With the new year just around the corner, I thought it might be a good idea to think of some resolutions bloggers should make. These following resolutions are great blogging tips that can take your blog to the next level in 2009.
1. Build more relationships.
Bloggers are often too focused on writing. They forget that blogging is a great social channel. How many other bloggers do you know?
Of course, you can start the process by leaving comments. But you can do much more. Send a blogger a guest post. Introduce yourself to another blogger. Ask for a link. Reply to an interesting message on Twitter. Basically, anything that allows you to interact directly with other bloggers will usually be more effective than simply leaving comments.
And why build relationships? Well, it’s fun. It makes blogging less lonely. And relationships can definitely lead to profitable partnerships.
2. Add multimedia.
Whether you add podcasts, video posts, or both, using multimedia adds a lot of perceived value to your blog. Think about it this way, “Out of these three products, DVD, audiobook, or book, which is the cheapest?”
Multimedia allows you to reach a different audience in your industry. For example, in this Perfcast interview, Darren Rowse said he gets a different group of commenters whenever he does a video post.
With videos, you can get more traffic by posting them on YouTube since YouTube gets a lot of traffic.
Multimedia also lets you set your blog apart since most blogs still don’t use multimedia.
You don’t have to suddenly shift your blog to audio or video only, but I’m sure even a monthly multimedia post will pay big dividends.
Here are two introduction resources to help you get started: Intro to Podcasting 101 and an interview with a video expert.
3. Diversify your monetization.
Too many bloggers get lazy when it comes to monetization. This is easy to do since monetization is usually the last thing we focus on. But with a little effort, you can diversify your income streams and make more money.
For example, if you’re only using AdSense, take some time to find an affiliate program that would fit your blog. Try searching “[name of your industry] affiliate program” on Google. Also, look for direct advertisers. This is effective especially if you get a lot of AdSense clicks. You can contact the owners of the sites that show up on your AdSense ads and see if they would like to advertise directly with you. Usually you save them money since Google won’t be taking their cut.
My favorite monetization method is creating your own product. I like this method because you don’t have to share the profit and you don’t have to deal with advertisers. Also, you can create an info product so you don’t even have to deal with shipping and handling. Here are some product ideas to consider: video, audiobook, ebook, membership program, and paid forum.
Over to You
What resolutions will you make in 2009?