Have you ever felt a personal connection with a blogger who you’ve never met and have no real reason to feel connection with?

You read their blog day after day and in time come to feel like you know them—as if their blog posts are almost written as private messages to you?

This has happened to me numerous times over the years. I almost end up feeling that the blogger is my friend, even though I’ve never actually had personal contact with them.

I’ve also been on the other side of that relationship quite a few times. I regularly meet people at conferences who come up and say that they feel like they know me despite my never having communicated with them directly. I still remember the day that a complete stranger ran up to me in tears at a conference and hugged me to within an inch of my life, because she felt she knew me so well.

It’s a slightly strange feeling having someone you don’t know share how connected they feel with you, but I’ve also noticed that it is those same people who become your biggest evangelists, buy your products, contribute to discussions in comments, and more.

That personal connection can bring a blog to life!

How can you foster this personal connection with readers?

I have a theory that some people are just more naturally able to blog in this way. However there are a number of tips that I think can help you to foster that personal connection—even if you’re not naturally wired that way.

1. Tell personal stories

I suspect that one of the most powerful tools at your disposal when it comes to personal connections is the use of personal story. Sharing your own stories on the topics you write about shows that you not only have a knowledge of your topic, but that you’ve experienced it also.

Stories makes you more relatable to people, too—instead of being some lofty, untouchable expert a story makes you someone who’s also still learning, and experiencing what your readers experience.

2. Write as you speak

This won’t suit everyone’s style of writing, but it’s what I always aim for in my writing. I’m pretty casual when talking to friends or even doing a public presentation, so I aim to bring that same tone and style into the writing of my posts. As a result, it’s rare that I get too formal.

3. Use personal language

A little technique that packs a lot of punch in terms of fostering connection is to incorporate language that makes the reader feel you’re talking to them.

An example of this is to use the word “you” as you write. Instead of writing, “here are ten tips for improving a blog,” write “here are ten tips you can use to improve your blog.”

Doing this moves what you say from the realm of theory, making it something that’s very applicable to the reader and their own experience.

4. Picture a person while you’re writing

A simple way to change the tone of your writing is to actually write your post with a person in mind. Chris Garrett talks about this a lot and encourages bloggers to visualize a person as they write. Similarly, I like to develop reader profiles, which I find helps me avoid writing for a nameless crowd of readers. It enables me to pitch my posts in a more personal way, based upon people’s actual needs and situations.

5. Base posts upon reader needs

Perhaps this is a little obvious, but the more you write about the real, felt needs and problems of readers, the more likely you are to connect with them on a personal level.

The fact is that you’ll be more likely to have people feeling connected if they feel that you understand what they’re trying to overcome. For this reason, I find that getting reader feedback through surveys, polls and by inviting questions can be a great help.

6. Using social media

I try to keep the vast majority (if not all) of my blog posts inline with the actual topics of my blogs. ProBlogger is about blogging, Digital Photography School is about photography … it’s rare that I get off topic.

However I do use my @ProBlogger Twitter account to talk about my life in the mix of talking about other topics. This seems to help with showing myself as a real person—a dad, a husband, a football fan, a geek … things people seem to relate to. Whether it’s Twitter or some other form of social media,  or perhaps something else, if you have an outlet where you can share on a more personal level, it does seem to “humanize” you a little.

7. Multi-media

Similarly, using different forms of media has the potential to humanize you.

Using a picture of yourself on a blog puts a face to your name, and your writing.

Podcasts give your name a voice.

Video can not only put a face and voice to your online persona, but can also communicate a lot via your body language.

While it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, multi-media can certainly add something when it comes to building personal connections.

8. Attend events

One of the most powerful things I’ve done when it comes to building relationships with readers is attending events. These include conferences that relate to my industry (as well as blogging conferences) but also online events—whether they’re my own  or other people’s.

For example, I semi-regularly try to do a Ustream chat session where I sit in front of a web cam and answer reader questions. I also participate on Twitter in the #blogchat hashtag weekly chat. All of these things build personal connections, and give people a chance to “meet” me in some way.

9. Get a reaction

I spoke with one ProBlogger recently at a meetup and she told me that she’d been reading this blog for a while, but never really felt part of things until the day she left her first comment. She reflected that there was something quite powerful about actually taking that step in terms of feeling a deeper connection.

That’s a story I’ve heard quite a few times over the years. It’s not always leaving a comment that does the trick—but any kind of action that a reader takes brings them a step closer to feeling some kind of sense of belonging. It could be subscribing to your blog, joining a forum, signing up for a notification, leaving a comment, voting in a poll, entering a competition, emailing the author, sharing a post on Twitter … any of these actions deepens the engagement at least a little.

What else deepens personal connection for you?

That’s enough of me talking. What has your experience been? Whether it’s your experience as a blogger reaching out to readers or as a blog reader feeling connected to other bloggers, what deepens that feeling of personal connection for you?

This post originally appeared on the American Express OPEN Forum, where Mashable regularly contributes articles about leveraging social media and technology in small business.

Google AdWords (those sponsored links that appear alongside search results and web content) can be one of the most cost-effective ways to advertise on the web. Your ads are highly targeted based on keywords, and you don’t pay for anything unless they are clicked.

But often, small businesses set up a campaign and load it with relevant phrases, only to see little traction. Or worse, they get clicks (which cost money) but aren’t converting them into sales.

If you’re struggling to hit pay dirt with Google ads, or you’re interested in signing up but not sure where to start, take some cues from these small business success stories.

Where to Begin

Before you get started, “know that AdWords is a real commitment, and is likely to be a time drain,” says Chris Conn, founder of MightyNest.com, purveyors of organic and naturally made home wares and accessories. His company uses AdWords to drive potential customers to the online store. “It will take from other activities, so make sure that fits with your priorities.”

In that regard, start small, says Timothy Thomas, a small business consultant who cultivates successful AdWords campaigns for his clients.

“Focus on one campaign, lock your budget and use the tools provided by AdWords to learn how Google does its magic,” Thomas adds. He recommends that companies continue their standard SEO efforts in order to rank high in organic search for free (more on this in a bit), and then optimize an AdWords campaign accordingly. “Don’t buy ads in areas where you are getting a top-five link already. Think about terms that are unique to your offering and try to make the most of those keywords by standing alone in paid search.”

If you’re trying to get the maximum value out of a small AdWords budget, don’t worry about appearing at the top of every search. “Keep your bids as low as you can and edge them up — you do not need to be the number one paid search term, however being in the top three is valuable,” says Thomas. “Being number one in the wrong search will only cost you money.”

When you settle into an AdWords campaign that works for your budget and time, think about using the platform to glean a bit more insight into what your potential customers want.

Conn uses AdWords as a real-time testing and intelligence tool. “If we want to know what messaging works, we launch a quick AdWords campaign to see how customers respond.” Making fine adjustments based on small messaging changes can really hone your ads and give you the most bang for your pay-per-click buck.

AdWords and SEO Go Hand-in-Hand

A theme that held true for all the small businesses we spoke with was the importance of traditional SEO as it relates to AdWords campaigns.

“We find that paid search lifts other traffic channels,” says Conn. “When we increase our paid search, our direct traffic and organic traffic also rise.”

And the tides flow in both directions. Jordan Schaffel, co-founder of Say It Visually, a company that produces animated instructional and demo videos, explained that their existing SEO efforts were crucial to the success of their AdWords campaign.

“When we re-did our site recently, we had AdWords in mind, so we did our homework prior to re-launching,” Schaffel says. “Without the foundational efforts, we would’ve struck out, or at the very least, been behind the eight ball on getting clicks through our AdWords campaigns.”

Schaffels’ strategy included titling and tagging all of their videos to tie in closely with the AdWords campaigns. “If you fail to do one or more of the pieces of the SEO puzzle, you’re hurting yourself exponentially.”

One of those puzzle pieces is knowing when not to pay for search terms that you already own for free. “If Google can match your ad to a search, they are happy to sell a click whether it’s a good one or not. The only valid strategy is to narrow Google’s ability to present your ad,” explains Thomas. Make sure your AdWords keywords are embedded in the HTML of your website, and if you’re already dominating a search term organically, don’t buy it from Google. “You only want to pay for eyeballs that you can’t get in front of organically.”

Optimization

less on keeping them. Well, that’s what loyalty programs are for. If your business doesn’t have a loyalty program I recommend starting one. It can be as simple as a coffee card, or as involved as a frequent flier program.

 

If you’re not sure, a loyalty program rewards your customers for their behavior of ”coming back” to your business. This is important for two reasons: The first one is it’s generally less expensive to retain current customers than acquire new ones. And secondly, once someone makes a purchase they are likely to buy again. 

 

 

So if you don’t have a loyalty program for your business, you’re missing out on a big  

opportunity to make customers feel special and encourage repeat purchases. Here’s a list of loyalty program ideas you can try integrating into your email marketing:

• Insider or member programs
• Email bonus rewards
• Happy Birthday/Anniversary emails (your company’s or customer’s)
• Rewards or points programs/cards (like a coffee card!)
• Facebook or Twitter only offers

Other ways to retain your customers would be offering them something exclusive, giving them a  sneak peek or first look, or having a special event to get them coming back and spending. Do you have a loyalty program for your business? If so, what kind? I’d love to hear about it.