Hint: It’s not to “make money online.”
It’s because blogging represents a much larger principle – that people and organizations have the power to publish content into the stream of all that people consume. Whether you have a divine or humanitarian message to proclaim or a product to market, online publishing is the future.
Mitch Joel agrees…
You definitely must read his latest article… No more websites. Only publishers.
I disagree with his possible conclusion that design is fading in importance, but the basic premise is true. When a business says “what can I do to grow online?” I don’t respond with anything about SEO (although that’s certainly important). I say “start a blog.” Pay someone to design it. Pay someone to write for it. Invest in publishing useful and valuable content. Why?
You’ll be the authority.
You’ll be useful.
Your site will be sticky – people will subscribe and come back.
People will aggregate your content.
People will converse about what you’re saying.
People will spread what you’re saying.
Some people will criticize you, which only generates attention.
Some people will thank you.
What’s the cost of not taking my advice?
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Brandon, great points here, especially the part about criticism, some people are scared of it, but I welcome it because first it can help you see something you didn’t previously see, and second it can create controversy which can create a “buzz” on your site.
Keith´s last blog ..Comment Debates
Absolutely right, Keith. And besides, you can always moderate the junk that’s purely out of line, but disagreement is a powerful tool in the hands of a writer/blogger.
Brandon,
Those are some great tips. I will definitely take your advice. I have several blog projects I am considering. Once I have the budget for it I will try some of them.
element321´s last blog ..Blogging Tips – Starting a New Blog
No problem bro!
I made the mistake of trying to start a blog with the primary goal of making money. I put in a lot of time towards it, but did not see very good results. I realized that my heart wasn’t in it and I needed to focus on writing about things that I enjoyed, as opposed to writing about things that I thought would make me money. Once I came that that realization, I changed the focus of my blog and put together articles that shared my life experiences with the world and sure enough the money started to roll in!
Yep, that’s how it goes – success is merely the byproduct of doing well whatever we are passionate about.
I also tend to like to start clients out with a more on page approach, as in the long run, this is going to pay off much more. The off page stuff is certainly important too, but without having a strong backbone it isn’t usually permanent.
However, I find that it is something a lot of people simply don’t have time for and don’t want to pay someone to do. I try to make it easy, suggesting simply one post every few weeks, or even planning to spend one hour a week to start with creating a blog post, but all too often they don’t follow through…
Good thoughts there – I agree that the content has to be worth linking in to.
Excellent points here, Brandon. About criticism, it’s good to get some. You’ll get to know what to improve and it can generate some buzz about your blog.
Marko´s last blog ..Thesis Theme Tutorial: How to Add a Second Navigation Menu
Yep, and your reaction may win a reader or three.