Want to know a simple trick I use to make my blog posts go viral on Twitter?

I started using this trick a few months ago and business bloggers have emailed me like crazy asking how I do it ever since!

It’s not even that original, I swiped the idea from popular bloggers like Derek Halpern and Marie Forleo, among others.

Tweetable content is the key to going viral on Twitter. And when done correctly, you have an awesome way to promote your brand, grow your social media following, and ultimately increase your business.

Of course, I can’t wait to share this “trick” with you but first let’s get some housekeeping out-of-the-way…

Tweet this:

To tweet or not to tweet? The answer is in this viral blog trick! bit.ly/LxpPNr #blogging

— Kimberly Bordonaro (@Brandspiration) June 28, 2012

3 Viral Rules Every Small Business Blogger Needs to Know

Before you attempt to use the tip I outline below, run your blog post against the these basic rules to make sure they measure up for viral success:

• Give good content. Nobody is going to share a blog post that is not interesting, relevant, or poorly written.
• Perfect your headline. Your headline must grab attention and pique curiosity for your audience to even consider clicking on the link.
• Tell ‘em what to do. Don’t assume the reader knows that you want them to share your post. You must clearly state their next steps with a call to action.

The Trick to Tweetable Blog Posts

So what’s the big Twitter trick?

You may have noticed it at the top half of this post…  I created a Twitter box with a fun sound bite and told you to retweet it.

In the past, I used a service called “Click to Tweet” to create these “tweetables”.

The latest version of WordPress allows you to embed a twitter box. All you need to do is install the Twitter Embed Pluggin and it will automatically create the box when you copy and past any tweet URL on a single line by itself.

The “Twitter Embed” Method

Keep in mind, this method is a little funky to use for a post you haven’t published yet. Here’s what I do:

1. Write your post but don’t publish it. You can save it as a draft.
2. Copy the permalink and use a service like bit.ly to shorten the URL link.
3. Create a short sound bite or fun quote that readers will want to share with their audience.
4.  Open your Twitter account and create a tweet that has the soundbite and shortened URL link.
5. Publish your tweet. This is where it gets a bit funky because I haven’t figured out how to do this without publishing the tweet.
6. Copy the tweet’s URL. To do this: right-click on the published time on the upper right corner of the tweet and copy the link URL. You can also open the tweet itself and copy the URL from the bar at the top of your page.
7. Go back to your blog post and paste the URL code wherever you want the box to appear.
8. Above the URL link, type in a call to action like “Tweet This”.
9. Publish your post. You’re good to go!

The “Click to Tweet” Method

If you don’t have a WordPress blog, here’s an alternative solution:

1. Follow Steps 1 thru 3 in the instruction above.
2. Go to Click to Tweet
3. Enter your sound bite and shortened URL.
4. Generate the URL link.
5. Go back to your blog post and enter the sound bite (or quote) and a call to action where you want it to appear.
6. Hyperlink your call to action to the “Click to Tweet” URL link you generated in step 4.
7. Publish your post.

Keep the conversation flowing… Now that you know how to create “tweetables” for your blog posts, leave me a comment and tell me what makes a “tweetable” click-worthy?