Trust me, you’re going to need to know a lot more than five things when you start your first blog and five different bloggers will give you five different lists. So I’m just going to tell you five things I wish someone had told me when I was starting my first blog. Not that I think my “things” are better than theirs. But, mine are based on my own personal experience.
Be Careful Who You Connect With
Early on I met another blogger in a forum and we started chatting on Skype every day. Now I’m normally not a chatter but I welcomed the advice I was getting from this other blogger. Only problem is, I also had to listen to all of her personal problems which would drag on for hours at a time.
Later, I did a couple of JV projects with another blogger with disastrous results. I found out after the fact that he enjoyed promoting the projects and collecting the money but he wasn’t big on delivering his end of the deal in a timely fashion.
In the beginning any offer of help or support can seem like a blessing. But be careful who you connect with. Some people don’t intentionally suck the life out of your business, they just do.
Avoid Internet Marketing Forums
I know there are several Internet Marketing forums out there but and they can be a valuable source of information. But they can also be huge time sucks and if you can spend a lot of time just listening to people whine and complain.
Evaluate the time you spend in these forums and if you’re really only connecting with one or two people, ask if you can contact them via email. Once you hit a certain level with your blog you’ll find out that you really don’t have the time to waste on negativity and chit-chat.
Choose One Path And Stick To It
I was your classic newbie blogger. Starting a niche blog one day, jumping to Squidoo the next, and then on to article marketing, and autoblogging and …. well, any new shiny bauble I stumbled over. Try it all out if you must and in a way, it Bwas beneficial.
I learned a lot about Internet Marketing in a short period of time. But the longer you wait to choose one specific path the longer it will be before you start seeing the money roll in.
Your Time Has Value
I found out that I could make money quickly by writing articles and ebooks for bloggers. I didn’t have to wait months for a blog to age and grow, I could just post an ad in a forum and pick up instant cash. On the downside, I didn’t know anything about business and how to charge an appropriate price for my services.
Back then I figure I was working for around $2 an hour and putting in about 16 hours a day just to keep my head above water. Your time is valuable. Figure out how much you need to make per hour to meet your obligations and charge accordingly.
You Can Always Start Over
Not every blog is successful and we all make mistakes. The great thing about working online is you can always start over, again and again, until you get it right. Don’t keep beating a dead horse. If you’ve given it your best effort and it’s not working, move on to something else.