Do we need another blog? It’s a question that I get asked a lot. Fair enough. Given that there are 2.5 million blog posts a month, you might wonder if we do need another blog.
My answer is ‘yes’, of course. I am a blogger. But if you have any doubts, I would like to lay them to rest with my list of 21 reasons why blogging will never die. And once you have put aside your doubts, you can focus on how to start your blog, keep it going and make it the best it can be (which I personally think is a better use of your time).
Show what you know
Yes, I can tell you that I am good, or even great, at what I do. You might believe me. But I’d rather show you and let you judge for yourself. It’s a respectful way of marketing and selling.
Reveal your inner humanity
Beth Jennings is a remarkable photographer. She invites her subjects to reveal their inner passion and personality through her photos of them. The term blog is shortened from weblog, meaning an online diary. Tell the world what you care about and why in your blog, and let people connect with your humanity.
Be generous
Blogging as a marketing tool is generous and respectful. As a blogger, you share your knowledge. Some of your readers may never buy from you, but they love you just the same. And perhaps they will pass your name to someone who does buy from you. Even if they don’t, who doesn’t want a more generous world?
Be consistent
Regularly publishing a blog shows that you are consistent, reliable and committed to what you do. There’s no need to convince anyone. Those qualities are reflected in black and white on your blog page.
Evolve your thinking
The truth is that no one ever looks through your archives. But you will. And when you do, you can see how your thinking has changed. Sometimes I look back and think, hmmm I was right back then, and I’ve gone off track. Or sometimes I think, wow, I’ve learned a lot since those days.
Show the world you care
The world is full of cynics. That’s a lazy path to take. Blog about what matters to you, and be one of the people in the world who cares, and is making an effort to change what is wrong.
Show you are serious
Long term blogging proves that you take yourself and your work, whatever that is, seriously. It’s a marvellous example of your professional commitment.
Build a tribe
Not everyone cares about you and what you say. But some people do. Blogging allows people to find you, connect with you, and build trust in you.
Create intellectual property
As soon as you publish, your words are copyrighted to you. Publishing your blog protects your ideas.
Put a stake in the sand
If someone steals your idea, and you have been blogging about it for years, it’s easy to prove your claim. When you blog, you put a stake in the sand.
Build an archive
Blogging creates a pool of thinking for you to draw on throughout your career.
Publish a book
Collate your blogs into a book and publish it online or, even better, in print. It’s a powerful marketing tool, and a way to spread your ideas beyond your network.
Support democracy
The business model for traditional media is in disarray. Newspapers and magazines around the world are closing. It’s up to all of us to keep the bastards honest, to step up and take a role in spreading messages of change and good, and challenge the evil empires.
Have fun
Blogging is fun if you don’t take yourself too seriously. Do you need a little more fun in your life?
Market yourself
Of course, blogging is a marketing technique – and one that is deeply respectful of your potential client’s intelligence and right to choose.
Build self-belief
As you build a bank of blogs, you’ll see how much you know, find out what parts of your knowledge resonates with others, and recognise your own true expertise.
Stay on track
If you are clever, you can use your blog to keep yourself in a growth mindset, as author Carol Dweck has called it. Watch out for bitterness, blame, rants or resentments creeping into your blog. Are you going off track?
Find your voice
Over a period of writing, your voice will naturally emerge. There’s no need to force it. It comes from persistent, consistent writing.
Stoke your passion
Sometimes you are right to let fly in your blog. If you see actions or behaviours in your industry that make your blood boil, your blog is a great place to stoke that passion and share it with your followers. I’m not talking about anger, here, but about energy.
Be one of the ones who ‘does’
Blogging takes discipline. Like exercise or eating well, its effect show over time. There are lots of people who want to be fit, but don’t go to the gym, who want to be happy, but don’t practise self-care. Blogging is for the doers, who see something they want, and then do what it takes to get there.
Contribute to quality
Ok, I admit it. There’s a lot of crappy blogs out there. So why not contribute some quality information to the mix. If you commit to consistently writing a blog, your content, expression and quality will improve over time. You’ll be part of the solution, not the problem.
Go forth, bloggers! Trust in your knowledge and share it with the world.
PS: Now you’re ready to attend my Blog Bootcamp (Sydney) and brainstorm a year’s worth of blog topics in four hours!
PPS: Want more? You might like: Why Authors Are Inhuman