A Successful Blog 2
August 11, 2004 | 
15 Comments
Summary: As a follow up to my previous post about what makes a successful blog, I talk about a few of the things a sucessful blog can bring you.
Yesterday we talked about what makes a successful blog.
Today, as a followup, I thought it’d be fun and interesting to talk about what a successful blog makes! You know, what you can expect to get out of a successful blog. Yesterday we learned that a blog really is what you make of it and if you take the time to make it good you’ll receive some good things in return.
So, what does a successful blog make? Well I think that really depends on the goals laid out for the blog, the audience and the type of content. A political blog, for example, is going to reap different reward than an entertaining personal blog and we’re just beginning to see how blogs and money relate.
So let’s talk about this in general terms, keeping in mind that different blogs will result in different rewards and that the definition of “success” can vary quite a bit.
A Successful Blog Makes…
- Friends. I tend to look at my readers as friends and I think many others do as well. I’ve also made quite a few offline pals via my blog. Who doesn’t need more friends?
- Industry contacts. Similar to friends, these are people who can help you further your career.
- Knowledge. I can’t tell you how much my blog has helped me learn. I can ask questions and discuss things I otherwise wound have never had the opportunity to talk about with people I’d have never been able to talk to.
- Money. I don’t personally make much, but there is evidence out there of people making a decent living from their blog. Good content should be worth something.
- History. I use my blog to chronicle things I’ve done, lessons learned and experiences shared. It’s a mini-history of a sort.
- Opportunity. My blog has put in me in some opportune places I’d have never seen without it. By getting your name and content out there you open yourself to all kinds of opportunity.
- Stress. It’s not all good, although I like to begin with the positive. A successful blog can be very stressful and time consuming.
- Jobs. Similar to opportunity as successful blog can open the door to work opportunities. It can be a great extension of a resume or online portfolio. A blog can be a great way to land new clients.
- Community. One of the reasons why I work so hard at my site is because I have a passion for the Web and I love to talk with others who share that passion. It connects me to a community I care about.
- Personal pride. It just feels good to create something lasting and put effort into something you believe in.
- Professional development. If you run a professional or industry blog you can’t help but learn things and hone skills that will help you professionally.
- Anything you want. A blog can about, and for, anything at all. People try to nail it down at times, but in my mind it can be whatever you wish it to be and therefore you can choose what you get out of it.
Filed under: Web General
Comments
1. Gabriel Mihalache said:
A succesful blog makes… a very high Google PageRank, outrageously high, if I think of it… or at least that’s what I’m told :-)
In other words…stop googling yourself or you’ll go blind.
Posted on August 11, 2004 10:44 AM | #
2. Keith said:
Gabriel – That is too funny, and probably very true also.
Posted on August 11, 2004 10:53 AM | #
3. seth said:
A successful blog makes… the people that read it smarter! Ok, so you can’t really make someone “smarter” so how about “more informed.”
Posted on August 11, 2004 10:57 AM | #
4. Yannick L. said:
Thank you Keith. I am hoping to start a little blog of my own and both articles have been very helpful to giving me a headstart in that regard. All the best and keep up the good work.
Posted on August 11, 2004 10:59 AM | #
5. Daniel Oliver said:
Once again very well covered. There is little that can be added to that if anything. I especially agree with the friends and industry contacts.
Daniel Oliver
Posted on August 11, 2004 11:42 AM | #
6. Stephen Collins said:
Professional Development and Creative Outlet are the reasons I started my blog. I needed to have place to learn more about CSS and PHP, and I felt like I had some things to say, and needed a venue to say it.
Posted on August 11, 2004 01:12 PM | #
7. Stephen Collins said:
I need to tell you, you’re comment system is VASTLY improved.
Posted on August 11, 2004 01:13 PM | #
8. girlwonder said:
a successful blog can make revolution - for example, when it was grey tuesday a day when folks decided to revolt.
Posted on August 11, 2004 01:44 PM | #
9. Taco John said:
A couple I would like to add:
Personal development: By putting yourself out there, and stepping out of a comfort zone, you can really grow as a person. Even more powerful is how you can find out who you really are. As you put your ideas out for public viewing, and possibly have to defend them, you can really see just what type of person you are.
Relieve of stress: Numerous times I’ve had a frustrating day at work (intramurals at college) and ranted about it. When no one is around to rant to, the blog is the best bet.
Posted on August 12, 2004 06:33 AM | #
10. Beerzie Yoink said:
Well said.
Posted on August 12, 2004 08:34 AM | #
11. LikeJAzz said:
Then Keith, Do you think successful blog can make money ? I wonder how much do you earn money by google-ads.
Posted on August 12, 2004 09:44 AM | #
12. Keith said:
LikeJAzz – You’re not really “aliowed” to talk about how much google-ads bring in, but I can say that it’s really varied. I do know some bloggers do really well with them. But unless you’re getting a huge amount of traffic you couldn’t live of ‘em.
Having said that, you can leverage a blog many ways to generate income. The goal of Asterisk isn’t to make money, so I just use those ads to help cover costs and pick up beer money now and again. But that’s not to say you couldn’t do much more with advertising. It’s something I plan to look more into, but as of now I just don’t know much.
I guess what I’m saying is, yes, A succesful blog can make money. How much depends on how it’s done, etc.
Posted on August 12, 2004 10:30 AM | #
13. Fernando Dunn II said:
Keith: I’d like to know how long did it take you to begin to get a good amount of faithful readers? How did they get to your site in the first place?
Posted on August 13, 2004 01:33 PM | #
14. triticale said:
Altho googling oneself is non-productive, tracking search terms and referrals is worthwhile. I’m afraid that most of my search engine hits are from people researching the grain I took as a nickname, but I have found that I am linked by some interesting blogs I’d never known of. I do make a point to mention or blogroll them once I notice.
Posted on August 20, 2004 08:21 PM | #
15. masterofstuff(notblogging) said:
i would like to add:
just getting it all out there. My blog (that sucks) is more of a journal than a weblog and has almost no real content other than my chase for this chick i like (but she hates me) and other random stuff from my everyday life.
competing for most hits. All my friends have blogs and we are currently blogwarring to see who can get the most hits. I just started, so im pretty far behind so give me a hand and visit my uber-crappy blog (hopefully i figure this stuff out) at masterofstuff.modblogs.com
Posted on May 17, 2005 10:25 PM | #
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