I am at a point in blogging where I consider myself among the ranks of veteran bloggers. I’ve been at this long enough to say with confidence that I have built a strong following, I know who I am and I know what this blog stands for. I have met tons of other bloggers and social media mavens along the way and have learned and networked at conferences. I’ve shaken the hands of others in the blogosphere at various events and this all equates to the fact that I know how this big bloggity blog world operates.
But, this revelation did not happen overnight and I’d like to add that I’ve paid my dues – and I am still paying them. Maintaining a blog takes endless hours of time and hard work including lots of blood, sweat and tears. This is easily a full-time job and those of you who have been blogging for at least a solid year know exactly what I’m talking about.
Blog success does NOT happen overnight and does not happen without oodles and oodles of endless hard work. There is no free hall pass when it comes to blogging and just when you think you’ve reached some success, you realize there is still a long way to go – but that’s the real beauty of this journey.
This post is not about how to build a following or how to maintain a true readership. I’ve written about those bloggy things before but I wanted to share some thoughts within the kind of post I wish I had read when I was just starting out…
Think of a time when you were the new kid on the block; maybe arriving at a new school or starting your very first day on the job of that brand new position – you had to learn the ropes. You had to understand the internal workings of that environment in order to function well within that organization. Well, the same principles are applied to blogging that can be noted:
1. Earn your rite of passage. We have all been there before and we all started the same way, with one lonely follower {and for the record, I adore Brittany and she is still with me today}. Think of an uber blogger that seems untouchable and think about their following. You have to remember that those uber bloggers were at one time newbie bloggers themselves! They didn’t get book deals and reach unimaginable bloggy status overnight. No. These women wrote their butts off and their amazing talent truly resonated with readers. These women found a niche that needed to be filled and have done so with style and grace. These women deserve every blog reader because they have worked for it. They’ve earned their rite of passage and you have to earn yours as well. You can’t enter the blogosphere expecting a handout. You have to work for it.
2. Don’t get too big for your britches. Once your blog does start to pick up some traction and your following begins to build, don’t forget what it was like to be a newbie. Treat every reader the way you want to be treated. We can all sense bloggy ego from afar. Remember who you are and where you came from. Staying grounded will be appreciated by many and it will set an example for future bloggers in the process. I’ve seen big egos turn some bloggers into different people and others have since lost interest. Stay authentic and true to who you are from the very beginning and your readers will stay the course, too.
And probably the most important five words that newbies need to hear if they want to maintain a long and lasting blog?
3. Don’t be a sell out. I can’t tell you how frustrating it is when I see new bloggers publish anything and everything that comes their way. They are willing to sell their souls for a few followers or a mere gift certificate. They don’t research the company they work with and the product they post about has absolutely nothing to do with their audience or even their blog. Why do they do it? For a few extra followers or to make it appear as though they are striking some uncharted, new bloggy ground? The fact of the matter is that many of us receive the same mass emails but the difference is that we recognize that it’s not the right fit for ourselves and our blogs so we decline. Be sure that with every product you endorse and every company you choose to work with, it’s the right fit for both you and your blog. Blogging about every promotion and press release certainly will not get you where you want to go. It may actually deter readers from returning.
At the end of the day there are no guarantees in this bloggy world, but what must stay at the forefront of every post is maintaining your readers’ trust and respect. If you lose that, you could have tons of followers and it wouldn’t mean a damn thing.
Don’t be a sell out – because we all know the kind of bloggers that do and we can smell them from a mile away.
And it aint pretty.
I’ve been blogging for over a year and I’ve realized that I probably will never be huge in the blogging world and just write for me now. Thanks for the encouragement though
This is great advice, my friend! It’s so funny that people who have been at it a year are the veterans in this “business.” I definitely have learned quite a bit along the way too. And some of it I can’t even post…we should get together over wine someday and talk about all THAT stuff. The stuff you’d never say for fear of looking like a know-it-all, etc.
Thank you for this post. I am a newbie blogger, coming from a traditional media background and is it sooo different! I am learning the ropes and trying to fit it, just like your post mentioned. Although, I have no mass e-mails in my inbox! I have no clue about all of that yet.
#3 is something I struggle with….I’m broke and the thought of getting paid to put something on my blog is always really hard to pass up. I have definitely turned down several offers for things that don’t seem to fit my readership or my style, but if they fit, they’re going up! I will someday find my solid direction.
I especially agree with the part about ego and blogging. It was made abundantly clear to me at BlogHer this year that some bloggers really have no idea how the world really sees them. It’s sad to me when bloggers have such an overinflated opinion of themselves that they don’t even remember what it felt like when everyone they called friends had actually met them in person.
Wow. Thank You Heather. I love this post and it was so very helpful to me. I came into blogging head on and full steam ahead. I love it and realize I have a passion for writing. That being said…I have SO much to learn. I feel I’ve made some mistakes here and there but your post rang so true for me. I’m such a dork, I’m sitting here taking notes because you point out some really key issues.
For me, I always want to remember who I am and why I’m blogging. To stay true to who I am…thanks for such an inspiring and important reminder. That’s why I so love this community you have built.
Thank you so much for the words of wisdom! I’m pretty new at this too, and every little bit helps…
Great advice!
You know what else Ive learned this year? Not to get sucked into every single meme I see! lol I still do sometimes, and then Im like – what am I doing?? I have no time to write what I actually want to write!
Heather, this is great advice, even for those of us who’ve been blogging for over a year. I started blogging last year in July, and I’m still working on #1.
I 100% agree! Mind you, my blog is under a year old, but I still found myself nodding my head in total agreement.
It is much harder than you ever think, but so much more rewarding than you could ever expect! Learn to leanr, but also take everything with a grain of salt. I think the biggest thing to know for yourself is WHY are you blogging? It’s okay if that changes, but you need to know what you WHY is at all times! That being said click below for my changing blog!
Bernice
When I first started blogging… I had never even read another blog. I had NO IDEA the great, big blogging world that was out there. Now of course, five+ months later, I have already learned so much and have been astounded by the possibilities. For me, the greatest struggle is that I love it – the writing, the connecting, the learning from other blogs I’ve found… and yet balancing it all (when it is not my “job”) proves very difficult. I have to remember that if I could already fit in everything I’d like to do… then I’d have nothing to aspire to. That helps me take a deep breath and only do what I can do. It’s easy as a newbie to look to other, well-established bloggers and think “what do they have that I don’t?”, and yet even that is an arrogant attitude that I have to guard myself against adopting! They (usually) have gotten there through lots of hard work and doing similar things to what I’m doing. And that alone (perseverance, consistency, excellence) gives me a lot to learn from. You are one of them. Thank you!!
That was a really great post to read. I stumbled on your blog while reading the featured poster’s blog(I found her through someone else). I look forward to learning how to improve my blogging.
Wow, thank you for point 3. I have been following some blogs that have been getting more popular. As a result they are now longer blogging that same way. I am so close to unfollowing. I am sick of the posts that are actually ads for products and posts that are just about blog flogging. It is getting to the point where barely 10% of their posts are actually good.
Something for me to really think about. This blogging world is an odd one.
Thanks for these ideas. Starting out, blogging feels huge and scary. I put the Google Friend Connect icon on my blog and removed it the next day, when I still only had three followers.
Eight months later, I feel as though I’m still struggling. No worries about my ego getting too big.