Serious Blogging
A few months ago, in a forum somewhere, a thread caught my attention. The title kept on coming back to me, hence, this post.
What is serious blogging? In the simplest definition, blogging is writing and posting entries for your blog. And being serious is being earnest, sincere and dedicated in your blogging. There are millions of blogs out there, and as a blogger you might also have read or bumped into hundreds, if not thousands of blogs from all over the world. Based on our own experience, do we know who these serious bloggers are?
What qualifies one to be considered as a serious blogger? As I searched the web, there is actually no qualification or whatsoever standard for serious blogging. But these are generally my observations.
Own Domain
Serious bloggers have their own domain. Don’t shoot me if you are in some free platforms. But this should get you into thinking if you are going to monetize your site: Those who blog on paid domains and hosting get more opps and higher payout than those on free domains. Buying your own domain and webhost is just a little investment compared to the waiting opportunities.
There are also certain bloggers who turn a blind eye on you if you’re into a free site. No matter how many times you comment on their site, link bait or whatever, you will not get their attention. They judge you based on your domain name despite the quality of your post and the message you carry. That sucks! But it is beyond our control.
Perhaps you are only testing the blogging waters, just like what I did a couple of years ago. Though serious that I am, there is this room for a little play because there is no investment lost in the free site. I have deleted a couple of blogs because I got tired of them.
So, if you have quality posts, an important message, or seriously planning or currently into money-making, isn’t it great to have a domain name of your own? The more serious ones buy domains bearing their full names. It’s personal branding. Just an hour ago, I bought a domain with my real name on it.
Posting Frequency
Don’t tell me you are serious if you only post once a month. Serious blogging requires time and effort. Even if you are dead busy, you should not forget about your blog and your readers. Some blog daily, while others post twice or thrice a week. I think a weekly update is understandable. It really depends upon the blogger and the kind of readers he has. The longer you update, the greater the possibility of losing readers.
Post Quality
Serious blogging isn’t about rambling about your breakfast, then nothing. You can expound a little longer by saying about your diet and how it can benefit you and others. You can write creatively and not haphazardly. Even if yours is a humor blog, you can still be serious about it.
Interaction with Readers and Commentators
Serious bloggers place importance on their readers and commentators. You don’t have to lambast a commenter if he disagrees with your ideas. Or you cannot just approve spam comments, lest others may be misled. I may have comments here in multiple languages (English, Tagalog and Cebuano), but I cannot impose on them the use of English. They know the English language but it’s with intimacy that we converse in our own dialect. English-speaking commenters are very much welcome here and replied with a language that we both understand. Sorry, I don’t know French.
Money-making Bloggers
There are others who suggest that serious bloggers are those who blog for money. I don’t agree with that because there are those who blog for advocacy and are really serious with their message. A personal blogger can also be a serious blogger without the “dollar” sign in his blog. It’s not really about the money. But those into money-making endeavors should be serious about it.
Blog Marketing
Even if one’s does not promote a product or service, serious bloggers promote their blogs. Blog promotions may be through social networks, comment strategies, paid advertising, guest posting, offline marketing, etc… There is this passion to reach a wider audience, and by any affordable means.
As we take a look at our blogs, and reflect on our blogging practices and experiences, do you consider yourself a serious blogger? Or do you consider seriousness as something that takes away the fun in blogging?
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Ceblogger is a CPA trapped in his cubicle while his mind wanders outside watching the world, and exploring possibilities his mind conceived.
June 13th, 2008 at 2:42 pm
This is a very nice and informative write-up. As a blogger, I try my best to reciprocate my guests’ visits to my site. In some blogs that I really like, I pretty much post a comment whenever a new post or entry shows up.
I guess you could say that I had inadvertently pursued the comment strategy to expand my blog’s audience. In a lot of ways, I must say that the comment strategy has also become my preferred way to expand my reader base. I would rather build good and lasting relationships with my readers and develop a solid reader base rather than aim for a high daily readership count but fail to establish consistent, relatively deep and mutually beneficial relationships with my readers. Just my thoughts on the matter. Thanks for a great post.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:25 pm
There are some whom I’ve read or seen on television that have already made blogging as their bread and butter. There are those who are just simply lucky to have started blogging as a hobby and have now made fortunes on their blog. My take it that blogging should be fun, however the platform, theme, niche or what-have-you because once blogging becomes something that is not anymore a joy to do, that is when a blogger cuts-off the relationship with his/her readers.
So I think a blogger is really into “serious” blogging when he/she has that enthusiasm to share with readers his/her take on the world.
June 14th, 2008 at 4:59 am
Ceblogger is always a serious blogger, that is why in such a short time, I know you’ll command authority in your niche. It is pleasant to note that a fellow Visayan could actually blog the way the popular Problogger blogs. And no kidding, your writing prowess speaks for itself. How I wish I have the same talent.
That is why I am a great fan.
June 14th, 2008 at 5:03 am
Btw, bai, put your email subscription link (RSS) so I can subscribe your feeds via email.
June 15th, 2008 at 2:13 am
Do you think I am a serious blogger? lol! Sometimes I think I am not…
June 15th, 2008 at 2:59 pm
Nice post Ceb. It’s true about the domain. People think that a blog and a blogger is more serious when it has it’s own domain. Monetizing blog is not an indication of being serious. Serious in making money perhaps. If you want to get attention and group in a more serious environment of bloggers, then stop writing about your personal life. This is a great piece Brother!
June 16th, 2008 at 3:22 am
Thanks for the kind words, Pan! I know you are very successful in your comment strategy and in building stronger relationship with fellow bloggers. Even if you don’t see my name in your comment box, i do visit and read your posts.
cyril, seriousness and fun, may not often go together. There are times when you have blog on even if you lack the enthusiasm.
bloggista, you are a rising star in your niche too! i will consider your suggestion about feeds via email.
June 16th, 2008 at 3:29 am
manilenya, where’s your dotnet? As far as I know, you are a serious blogger. lol!
ambo, thanks! writing about personal life once in a while will help you connect with the readers. But at this blogging level, the blog is no longer about the blogger, but about ideas.
June 17th, 2008 at 2:08 pm
I consider myself as a serious blogger because I am passionate about the topics I write. Well, I do write about my personal life but only those which I think my friends (the only readers I have) can learn something from it. I think that’s how most bloggers started out.
June 17th, 2008 at 2:21 pm
glads, i know that you are a serious blogger too! Indeed most of us started this way, serious in blogging about our personal lives. But we somehow evolved. I’ll write another post for this one.
July 3rd, 2008 at 2:30 am
this is a very informative text. i want to add, that some blogs seriously deviate from blogging norms and still, they can seriously be called serious bloggers, because they are serious about not conforming. but still they have 80% of what you wrote in your article.
July 4th, 2008 at 2:02 am
dan, thanks for the visit and the comment. i agree with you.
You’ve got an interesting blog, and an interesting blog title, the mythical sigbin.
July 7th, 2008 at 4:34 pm
Extremely nice write up, i think blogging should be take seriously if you want to make your readers happy.