By Easton Ellsworth

Whether or not you’re going to the Successful and Outstanding Bloggers Conference (SOBCon08) in Chicago May 2-4, it is critical that you know how to find and network with professional bloggers like you - bloggers who blog about the same subject.

And since blogger networking is one of the topics this year’s SOBCon Biz School for Bloggers will cover, I thought you might like to learn (or refresh your memory on) how to find bloggers with whom you can relate, visit, chat, buddy up, talk, laugh, cry - y’know, “network.”

In this post, you’ll learn:

- Why networking with other business bloggers is important
- How to use tools such as BlogCatalog, StumbleUpon, Technorati and Google (yep, Google) to find bloggers like you
- Where to go for networking advice

Plus I’ll give you some nice homework when we’re done.

How Networked Are You?

Quick! Name 10 bloggers in your niche.

Okay - now tell me when you last talked to each one.

How often do you get links from other blogs like yours - blogs with audiences who enjoy the topic you blog about?

How much traffic do you get from other blogs?

All right, enough grilling. Let’s talk about networking.

Why Network With Other Bloggers?

When you get linked to by another blog, it not only sends an instant surge of traffic to your blog, but it also increases your blog’s authority in the eyes of every search engine out there.

Not only does networking help your blog traffic and search engine rankings (which in turn generate more traffic), but it also helps you write better content. The more bloggers you know and communicate with regularly in your blog’s niche, the easier it is to get post ideas by asking them directly or just reading their blogs.

Plus networking is just plain fun and it’s a totally natural human thing to do. Don’t be a loner; get out there and talk to people!

… Except maybe you don’t know where to look.

Well then - here are 4 great free online tools that can help: BlogCatalog, StumbleUpon, Technorati and Google. Of course there are others - LinkedIn, Facebook and Yahoo! Groups, for instance - but these 4 will collectively help you discover bloggers like you and blogs like yours faster than any other combination of which I am aware.

How to Use BlogCatalog to Find Bloggers Like You

What: BlogCatalog is a big blog directory.

How: Go to http://www.blogcatalog.com/search - Simply type in a keyword or two related to your blog.

Example: http://www.blogcatalog.com/search/investing

For multiple keywords, just add a + sign between each word:

Example: http://www.blogcatalog.com/search/auto+industry

How to Use StumbleUpon to Find Bloggers Like You

What: StumbleUpon is a big community of people sharing things that interest them.

How: Simply paste this in, replacing keyword with a phrase related to your blog topic: http://www.stumbleupon.com/tag/keyword/

Example: http://www.stumbleupon.com/tag/accounting/

For multiple keywords, just add a + sign between each word:

Example: http://www.stumbleupon.com/tag/software+news/

How to Use Technorati to Find Blogs Like Yours

What: Technorati is a major blog search engine.

Technorati rocks. It ain’t perfect, but for finding relevant blogs, it’s great.

How: Simply go to this URL, replacing keyword with a phrase related to your blog: http://www.technorati.com/blogs/keyword

Example: http://www.technorati.com/blogs/marketing

For multiple keywords, just add a + sign between each word:

Example: http://www.technorati.com/blogs/Asia+business

How to Use Google - Yes, Google - to Find Blogs Like Yours

What: Google is, um, a search engine. And there’s a reason Google’s the most popular search engine. It’s actually very good at identifying relevant stuff - like blogs in your niche!

How: Simply type in a keyword or two in Google. (Include a word like blog, blogs or bloggers in your search for best results.)

Example: http://www.google.com/search?q=ebay+blog

If you want to search for an exact phrase, here’s the format:

Example: http://www.google.com/search?q=%22blog+about+ebay%22

More Tricks to Find Bloggers in Your Niche

Every time your blog receives a comment or trackback:

- Visit the URL of the commenter/linker. See if it relates well to your topic.

Every time you find a blog like yours:

- Read it. Leave a comment. Maybe email the author. Maybe subscribe to its feed. Get to know the blogger there and (gulp) just ask her who else she knows that has a blog in your niche.

- Check its sidebar for a blogroll or other list of related links. Visit all of them. Check their sidebars too.

How to Get Help Finding Bloggers Like You to Network With

The easiest part of networking is getting help. How do you get help? Just ask for it. Ask anybody and everybody you can for it. Get their thoughts and ideas on how to network, who to network with, what networking tools to use, etc.

If you’re really lost, just leave a comment below and ask the SOB crowd a question. We’ll be happy to help - isn’t that what we SOBs are here for?

Lesson’s Over - Here’s Your Homework

Your assignment now is to take 15-30 minutes today or tomorrow - pick a time right now, I’ll wait - and do these 2 things:

1. Find at least 10 bloggers in your niche using the 4 tools we’ve just discussed. They must be bloggers you’ve never networked with before - bloggers you might have heard of, but don’t yet know.

2. Contact each one of them personally. The simplest way to do this is by making comments on their blogs or emailing them directly. Say hi and introduce yourself and your fine blog.

That’s it. You’re well on your way to becoming a much better networker and blogger. Do this exercise at least once a month and you’ll be amazed at how many high-quality individuals you’ll discover who have blogs like yours.

And you’ll make lasting friendships along the way.

Thanks for reading this article. We hope to see you at SOBCon 08!

Got anything to add?

Photo: Swarm of bees by Melissa&Shane