Fair warning!  This blog post is not for the meek or the faint hearted!

About this time last year, you were like a lot of folks who decided that they were going to follow Gary Vaynerchuk’s advice and  “Crush It” (no slam on Gary…if you do what he says, you are going to be farther ahead than if you don’t).  In fact you were a little surprised in June when you weren’t quitting your day job to pursue this blogging business full time!

You couldn’t figure out where you went wrong.  After all, you took the time to write 20-25 articles.  You even published some of them on ezinearticles.com (which you did see some benefit from traffic wise.)

But you probably felt like Jim Mora’s famous quote about “Playoffs???” when people asked you if any of your 2 videos went viral.  I can hear you now…”Viral video?  Are you kidding me?  Viral video?”

And since you don’t want to be get too down, I won’t ask about how many folks follow you on twitter as well as your Facebook page?  I can hear you…”John…that’s a lot of work!”

So…maybe after of year of this, you are thinking about calling it quits.  Maybe this internet business isn’t for you.  After all, all the best niches are already taken.  Only folks with lots of money to spend on Facebook ads or Google AdSense are successful.  You know that old saying…”It takes money to make money”

Is it time to throw in the towel and spend more time watching TV?

I know you want to quit. Hell, I have given it some thought from time to time.  It’s not like you would be blazing any trails there either.  The web is full of blogs and sites that are considered failed.  So, adding one more to it doesn’t seem like that big of a deal.

In reality giving up may be the smart thing to do.  After all, you don’t want a repeat of 2011.

In fairness, that’s a thought. Or since we used sport terms above, we could go back and rewind the 2011 video to see where we struck out.  After all, don’t the great hitters do that in baseball?

Were you planning on doing the same thing again in 2011, but expecting a different outcome?? Some things are going to have to change in order for 2012 to be considered successful!

You heard what the definition of insanity is?  Well don’t go into 2012 doing what you did in 2011 and expect a different outcome.  You are going to have to make some adjustments!

Before we look back at what you did in 2011 and how we are going to fix them in 2012, you have to understand that your approach needs to be different!

Resolve to evolve by committing in 2012!!

It is time to start treating your blog like the business that it is!  If you want to make money, perhaps change your career or just get a different job as a result of your blog, you need to get serious and not treat this as a hobby!

I have a saying that I use with all of my clients…”If I care about the issue more than ownership does, there’s a problem.  And it isn’t mine!”  It sounds harsh I know.  But guess what?  I am not going to do all the work for you and just have you there at the end to scoop up the gravy.

If you aren’t “In it to win it”, then stop here.  Don’t waste my or your time!

That means that one article every 4-6 weeks isn’t going to hack it for one thing!  Successful bloggers post 7 times more than failed blogs (remember…2011 was your failed blog effort and we are going to change that now!).  You are going to repurpose your content.  (Take your blog post, make a slide show out of it, post that and then make a video out of your slide show).  You are committed and you ARE going to be successful!

Ok, now that we got that out of the way…what do you have to do with your blog to make 2012 successful???

What you are going to do to succeed with your blog in 2012!

So, you are committed and are going to blog with a much higher rate of velocity in 2012.  Now what are we going to do about the content??  Now, I am going to tell you what to do.  Don’t question it.  You don’t question breathing, you just do it.  Use the same approach here.  The “why” will come later!

No 1 on the list.

Make your content easier to read and more interesting!  Understand that folks these days don’t read left to right.  They read in what is called an “F” pattern.  So break up things by doing more bold headlines and liberal use of bullet points.  After you write it, reread it.  Is it something you would want to share with your tweeps on Twitter?  If not, work on it.  Remember though, the more you write the easier it will get.

Don’t wander off the reservation too far in your posts! Be consistent!  Just today, a dentist client was telling me she wanted to write about weight loss and did I think it was a good idea. I said, “Yes, if you have a nutritional or weight loss blog.”  The reason you only get 10-20 views a day currently is that you are just writing about you.

Find your niche and dominate it by being consistent.  Keep your posts consistent to what your theme or niche is.  It is ok every now and then to wander a little, but the whole point of doing this is to gain a readership and ultimately turning them into customers!  Give them a consistent reason to keep coming back!

Make sure you are talking to the right audience!  If your market is scientists, not providing facts and speaking at their level will lose them because they don’t think you know what you are talking about.  So, take 10 minutes right now to brainstorm the customer “persona” that is in your wheelhouse!  You need to understand this persona inside and out!  And name the persona after that.  Refer to how your named persona would feel reading your blog…would they find it dull or interesting?  Is that named persona going to find value in the blog posts you are creating?  If not, guess what?  Re-write it!

Are you solving problems or just telling other people’s stories?  The best blogs tell a story while they are solving a problem.  One of our most read posts ever was 3 Reasons To Stick With Social Media (kind of apropos here, but true).  If you are informative, or can solve issues folks are having, they are not only going to respect you, but are going to return for more nuggets.  And when you go to sell them, they will buy.

SEO is like social media, it is something you HAVE to do!  Do you know the terms people in your niche use to find you?  If you do, have you optimized your posts around those terms?  If not, get some analytics on your blog (come on, google has very good analytics for free) and take the time to review them regularly.  Putting your customer persona together with the search terms that people use to find you is going to make a huge difference in 2012.

I know there are some folks out there who disagree.  My partner and I don’t see 100% eye to eye on this.  Just trust me when I tell you, that you need to be spending time in the trenches here understanding how you are getting your customers and what sources they are coming from.  From there, you will see which things you post about get the best results, so you can do it again consistently!

I know you have been reading for awhile on this post.  But if you don’t want to do this, stop now!  You simply aren’t going to be successful (or as successful as you could be!!!)  Hey, don’t blame me…I warned you at the beginning!

Let’s continue…

You are promoting yourself through Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn! If you haven’t learned it by now, understand this and understand it clearly!  You have to promote yourself to be successful on the internet!  Really, those days of build it (in your case write it) and they will come are pre 2000!

I mean if you are going to go through the time and effort to write a great blog post, how come you aren’t willing to share it out there so others know about it??

Don’t think others will share your stuff for you!  They will, but don’t expect to build a business around that hope! The use of social media in the building of your network is critical to your success if 2012 is going to be different.  Build your social media relationships daily!  This is NOT an option!!!

Are you advertising?  If you were in a brick and mortar start up business, you wouldn’t dream of not advertising.  What makes you think this would be any different?  I know it means some money out of your pocket.  I get it. But unlike brick and mortar, your advertising can be laser focused here. The easiest way to do this is with Facebook ads.  You can set a daily budget and build it as your business grows.

Let’s not be confused here. Google Adwords on your site does not constitute advertising.  So, unless you have 1,000 visitors a day minimum to your site, pull them!  Your site will load quicker (another consideration) and you will have more space for something more valuable…content!

What’s your link love quotient? Linking to other blog posts is one way to get the attention of other bloggers.  Kind of like Retweeting heavy hitters on Twitter. If you link to them often enough, sooner or later (as long as you deliver content that is of value), they will return the favor and link back to you.  This is a somewhat painless way to go about building your business.  Afterall, you are already writing the blog post anyhow.  Your readers will appreciate that you get around.

And as I tell my clients all the time, “You are known by the company you keep!”  Start hanging out with better people.

Another good link building exercise is through blog comments.  Find folks who already have well read blogs, set up an alert to let you know when they post and then act fast to be one of the first three who leave a quality comment! (Just a hint…”Great post” is NOT a quality comment!).  If you leave a great comment, they will end up visiting your site.

Guest blogging!  If you have been working on your social networking relationships, you may find other people just like you who need more exposure.  One way to get it is to trade guest blogs.  Keep it in your niche!

In other words, don’t have a dog walker do a blog on a relationship coach’s blog.  One tip here, is to bring your “A” game for other peoples blogs.  Solve problems or somehow be seen as the thought leader.  It is the only way they are going to then come to your site and check you out!

Do you have a “Call To Action!” in your post?  People unfortunately are not mind readers.  They need to be led.  After all, that is why they have come to your blog in the first place, to be provided a solution to their needs.  Every post needs a call to action…even if it says to leave a comment!

A call to action on a webpage is an invitation for your visitor to take the next step. Some examples are:

• Call to schedule a free consultation.
• Provide us with your contact information.
• Tell us your story.
• Download our free legal guide or ebook.
• Leave a comment on our blog post.
• Follow us on Twitter.

 

And finally, there is the proverbial…

What is that you ask? I don’t know.  Why?  Because this list is always changing as I learn more about what it takes to be successful.  Has the list grown?  You betcha!   It is a moving organism.  Your blog should reflect that as well.  If you haven’t updated the look and feel of your blog in let’s say the past 2 years, make 2012 the time to change everything and while you are at it, your blog will improve.  And then you will get the following/business you were looking for in 2011.

Make no mistake about it.  This is work!  But I am also here to tell you that the effort is well worth it.  Why don’t we work together to make 2012 the year that changed your life?

Your call to action!

Since I have already left you with a lot of work that is going to change your life, how about just sharing a comment along with a link to your blog?  And let me know what I can do to help you in your success!

If you are looking for free tips or advice on how to approach your social media, go to Social Media Dudesand subscribe to your newsletter in the upper left hand corner! Still not convinced that social media is right for your business? Read this and get our F.R.E.E. report on the 7 Myths of Social Media! Or follow our tweets on Twitter at twitter.com/johnpanico Finally, those are my thoughts from high atop my 2nd floor office above my garage. What I want to hear are YOUR comments. Please leave one now.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

One Response to “Why Your Blog Didn’t Take Off in 2011 and How You Fix It for 2012!”