Blog Parties - The Newest Soiree

A fun way to make new connections
and get exposure for your jewelry business

© by Dee Gordon; all rights reserved

Dee Gordon's recent
blog party.

If you follow any blogs or have one of your own you've probably come across a few blog parties recently - and weren't sure exactly what you should be doing, or better yet the purpose behind it all.

But I'm here to save the day by giving you the 411 on the latest rave.

Maybe next time you can be the Hostess with the Mostess hits for a weekend!

Blog Party Purpose

Dee Gordon's Girls' Night Out blog parties.

You probably already know that the purpose behind most blogs is to inform, educate or entertain.

By blogging good content frequently, you will eventually gain a following of readers who look forward to your next post.

These readers may come from a variety of backgrounds and/or niches.

If they are bloggers themselves, they more than likely have their own following back on their home page, large or small that can help you.

The purpose of a blog party is first and foremost to have fun!

The other reasons that follow are added benefits to you.

Blog parties also drive new and old traffic to your site(s), introduce bloggers to other bloggers, and introduce businesses to other businesses.

How Do Blog Parties Work?

There are several different types of blog parties you can have.

The most common I've seen have been to party around a specific theme, with interested participants signing up to participate.

Here's what happens:

1. The hostess blogger selects a party theme (Halloween, Christmas, business, Tea Party, themed posts, etc.) and provides instructions on posting.
2. Then bloggers who are interested in participating will contact the hostess with their information to be posted either in a blog side bar or by using a link posting application similar to Mr. Widget.
3. The day/weekend of the event, all participants will start off at the hostess's blog. They are expected to visit each participant's link, read the post there, enter contests, browse around if time permits, and then finish off by leaving a comment on their page. If a particular blog catches your eye, of course you'll want to sign up for its feed or follow as a friend.

Dot Invasion earrings by Dee Gordon,
made with Kazuri beads.

You can only imagine if you have a large blog party going on, how many potential people you will introduce to your business in one weekend.

A party can be as big as Christmas or as simple as a "meme" such as name your 5 favorite books.

Let's look at an example.

Example:
"Christmas In July" Blog Party

Purpose: to promote business sales during a slow period of the year as well as introduce others to your business as we approach the holidays.

If 125 bloggers sign up for a party, you are typically guaranteed (although nothing is really guaranteed) 125 expected visits from participants.

The post on their individual sites will drive some of their followers to the hostess' site just out curiosity, where they will visit a few links listed.

Then there are the search engines that love activity, that will pick up on the ruckus and send a few referrals around.

If the unexpected visitors enjoyed the party, they'll post about it after the event on their blogs or within their social networks, which will drive further traffic to the party.

Cleopatra asymmetrical necklace
by Dee Gordon.

With all of this activity, you are guaranteed to pick up some followers, introduce your blog and business to new readers, meet new friends, pick up a few interests of your own, enter a few contests and have a ton of fun!

Before participating in my first blog party I only had about 20-30 followers on my blog. After the party, I had picked up over 25 followers in a weekend, met some new friends, bookmarked some great blogs and had a ton of fun!!

So the next time you run across a post inviting you to participate in a blog party, don't shy away - sign up and have yourself a little fun!