higher to the top, generally, the more hits. A few weeks ago, I was listed 4th out of 626 entries, which referred 57 visitors. However, I've been in the 300s and still get respectable numbers. (BTW, the "day" changes at midnight EST from what I've seen.)
2. Link directly to the post page, not your home page. That way, if you decide to post later in the day, visitors won't have to search for the post, especially if it's hidden below the fold.
3. Be consistent with your name when adding your link. Some people choose to use all caps or other special characters to stand out among the hundreds of links. Either way, pick something and stick with it. Personally, I just use my site name with no frills - My GPS Camera Phone.
4. Post an interesting or noteworthy photo if you can. Abstract imagery has worked well for me.
5. Make every attempt to comment on the sites of at least those who comment on your photo. The WW community is great and comments are usually reciprocated.
6. Try being consistent and participate often. I'm on 24 entries as of today and I see many return visitors each Wednesday, some of which have translated into regular, other-than-Wednesday visitors.
7. Realize that it's not a photo competition and take each participant's entry for what it's worth. This isn't the place to be critical (unless of course it's requested by the photographer). It is, however, a great place to discover new blogs.
8. Don't try to game the system - the community is smart and can spot a cheat.
9. Have fun with it! Even if you end up being the last one on the list, you will still get traffic.