Are you a new blogger, or as some of you call yourselves, “newbie blogger”, “nube”, “novice blogger”, “infant blogger, etc? Are you disheartened by the low visitor counts your blog is experiencing? Are you looking for help?
When you hit the “publish” button, do you wonder if your post actually went into cyberspace or blogosphere?
You may have searched for your posts online, but can’t find them.
You may feel that, even though you are publishing posts on a regular basis, no one is reading them.
You check your visitor statistics, and begin to believe, you and your best friend, are the only ones visiting your blog.
You may begin to wonder, if blogging is all it’s cracked up to be.
Blogging, or having a blog, for some, will end up being another, “been there, done that”, kind of experience.
For others, it will be a life changing event.
Today’s Lesson
If you are feel you are a new die hard blogger, I’m here to give you some encouragement.
Most important, you must realize, getting your blog found, takes time.
In cyberspace, which is filled with millions of blogs, each blog is like a tadpole in the ocean.
Now, I know that doesn’t sound very encouraging, but the world is also filled with hundreds of millions of people, who are doing searches, on their computers.
According to Search Engine Watch.com, in September of 2007, there were 9.4 billion searches performed.
When I checked Technorati’s website, they are tracking 112.8 million blogs.
So…if there were 9.4 billion searches, and 112.8 million blogs, there’s hope for every blog to be found.
Technorati also reported, that 175,000 new blogs go online daily. Amazing.
I have yet to read a report of how many blogs are discontinued or are sitting dormant, but I would imagine, that number is also high.
Before I started blogging, I didn’t search for these numbers.
Call me naive, or call me stupid. I just knew, I wanted a blog, and wanted to “share”.
I didn’t give much thought to how, or if, my blog would be found. I just assumed, in time, it would be discovered.
I didn’t understand SEO (search engine optimization), social bookmarking sites, blog carnivals, or what ‘free articles” were.
In fact, there was a lot I didn’t, and still don’t, understand. I continue to learn something new everyday, as blogging is constantly changing.
For those of us who blog, because we love to share, blogging is not difficult.
Blogging almost becomes an obsession. It’s that part of your day, you look forward to.
If you don’t publish a post, or visit other blogs, your may feel your day isn’t complete.
Blogging is also a great outlet. It could be compared to therapy. We are “talking” to our imaginary audience.
In the process of blogging our thoughts, we may also hope that others are learning from our experiences (good or bad). Because we care, we don’t want others to repeat the same mistakes we made.
We hope that maybe we will change, even one person’s life.
Can you put a price on that?
Today’s Assignment
Probably more important than having your blog found, is to ask yourself: “Why am I blogging?”
Did you read that you can make tons of money?
Or are you filled with knowledge, you want to share with the world? For free?
If you have found that blogging is a passion for you, don’t get disheartened.
Just keep posting. Keep sharing your knowledge. Keep going.
Remember…., even the most successful blogs, began with one visitor.
Visitors will find your blog, too. It just takes time.
In the meantime, make time to learn about SEO, keywords and keywords density, and other traffic building techniques such as submitting your posts to social bookmarking sites, blog carnivals, free online article sites, directories, etc.
It’s also important to visit other blogs. Leave a comment. Get your name out there.
Are you a new blogger? Leave me a comment. I will be more than happy to visit your site.
If you have been blogging for awhile now, feel free to share what you have learned, with the new bloggers who are reading this post.
Happy Blogging! 🙂
Very encouraging! Thanks Barbara!
I would also add that the content is much easier to find if it is:
1. Updated consistently
2. Indexable by search engines
3. And something real people are actually interested in
Kekoa,
The three points you listed are great additions.
Thank you!
Hi Sara,
Welcome to the BWAB community.
You’re welcome. Yes, by imagining an audience, we can stay motivated to keep plugging along. Even if no one comments, if our stats show we have visitors, we can believe our words are being read (and may also be helping others).
Thank you for this post. I loved the line, “We are “talking” to our imaginary audience.” That’s exactly how I feel when I write…as if there’s someone out there I want to speak to. I am a life coach, but I think sometimes I get almost more from my writing. Anyway, thank you for reminding me why I keep at this!!!
Thank you for writing this! I am a new blogger, and I’m learning everything as I go. I really enjoy the medium; I like being able to write my thoughts and ideas down, publish them instantly, and share them with the world (or at least the 5 or so people that happen to come by) 🙂
Sometimes I get a little discouraged because I feel like I have so much good stuff to share, but people just don’t seem to be interested. Posts like this help me “keep the faith!” Thank you again!
Jay Schryer´s last blog post..Wrong Trains, Airports, and Relationships
Hi Jay – You’re very welcome. I hear exactly what you’re saying. When we’re new we want our words read and it’s a struggle to get our blogs “out there”. Although I have no “secrets” to share, what has worked well for me is visiting and commenting on other blogs. I concentrated on small to medium size and have since made lots of new friends and built a great community here. It does take time, so please don’t get discouraged. I’ve been on your blog and your writing is great.