Once you start a fresh blog it is really important that you take some important measures so that your blog can get indexed faster and start getting traffic from search engines, That's not all, There are some more important tasks which needs to be carried out after launching a blog, So that you can hook your new visitors to your blog instead of letting them go somewhere else.
10 Must Do Things After Starting a New Blog
So in simple words, This post contains a list of tasks which needs to be performed as soon as you release your new blog. It is kind of a New Blogger Checklist, The List contains some Social Netowrks, Directories, Tools, Analytics etc. where you need to submit your newly created blog. So instead of wasting time here we go.
1. Submit a Sitemap
The First thing you should do after releasing a new blog is to submit a sitemap to Google using Google Webmaster Tools. Go to Google Webmaster Tools and Sign in (If you don't have an account then create one), After Signing in submit sitemap.
If you don't know How to submit sitemap then: I've written a detailed Tutorial on submitting a sitemap to Google Webmaster Tools at BloggingJunction.com
How to Submit a Sitemap to Google using Google Webmaster Tools.
This is very important and will ensure fast indexing in Google. Basically a sitemap helps Google bots to crawl your content better and this helps in getting indexed faster and also in getting a High Pagerank.
If you don't submit sitemap then it may take 2-4 weeks for your website to get indexed but if you submit sitemap at early stage then your website can get indexed within 2-3 Days. (One of my new website got indexed in google within 24hrs because of sitemap)
2. Claim Website on Alexa
After submitting Sitemap, Your next step will be claiming your website on Alexa. This is important because if a website is not claimed, It may take several weeks for new blogs to get an Alexa rank. That's because Alexa does not have much information for ranking your site, So you should always claim your site on Alexa.
Go to Alexa.com and search for your domain, Now click on claim website and log in to your alexa account (You can use Facebook/Twitter to log in or just create a new Alexa account). After Logging in just enter your website data and finish claim process. (Alexa will ask you to add a code in your Blog section for verification)
If you're experiencing any problems while claiming your website on Alexa then you can follow my tutorial:
How to Claim a website on Alexa
3. Google Analytics
Now you've claimed your website on Alexa, The next step is Installing Google Analytics on your blog. Google Analytics is an official tool by Google which helps in tracking visitors, pageviewes, bounces etc. In short Analytics helps you track your traffic and will calculate other blog statistics.
Go to Google Analytics and Sign in using your Gmail account, Add your website to GA and complete the verification process (Google Analytics verification process is somewhat similar to that of Alexa)
If you're having any problems creating Google Analytics account then follow my tutorial guide:
How to Setup Google Analytics with Blogger
4. Create a Facebook Fanpage
Now that you've completed some major tasks which will help you get indexed in search engines etc. Now it's time to work on social media. Social media is very important these days as a big part of Internet users are active on social media. So you should take advantage of Social media for building fans and followers.
The First thing is to Create a Facebook Fan Page of your Blog. Facebook is ranked 2 by Alexa and is one of the most used social networks, Creating a fan page on Facebook will benefit you and help you build traffic. Creating a Fan page on Facebook is very simple, All you need is a Facebook Account (If you don't have one then create it first).
Go to Facebook Create a Page and follow the on-screen Instructions. Once you've created a page make sure that you've done the following:
Upload a Profile Picture
Upload a Cover Photo
Add your Blog Description with a Link to Blog
Invite all your friends to Like that Page
If you are having problems creating Facebook fan page then you can check out my tutorial
How to Create Facebook Fan Page
5. Twitter
After Facebook the next step is to create a Twitter Page of your Blog. Twitter is also one of the most used social networks with around 500 million active users generating 340 million tweets daily. So it is really important that you promote your site on twitter to take advantage of its users.
Go to Twitter and create a new account with your blog's name as username. Once you've created your account, Do the following things:
Upload Profile Picture (Blog Logo)
Add details (Blog Details)
Add your Blog Link
Invite your friends to follow you.
Invite your Facebook friends to follow you.
Now that you've created your Blog's Twitter page, Move to next step
6. Google+
Google+ is another Social networking site and is getting popular day by day so it is really important to stay with the flow by creating your own Google+ profile (It is not necessary to create a separate Google+ profile for your blog, you can use your existing profile)
Go to Google+ and create your account (if you don't have one). After creating Google+ account repeat the steps as given above:
Upload Profile Pictur
Add details of your blog
Add your Blog Link
Invite your friends to Add you in Circles
Invite your Facebook / Twitter friends to join you
So now we're done creating three major social network profiles (Facebook, Twitter, Google+) now lets submit your blog to major directories.
Join us on Google+
7. Technorati
Technorati is a very popular blog directory and it is very important that you submit you blog to technorati as soon as possible after releasing your blog.
Go to Technorati and create a new account, Add all your blog details in it. After creating account, Click on Add a Site/Blog and follow the instructions (Add Keywords, Description etc). Complete the verification and you're done. Now you'll have to wait for their email (it may take 24-72 hours for Technorati to add your site). Once they add your site you'll be notified by email.
8. Comment on Blogs with Same Niche
After doing all of the above things, Now lets build your presence online. Go to Google and search for blogs which are similar to your niche (Topic). Read their articles and learn from them and Don't forget to leave a comment.
Never comment useless things, Never Spam other blogs. Always leave a good comment expressing your views about the article, Try Asking questions or Replying on behalf of author (if author has not replied to any comment). This will help you make relationships with other bloggers and people.
Also See: List of High PR Do Follow Blogs with CommentLUV
9. Guest Post on Blogs
Once you've written around 40-50 Quality Articles on your blog, Now it's time to steal readers from other blogs by Guest Posting. Many Blogs nowadays allow guest posts, So what you have to do is to write around 10 guest posts on different blogs (Try to guest post on blogs with High Pagerank, Alexa Rank, Traffic etc).
For every post you write you'll be given a back link which points to your blog. This will help you increase your backlinks and will also help you drive traffic to your blog. (Always write guest posts for blogs related to your niche)
You can write Guest Posts for us
10. Make your Blog Mobile Friendly
As Technology is rising more and more people use gadgets like Smartphones, Tablets etc for browsing internet, So it is really important that your website is mobile friendly, If it's not then you are going to lose a big traffic as websites may take long to load. A mobile friendly website loads instantly and is easy to navigate on smartphones.
To make your website mobile friendly check out my tutorial: How to Create a Custom Mobile version of a Blog / Website.
Must Read Articles for New Bloggers
We've already written Some quality articles here which are very helpful for new bloggers, So do take a look at them:
Blogging
How to Start a Successful Blog in 10 Steps.
How to Build Strong Relationships with Other Bloggers.
10 Common Blogging Mistakes to Avoid When Beginning.
SEO
How to Add Meta Tags to Blogger.
5 Important Search Engine Optimization Tips.
10 Ways of Getting High Quality Back Links.
List of Best Free Blogging Directories for Submitting Your Blog.
Other
10 Killer tips to Increase Your Websites Alexa Rank.
10 Simple ways to Increase Your Blog Page Rank.
How to Get Google AdSense Approval Fast.
Final Words
These were some Important tasks for all new bloggers, Make sure that you've completed all of them for better rankings, SEO etc. I hope this article was helpful and if you liked it then please consider sharing it and also leave a comment below.