How do you connect with other bloggers?

I asked all of this month's blog sponsors to answer the question above. My hope is that their words will inspire you to connect with more bloggers or handmade shop owners. So let's see what advice they have for us...

Emily of Our Nest in the City says
I wish I could use Instagram because I adore following people's pictures through that medium on Twitter, and I feel it's a great way to see another side of the blogger's lives and get to know them better, but alas, I don't have an iPhone. Hopefully when my current phone contract is up I can convince my hubby that it would be a good investment :)
Otherwise, I get ton of blog hits via the links I post on Facebook. Though it's not my favourite medium, it's the best for my blog so it's a necessary evil, haha!

Britt Renee says
I have always just tried to connect with others all with links to my social media sites. I hope that made sense : ) For example on my youtube account I include all my links to everything in my description box. On my blog, I include links to everything as well. I'll post links to every new post that I blog about from my blog on my facebook, twitter, and my youtube. I'm not sure if I have one personal favorite social media site. I definitely love youtube, instagram, twitter & pinterest. Although I more so keep my pinterest for remembering these and for things that inspire me, to do.

Heidi of Row House 14 says
I use both Facebook and Twitter for my blog and shop. I use my twitter account for both my own use and for my business. A lot of people feel that it is important to keep personal and business matters separate. To some extent I agree, but at the same time I think it is so important for people to know who you are when it comes to small businesses. People connect to you in a different way and that has its advantages. If people see my tweets about teaching, going to concerts, or even rooting for the Steelers, then they have a better idea of who they are supporting when they purchase from my shop!

Jessica Rae says
As someone who is trying to build a career as a film composer I try to use social media the best I can to promote my website and blog without completely aggravating my friends. I utilize my Facebook Fan page for this as people have to "like" me to get updates. I do heavily use my Facebook profile and Twitter as my mainstay though. I love scheduling Tweets using Hootsuite to stay constantly in the conversation. I use Pinterest to pin and promote my posts when there is a particularly good image I have.

Mindy of Marigold Road says
I pitter around on Facebook and Twitter when I have time and comment on other blogs!

Kate of From the Guest Room says
For me, I didn't totally dive into social media at first when it came to promoting and networking in regards to my blog, From The Guest Room. During the first six months of writing my blog, I didn't see it as something bigger than just me writing about my life. Once I took myself seriously and saw that readers were actually getting inspired, learning new recipes and relating to my stories, I felt alot more comfortable promoting my blog as a source and not just a personal journal. I first created a facebook page for my blog, seperating my blog promotion from my personal facebook account, hoping to not bombard all my friends with shameless self-promotion. This allowed people to make the choice to subject themselves to my blog updates, not force it down their throats, which is how I wanted my blog to be among my friends, a choice, not a required reading! Shortly after, I remember chatting with a film-maker friend of mine who is the king of networking via twitter. He has made friends all over the country, gone to meet-ups and received plenty of gigs through the way of twitter. His example led me to get on Twitter, and it is by far my favorite social media outlet. As for other social media outlets, here's a quick run-down of my experience. I have Lookbook.nu, but am not a huge fan. I don't dislike it, just not a big fan for me personally. I also have Pinterest, but again, not totally hooked. It's cool, but I only use it a few times a month to be honest. And finally, I use instagram and love it as I can automatically sync my updates with Facebook and twitter, allowing me to update more outlets in less time, plus I personally think people generally like photos better than text! All in all, social media has done wonders for networking on behalf of my blog and it's an extremely inexpensive way to get the word out. Which fits my budget to the T AND allows me to make heaps of new friends!

Culturemaker(s) says
We use primarily Facebook and Twitter to promote our posts and interact with readers. We recently took up a new effort to Tweet one thing a day not related to our content. This has proven useful to spark conversations we wouldn't have otherwise had. We use Hootsuite to schedule all the posts at once relating to a particular article we want to promote. This is incredibly useful as we have a constant stream of writers generating new content. We use Pinterest and Reddit to get content up as well, but our individual writers use their accounts and either pin images, or post links to Reddit. We have had some very real success using Reddit in the past.

How are you connecting with others in the blog community?

And if you want to join me in July, please consider reserving your place today! Check out my sponsor page for VERY affordable rates and reserve you spot today :)