I was pleasantly surprised to know that I was one of Blogchatter’s Top Bloggers in Feb 21.
I began to engage with Blogchatter in January this year, although I have been aware of the blogging platform since 2019. Their A2Z Blogging Challenge seems to be super popular because that’s where I heard about them first.
Blogchatter says that the only way to earn the Top Blogger sticker is to engage with the website. It is tech-driven so there’s no bias involved.
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So how did I do it?
I wouldn’t say this is an exhaustive list of things to do to earn your sticker, but if you’re new to the platform like me, these are some of the first steps you can take:
1. Check BlogRolls every day
Through Blogchatter, I have come across some fantastic content about a variety of topics – books, health & nutrition, marketing & social media, fitness, travel, and so on.
I am primarily interested in books and marketing, so I chose to read more posts on these topics. You can filter to read posts on whatever interests you the most.
- I did not set any targets for myself because my days are not structured, but I read at least 5 posts each day.
- Instead of spending time scrolling through my Twitter feed, I devoted it to scrolling through my BlogRolls.
And I emerged enriched from the experience because I found new bloggers, ideas for structuring my own posts better and learnt new things.
2. Build a network
What’s more, it was the beginning of creating my own network.
I visited people’s blogs to read their posts, left meaningful comments where I had something to say, and rolled them on the Blogchatter website.
I also tapped that little spiral symbol next to the blogger’s name to indicate that I’ve read and engaged with their post.
After rolling a blogger, I will always see their posts on my Blogchatter blogrolls. Now I can interact with them regularly!
3. Explore Blogchatter’s website
There’s a mine of information on the Blogchatter website about the various campaigns, events and challenges that are being hosted.
Follow Team Blogchatter to find, read and engage with such posts. It made many things clear to me and I didn’t have to ask for clarification.
The website is quite user-friendly and easy to navigate.
4. Enroll for the Reading Challenge
I enjoy reading books and joining the #TBRChallenge was the first thing I did after signing up on Blogchatter.
There are no prompts, so you’re free to read pretty much whatever you like.
I set myself a modest target of 24 books for the year. I’ve read 11 books so far–not bad, haan?
Blogchatter introduced a fun ReaderBoard feature where you can check your relative reader ranking. You can see that I’m currently at Rank 8 and I’ve finished 46% of my target.
The other Top Blogger of Feb 21, Jaideep Khanduja, ranks first on the ReaderBoard!
You can also see a snapshot of your reading so far in the form of book covers:
I write about my reading experiences for this challenge every month. You can read the posts here:
a) Will You Join Me for the Blogchatter Reading Challenge 2021?
b) #TBRChallenge by Blogchatter | Jan 2021 Check-In
c) #TBRChallenge by Blogchatter | Feb 2021 Check-In
5. Register for #CauseAChatter
Blogchatter is championing three causes — Mental Health Talks, Environmental Talks, and Gender Talks — this year.
- We’re required to align ourselves to one cause and create content around it.
- Blogchatter has chosen to write about “sustainable gardening,” but you’re free to choose your own theme.
I chose Environmental Talks and my first post was about 3 Best Kitchen Compost Bins for your Home.
I don’t have a theme so I’ll just write under the broad umbrella of environmental topics.
- Along with creating content, you can also read interesting things that other bloggers come up with.
- I learnt what topics are trending while reading other people’s work and how I can do better research to write my posts.
6. Submit to BlogRolls regularly
I have a book review blog and I create bookish posts regularly.
I began to submit each post to BlogRolls under the category BookChatter.
This helped other bloggers see my work and interact with my posts. I’ve also been able to grow a network gradually.
Remember, just like you want people to read your posts and interact with them, so do other bloggers.
You should not use Blogchatter as a place to dump your posts and hope that people will read them or follow your blog.
7. Take Part in Surveys
I discovered this feature late, so some surveys had closed by the time I got to them. It barely takes a few minutes and they have interesting questions.
8. Interact with Blogchatter on Social Media
Blogchatter is a busy place–there’s always something going on.
I’m most active on Twitter so I choose to engage with Blogchatter on that platform.
- They usually have afternoon chats where they ask a series of thought-provoking questions.
- You can even win goodies for some conversations. I recently won an Amazon voucher worth INR 1,000 for participating in one.
It’s great fun to think about your stand, tweet your answers and read other people’s thoughts.
I’ve also found many new people to follow and talk with in this way.
If you want to keep track of what’s going on, Blogchatter has helpfully provided a calendar that you can use to mark events on your Google calendar.
Scroll to the bottom of the website and you’ll find it on the right:
There are plenty more ways to interact with Blogchatter, such as the:
- Blogchatter Ebook Carnival – where you can get your e-book published
- Book Reviews – where you can request for review copies of fantastic books and post honest reviews. I recently reviewed the book Cold Truth by Nikhil Pradhan.
- BlogchatterA2Z – where you can learn how to blog consistently and engage with others. Last date for 2021 registrations is March 25.
I’ve probably missed out on a few things since I’m yet to fully discover the magic of Blogchatter.
It has only been 2 months but I feel like I’ve opened the portal to blogging heaven!
I’ll be back!
Book Reviews by Satabdi 
What do you think?