Sometimes, it can seem like the only people reading your blog are other bloggers – and let’s face it; for most of us, other bloggers aren’t our target market. It’s really great if you have an arsenal of blogging friends on Twitter to support you because you write great things, but they aren’t going to buy your products because, frankly, they don’t need them.

So let’s talk about the people who aren’t readying your blog – and how you can get them to change their dreadful ways!

1. A-Listers in your Niche

No matter what your niche, their are certain bloggers who have been around the block a time or two. It’s the a-list: the bloggers who seem to speak at every conference, publish books based on their blog topic, and have an army of rabid fans. Who doesn’t want an a-lister to read their content?

• Why They Don’t Read Your Blog: A-listers are super busy. Not only are they bloggers themselves, but because they’re popular, they’re getting pulled in about five thousand directions at every moment of the day. They usually don’t have the time to go out and explore new blogs or even check out blogs that are recommended to them unless the recommendation comes from something they really trust.
• Why You Want Them To Read Your Blog: It goes without saying that an a-lister who reads your blog can potentially bring in tons of traffic if they promote your content. If they like what you write, it could also lead to joint ventures, guest posting opportunities, and awesome recommendations in the future.
• How to Change Their Mind: It isn’t always easy to attract the attention of a busy a-list, but what I’ve found works best is to mention them in some way. For example – I wrote a post called “Scott Stratten Doesn’t Know Who You Are” back in October, which mentioned Scott, Darren Rowse, Chris Garrett, and Brian Clark – and three out of four of those a-listers in the blogging/new media niche actually replied to me on Twitter, with two of them taking the time to retweet.

2. Your Non-Blogging Friends

Most of us have friends who don’t really “get” the whole blogging thing. Even if you mention that you’ve recently written something they might like, they don’t read it. It’s like pulling teeth, which can be super frustrating if you’ve written something that is exactly what they want or need.

• Why They Don’t Read Your Blog: They don’t think there’s much value in blogging – why would they want to read your online diary? They don’t realize that many of the sites they read are technically blogs. To them, blog is just a four-letter word.
• Why You Want Them To Read Your Blog: If they’re your target market and you can actually hook them, they’ll be the first to line up in support when you sell a product.
• How to Change Their Mind: Stop referring to things they might find valuable as “blog posts.” Instead, call them articles or resources. Write something that’s super high-value and email your non-blogging friends with the link, making no reference to the fact that it’s from a blog. In the email, include instructions at the end teaching them how to sign up for RSS via email (again, call it something less blog-sounding like “email alerts when I write something similar”) – and definitely include a link to your Facebook fan page.

3. Kids

Not every blog is perfect for a younger market, but some bloggers are missing out. “Kids” doesn’t just have to mean pre-teens. I’m talking about anyone under the age of 18. There are millions of high-school-age young adults out there, and that could be an untapped market for you.

• Why They Don’t Read Your Blog: Young adults are super tech-friendly, but most don’t really go online to read anything, unless it is the latest entertainment news or something they’re researching for a school project. They don’t really seek out blogs, so unless someone tells them to check something out, they probably aren’t going to find you via a search engine.
• Why You Want Them To Read Your Blog: Like it or not, kids have TONS of buying power. They may not line up for your latest ebook, but if you sell stuff via affiliate links, having the young adult crowd on your site can be a major advantage.
• How to Change Their Mind: Boost your Facebook presence. Most kids aren’t on Twitter yet, but millions upon millions in the 13- to 18-year-old range use Facebook to share stuff they like. If you can get them passing around your links on Facebook, it’s worth more than SEO ever will be for attracting that audience.

4. Guest Post Readers

Writing guest posts can boost your traffic – or can it? The idea behind guest posting is that you’ll reach a new audience, but the fact of the matter is that many people who read your guest post won’t click through to your blog – they’ll just leave a comment there if they are so inclined and be on their way. Guest posts are undoubtedly good for brand recognition and back links, but they don’t always produce traffic in the volumes you want.

• Why They Don’t Read Your Blog: This is a tricky one. Some readers just like what they know (i.e., the blog where you guest posted) and don’t click many links. Some readers don’t have time to read more posts. Some readers are new to that site and want to explore there first, but then never get around to checking out your site. There are probably tons of other reasons as well.
• Why You Want Them To Read Your Blog: If your guest post was a sample of what could be found on your site, a reader who clicks through will probably like your blog as well.
• How to Change Their Mind: Make your link irresistible. Something I’ve noticed with my own habits: I’m much more likely to click through after reading a guest post if they link to a specific post they’ve written recently, rather than just the blog home page. Pick something with a super attractive headline and use that in your bio.