Common Reasons Why Most Blogs Fail
The other day I was sitting in a coffee shop down the road from my house and I asked myself a simple question…”Why is failure more common than success?” I began to think about successes and failures I’ve experienced in my own life…how did I achieve success in situation “x”…why did I drop the ball on opportunity “y”? The list goes on.
The more I thought about it, I came to a simple conclusion (more a master of the obvious hypothesis, I reckon): It’s not that anyone tries to fail…in fact; the average individual loves the feeling of accomplishment. It’s like a drug. But let’s take it a step further. I see success and failure as light and darkness. Anytime you see someone succeed, it’s because they were able to overcome the setbacks and roadblocks (darkness) and find a way to push through and shine the light. Just like the scientific concept of these two subjects….success is the absence of failure (getting rid of the things that set us back.)
Now, looking at a micro-level in the world of building an online business: why do most blogs fail? I’ll attempt to answer this.
Blogger won’t write: Unless you like to write, and are willing to spend the time doing it…don’t even think about becoming a blogger. If you start a blog about web hosting and the goal is to develop true loyalty and readership, it’s not a good idea to try and outsource posting to a college student in Bangladesh. I’ve seen people try it and it will fail 98% of the time. It’s simple: writers write, non-writers don’t write.
Shotgun style focus: I don’t fancy myself as a hunter, but if you do, than you know what I’m talking about. There’s a reason why “big game” hunters use high powered rifles vs…a 12-gauge shotgun that sprays pellets in every direction. It’s all about having a laser beam style of focus. When one starts out blogging (and this is how creative minds work)…every topic sounds cool to write about, you start 12 blogs, burn yourself out, nothing gets done…and the process is back where it started – ground zero. Bloggers tend to act like mega idea factories…the successful ones separate ideas from action and stay focused. Set aside time for dreaming and don’t lose site of the goal.
Quick to start…quick to give up: You’ve posted for a week straight, your daily visitors eeked past 13 (including the Google Bot) and the depression sets in. A small minded person will think of giving up because the people advertising Internet Treasure Chest on TV said I would make money in the first 48 hours. Well, go sign up for $59.99 a month and give it a shot. In the real world of blogging; patience is a virtue. Your mom was right about a few things. It takes about 12 months for a blog to reach full maturity. Keep writing.
Non-Blogging Activities: I know Google Analytics is cool, and the new Word Press stat widget ver.7.6 is even cooler. But, checking to see how much your traffic dropped (because you’re not blogging) will not get the job done. I’ve seen people set up new blogs (including myself) and they have every widget, app and automatic twitter updater installed before the first post is on paper. Repeat step # 1…bloggers are writers.
The writer can’t write: I’ll sympathize with you on this one. If you LIKE to write, but can’t…there’s a deeper issue that needs to be addressed. Let me try and help you: In your case; writing is not enough. Read, read…and read some more. Get your hands on every book and blog you can think of….don’t hyper-focus on Tom Sawyer and forget about your blog…but, good writers are avid readers. Go to Amazon.com and buy a used book on writing for $3.95…enroll in a writing class at your local community college (however, in the YouTube era most techniques can be self taught)…just do something to strengthen your skills.
As you might assume, the above points are not the only reasons blogs fail. But if you’re new to blogging…I ask that you fail in every area except the ones mentioned above. Please.
Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now keep it up!
Amiable dispatch and this mail helped me alot in my college assignement. Gratefulness you on your information.