Most likely, you run your blog from home. And that can be a real problem when it comes to maximizing the potential of your blog to get to the next level. If you are like most people, you think of a real business as some place you go to, a location with an office in the business district of town. What happens at home is more of a hobby, or a side hustle at best.
So if you are not thinking of your blog as a real business, there is no chance it can become one. You can’t just sit around posting interesting articles hoping that the world will eventually come around and see how brilliant you are. But even if they did, what is your plan from there? Do you think they are just going to start throwing money at you because they like you?
The first step to becoming a real business is to set out a real business plan. Don’t be like Twitter, constantly reacting to bad things that happen to you, and never making a dime of profit. If you want to be a real business, you will eventually need to tackle the following:
A Professional Website
If your blog started out as a way to recreationally pass the time, it might not be ready for the real-world demands of business. There are many hosting companies such as iPage that can help you take your blog to the next level.
You have to think about more than just writing a new post everyday. You also have to consider things like:
- Unlimited disk space
- Scalable bandwidth
- Unlimited domain names
- Mobile optimized site-builders
If you fail to put thought into these types of things, you could end up with a giant bandwidth bill that you can’t pay, or people being unable to get into your site because you have reached some arbitrary limit, or having a sight that does not play well with mobile.
How is your sight going to look on the new Samsung S8 with the super long screen? You don’t have to be an expert at all these things. That is where a professional web creation and hosting service comes in handy. For a professional site, you might need professional help, especially if you ever plan to go the ecommerce route.
A Marketing Strategy
How do you plan to get the word out about your website? You don’t have to do PPC marketing to attract visitors to your site. But you should at least know what it is so that you understand your options. By the way, PPC stands for pay-per-click.
Before looking into anything like that, you should probably study up on social media marketing, SEO, and local SEO if you happen to offer a product or service. These are some of the common methods used to market your business online.
But beyond methodology is the basic realization that you have to get the word out about your blog if you want to attract eyeballs. It is not just getting the word out. It is giving people a reason to stop by. They will not come simply because you built it. You may not need a better mousetrap. You might only need better cheese.
A Work Schedule
If you want your blog to be a real business, you have to put in real time. What you will learn from professional bloggers is that there is no one size fits all answer to how often you should post. There is a good case to be made for posting once a day. It not only keeps your head in the game, it also gives your readers a reason to stop by every day.
The real key is consistency. A real business requires a real work schedule. So if you don’t treat blogging like real work, your blog will never be a real business.
Real businesses have professional websites, marketing plans, and time commitments. There is no reason why your blog can’t eventually be among them.