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Dennis Merritt Jones
Dennis Merritt Jones

The Problem with Blogging

There are lots of great reasons to start a blog, but unfortunately, most blogs don't survive the test of time. I have first-hand experience of this phenomenon. I've started several blogs, only to watch them age out and eventually die. The problem was that my motivation for blogging was not at the same level as my enthusiasm. I've lived enough years to see the pattern: when enthusiasm outruns motivation, you tend to start a lot of projects that never get completed.

Should you decide to start a blog, understand that it is a daily commitment. It's not something you do when you "feel" like it, because you're often not going to feel like writing yet another post. It's time-consuming, it forces you to focus and concentrate, it compels you to do some research, and at the end of the day, you really don't know what good it's doing.

It's that final element that really clinches it for many people. "What good is my blog, really? Who can possibly be interested in what I have to say?" Many people have a human tendency to undervalue themselves. They also have a tendency to confirm negative thoughts through their actions. The result is a blog that is undervalued and consequently does not draw the interest of very many people. Suze Orman said it best: "When you undervalue who you are, the world will undervalue what you do."

What's the cure for this? Well, I'm not a psychologist, and I don't play one on TV. But I do know that people often need help with sustaining a dynamic online presence. Whether it's a blog or a newsletter or any other form of online presence, it is important to keep it fresh and dynamic, and that often boils down to some sort of every day activity.

So here are some ideas to help you sustain dynamic presence:

  1. Hire someone to maintain your blogs and/or newsletters. Her soul purpose in life may be to harass you into giving her raw content that she can edit. Or she may be able to work independently to create content on her own. In either case, the bottom line is to hire help.
  2. Get your readers to participate by leaving comments or discussing topics in online forums. All you'll need to do is plant a seed of a topic, and let your readers water and nurture the rest.
  3. Link to other sites you find interesting. Many blogs have very little content; these authors simply reference content on other sites, along with short comments like, "Here's some interesting information on where to find the best ski resorts in Colorado."
  4. Invite guest bloggers to submit their content on your site in exchange for allowing them to link back to their own site. Part of this deal may be that you'll occasionally have to create a blog for other sites as well, but the overall workload should be less. Just find some other blogs that write about the same topics that are on your site, and approach them with the idea of guest blogging.

These are just some of the techniques you can use to help keep your blog content alive and relevant. If you have any more suggestions, please leave a comment and share your thoughts!

Cheers,
Dan