Should I quit my blog and start Lifestreaming, Videocasting, Social
Messaging/Networking etc?
Theres been another round of blogging is dead posts doing the rounds of
late and as a result Ive had a number of emails hitting my inbox over the
last week from bloggers asking if they should stop blogging.
Heres some of the advice Ive been sharing:
Blogging is not dead - its evolving.
You should be evolving too (read Blogs are Out of Beta, But Bloggers Should
always be in Beta)
Keep being useful, keep solving problems and keep meeting needs - whatever
the medium this is key.
Keep producing content - people continue to search the web for content in
huge numbers. Its not all about networking and bookmarking - whether it be
text, video or audio - keep producing content.
Experiment with different mediums - to the best of your ability keep
abreast of the new mediums that are emerging.
Build a Home Base - many people flit from one medium to another and end up
with nothing of their own (read more on the Home Bases and Outposts that I
use).
Build a Brand - the mediums are tools. Theyll come and go in time - the key
is to build something that lasts beyond them.
Dont be Precious about your Blog and be open to change - theres no one
right way to blog. Blogs can have comments or not have comments, have full
RSS feeds or partial ones, look like a traditional blog or act and look
more like a lifestream or portal. The key is to know what you want to
achieve and let that shape what you do with your blog.
Dont abandon your blog too quickly - your primary efforts may move into a
different medium but blogs can be an important part of the mix of what you
do online. Dont abandon your blog - build upon it, let it evolve, leverage
what youve already built and use it where appropriate in the mix of what
you do.
My last piece of advice is particularly for those with limited time or
capacity to fully engage with all of the mediums and tools that are
currently at our fingertips.
I get the sense from a lot of bloggers that they feel that theyre being
left behind - that all this new stuff that is emerging is beyond them -
that its hopeless to keep on blogging. My message to you if youre feeling
this way is to keep at it. Even as a full time blogger/web entrepreneur I
dont have time to fully engage with all of the new technologies that are
currently emerging. I too feel some of those overwhelming feelings.
I think the key is to engage with the new technologies to the point that
youre able but to know when to stop and focus upon what you already have in
front of you.
The problem as I see it is that whether it be a blog, a Twitter presence, a
podcast or some other kind of website or presence - it takes time to build
these things up to successful levels. If you only give a medium a short
time before moving to the next one youll just end up with a trail of
abandoned accounts and sites behind you.
I see a lot of people running from one thing to the next and not really
achieving anything. They live in a constant state of distraction and
experimentation. Theres nothing wrong with new things and testing them out
- but unless youre fortunate enough to have a lot of spare time or an
amazing capacity not to sleep there comes a time where you need to choose a
handful of things to do (or even just one) and to do it to the best of your
ability.
For me - this means focusing mainly upon building blogs. My blogs are
evolving and looking less and less like blogs as I experiment with
different ways of presenting the information on them and play with
different technologies on them - but I try to keep my focus steady upon the
long term goals that I have. As a result Ive managed to build them into
profitable properties.
Yes Ill continue to experiment with other technologies but for me they are
only about adding value to my primary web properties.
What do you think? How are you approaching what you do in this ever
changing web?
Post from: Blog Tips at ProBlogger.
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