Photography: Azzuro by fabbio

This post is part of the Simple Web series. It’s best enjoyed in light of Part I (an introduction), Part II (how to grip readers), Part III (how to resonate with them), and Part IV (encouraging them to interact), but will make sense in its own right.

In this post I’ll be examining how we can create a site others will want to talk about. In the ‘Simple Web’ context, ‘talking’ refers to linking in, sharing with social media, and word of mouth. I’ll also be examining how you can do some of the work, and start to ‘talk’ about yourself elsewhere.

Building a talk-worthy site

1. Create a unique or novel premise
Sometimes what your site promises to provide is sensational enough that it will get talked about. A number of bloggers put a new twist on the ‘make money online’ niche by promising to document their journey to a full-time income online.

Ambition is something that will be talked about. So will a site that promises something which has never been offered before (or at least, not in that way). Can you make your premise unique, or novel, without changing your content?

2. Attempt something spectacular
A group writing project, a mammoth post-series, an ambitious goal, a remarkable act, a valuable resource given away. All have the potential to be spectacular, all have the potential to fail. That’s usually why things like that aren’t attempted very often. What people often overlook is that it doesn’t matter. People will talk about you for trying — just in case you do succeed.

I can see something along these lines unfolding at Dosh Dosh right now: Maki is trying to build a free community compendium on making money online. Whether the idea works or not, the process promises to be fascinating.

3. Be controversial
Sure, it’s the oldest trick in the book. That’s because it works. Those who agree with you might link to you. Those who disagree might link to you, and then try to disassemble your points in the same post. Those who agree might also share what you’ve written with social media, as everyone likes their world-view affirmed.

A final tip: trying to create controversy for its own sake won’t work. I’m simply advocating the benefits of being brave enough to state your beliefs (when relevant to your niche).

4. Coin a word or phrase
Seth Godin invented the term ‘ideavirus‘, and there are 212,000 Google search results for the term. How many of those mentions, do you think, included a link to Godin as the term’s inventor?

Surely not all — we could never expect so much from the Web — but I’ve got no doubt that many did. In fact, a specific search for “seth godin ideavirus” returns 196,000 results. A significant majority of those talking about an ‘ideavirus’ are mentioning Godin in the same breath.

Can you coin a word or phrase that describes what others in your niche have wanted to say, but haven’t had the words?

5. Introduce a new (good) idea
Good ideas excite people. Those who like them will want them to gain traction: they’ll tell others, expand on your thoughts, and otherwise get behind your cause. If you have ideas, give them away. If you think an idea is truly great, that’s all the more reason not to hoard it. Besides, are you really ever going to have the time to make it a reality?

6. Make yourself useful
Every person who reads web content finds some value in it for themselves. (Yes — even the three readers of your cat blog). Lifehacks are so popular because they promise incredible value: to make the act of living better. Why are numbered lists so big? Because they’re an excellent preview of the value the article will present to the reader. Resource lists? Valuable — you’ve done the work for the reader, and saved them a few hours of time.

When writing, your compass should always be oriented towards providing value for your target audience. Value is more important than your writing style, or your spelling and grammar, or any other factor.

I call this ‘vital content‘ (as opposed to viral, though they’re often one and the same). People judge content by the value it presents to them. The more valuable your content seems, the more likely it is to be talked about.

7. Invest time in your content
We all appreciate those who do hard work for us. We tend to appreciate web writers who do the same. If you take the time to assemble 100 tips, or 50 links, or 25 resources, on any topic, there’s a pretty good chance others will link to it. The great thing about this type of content is that anyone can produce it. The only ingredient is time.

8. Write lyrically
No, you don’t have to rhyme, but taking the time to make the simple act of reading your writing a pleasure can pay great dividends. Every niche suffers from a hefty dose of repetition. Often the writer who succeeds amongst repetition is one who can write in such a way that every article seems fresh and scintillating, regardless of the topic.

Plenty of personal bloggers with relatively boring lives have built huge success on the back of sharp, witty writing. Imagine if we started combining vital content with writing that was, in itself, a pleasure to read?

9. Talk about yourself
Too much of this is usually frowned upon in social circles, and I’d argue that the same applies to social media. In most cases, though, talking about yourself indirectly is a great way to build your blog.

When you write a comment addressed to someone else’s post, you’re also talking about yourself: you’re saying something about the worth of your opinions, your expertise, and your ability to write.

When you guest-post, you’re talking about yourself once again, and demonstrating to potential readers what you have to offer. In the beginning, talking about yourself is the best way to get the conversation rolling.

How this ties into the ‘Simple Web’

Does your site ask to be talked about as much as it could?

Is everything you do worth talking about?

What do you do that isn’t worth talking about? Do you write articles with little chance of inbound links, or social media success? Could you replace them with something more talk-worthy?

Talk builds your site. It sends you traffic, and increases your exposure. It will build a name people recognize.

The core behavioral habit the ‘Simple Web’ attempts to introduce is the elimination of all actions that hurt or stagnate the growth of your site. Stagnating actions don’t run counter to growth, but don’t contribute to it, either. If each of us replaced every stagnating action with a proactive one I have no doubt that the result of our efforts would improve dramatically.

Some suggestions for getting started with the ‘Simple Web’:

• In the time you’d usually use to write a speed-links article, pitch a guest-post at another site instead.
• Create a gripping ‘About’ page.
• Simplify your layout to enhance what’s best about your site.
• Share an idea others might be enthusiastic about.
• Create a valuable resource for your readers.
• Showcase your best content in a place new visitors will see it.
• Start to categorize your actions as +1 (growing), zero (stagnating) and -1 (detrimental). You’ve hopefully eliminated the latter — your next target is to eliminate zero. Replace every stagnating action with a growing one.

Where to now?

If you have any reflections or questions about the ‘Simple Web’, please let me know in the comments section. If you’d like to start from the beginning (or introduce someone else to the Simple Web), I’ve rebuilt the introductory post as a hub for the series.