Tumblr is blogging with a difference. Its format encourages short, snappy, informal posts, which are categorized by photos, text, links, audio, video, quotes and chat. It sits somewhere between Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook and more traditional blogging with posts that are easily-shared and go viral quickly. Tumblr hosts almost 100 million blogs with 42 billion posts, so it is well worth getting involved in the community. More and more brands, as well as small businesses, recognize the power of Tumblr in both reach and simplicity of use.
The ten tips below will help you re-think the way you share information.
1. Keep it short
Tumblr encourages sharing and people are more likely to share content that doesn’t take hours to read. A simple quote, fact, photo or interesting snippet is more likely to reach a wide audience than an essay.
2. Think visual
Can you tell your story more effectively by taking a photo or using a cartoon? Sharing a captioned photo of your team, event, or new product is going to give you more re-blogs than a long description: and re-blogs mean more exposure. The shared photos should also be optimized and easily digestible. For instance, you can edit the photos or remove background for them to be more appealing.
3. Don’t just re-hash your corporate blog
What works for a more formal, text-based blog doesn’t work well for Tumblr. Forget long paragraphs of prose and just use the images or quotes with good captions.
4. Socialize
Maximize the potential of your posts to go viral by activating the feature that allows you to automatically post your Tumblr posts to Facebook and Twitter. This is a great way to reach new audiences without having to duplicate your effort.
5. Keep it fresh
Tumblr is a fast-paced site where fresh content is the key to keeping your followers hooked on your feed. The general rule of thumb is that a steady stream of bite-sized chunks is more palatable than spaced-out, crowded posts.
6. Choose the right tags
Relevant tags for your posts are not only helpful for organizing your content, but also allowing new followers to find you. Thinking what search terms people will use to find your posts will help you pick the right tags for your posts.
7. Mix it up
Remember that Tumblr supports a whole range of media really well. If you regularly post photos of new products, how about uploading a how-to video, quotes from your customers, or links to stores, magazine articles and other blogs?
8. Share and share alike
Engagement is not all about you—it is a two-way process. Tumblr thrives on re-blogs, so be sure to re-blog other people’s posts and add in your own comments to continue the conversation. Follow other people’s blogs and be sure to click the ‘like’ button.
9. Don’t just broadcast, listen too
As with all social media, your involvement is as much about listening as it is about talking. Take the time to read the comments on your posts and have a look at the kinds of people who are re-blogging your content. You’ll learn a lot about your audience and what they are interested in.
10. Have a strategy
Finding fresh content to post regularly can be demanding, so be sure to make Tumblr part of your online life. Install the Tumblr “bookmarklet” in your browser so that you can post new content directly from the web to your blog, and store up great images, quotes, or short snippets of text somewhere handy so you know you always have a reserve of good material to share with your audience.
In summary, Tumblr is a fun and quirky world, so don’t be afraid to dive right in and explore who is out there and what they are posting. It is a great opportunity to interact with a new audience and share a whole range of content with new fans. So get creative and start posting!
Featured image courtesy of Alexander Supertramp / Shutterstock.com.
Originally published May 14, 2014, updated Dec 30, 2022
