Tumblr is a super microblogging platform that brands and businesses should use to market themselves. On Tumblr, you can write short or long posts, or post audio, video or pictures. If someone likes the stuff you have posted, they can ‘reblog’ it and post it on their own blog. This leads to your post getting viral, as their followers will see it, interact with it, reblog it and so on. There is a lot of potentials to use Tumblr to market your business.
Here are some ways to do that:
1. Be visual
Adding visuals like animated GIFs and other images to your Tumblr posts are a great way to get viral. If you have a well-designed, interesting product, or have a way to integrate your product with something that is humorous or topical, you will have hit the nail on the head. Visuals that are popular on Tumblr are Game of Thrones, cats (no surprise there), Benedict Cumberbatch, and Harry Potter.
2. Use Tags
Using tags are how you get found on Tumblr. Tag your posts if they are integrated with something topical. If you are posting about your art gallery, tag it as ‘art’, or if you’re posting about Ryan Gosling, tag your post as ‘Ryan Gosling’. The key to tagging on Tumblr is that only the first five tags count. Your sixth tag doesn’t really count because Tumblr tags stop working for those purposes after the fifth tag. So it is important that you choose your tag wisely.
3. Reblog often
Like and respond to posts of other users in a bid to engage with them. If you don’t reblog as much as you blog, your post will not receive that much of traction on Tumblr.
4. Be shiny, new and bewitching
Magazines like Rolling Stone and the New York Times Style Magazine are some of the major business successes on Tumblr. These publications are constantly posting article and news excerpts as well as pictures. Apart from frivolous, humorous content, people also like to share interesting trivia and news on Tumblr.
5. Focus on a niche
While using Tumblr to market your business, focussing on a niche helps quite a bit. Blogging within a niche means blogging about stuff like electronics, software or even tips related to your service business.
6. Post smartly
Knowing when to post can be critical in using Tumblr to market your business. Since most of Tumblr’s user base is young, posting before 7 am, at noon time and before supper makes sense.
7. Keep it simple, short and sweet
Short blog posts have more potential of being rebloggable. Long drawn posts get left behind, as do those without GIFS or pictures.
8. Connect
You have an option of connecting your Tumblr post to Facebook and to Twitter. This cross-promotional linking allows followers from all three platforms to engage with your blog post and see your content everywhere.
9. Don’t be a salesperson
is a very tricky subject to begin with. You have to tactfully approach it so that potential customers do no assume that you are invading their private space with pointless propaganda and sales pitches about your product or service. When you are using Tumblr to market your business, try to offer valuable content rather than focussing on your own motives as a business.