The Components Of A Successful Blog

Writing by Nick Stamoulis Tweet

(Source) Then, what really makes a blog successful, in my mind, is the fact that the new content keeps them coming back for more and the old content keeps attracting new visitors, measured over the years, not the days.

This is a good point. If you’re not in it for the long haul, your blog won’t be successful. There are tons of abandoned blogs out there just screaming for attention. Do you want yours to be one of them?

What a lot of bloggers don’t consider before they get started is the long-term strategy of their blog. There is a misperception that you just throw up a blog and start writing. You can do that, but it’s a sure recipe for burn out, especially if you aren’t used to writing every day. To truly be successful in blogging you have to provide some value to people that will keep them coming back for more. I would say there are three primary components to a successful blog:

1. Provides useful information that keeps readers reading and returning
2. Has a knack for creating its own linkbait
3. Makes the owner money

OK, that last point may seem a little crass, but let’s be honest. Unless you blog as a hobby, your goal is to make money. Maybe your blog is an AdSense blog and you want people to click on the ads. Maybe your blog is an information blog and you hope it becomes popular enough that you can sell advertising and attract high-paying sponsors. Or maybe you run a business and you use your blog as a marketing tool to attract new customers. All of those are worthy goals and to the degree that you meet them, to that degree you are successful. That’s a measure that no one but you can add a value to. Remember, you are in control. Act like it.