I’ve recently found myself compiling a couple of Twitter lists to be able to follow a couple groups of people that are participating in various blogging challenges that I am interested in.
Compiling a Twitter list can be pretty simple – visit the bloggers website, look for their “Follow Me on Twitter” link or icon, then add them to the Twitter list. I love to do this for groups that I’m interested in, challenges I’m participating in, and various other things where I want to be able to follow a group of people.
What surprises me, however, is how often people just do not make it easy to connect with them! You visit their website and there is no Twitter icon or link, no mention of where to find them on Twitter – nothing at all.
I’ve become pretty good at sleuthing it out. I will check the About and Contact pages to see if they mention it there. I will also look for the handy Retweet button and click on it to see if they have their Twitter handle automatically inserted into Retweets. There are several ways like this that a savvy website user can find the info – if it’s there!
But what if it’s not there at all? Then even someone who knows where to look can’t find you.
And what if it’s someone who doesn’t know where to look? They will never connect with you.
And the most likely scenario: it’s someone who isn’t consciously looking for other ways to connect with you, but they like your stuff that they see on your blog, and if they were invited to connect and you made it really easy for them, then they would jump at the chance to keep in touch.
Your various social media places and other ways to connect with you should be clearly visible and even prominent on your blog or website. Make it as easy and obvious as possible for people to connect with you further and follow you.
Don’t hide your Twitter and Facebook links at the bottom of your page, or on your About page. And certainly don’t leave them off all together! If you are looking to grow your following on those social media sites, then you need to make it super easy for people to find you there.
A great way to integrate social media connections on your blog or website is to find or create cute graphic icons for the social media sites you are on – make them something fun and catchy, that fits the style of your blog and brand. Then put them somewhere that people can see them as soon as they hit your site.
I previously used the Follow Me plugin for WordPress, which adds a handy tab to the side of your page, with links to all of your social media profiles. It’s easy for people to spot and click on if they want to connect with me further. And it’s super easy to install and set up!
Once you have your connections set up, then have someone else review your site and see if they find it easy to connect with you elsewhere. It might be obvious to you, but not so obvious to someone who is not familiar with your site, so be sure to double check that.
Making it easy for people to connect with you will help you to grow your brand and expand your reach online. When people click with you and like what you have going on, they’ll be likely to want to know more and to keep up to date. Give them the option so that you can keep in touch with them and build your “Know, Like and Trust” with them.
You never know who will connect with you, and who will turn into a customer or a number one fan for your brand!
What do you think? Are you easy to connect with? Have you seen other people who are easy to connect with?
Related posts:
Hey Jess,
Loved this reminder. It is true. Some people are not easy to connect with. Are you doing the blogging challenge for 31 days starting in August? I have that book too and was supposed to do the challenge in July but was so busy. Maybe I should do it too!
Thanks,
Kimberly
Hi Kimberly!
Looking forward to it. I wanted to do one starting in July as well, the one the SITS gals were doing, but was out of town and didn’t want to have to try to catch up. 
This August one works a lot better! 
Yes, I am doing the blogging challenge starting in August!
I started a Twitter list for all the participants, so definitely let me know if you decide to join so I can add you!
Thanks for dropping by,
Jess
Hey Jess, I found you thru Kimberly’s site. Great ideas. I need to go to my blog and see how easy I am to connect with too! I signed up for your report and just printed it off. Blessings, Amy
Hi Amy!
Thanks for dropping by – it’s great to meet you!
Hope you enjoy the report – thanks for checking it out.
Jess
Hi Jess, what a fantastic post. I’m really pleased that you mentioned the plugin, i’ll have that set up straight after writing this comment. I do use the TweetMeme Retweet Button plugin and that add my twitter details to each tweet.
As you know i’ve been going around plugging the 100 blog comment challenge and in doing so i saw your twitter list, so i decided to follow your example Jess and do likewise. So far we have 36 contributors to the challenge and trying to find some of them was extremely hard work, and i know what i’m doing and had a purpose for doing it. So i can fully understand your point Jess. If i had less of a purpose i wouldn’t have bothered and like you say the blogger would lose out on a contact. Isn’t that why we do what we do, to build contacts?
Excellent post Jess. I’m going to let everyone know that you’re in for the 100 Blog Comment Challenge, and add your details to the list Then i’m installing the plugin
Catch up soon, Barry
I am looking forward to participating in the challenge – I think it’s brilliant.
Thanks for adding me, and a big thanks for dropping by again. 
Hi Jess, that works a treat and is really simple. Start to finish 5-7 minutes and it’s all done.
Thanks again. I’ve added you to my page of contributors:
http://barry-wells.com/contributors-to-the-100-blog-comment-challenge/
and i’ve let it be known on the forum Jess.
Best of luck my friend, Barry
Ha! Oh there’s the link – whoops – I just tweeted you about that, so you can ignore the tweet.
Thanks for the link and I’ll dive in shortly!
Glad the plugin went smoothly for ya – looks great on your blog!
Hi Jess, welcome to the 100 blog post comments challenge! I have added you to my links list too. I added all the necessary plug ins but realise I have been lapse in the past about this. At last I have got my act together!
Enjoy the journey.
Mandy
Thank you, Mandy! Great to meet you, and I look forward to bumping into you on other blogs throughout the challenge.
Thanks for dropping by.
Hi Jess
Good post…it’s a good reminder, sometimes we can get so wrapped up in trying provide good content for our readers that we can forget to take the time to chat with them.
We do our best to make it easy for people to find us and give lots of ways to get in touch..using little icons just like you mention.
I love clean layout of your site…nicest one I’ve seen on my blog hopping travels
Cheers
Steve
Hi Steve!
Nice to meet you – thank you for dropping by.
Thank you for the lovely compliment on my blog. I am a web designer, so am very conscious of making sure my site looks as good as the work I do for clients! lol. Nice to hear positive feedback.
Connecting is so important, as it is what keeps people coming back to visit, comment and buy from you. Glad you enjoyed the article!
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Hi Jess,
Very very good post. I often wonder whether some people actually want others to connect with them whilst others have so many ways to connect with them it sometimes hard to find the content on their blog!
I’m going to install this plugin right now! All the best.
Hi Susan!
Thanks so much for stopping by – it’s great to meet you!
I’m glad you enjoyed the post!
Yes, a bit of a balance is good, eh? Not too much and not too little. Enough that people can connect, but not so much that they are overwhelmed! 
The plugin looks good on your site!
Hi Jess, excellent post and super cool site design and easy to read content – I’m so glad to meet you and I look forward to reading your articles and getting to know you.
I to always look for the connections or links on the blogs I visit. I noticed that very few, though some, have placed their Skype number on their home page and I wondered what your thoughts were about using this type of “connector”. Steve D.
Hi Steve!
Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving a comment. I really appreciate it, and it’s great to meet you!
I think a skype number as a contact option is a good idea, as long as it’s one of the ways you want to be contacted. The idea is to make it easy for people to reach you at places you want to be reached – so I think that type of “connector” would be fine.
Thanks for this reminder! And for visiting/commenting on my latest blog post (the beach reads tutorial).
I recently changed the links to my Facebook fan page & Twitter on my website’s front page to icons, and I think it made a difference (they were just text before). My next change I think, is to put my email address right on the front page, instead of under “contact” on the FAQ page. Sometimes it’s hard to look at your own site/blog the way an outsider would…
Hi Valerie!
I love icons for Facebook, Twitter, etc – especially when they are really unique and cute!
I’m reviewing some to get up on my blog, as well as the Follow Me plugin, and am just having fun looking at all the different ones that are available for free. 
You’re right, it can be hard to look at your own website as an outsider would. That’s why I think it is so important to have other people look at it and give feedback. (In fact, if you’re interested, I am starting a monthly “Website Review” here on my blog where I will be reviewing a different website each month and giving a few free easy tips on how to make it even better – you can check that out at the “Website Makeovers” tab in the menu…
)
Hi Jess, very good point you bring up, good post. Some marketers make it hard to contact with. You’re right, sometimes you can dig and still not get connected. There are many ways you can make it easy for people to connect with you. Thanks for making me understand if you make it hard you are losing out. Terry Conti
Hi Terry!
Nice to meet you and thank you for dropping by and commenting!
Making it easy to connect with you is just another way to make your website work FOR you. Glad you enjoyed the post!
Hi Jess, I was going to put if off but I decided to install the follow me plug-in. Looks great on my blog. Thank you very much for this very useful tool. Terry Conti
Wow – awesome way to take immediate action. Good for you!
And the plugin looks good on your site! 
Hi Jess,
Love the domain name…
Just seen you’re in the 100 challenge… welcome aboard!
Great post to have in it too – connections make such a big difference in all our online business workings. So it’s an important factor many miss.
(Though for us non techys it can be a nightmare keeping up with all the plugins and tools available!!)
Warm Regards
Randy
http://www.RandolfSmith.com
Hi Randy!
Thank you!
Nice to meet you and thank you for stopping by!
Connections definitely DO make a big difference. And as for the plugins – well, you really don’t need to have a TON of them, just a few basics is enough to make your blog work great!
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Hey Jess!
Long time no see, how you been?!
I really like this post, it’s original and touches on something that I think is more important than a lot of other ‘apparently’ more pertinent topics.
I have reached so many blogs where I have wanted to connect with the blogger and been unable to. this extends as far as site navigation sometimes when you can’t even find the latest post easily.
Again, nice post Jess, thanks for the read – I do like your writing style
Hi Alex!
Great to see you back here – it has indeed been a while. I’ve been great – how are things with you?
Glad you enjoyed the post! I shall be popping over to your place in the next couple of days sometime, as well…
Hi Jess,
Your article make an excellent point. How can we connect if there’s no way to connect? It’s like going to a site and having to dig through several layers of pages to uncover the customer support phone number. You’ve prompted me to get a FB fan page and a FB link on my site. Got the Twitter down.
Always fun to interact with a fellow adventurous spirit! Thanks.
Giulietta
Hi Giulietta!
Thanks for dropping by, good to hear from you again!
Glad you enjoyed the article!
Hi Jess
Wow what a great post and you’ve shamed me into taking action as I’ve not made it very easy for people to connect with me.
I do like your follow me plugin at the side of the page so I’m off to install it now.
Nice to meet you and glad you decided to join the blog challenge.
Regards
Dawn Kay
Hi Dawn!
Thanks for dropping by – it’s great to meet you.
Glad you enjoyed the post! Did you manage to get Follow Me installed okay?
Hi Jess
I installed the plugin and activated it but can’t get it to show up I must have my settings wrong so will have another look.
Downloaded your free report by the way and am gonna use some of your tips on a new site I’m doing – do you do blog headers
Take care
Dawn Kay
Hi Dawn!
Did you get the plugin working? Hopefully it was just a minor setting that you were able to find easily…
Hope you enjoy the report!
And yes, I do blog headers… Feel free to contact me for more info on that. 
Hi Jess, Nice to see you on the ’100.’ Your blog has a wonderful, uncluttered, clean look to it which is very attractive. Really nice.
You are right of course about the necessity to expand your range of contacts. Isn’t that what this is all about? Reaching out to as many people as possible? It seems obvious now that you have said it. It is one of those “Why didn’t I think of that” moments. I am going to go and get that Follow Me plug in right now.
Best Wishes. Brian.
Hi Brian!
It’s nice to meet you – and thank you for the compliments on my site.
The Follow Me plugin looks great on your site! I’ll be popping back over there sometime in the next couple of days to comment as well…
Hi Jess
Excellent Post! This subject is spot on. You will notice as you work through this challenge there is some people who dont have the means to connect with via the social media. By this I mean if they dont have the easy buttons like on your site I dont tend to bother looking any further and this is a pity as it may be a lost opportunity. I dont think this is done by purpose. I think most people just dont know what to do to set the process up. I know myself I am struggling to understand how social media works. I need a coarse, probably some one has already created Social Media for Dummies! Your right its a critical way to connect with people so if we dont have it set up we are just missing out. I am sure there is a niche for someone.
Hi Stan!
You’re right, it really can be a lost opportunity! But I think as long as you keep learning and moving forward as you are able, you’ll be just fine.
As for a social media course, check out Laura Roeder at http://www.lauraroeder.com – she has some AWESOME training on social media!
I owe you a big thank you. I sped read this post from here and didn’t do anything because (in my head at least!) I had this covered. You sent your email out with links to stuff from the blog this week and something hit me round the head like a hammer as I realised I had no links to Twitter or Facebook anywhere on the Give A Brick site. We’re a charity that relies on social media so go figure!
Anyway, thank you. I have now made the changes and our little icons are sitting proudly just below our ‘donate now’ button.
Have a wonderful weekend,
El x
Hi El!
YAY for taking action and getting those up!
Funny how we can think we’ve got it covered, then something comes up like that. 
Hi Jess,
Thanks for the plug-in link (follow me). I have downloaded it and will add to my blog.
What is the plug-in you are using at the bottom of you post, (social Bookmarking one).
This 100 comment challenge is brilliant, I am picking up so much useful information, it’s untrue.
Pete
Hi Pete!
Nice to meet you!
The plugin looks great on your site!
The social bookmarking plugin I use is called SexyBookmarks. It’s awesome and easy to use! You can download it here: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/sexybookmarks/
I’ll see you over on your blog for the challenge in the next couple of days!
Hi Jess,
Thanks for the link to sexy bookmarks.
Will download it now.
I am going to end up with hundreds of plug-ins.
Thanks again Jess.
Pete
You’re welcome, Pete!
Hey Jess,
Some really good points you raise here. Too often you’re scrabbling about trying to find out how to connect to someone. You might want to find out more about a site before being asked to sign up to a newsletter or email list.
Matthew
Hi Matthew!
Great to hear from you again.
Yes, finding out more before signing up is something that I do a LOT, so I am sure there are plenty of others who do as well.
No point in making people scrabble for it! 
You want to make it as EASY as possible, so they are more likely to connect and hang around.
Just had a thought. Maybe we should visit each others sites and just see how easy we are to connect with…maybe we are biased ourselves!
Hey – good idea! It’s always good to get a fresh set of eyes on your site. It’s too easy to overlook things when it’s something you’re familiar with…
You are very easy to connect with – love how you’ve got quick and easy icons/links very visible and easy to find.
Good job!
Hey Jess,
Nodding with agreement as I read your very nice written post here.
You made me realized I had put away my twitter setting on my Blog for too long now. I am going to check out your Follow Me plugin and set up my twitter connection ASAP.
Thanks again
Cheers
Jason Ser
Hi Jason!
Glad you enjoyed the post.
Great to meet you!
Hi Jess,
Love your site …your post gave me a kick up the you know where as I did not have the follow me tag or the tweetmeme plug in installed.
Got them installed now.
Can you tell me why twitter will not let me follow more people right now?
Recently got to the 2000 but just can’t get any further.
Great to meet you here at the challenge.
All the best
Cheers
Bryan
Hi Bryan;
Congrats on getting those installed so quickly!
Looks good on your site, too. 
I’m not sure why Twitter won’t let you follow more people – I haven’t heard of that happening. Did you try doing a google search on it? That might bring back some answers.
Hi Bryan, I think twitter have a cut off at following 2000, until you have 2000 following you back. I could be wrong, but i think it may be that.
Barry
Awesome – thanks for jumping in on that, Barry!
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Very true, Jess!
I’m always amazed how difficult some marketers make it to contact them.
I quite often visit blogs looking for contact details for one reason or another and there isn’t even an email address!
Love the look of your blog!
Best wishes!
Stuart
You’re right – some of them are amazingly difficult to connect with!
Thanks for dropping by, Stuart! Great to meet you.
Hey Jess,
This is a good post. You are right, people do make it hard for you to connect with them. Hopefully this article will change some of that:)
J
My Video Talk
Hi Jeremiah!
I’m glad you enjoyed the article.
Thanks so much for dropping by – I appreciate the comment.
Jess,
Pure brilliance! I am guilty of having my facebook and twitter at the bottom of the page. Now I don’t have to move them because I just installed that beautiful follow me onto my blog.
Thank you for generously shaing this great find! I will think of you whenever I look at my follow me badge – and that’s a lot!
Thank goodness for the 100 Comment Challenge! Whoohooo!
Hi Cheryl!
Way to take action! 
Awesome – glad you found this helpful! And the Follow Me tab looks great on your site…
So great to meet you – thank you for stopping by and commenting, I really appreciate it!
Hi Jess,
great post, I realy think that soem of the things you speak about are easily overlooked and it take the eye of someone else to spot them. I must admit to being reluctant to put too many plugins on the site until I became involved with the 100 blog challenge.
I know its something I must really look into more.
Cheers
Rob
Hi Robert!
Thanks so much for visiting my blog!
I hear you on being reluctant to put too many plugins on. I hear about people who have a hundred or more and think that’s just too damn much. I don’t want it to be that complicated! lol. I just want the important ones that will make my blog easier to read and interact with.
Hi Jess
As part of the 100 comment challenge, I have visited some very interesting blogs, and as I use NoScript I have faced some tough decisions. NoScript as its name suggests, will not allow a script to run unless you have approved it.
The problem comes of course when you visit a site, with loads of exotic plugins, perhapes even 100 as you say. Is the content worth the effort of checking each script?
Loved the comment about the social bookmarking, this is the way forward and people need to have it on their sites.
igor
Thanks for dropping by, Igor – it’s nice to meet you!
I haven’t used NoScript myself and haven’t even heard of it before. Is it a commonly used thing?
Hi Jess,
Great post, I have twitter, facebook and RSS feed on my blog, but I think I need a new look (coming son). I should really take the time to connect with guys on Twitter but I’m guilty of not doing it. I just find myself being too busy working on other stuff.
I do blog hop a lot and interact that way which I find is a great way to talk to people.
Nice post thanks.
Hi Daniel!
I struggle with spending time on Twitter as well.
I find it hard to be consistent with it, although I HAVE been getting better lately… I think it’s just a matter of figuring out what works best for you and your business. 
Blog hopping is a fun way to interact – I enjoy doing it as well!
Hi Jess
Great site. Love it!
Thanks for the info on this post. I’ve added the follow me link to my blog and have added Twitter to it. I also have a Facebook account but it keeps sending me to the main logon page. Does your facebook link work?
Stay healthy
Alex.
Hi Alex – great to meet you!
The Follow Me plugin looks great on your blog.
I tried your Facebook link and it goes right to your profile, so it is working now. Awesome job on implementing this stuff!
Hi Jess,
You are right in that the simplest things are at times overlooked by us all. I myself have fallen down this path, and not paid attention to the basics, and how they can make a difference.
One good example is I don’t even have a Twitter follow me showing at my blog. I plan to get a new blog look, at some point, and will keep your tips in mind.
Louis
Hi Louis – great to see you here again!
It’s easy to get distracted from the basics and to think that we need something more complicated or advanced.
I certainly get distracted by that myself at times! 
Hi Jess:
I am very new to the challenge and started only two days ago. I read your blog post about tweeter. It has lots of infrmation and you have explained so many strategies in this post, it is amazing. I was surprised to know that an average twitter and I am included in it, does not even think to be easy to connect. As I never did. Next time when I go to twitter I will read your post again and then will change to make it better. Thank you.
Now, I will ask you to read the entered post in the 100 comment challenge and write a comment on it.
Talk again
Fran Aslam
Hi Fran!
Thank you for dropping by my blog! I’m glad I was able to provide some useful info for you.
I will definitely be dropping by your blog, as well! It’s taking me a bit to work through all of the blogs and leave comments on each one, but I will get there!
Hi Jess!
Very true about connecting with people. Maybe they are technophobes and dont like to add all those plugins! RSS feed is also another one that people seem to forget. I know you can get it on the address bar, but to have a button to click on makes it easier, because I like to subscribe with my email instead of a reader.
Very cool to connect with you through the 100 comment challenge.
It’s a lot of fun, but my fingers are about to fall off!! HAHAHA!!
Take care!
Lisa~
Hi Lisa!
Great to meet you, thanks for dropping by!
You’re right, RSS is also an important one…
Maybe I should look at doing a tutorial on how to set that up properly. 
Hi Jess,
There is no need to be shy and hide behind a blog. If you want to make a presence on the World Wide Web then get social and let people find you.
I think I am onto it. I have the social slider plugin. But the one you have does look good. So check my blog please and see if I am easy to connect with. I don’t use twitter or facebook to its full potential as I am always busy doing other aspects of my Internet career.
I am full steam ahead into this 100 blog comment challenge so it is taking up a lot of my time.
Thanks
Craig
Hi Craig!
You are definitely easy to connect with – the Social Slider is another great tool for that. It looks great on your blog!
Thanks so much for dropping by and leaving me a comment.
It’s great to meet you!
Glad you dropped by and that I am easy to connect too.
Cheers
Criag
Hi Jess,
Thanks for the heads up about that plug-in. I am seriously thinking of adding it to my blog.
As far as social media goes…you are so right in that we must make it easy for others to follow us. Social media is so important….in fact, I’ve made a pack with myself that I must learn more about marketing with social media. I’ve been a little slack in that area!
Thanks for the nudge…I know I need to get it done!
Good luck in the challenge!
Kathy
Hi Kathy!
Great to meet you!
Yes, social media is a wonderful business building tool – great to not just marketing, but connecting with customers and people in your industry as well.
Ops, I have to confess. I am guilty. As I go round on this challenge I contantly see the little follow me tab on the side and wondered which plugin did that. Now I know. Thanks for the reminder.
It’s another way to remind people of our names and brands.
Sandy
Hi Sandy!
You’re welcome for the reminder!
And you’re right, it is another way to remind people of our brand/name/etc. The more places they connect with you, the more they’ll be reminded of you, so make it super easy to connect. 
Great to meet you – thanks for dropping by!
Hi Jess. Great looking blog. I’ve not got up to speed with all this social media stuff, yet. But I have posted a link to this page on identi.ca for you (makes a change from Twitter!)
Hi Martyn!
Thank you for the compliment on my blog and for posting a link on Identi.ca!
I really appreciate it!
Hi Jess
Loved your post and thanks for the plugin link. There are so many things to think of you always miss something. Getting your brand out there is an important step for anyone in business and the more ways you can get people to connect with you the better.
Regards
Anne
Hi Anne!
You’re absolutely right!
Thanks so much for dropping by – it’s great to meet you.
Hi Jess
Nice to meet you. I like your communication approach. It’s a weak link for me, so good to have it shown as to its value.
Thanks
Alex
Hi Alex!
Thank you!
Great to meet you as well – thank you for the comment.
Jess,
good post. I do like to see the people behind the post as well.
I always browse a site too. I have heard the About page is usually the lowest exit page you have.
Thanks for the info on the plugins.
Thanks,
Steve.
Hi Steve!
Nice to meet you – thanks for the comment.
Hi Jess,
Good post.
I see a marked difference between those who use Twitter in the golf market for instance compared to the Internet Marketing niche.
I have spokeN at conferences on the sheer ease and joy of contacting people in the golf niche to further my business and create meaningful relationships. Hardly anyone uses automated software and everyone simple talks to each other as a human being.
I wish it was the same with internet marketing but unfortunately I find far too many people believe the essence of Twitter success is in having a large following and nothing else. They simple pump out one marketing message after another with no sign of connection on a human level. It’s shocking really when you consider the power of this tool.
I can DM someone on my golf related Twitter account and get a personal reply, this simply doesn’t happen in IM.
There are many marketers I would like to follow but it makes no sense if they are using Twitterfeed to fuel their account.
I know this won’t change and overall IMers have missed a massive opportunity with Twitter. They are too quick to game the system and have ultimately lost out.
All the best
Kind Regards
Andy
Hi Andy!
Great thoughts on how to use Twitter! You’re so right in that it is all about connecting with real people, not just sending out marketing messages. It’s interesting how people in the IM space are worse at it than people in other niches. Kinda puts a bad image/name on the whole industry!
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Hi Jess,
Making the suitable connections online is the real secret to succeed online.
If you don’t have those connections you will find it very difficulty. That’s why most newbie internet marketers fail online. I was miserably failing online for many years, just because I didn’t have the connection with both buyers and marketers.
Every successful marketer uses most of the tools and websites like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, Aweber to build the connections. Also a blog is one of the greatest tools to build those connections.
Thanks for sharing the “Follow Me” plugin. I will install it on my blog to increase my exposure. Thanks!
And guess why I’ve join the “100 Blog Comments Challenge”? No it’s NOT about the backlinks but it’s about the connection I can make with other marketers and entrepreneur.
Take care,
Andreas
PS. I’ve just sent an “invitation” on Facebook, and following you on Twitter to connect with you.
However it seems that the account on YouTube is closed.
Hi Andreas!
Great to meet you – thank you for connecting! This challenge is a great opportunity to connect with other bloggers. That is also why I joined as well.
Thanks for mentioning the YouTube thing – I’ll have to look into that. I know the account is active, so must be a problem with the link or something…
Being easy to reach is so important for a blogger.
If people cannot find the icon for follow on twitter or subscribe to RSS, they won’t do it.
If you want to build a following, making it easy to join is essential.
Thanks for this great article and reminder.
Hi Daniel!
You’re welcome – and thanks so much for dropping by!
Hi Jess
Yes, I think its important that we allow readers to connect easily .. one of our aims is to get more following and we sometimes miss out on the basic stuff …
I am in this blog challenge and have seen a few blogs (not many though) where it does not seem obvious to establish contact …
After reading this info, I first went on to my blog to check where my twitter & facebook connections are … wanted to check that when I scroll down does it get hidden or still remains visible to the reader .. hurray it does!
Nice to meet you and wish you all the best for the blog challenge!
Cheers!
Abizer
Hi Abizer!
That is a cool widget you have for the social media connections. What did you use to do that? I think I might like it better than the Follow Me one.
Hi Jess,
This is Pierre & Pierrette from the 100 comment challenge at http://theequest.com/?p=3018. we are easy to connect with.
The problem often is that when you connect people move on to others things. When you have something in common you should stay in touch.
Nice blog
Will be back.
Thanks for listening
Pierre & Pierrette
Hi Pierre and Pierrette!
Yes, it is definitely good to connect when you have something in common. That’s when I usually do it. No point in just connecting with random people – it should be someone that you are interested in staying in touch with or following.
Thanks for dropping by!
Hey Jess,
First time visitor to your blog.
First things first, thanks! I’ve been seeing the floating follow me tab on loads of blogs, wondered what it is but haven’t got round to searching…
…you’ve really helped me out with that link. My links are a little further down the page (I find it’s kind of hard to know what to prioritize when ordering content in a blog side bar) so the plugin will be useful.
I think I’m fairly easy to connect with, but then I’m pretty lazy at keeping up with twitter and facebook… something to work on
Rob
(** RJB **)
Hi Rob!
You’re welcome!
Great to meet you – thanks so much for dropping by.
Hi Jess,
This is a great post you’ve got here! With all the great WordPress plug-ins out there today, it’s so easy to incorporate ways to keep in touch on your blog. If people aren’t using these tools, I can only guess that they might be intimidated by the technology.
I am definitely not very savvy on social marketing yet, even though that seems to be where it’s all going. Can you recommend any training on this topic, as I know there is a lot of material available?
Keep up the great work!
Mark
Hi Mark!
Glad you enjoyed the post.
One of my favorite people that teaches social media marketing is Laura Roeder. She actually has a great Facebook webinar coming up (for FREE!) if you want to check her out. She does some awesome training on Twitter, as well!
Here’s the link for her webinar: http://www.budurl.com/lkrfacebook
Hi Jess,
Great post on connection! I do completely agree with you that some people make it really hard to connect with them. When ever I visit a new blog I always look for either an ‘About Me’ or a social networking button of some sort. Especially if they don’t have a contact page.
There are a lot of blogs/websites out there that don’t have any of these requirements and then wonder why their blogs aren’t doing so well!
I have twitter and facebook set up, although I have been a little slack in the twitter department at the moment. I just clicked on the plugin, it looks pretty cool and really easy to use. Thank you for sharing!
Hope you aren’t finding the challenge too time consuming.
When I first came up with the challenge idea I had no idea what it was going to turn into or the workload involved! Oops on that one!
I am doing my blogging rounds at the moment now that we have all the contributors on board. Hopefully everyone will get to everyone’s blogs and everyone will succeed together. It is up to the contributors now to make this successful!
See you back here soon!
Cheers
Jacinta
Hi Jacinta!
Great to meet you and glad you found the article helpful.
The Challenge was a great idea – although I have been finding it a bit overwhelming as well. lol. For myself, I find that I just have to work my way through the list slowly as I have time to focus on it. I’m not sure I’ll make it all the way through by August 31st, but I WILL get there.
It’s been fun to start meeting everyone and check out their blogs. I think challenges like this are a great way to connect with other bloggers. You never know who you’ll meet that will really compliment your own blog, or be a great JV partner down the road.
Hi Jess,
I was wondering how those follow me tabs got there. I got mine now thanks to you. Hey, the first site I put together was a Geocity site too. I have to admit I wasn’t 14 though
I’m going to be more visible nopw that you pointed that out and it is a very good point that I hadn’t thought of before. I have met so many cool people and seen so many awesome blogs since the 100 comment challenge. I’m hooked on blog commenting now.
Thanks for the great suggestions,
Take Care,
Steve
Hi Steve!
Too funny that you started with Geocities, as well!
Blog commenting is a lot of fun. I have met some really great bloggers through it in just the last couple of months. It can also be time consuming, so I find I have to really be careful to limit how much time I spend on it!
Thanks for dropping by!
Thanks Jess for this reminder! I have just changed my blog’s theme and now I have to add the right buttons for social connection that were integrated into my old theme.
Great post.
Hi Deb!
I’m glad you enjoyed the post – and good luck with the integration!
Hi Jess,
Love your blog and thanks for the great reminder that we all need to be more contactable. I am going to get the plug in straight away.
Very nice to meet you on the challenge and you can be sure I will be back very soon for more of your nuggets of information.
Stay connected and good luck to you Jess.
Kindest,
Brian
Hi Brian!
Great to meet you as well, and I’m really glad you enjoyed the blog and article!
I’ll be by your site before too long – still working my way through the list…
Hi Jess
Great post. I agree some people are not easy to connect to. I have been to some sites where there is no Twitter button to follow them, the site looks really good and the author has some really great information on their site and you want to follow them to check out their next post etc. Like you, I have checked the About Me and Contact Me pages – nothing. If I really want to follow them I will search for their name in the Find People of Twitter. It would be so much easier to just put a Twitter follow me button on their site. Having a follow me button would increase their followers and therefore increase the people coming to their website/blog.
Good luck with the Challenge you have a great site and I will be back soon to read more.
Take care.
Robyn
Hi Robyn!
Thank you – I am glad you enjoyed the article.
Hi Jess,
Great looking blog – clean and uncluttered, so many blogs are so untidy looking, to me anyway.
I do need to pay more attention to Twitter and Facebook and it’s on my list for action. Thanks for the reminder.
Regards,
Bill
Hi Bill!
Thanks!
You’re very welcome for the reminder – good luck with delving into Twitter and Facebook!
Jess:
This is a great post!
This is something that I find frustrating. There are some blogs that I love that do not even have their RSS feed set-up. I used to search around a blog to find how to connect with people but I do not waste my time anymore. It is unfortunate for those people that do not connect with their readers, especially if they blog as a business.
I currently do not have a way to connect with me on Facebook but I don’t really use Facebook anymore.
- Rick
Hi Rick!
Yes, it is unfortunate. And really not worth wasting time on either, as you say. There are more great people to connect with that make it EASY to connect with them.
Hi Jess, To be honest I never was a big fan of Twitter or Facebook. I have had a Twitter account for the last year or more and have over 2000 followers but I still don’t know how to use it to its full potential, Thanks to your post that is going to be my next learning curve. Thanks for a great topic
Keith
Hi Keith!
Twitter and Facebook can definitely be a big learning curve. I think the key is to just jump in and DO IT, and learn what you need to know as you go. You could spend tons of time researching and taking training and reading all about it, but until you actually get in there and get started, it doesn’t do you any good.
Congrats on the 2000 followers – it sounds like you are doing something right!
Hey Jess, this is a great topic. Most of the blogs I’ve visited in the Challenge have not had any links to Twitter or Facebook. It kinda blew my mind! I was all set to Tweet their posts along with an @ message, but wasn’t able due to lack of links.
One thought about where to link your social media accounts… I have become so incredibly ad blind. Studies show that I’m not the only one. The tiny side graphics (like you have) and the sticky footer bars… I tend not to notice them at all. I look for the square T and FB graphics along the sidebar or true footer. Since the Internet includes so many people, it really couldn’t hurt to create more than 1 location for linking to your SM accounts. I recently added a sticky footer bar to compliment the large buttons that I have on the left sidebar of my site, and it seems to be increasing connections already.
Thanks for blogging about this necessary, but often unmentioned, topic Jess. Hopefully more people will make themselves more available for connection with their tribes
Peace,
Lauren
Hi Lauren!
Yes, I found that frustrating as well. I like to provide an @ mention when retweeting, and it drives me crazy when it’s not set up. LOL.
Good point on being ad-blind! I hadn’t thought of it that way, but now that you mention it I know I am the same way. On someone else’s blog I’m way more apt to notice cute little social media buttons in the side bar or header before I notice the footer or a tab or something…. Hmmm, thanks for bringing that up!
I think it is definitely a good idea to have more than one way for people to connect with you. ie, a Follow Me plugin, social media icons, URLS in about page, etc. The more the better, as it makes it impossible for them to MISS connecting with you if they want more.
This is a great reminder. Thanks for sharing the list thing. I never knew where that was!
Hi Amy!
You’re very welcome – I’m glad you enjoyed the article.
Hi Jess
Thanks for a very informative post. I have got the plug ins installed on my blog but to be honest I do not fully understand them yet. However as the challenge progresses I am finding out more and more.
Good luck
All the best
Eamon
Hi Eamon!
You’re welcome – I’m glad you enjoyed it!
It is all a learning process, isn’t it? It’s great to participate in a challenge like this and be able to learn from other bloggers.
Hey Jess
How are ya?
I am a twitter addict like you, we have swapped many messages on there.
And we both found each other on their no probs so I guess neither of us hide.
But your post is so true, never make any task to hard for a new visitor, everything should be simple and fast, we all lead busy lives and our time is often precious too!
Hope your having a fab weekend, catch you soon, Sally
Hi Sally!
Great to hear from you again!
Yes, I would say that neither of us hide, for sure! lol.
Time is definitely precious, which is a really good thing to keep in mind when thinking about how our visitors will interact with our blogs. Thanks for mentioning that – it’s a bit of a different perspective to take when thinking about how to design and layout everything.
Hi Jess
Guilty as charged! I really haven’t got my head round all this social networking yet. I have Facebook and Twitter accounts but haven’t done anything with them. Barry Wells sent me a great book about Twitter and after reading the first part of it I’ve changed some of my settings, including my user name. I haven’t finished going through the book yet – I’ve been too busy with other things, including the 100 Blog Comments Challenge – but it’s easy to understand even for me, so I will certainly be using it to get me Twittering and Tweeting asap.
I’ve downloaded your book and look forward to reading that too, so I’ll have plenty to keep me going after the Challenge.
Kind Regards
Lynn
Hi Lynn!
Sounds like you are off to a great start on getting connected with the social networking stuff. Good for you!
Glad you are checking out my book – I hope you enjoy it and learn something to help you with your online business!
Hi, Jess,
Great ideas! I didn’t realize how important that stuff is. I have to finish this challenge. I got started late and have a few more blogs to go. Signed up for the report, too!
Good to meet you,
Fran T
Hi Fran!
I’m glad you enjoyed the article!
And thank you for downloading my report – I hope you enjoy it as well! 
Jess
Great post for the 100 comment challenge – making a useful point which sometimes people overlook too easily. In this age of Web 2.0 there are so many different ways, means and sites to sign up for and network on and so forth that sometimes you lose sight of the fact that you have to give people the details so they can follow/connect with you – otherwise no point in it all.
I’ve recently added the follow me plugin and think its great – does everything that I need and so straight forward – shoulde got it earlier!! All the best, Tom
Hi Tom!
Yes, it is so easy to overlook things like this, with everything else that it takes to run a business online.
Thanks for commenting!
Hi Jess,
I love the look of your blog and the follow me button, I’ve seen it on a few other sites during the challenge.
I’m just starting out with blogging so not much idea when it comes to plugins. I downloaded the plugin but when it came to setting it up fell at the first post I’m afraid.
Do you know of any instructions of vids that can help the newbie like me with the set up?
Enjoy the challenge
Michelle
Hi Michelle!
Thank you!
I actually have a video tutorial coming out shortly that walks you through how to set it all up.
It should be up on my blog later today!
I just discovered you through the 31DBBB event, Jess. Nice to cross paths with you!
I immediately Re-Tweeted this post — couldn’t hit the button fast enough.
And I’ll tell you “why”.
I used to spend a LOT of time searching around people’s blogs and web sites trying to find ways to connect with them through Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc. Although I’m a very patient person, it can become pretty frustrating at times.
Kudos to you for bringing this issue into the spotlight!
Melanie
Hi Melanie!
Great to meet you! I have seen you in the 31DBBB blog, but haven’t had a chance to make my way over to your blog yet – I’ll get there soon!
I’m glad you enjoyed the article – and thank you so much for the retweet!
It can definitely be frustrating! I’m glad to be able to get this message out to a few more people and hopefully show people how to be easier to connect to.
All of what you say is so important! There are even times when I can’t find any contact information at all on someones site or blog (no email, no contact form, nothing). I’ve wanted to work with a couple of people in my niche and there was no way to contact either of them… that’s too bad.
So this is a great post and a great wake up call!!
Gwen
via 100 Comment Challenge
Hi Gwen!
Glad you enjoyed the article!
You’re right, it really is too bad. It’s definitely a missed opportunity for them – and chances are if YOU were looking for how to connect with them, other people have been as well. Just goes to show what can be missed when you don’t give people a way to contact you.
Jess,
Thanks so much for a post about something I’d been wondering about. I could never figure out where people got those “follow me” buttons from…and you gave me a place to download the “follow me” plugin. You are just awesome.
I have tweeted the website and this post plus put it on Linkdin.
Thanks again,
Kat
Hi Kat!
I’m glad the article was so helpful for you!
Thank you for sharing it with your network. I really appreciate it! 
Hi Jess,
Great post thank you.
You are so right about social media. The ways in which connect and communicate seem to change every day and this is a timely reminder about stopping oneself being a closley guarded secret.
John
Author of ‘Sticky Memory’
http://johnedler.com/blog/sticky-memory-have-i-coined-a-new-term-/?/html
Hi John!
You’re welcome – I’m glad you enjoyed it!
I like how you worded it: “stopping oneself being a closely guarded secret”.
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Hi Jess
i do beleive it’s about honesty
It’s a funny thing but as I have got involved with the 100 challenge I have started to see more and more familar faces even though I have not met anyone off line
I am new to this and my techie skills are zilch but there is a definate buzz.
At first I looked on it all as a kind of chore that had to been done ( very daunting) now I realise this is what it is all about. Perhaps subconciously that is what attracted me to it in the first place.
There is a lot of stuff I need to learn in order to become accessible most of it I hope is techie.
I have retweeted this although I still don’t quite understand the mechanics yet
All the best
Vince
Hi Vince!
Isn’t it fun to start to get to know other bloggers and see familiar faces? I just love this part of having an online business.
Thank you for the retweet – I really appreciate it!
Hi Jess,
Very good post reminding me of what I don’t have right now on my blog.
If you were looking for my twitter address too I’m sorry. I now follow you on twitter.
I’ll try putting the plugin up and see if it helps people get in touch with me.
I didn’t have an about page until recently and now that I have it I’ve started receiving spam comments there offering things to me.
Until it becomes a flood I’ll consider it a small price to be paid in order to make things better for others who visit my blog.
Vance
Hi Vance!
Thanks for the follow!
I’d love to hear how it goes with the plugin – I hope it helps you get more followers, friends and other connections. 
Spam comments do seem to be a bit of an unavoidable evil in the online world. I get a lot of them here on my blog, and a few emails as well. So far it’s been the same for me in that it’s a small price to pay.
Hi Jess,
I’ve been hopping my heart out trying to get to all these blogs to honor my commitment to this challenge. I still have a lot of ground to cover so I can leave a comment.
Have a good one.
Enjoy the Challenge.
Mike
Hi Mike!
I hear you on the “hopping my heart out”.
Love how you put that!
The challenge has been a fun way to meet some other great bloggers.
Hi Jess,
Great web design you got going on here. Clean, driven and fresh! I’m now a fan for your facebook page and also a follower on Twitter! I also make it an effort to show readers that I’m out there so they can connect with me. Your thoughts on this post is absolutely valid as I have ran into some blogs which do not have any social networks at all. Thanks for sharing your thoughts here.
See you on the 100th Comments!
Thu
Hi Thu!
Thank you!
And thank you for fanning and following. I really appreciate it and look forward to getting to know you better. 
Thanks jess, I think this is something I need to keep in mind as I continue to build my “less than 1 month” old blog. I think social bookmarking is a great tool as we can connect and be connected through a group of people and these people can get the informative news more instantly.
I won’t want to miss any meaningful connection just because my blog is not “connection friendly” enough.
Thnanks again. Connie
Hi Connie!
Congrats on your new blog! How exciting!
Being “connection friendly” as you put it is a great help in building your following and connecting with those who are reading your blog.
Best of luck with your new blog!
A timely article Jess. I am going to redesign the layout and text around my social bookmarking icons right now
Michael.
Hi Michael!
Glad you enjoyed the article and great to see you here again.
Hi jess,
Fortunately, WordPress has given us wordpress dot com group new buttons to make it even easier for others to connect with us. Yippee! You made really great points about this matter and I’d be first to admit how frustrating it is when visiting a site and wanting to quickly connect and there is no social media connector or information… not good! I agree. Stopped by on my 11th hour visit for the 100 comment challenge.
Best,
Elizabeth
Hi Elizabeth!
I have not seen WordPress.com’s new buttons – sounds cool! Glad they are making it super easy for you. That always helps!
Thanks for stopping by!
Hi Jess,
I loved your post! You are right on target!. It truly frustrates me to find a blog with great content and then I have to hunt in order to follow. There have been times that I have given up out of frustration. It doesn’t make sense to have an awesome site then make your readers jump through hoops to get more. Thanks for sharing!
Much Success,
Lorina Noble
Miss Mindset Makeover
Millionaire Mindset
Hi Larina!
Thank you!
I’m glad you enjoyed it.
You’re absolutely right – no point in making readers jump through hoops. Make it as easy as possible!
Hi Jess,
Great post and thanks for the Follow Me plugin. I have been looking for something like this for sometime. It is so important that we make it as easy as possible for our visitors to connect with us and allow ourselves the opportunity to turn our visitors into customers.
Regards,
Steve Wilkins.
Hi Steve!
Thank you for dropping by! I’m glad you enjoyed the article and the plugin.
Hi Jess,
Great post! I’m going to make sure I have the “follow me” plugin installed.
I didn’t see it here on this page of your blog though?
Anyway, looking forward to “connecting” some more.
All the best to your success!
Cheers,
Sally
Hi Sally!
Thanks! The Follow Me plugin is quite handy.
I don’t currently have it on my blog, no. I used it for a long time, and have just recently switched to using the cute Social Icons in the sidebar instead for a while. I like to mix things up and try new things every once in a while! 
Thanks for stopping by!
Hi Sally.
You’re going to think I’m an idiot – but – I don’t really ‘get’ Twitter. My rarely viewed Tweet seems to fill up with useless remarks and links I never click. However, I’ll take another look, and perhaps be enlightened.
Yes, I will install the Follow Me plug in, and see what happens.
Thanks again
Regards
Alan
Hi Alan!
Twitter is certainly not for everyone.
I’m not sure I’ve fully gotten it myself, yet, but I do try to get on there and update it at least 5 days a week. I can’t keep up with all of the stuff that comes through my feed, but I catch snapshots of what’s going on and try to interact with people as I am able. 
Hope the Follow Me plugin works well for you!
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