Most of the readers of this article are people who are actively involved in blogging, internet marketing or social networking for business…or people who are looking for a good way to GET involved in these activities. One of my biggest goals is to communicate the fact that there really isn’t a hardcore secret to making it work. You need to be purpose-driven and work hard at it.
I suppose I could sell you a book on how to make a million dollars in your first year while only working a few hours a day, or I could charge you $97 for a “proven, guaranteed program” on how to get 10,000 followers on Twitter in the next 90 days. But I’d rather just tell you the truth.
Here’s the motivation for me: if I tell you what really works, then some of you will turn away and not come back, because I’m not telling you what you want to hear. To me, that’s a good thing. The reason it’s good for me to run some people off, is because I sell stuff. I sell sales training and consultation, and I sell information products. If you’re looking for a fast fix or a get rich quick deal, you either won’t buy what I’m selling, or you’ll complain when you get it, so me just giving it to you straight really is better for all of us!
The Reason Blogs Fail
That said, what IS the reason most blogs fail? This is my honest assessment: the reason most blogs fail is because they were improperly researched to start. Probably very little or NO research was put in at the beginning, and as a result the blogger failed to get any meaningful results. Then they quit.
I would quit too if I got no results! If you’re getting no results, it’s smart to move on to something else. It’s important to know the difference that a failed blog doesn’t mean you’re a failed blogger! I hope these bloggers are not giving up on blogging altogether. I hope they are picking up the pieces and learning from their mistakes…and moving on to more successful projects in the future.
But the idea stands: if you want a successful blog or internet marketing plan of any kind, you need a fully detailed plan to start off. As you know, I consult with sales people all the time, and you’d be amazed at how many people have no business plan of any kind. No written goals at all. I’m sorry, but you cannot run a meaningful business and achieve meaningful results without a plan.
The Magic of a Business Plan
The magic of writing up a business plan is NOT in the finished project. You can throw the business plan in the trash for all I care (figuratively speaking; it’s best to keep it, refer back to it and continue to revise it at least quarterly). The real power in writing a business plan comes from the writing process.
- What is your target audience?
- How will you target them?
- What will be your main source of traffic?
- What steps do you plan to take to ensure you get the traffic you need?
- How do you know these steps will be effective?
- How will you measure the success of your blog?
- How do you know that getting those results will create a meaningful impact on your business?
Answering questions like this put you in the hot seat. Will your idea for a blog work? I don’t know, but don’t you think it’s better to find out before you spend the next several months working on it?
Failure to plan properly is not the ONLY reason a blog can fail of course, but it’s the number one reason. It’s amazing how many businesses are out there operating with no plan whatsoever. If you take your success seriously (why wouldn’t you?), do the necessary work to write a proper business plan. You’ll be doing yourself a serious disservice if you choose to skip it!
Thank you for a great article on planning for blogging, in which is also a hidden article on planning for business. As you so gloriously point out, a blog is a business. Businesses serve needs that people have. But no business serves every need or everybody.
I have been going through an evolution in defining my own blog. I have seen it go from being about owning a small business, to being creative about owning a small business, to entrepreneurship, to baby boomer entrepreneurship, to creating a retirement business, to baby boomers who want to be aggressive about designing the perfect retirement business that fits your personal needs.
I have gone from a solution in search of a market to a market in search of a solution. That is probably not obvious in the view of one reading the blog today. But it is the shift in focus that I think you describe. The shift will become visible and hopefully exciting to those who are out there looking for that solution. Thanks for bringing me one step closer to clarity.
Shallie Bey
Smarter Small Business Blog
Shallie, I appreciate your comment, and I’m glad to hear your blog is evolving with you as a person. That’s awesome! That’s one of the beautiful things about blogging…it’s personal in nature, and it can change as you learn more and want to try new things. Your comment makes me want to clarify something that I likely failed to communicate in my post.
Having a plan makes a lot of people feel constricted, like they’re locked into something and that their creativity is stifled. That somehow by having a written business plan, they can no longer be free and creative. This REALLY is not the point, and I think we can really take these things too seriously sometimes!
The process of writing a business plan for your blog is vital. It’s absolutely mandatory if you want to maximize the results you get from your efforts. But it doesn’t lock you into anything. The process of writing the plan is more important than the plan itself. It forces you to think things through in detail. Revisit your plan often, and change it…the point is that you’re thinking things through in detail and forcing yourself to look at your ambitions critically. By doing this and putting those concerns to rest, we are able to be MORE free, not less
Thanks for this article and Shallie’s comment. Business plans are certainly important and often overlooked.
I think blogs fail primarily because authors lack enough passion for a niche to freely share their best ideas on an ongoing basis. A business plan may help but frustrate when you start something totally new. We learn as we go and . Blogging can change you.
Frankly, I did no formal research when I started blogging in early 2007. A general blog morphed into one for consumers (revealing how the wealthy tame their financial risks) and one for financial advisors (sharing ideas, insights and best practices).
Even now, I can’t quantify the results the way a business plan would demand. Yet I know my business success has increased.
You’re right! A business plan will only do so much, and there is certainly an element of self-discovery that goes along with any successful business. It depends on your goals.
I’m writing Next Level Blogger specifically for people who want measurable financial gains from their blogging, social networking and internet marketing. This can be done, but it requires running it like a business. There are pros and cons to this approach of course. Not all blogs are run this way, and I’d certainly never intentionally imply that what I do is the ONLY way to do it! But if you want to make money online, you’ll be best served running your business like a business, and that includes having a written plan that you follow daily.
Good post, Christian, and great food for thought. I never really thought of my blog as a business in and of itself — I always thought of it as a supplement to my existing business. Having a plan, however, is key, and right now all I have is what’s in my head.
Your best point is that you can’t set up a blog and expect to begin making money overnight. Even as a supplement to my main business, I have to spend hours getting out there on all forms of social media, as well as in person-to-person networking events. It’s hard, and if you’re not a people person, at least to start, you’ve got an uphill battle ahead.
Looking forward to future posts; thanks!
Hey Mariano, thanks for the comment. Yes, it takes time to build a successful online presence, but this shouldn’t be a detraction. Everything in business that’s worth doing takes time and effort. For some reason we think these hugely powerful tools should not only be free but very easy to use!
You make a great point about not being a “people person”. When I started sales training, I learned immediately from a mentor that if I wanted to be effective I was going to need to develop some of my weaker personality traits. When I deliberately focused on building my leadership qualities, that’s when I (not coincidentally) became very successful in helping my clients make more money. In other words, I was not always a top sales trainer. In fact, I was the opposite. But I learned. Hard work pays off.
It’s crucial to know that we ALL have the social personality traits necessary to be very successful in online marketing. Some of us have those traits buried, but they’re there. Don’t think of yourself as “not a people person”. You are. It just takes practice. It’s like working out. The more you do it, the better you get
First I’d like to say thanks for such good information. I’m in the process of rebranding and developing an integrated strategy combining social networking, my blog and my websites.
I started out with one business which morphed into four businesses, each with its own name. While they are all related to the real estate investment and training businesses, they evolved independently over time. As such, they don’t leverage one another in the online space.
Your posts are helping me change my thought process and to develop the disciplines necessary to create leverage between my various lists and online activities without spamming. I need to define my target customer, my blogging schedule, focus more on conversation development and less on teaching the whole lesson. I get a fair amount of positive feedback on my blog but it fails to engage conversations. I recently began using Facebook and Youtube without a written plan.
Until now I have relied on others with more tech savvy than me to assist with my online strategy. It is my business and my responsibility to develop the plan, even if someone else assists with implementation. This post and the planning post have effectively put a temporary hold on my implementing any changes until I have fully thought this process through. This will save me time in the long run and ensure that I’ll initiate effective actions.
I look forward to future posts.
I’m glad this is helpful to you Augie! Running multiple businesses shouldn’t take any more time than running one business. Delegating to others is essential. If you have others with more tech savvy than you, use them! But know there is a difference between a tech strategy and an overall business strategy. Knowing when to delegate is a challenge! The balance between adequate planning and taking effective action is key. Plan, but know when to stop planning just dive in! Actually, I have a post coming up next week about that very thing