Tiny Tips 2 – Traffic – Be the first at the Linky Party
Today, the very top tip for Linky Party Success. Be organised.
You’ve heard it before – this could be the top tip under almost every category we discuss. Organisation and planning is the key to success and this applies especially to Linky Parties. Why? Because to get your link in front of the most people and maximize the potential for traffic to your blog – you need to be at the TOP of the list of links. Obvious eh.
But how can you do this?
I use an online To Do List – get it for free at todoist.com. Although I use this everyday to remind me of everything I have to do today, this week, same time every month etc, it’s also great for linky parties.
You set up a ‘project’ called Linky parties in the left hand side menu. Then under the tasks, you can set up a task for every linky party you want to attend. The BEST thing about it is that you can set up a link to the page. Simply copy the web page address you want to visit from the address bar (use the blog main url, not the latest linky party), and then copy it into a task. It will set this up as a clickable link. Then set the frequency – ev mon, ev tue and so on. You get the idea. Then every Monday etc, the linky party will appear in your to do list as a clickable link – simply click the link to go to the page, and check off the list once you’ve linked up.
But how to get to the top of the party? Well this will take a little more planning and a lot more work and dedication.
Remember my Tiny Tip 1 – all about being consistent and blogging to a schedule. Well MOST of the bloggers who host a linky party pre-schedule this in advance to start at exactly the same time every week. So if the party started at 7pm on Tuesday this week, the chances are it will start every Tuesday at 7pm. So get to know the parties you visit, and make a note of the time they open in your to do list, next to the blog url link. Check your to do list every day and know that at 7pm you need to be sat at the computer ready to refresh that page and with your link addresses all ready to add.
Seems a little over the top? Remember – anything worth doing is worth doing well.
Authored by: Deby at Moms Make Money
March 13, 2013 @ 9:42 am
linky parties are a bit of work, but i agreet that the closer you are to the beginning the better. if you do miss the window of being first, i like to be on the edges, and make sure the picture you use is eye catching. use a funny or catchy description too for clicks.
March 13, 2013 @ 11:12 am
My most popular post was called the ‘Porn Style Blouse’ – got a lot of clicks! I think a catchy title is a great way to attract someone through to take a look. Anything controversial can attract attention too, but yes, the Photo is KEY.
March 13, 2013 @ 8:29 pm
Thank you for your wonderful tips! I hadn’t thought of making a list like this. Having it be clickable and listing the times for the link parties would be very helpful!
March 14, 2013 @ 3:09 am
I have a list, which works very well – except that 99% of the parties I link to is in the US and I am on South-African time :/ but I totally agree, the closer to the top your post are, the better ! Thank you for sharing all your tips 🙂
March 14, 2013 @ 9:46 am
I have the same problem – I’m overseas too and they mostly open in the evening when I’ve gone to bed. So it’s hard to get in near the start. But I can do better with the morning starts. Thanks for dropping in .
March 14, 2013 @ 9:38 am
Great tips! I’m usually down at the bottom of the link parties. I need to get with it and get at the top! Thanks for sharing. Have a great day!
March 14, 2013 @ 10:50 am
Thanks for the post! This is my second week of link parties and the online To Do List is a great suggestion. I have been tracking timing, but I think it will take a few weeks to get all the kinks figured out! Thanks again. I’m loving your site!
March 14, 2013 @ 11:10 am
Hi! Followed you over from Easy Living Mom blog hop. I am a newer blogger so I always love reading tips like this. Thanks so much for sharing! Now following via FB 🙂
March 14, 2013 @ 11:27 am
Thanks for the tips.
March 14, 2013 @ 9:27 pm
Thanks for the tips! Stopping by from Simply Sweet Home 🙂
March 15, 2013 @ 11:22 am
Thanks for the great tips!
March 15, 2013 @ 3:27 pm
Thanks so much for what should be an obvious tip. This is exactly the advice that I need being a new blogger.
March 16, 2013 @ 9:59 am
Thanks for the tip! I’m trying to be more organized with linking consistently, but you’ve taken it to another level!
March 17, 2013 @ 5:24 am
Deby, you must have been reading my mind! I’ve been doing all of these linky parties but I was wondering how in the world I could make a list for each day and how to keep track of what I’d done. Your suggestion is perfect! I will be setting up my To Do List asap! Thanks for all of your help!
March 17, 2013 @ 6:20 am
I try my best to be at the top too, but some of the linky parties don’t start at the same time and that drives me crazy! Some have even forgotten to post theirs–and it has been some of the bigger bloggers where I get most of my traffic!
March 17, 2013 @ 9:31 am
Life often gets in the way for all of us! I DO have better things to do most days than sit at the computer – but at least I know what it takes to get more traffic, I just have to decide whether its worth it that week depending on what posts I have to promote.
March 17, 2013 @ 8:00 am
Great Tip! Thanks for linking up to ITS PARTY TIME! I start our party every Sunday at 1AM CST. For those who aren’t night owls, its easy to schedule your post. Hugs!
March 19, 2013 @ 3:25 pm
Clydia~do you mean I can schedule my post to link up to your party while I sleep??
March 19, 2013 @ 3:55 pm
That’s what she says – does anyone know if and how this might be possible? Would be great for those of us in a different time zone and asleep when the party starts.
March 17, 2013 @ 10:29 am
What a great tool! Thanks for the tip.
Thank you for linking up to Raising Imperfection!
Make sure to check back on Friday to see if you were featured.
Leslie
March 17, 2013 @ 1:11 pm
I don’t think it’s over the top, and I think you’re right, anything worth doing is worth doing well. Thanks for sharing. I’m visiting today from the Raising Imperfection hop.
March 17, 2013 @ 1:18 pm
I agree. I do try to peruse all links, first and last. The pictures on linky parties are what draw me in!
March 17, 2013 @ 7:05 pm
Wow, that is great advice! I host a linky party so really could use this myself-thanks so much!
If you have a minute to spare I’d be thrilled if you could pop over and link this up to my Say G’ay Party! This would be a great addition.
Best wishes for a wonderful week,
Natasha in Oz
March 18, 2013 @ 9:53 am
Linking up is definitely a work in progress. So far I am finding it very time consuming. Thanks for the tips on how to streamline it a little better.
March 18, 2013 @ 6:27 pm
Great tips!!! Thanks for linking up to our link party. I’m going to go check out todoist.com.
March 19, 2013 @ 9:02 am
Great tips for link parties. Organization is key! That’s for sure. I’m still working on it. Thanks for this post.
March 20, 2013 @ 7:31 am
Great post! Here’s my plan~ I made a excel spread sheet of the projects I have linked up and to whom so I don’t link up the same thing twice. List of blogs on left and projects on top. Then I have another list of blog urls listed under different days of the week and I click and drag them to my browser to open around 12 links at a time. I enter first thing in the morning! Thanks for linking up!
Kim
March 20, 2013 @ 7:48 am
WOW – now that is super organised. What a great way to make sure you don’t post the same project twice.
March 20, 2013 @ 6:55 pm
I must be the opposite. I always go from the bottom up. Maybe because I think those at the top are the ones who link to tons of parties so maybe I have seen those already.
March 22, 2013 @ 11:11 pm
This was the most viewed link at my link party last week. Congrats!
Thank you so much for linking this up at Saturday Spotlight! The new link party is up and I’d love to see you back. Have a great week. 🙂
http://angelshomestead.com/saturday-spotlight-9/
April
March 24, 2013 @ 8:46 am
I try to be one of the first to link up but by the time I get there, there’s already a lots of linky. I agree it is very time consuming, especially when the linky tool gives me a hard time, and sometimes I get linked but my picture doesn’t show, that gets very discouraging.
I have just figured out that some parties that list a specific day in the title. For example: link up Monday. Might actually start on saturday or Sunday instead of Monday. So I’m adding the start day and time to my list. I think that i will start working from the bottom up like Suzyhomemaker Thanks for sharing your tips.
June 21, 2013 @ 9:24 pm
I try my hardest to be first to certain parties and even if I’m absolutely ready to go refreshing the page as the clock ticks over there are always a dozen people ahead of me with one person in particular who is #1 almost 99% of the time, there’s got to be some kind of trick that I’m missing. I’ve been doing this for a couple years so I’m not new to linking up either any other tips you can share??? Love the online to do list, I’m going to check it out!
June 22, 2013 @ 8:03 am
Ah Shelly I think this is a blog tribe in action. If you are in a tribe or group with other bloggers, you share each others content to the benefit of everyone in the group. Therefore when the linky goes live, it may already have some project pre-loaded so that those bloggers projects are always first on the list. Therefore it appears that they all miraculously were able to link up before you. Of course having a super fast internet connection helps too. You could always join a tribe of your own, or maybe even contact some bloggers who do the linkies you want to be featured in and ask if you can ‘sponsor’ the linky and be posted in return for a few dollars a month. Its just paid advertising. Blogging is more of a business than you would think!
June 22, 2013 @ 8:38 am
Are you serious? Wow, I must live under a shell. I keep trying to figure out how I could have all the fields filled out as it comes live that it would help, We only have DSL out here, no cable in our area which doesn’t help either. I’m usually trying to type in my information within seconds of it coming live but I’m still 7-12 links down every time and it just boggles my mind that the same person is so must faster all the time. I know the girl and I really don’t think she’s part of a group and the party is too big that the blogger would continue to keep choosing the same gal to be top dog. Don’t get me wrong, she does fabulous work, but there are tons of awesome projects submitted each week. Thanks for your help, I really appreciate it!!
July 30, 2013 @ 8:24 pm
Thank you for the todolist link….I can’t wait to try it!!
Marti
September 9, 2014 @ 6:20 am
I am a mother of a toddler and trying to run a home and very new to blogging. I think i am goin to use the todo list for everything ! thank you so much!