In recent days I’ve seen several blog posts popping up about blogging or more to the point, making money through blogging. As the discussion continues as to whether blogging is a viable way to truly make money online, I find that many bloggers participating in these discussion may be missing the point. Please understand that I highly respect these bloggers, as well as their successes and will continue to follow them as well as participate in discussions with them now and well into the future. However, I felt I should add my own perspective on the idea of making money through blogging or rather the internet for you to gain a better understanding of the overall perspective you need to have to succeed.
Food for Thought
After reading a guest post over at David Risley’s blog entitled “This is Why Most Bloggers Don’t Make Progress“ by Melvin Dichoso of MelvinBlog.com, I found myself thinking about the whole topic of blogging to make money. Now I’ve heard many different perspectives on the subject of making money online in general over the years from both the mainstream marketers and the so called self-proclaimed internet marketing gurus and find that almost all of them completely miss the over point of what blogging is today and how it impacts the bottom line in general.
As I continued my normal morning ritual of reading, posting, tweeting and sharing content from the bloggers I follow, I came across another profound post by highly respected blogger and co-creator of “Beyond Blogging: The Secrets to Blogging Success“ Nathan Hangen entitled “Where 99% of Bloggers Go Wrong” which explored the subject of making money through blogging even further. Nathan makes some good points in his post which sparked further discussion of the subject in the comments of his post. However, it was a post by yet another blogger which Nathan linked to in his post entitled “The Third Tribe – More Useless Blogging Nonsense” that really got me thinking about this subject further and made me realize, I needed to create this post in an effort to provide some clarity on the subject. As a 16 year veteran of the web design and internet marketing industry, I bring a unique and hopefully somewhat objective perspective on this subject and intend to share that perspective here with you today.
Although each one of the bloggers above make some very valid and useful points, I don’t necessarily agree or disagree with every point each of them has made in their posts. Why? Well, mainly because I believe that they fail to clearly illustrate the bigger picture here. I’ll admit however, that Nathan Hangen is a pretty knowledgeable guy and eludes to this more so than the other two bloggers, which I’ll explain in a bit. Plus as a former U.S. Marine myself I tend to operate my business with honor and integrity in mind so I have to give the soldier his due respect 
A Little Perspective
For the 16 years I’ve been doing web design and multimedia development, I can tell you that many of my clients have a fear of internet marketing in general. This fear exists simply because they lack the knowledge of how to do it, let alone understand it. I’ve also found that many marketing experts also have this fear and are quick to dispel internet marketing as a major part of their overall marketing strategy, again as a result of lack of knowledge on the subject. Why am I telling you this? Because I want you to gain an understanding of how blogging should fit into the bigger picture here or more to the point, how internet marketing in general should fit into your overall business strategy.
You see, everyone of my clients are experts in a particular area in which they conduct business in. They know their business inside and out, yet they know nothing of blogging, let alone internet marketing. Therefore, they look to me or anyone else who may have the knowledge they seek as a resource to gaining guidance on how to take advantage of the internet to grow their businesses further. This creates demand for a particular product or service, specifically internet marketing and out of that, blogging, which ultimately leads to others who recognize that demand who then create a business model to fill that need.
On one side, you’ve got Melvin and Nathan posting about the mistakes many bloggers make when chasing after the almighty dollar online. And on the other side, you’ve got Grizzly (yes, he really blogs by that name) shouting about the more traditional internet marketing methods and how the current blogging trend is fluff and nonsense. Grizzly does make some valid points in his post, but in my view he also fails to paint a better picture for would be business owners and individuals looking to expand their business operations online.
Now, in the “Third Tribe” post by Grizzly he spends a great deal of time on Darren Rowse of Problogger.net and his business/blogging tactics. What I found interesting about Grizzly’s post was that he continually dispelled Darren’s business methods as rubish so to speak and full of fluff. Now, don’t get me wrong, I mean no disrespect towards Grizzly, but do feel that this one-sided view still leaves a lot to be desired by those who are simply looking to take advantage of internet marketing in one way or another.
Tribe Nonsense, Really?
I don’t agree with Grizzly’s assessment that the Third Tribe and the whole tribe mentality is more blogging nonsense. Here is where I feel he fails to realize that blogging is simply one small part of an overall larger business building strategy, and yes there ARE business owners out there who need to be educated on how to utilize their blogs/websites more effectively to grow their business. Blogging is simply a way for you to build a community around your website, whether it is solely a blog or as part of a larger website which builds customer loyalty, trust, credibility and communications. The whole tribe mentality is simply that, a community of like minded individuals networking together to achieve a common goal. There are real-world events that have been around for years that were put together to accomplish a similar goal, their call networking events! The Third Tribe and the whole tribe concept has been created to fill the need of individuals and small business owners, let alone large corporations, in educating them on how to effectively communicate online. As a web design expert of 16 years, this is a lesson that desperately needs to be taught.
What Blogging Should Be
In my opinion, Nathan provides the best perspective on the subject, yet not a complete picture. Blogging, as Nathan has stated in his post, should be an extension of an overall larger business strategy. It is a smaller part of a greater whole. Regardless of whether your intention is to make money through your blog or simply to share your passions with the world, one thing should remain true about the overall purpose of blogging. Your blog should be utilized to develop relationships with your readers, establish credibility, share your thoughts and expertise, gain trust which leads to customer loyalty and eventually repeat business, regardless as to whether they buy through your blog or through more traditional methods.
The fault I find in Grizzly’s post is he does not provide his readers with the understanding that blogging, websites or any form of internet marketing is simply one part of a large whole. Just as Darren of Problogger.net has carved out a nice little business teaching people how to blog, Grizzly has carved out his own method for making money only through more traditional, tried and true internet marketing methods.
So Who Should You Listen Too?
The answer to that questions is simple, BOTH! Each of them are very convincing in their discussion of the subject of blogging and internet marketing, and if you have any knowledge or experience with either subject, it is easy to jump on either band wagon. However, this is where I feel it is important for you to take a step back and maintain some perspective on the subject. As I’ve stated earlier, each of these bloggers make valid points in all their posts, but they should be viewed as a smaller part of a larger marketing plan if you truly want to generate any kind of money from your online efforts.
Let me clarify. In business it is logical to identify not only your competitors, but also the leaders within your industry. Clearly both Darren and Grizzly are leaders within their fields, as well as Nathan and Melvin. But you must understand that for you to truly succeed with your business model online, you must take advice from both camps, i.e blogging and traditional internet marketing. Just as you would in a traditional business sense, identify the leaders, take a look at what is working for them and then adapt some of their methods to better fit into your overall business model and complete marketing strategy.
A Point Illustrated
I started my blog to fill a need I had identified with my web design clients. Almost all of my web design clients were hungry for knowledge. They wanted to know everything I did about internet marketing from how to set up their email to driving traffic to the newly developed websites my company had created for them. Rather than spend my time constantly responded to email or fielding phone calls to answer their questions which was very time consuming, I started this blog to provide the answers they seek in an organized fashion as an extension of my overall business strategy. My clients utilize my blog as a resource which they can refer to at their own convenience to get the answers they seek on specific subject matter. Again, my blog is an extension of my overall business strategy.
Yes I offer products at a cost on my blog, but only to clearly establish boundaries so as to not allow my clients to take advantage of my generosity and time. By offering additional content and/or products at a cost, my clients can easily differentiate between what I’m willing to do openly and freely and what I’ll do for a cost because it may be a more detailed and technical task requiring a greater time commitment on my part. However, I do not offer products on my blog for the sole purpose to strike it rich, but rather as an extension of my overall business model to better support and service my already existing client base. Have I picked up new clients from this effort? Yes. Will I continue to offer additional products, services and training at a cost on my blog? Yes. As I identify the need, I will fill it.
Bottom line, my blog is an extension of my overall business model. It allows me to better communicate with, train and educate my client base as well as a more expanded audience through various social media outlets. Am I able to convert social media traffic into sales? Yes, but only because I clearly know who my target audience is and how to talk to them. However, it isn’t my sole method for making money through my business model and should not be considered the holy grail of making money online.
A Lesson Learned
Hopefully, I’ve made my point clear here and provided you with some perspective on the overall subject of blogging to make money as well as internet marketing and how they both should fit into your overall business model. I’m sure that this lesson may be a reality check for some of you, but know, that it isn’t as complex and difficult as you may first think to create a complete marketing strategy.
Internet marketing is a vast and complex beast to tackle if you don’t know what you are doing, and it is easy to get lost in all the various camps touting that they have the best method to making money online. Just remember to take a step back, evaluate clearly what is being said to utilize what you feel is best for you. And maintain some perspective on the whole subject.
I know this whole topic of making money online, blogging and internet marketing can be frustrating and confusing. I’ve been dealing with it for over 16 years and have heard every argument, discussion and complaint from my clients. Just take a step back, look, listen, evaluate, apply and move on learning along the way… Here is where I make my tacky marketing plug… And if you still feel confused and frustrated, not to worry, I provide consulting services to help educate you and point you in the right direction
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To Your Success!
Sean Smith
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