When it comes to blogging for money you’ll get a wide range of opinions on the subject of whether a blog is a business in itself. Personally, I feel that a blog can be a business on its own (without any other services or products being sold) because I see plenty of them every day that are making money. Of course, a blog can also be used very effectively to promote and improve an already existing business. Either way, running a blog with the intent to make money either directly or indirectly will help you to learn a number of valuable business lessons.
My blogging experience started with the intent to blog for the purpose of promoting a service (web design); however, over the past year I’ve taken an interest in learning more about blogging to earn a direct income as well. During that time I’ve learned more about business than I could have by reading or studying without actually putting anything into practice.
Blogging is an excellent proactive learning experience for anyone interested in business and entrepreneurship, and I’d like to take a look at 7 lessons that you’ll learn from blogging. While you may or may not have already had a textbook knowledge of these lessons, blogging will give you a first-hand, real-world knowledge that is always superior to anything you can read in a book.
1 - Networking is Critical
When I started blogging I had no idea how important a network is to a blogger (in fact, I didn’t know much or anything about blogging). I quickly realized that every successful blogger has a strong network of friends and colleagues online.
Building a popular and profitable blog without a network is just about impossible. Likewise, in the business world a network can be the difference between an average career and finding exciting and challenging opportunities.
For any entrepreneur, regardless of what type of business you are building, a strong network will be one of your most valuable assets. Take the time to meet others in your field and find some ways to work together or to help each other.
2 - Businesses Need a Plan
When starting a new blog it can be tempting to jump into things and just start blogging. Modern blogging platforms make it extremely easy to get started quickly, but the need for planning still exists. If you hope to run a successful blog you’ll need to have a plan to get there. Most likely this plan will evolve somewhat over a period of time, but you should always have some direction in mind to keep yourself on track.
In the business world a lack of planning will lead to almost certain failure. While a blogging plan and a traditional business plan or marketing plan may be very different, blogging will at least teach you the value of taking the time to plan and the results of ineffective planning.
3 - Making Money Online is Realistic, but Not Easy
Many people start new blogs every day with the hope of quitting their day job in a month. After all, people like John Chow and Darren Rowse make a significant amount of money with their blogs, so why can’t you? Well, I believe that anyone can earn a substantial income blogging, realistically only a very small percentage will earn that type of income. The biggest thing holding most online entrepreneurs back, in my opinion, is effort. Yes, it is realistic, but it won’t come easy.
Aside from blogging there are plenty of other ways to make money online. Running an e-commerce site, affiliate marketing, keyword sniping, all of these approaches will take real effort, but all are realistic. The problem is that most people see making money online as an easy way out, but they don’t want to put in the time that it takes to be successful (which is almost always less than the time it would take to build a traditional business).
4 - A Great Idea without Consistent Effort will Only Go So Far
Having a great idea is just the start. In order to take that idea and actually profit from it you’ll need to put it into action. Throughout my time as a blogger I’ve seen others that have had plenty of potential, but it seems like the consistent effort just wasn’t there.
Regardless of what type of business you are running, the necessary action is critical. If you have a great idea don’t wait around while someone else beats you to it.
5 - Integrity Counts
Blogging is very personal in nature. Many of us follow particular blogs because we connect with the writer. Because of this, integrity is a major issue in blogging. I know personally I tend to really respect bloggers that are transparent and seem to have honest intentions.
In the business world there are always going to be temptations to take short cuts, but in the end integrity does count. In most cases those short cuts might help you temporarily, but they’ll usually come back to haunt you. Whatever type of business you are working in, make it a priority to be seen as reputable and trusted.
6 - Not All Expenses Are Bad
A few weeks a go I wrote Expenses are Part of Doing Business Online. One of the main reasons that I wrote that post is because it seems like a large percentage of online entrepreneurs see all expenses as negatives, and they tend to feel that doing business online makes expenses unnecessary. While it’s true that most online business have expenses that are far less than traditional businesses, there are certainly some expenses that are more than justified.
If you’re a blogger you may learn the value of quality hosting when one of your posts gets to the front page of Digg. Or you may learn that paying freelance bloggers is a cost-effective way to build quality content for your blog that generates even more money in advertising revenue. There are plenty of expenses that can make your business more profitable, the key is minimizing the unnecessary expenses and being willing to spend on those that will help you grow the business.
7 - Building a Business is a Long-Term Experience, Not a Get-Rich-Quick Scheme
Most bloggers tend to give up very quickly when they find that they are not making money as early as they had hoped. Blogging is like any other business in that it can take some time to be successful. Sure, there are a few examples of blogs that are profitable very quickly, but they are the exception, not the rule. If more bloggers took a long-term approach to making money there would be a lot less that give up along the way.
If you are building a business, remember that you are building an asset. With a long-term, asset-building approach your business will have a much better chance of success.
What Business Lessons Have You Learned from Blogging?
I’d love to hear some of your personal experiences from blogging that have taught you valuable lessons about business and entrepreneurship.
This post was written by Steven Snell.
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26 responses so far ↓
1 Web Success Diva // Jun 3, 2008 at 4:18 pm
The biggest lesson anyone can learn from blogging is consistency is the key, as you mentioned. I see too often bloggers give up, because they think they’ve missed that elusive “get-rich-quick” thing. Great post!
Maria Reyes-McDavis
2 Deron Sizemore // Jun 3, 2008 at 4:48 pm
Very nice read Steven. The whole networking scene is one I need to get into. I do a little networking through comments on other blogs and AIM but not what I need to be doing to be successful. The quicker you learn that anything you do online isn’t a get rich quick scheme,the quicker you’ll be on your way to success. Some people do make quick cash, but for most it needs to be treated like a marathon (not a sprint) where you’re always growing and expanding.
3 Lori Osterberg // Jun 3, 2008 at 4:52 pm
It took me a long time to realize that my blog wasn’t just for posting random thoughts, and that I could actually use it to attract customers. Once I created a strategy, and started working on the ways to make money with my blog, it changed everything. It also makes me more motivated to write every day, and find things to share with my readers.
4 Mike Mathews // Jun 3, 2008 at 6:43 pm
Excellent points.
While I don’t intend to make money on my blog, it is intended to attract customers for my small business strategy offerings, more like Lori Osterberg. But my hobgoblin is consistency and I need to conquer that immediately.
Thanks to Maria Reyes-McDavis for leading me here, I’ll be back.
5 Internet Marketing Link Love for June 3, 2008 // Jun 3, 2008 at 8:38 pm
[...] shared his thoughts on business lessons anyone can learn from blogging. These are right on, especially the key points on consistency. There is no quick rich scheme, or [...]
6 Nicholas James // Jun 3, 2008 at 10:03 pm
Another great post Steven!
7 Steven // Jun 4, 2008 at 12:50 am
Maria,
Thanks for the feedback and the link.
Deron,
Yeah, I know I completely underestimated the need for networking when I started blogging. I don’t think there is much that you can do online that can’t be helped by a good network.
Lori and Mike,
I’m glad to hear that you’re both having some success using your blog to improve your businesses.
8 Mike Tieden // Jun 4, 2008 at 2:55 am
This is a great post! I have been a blogger for a little over a year, but my consistency has been absent. I started a new blog, miketieden.com, which is similar to this blog. I want to help entrepreneurs through my experiences in school and real life. I would love some feedback. Again, this was a GREAT post. Thanks!
miketieden.com
9 Carla // Jun 4, 2008 at 3:34 am
Great post and good reminders. I’m not trying to make money directly from my blogs, but I am using them mostly to promote my business, but I think your points still apply.
10 Eva White // Jun 4, 2008 at 6:43 am
I too agree with all seven points. My experiences have been very similar.
11 tantan // Jun 4, 2008 at 8:59 am
The biggest lesson I’ve learn from blogging is management. There are numerous management; time and work management. Time and work management are really important for a running business
12 Roy Phay // Jun 4, 2008 at 4:33 pm
Hi Steven,
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experience! I’m always looking for ways to improve myself and I’m glad to have found your blog. Thank you for sharing with us.
Cheers,
Roy
13 adnan // Jun 4, 2008 at 6:39 pm
Great post Steven - and again, I’m loving the similarities of the blogging world to the world of most internet websites. For example, with the networking side of things, it’s all very well writing good, valuable, SEO’d content for the search engines, but if you don’t link out, or participate in blog carnivals, or get chatting on IM to other bloggers in your niche, then chances are, you’ll always remain the smaller site.
I think with blogging, lesson number 7 here is the most important. Whilst some bloggers and internet marketers give off the impression that riches can be made overnight, this simply IS NOT the case. The shortest time I’ve heard of somone getting wealthy through their blog is around a year (think FreelanceSwitch, ZenHabits), and that required a lot of work.
As a blogger, you’re in it for the long haul - and to be honest, you’ll see those rewards if you stay in the game.
14 Tom - StandOutBlogger.com // Jun 5, 2008 at 5:29 am
fantastic post! Networking is so critical if you want a growing blog!
15 JustChris // Jun 5, 2008 at 5:55 pm
I’d need some good networking advice. Networking is one of the areas I’m not very good at. What I mean by that is, I want to move beyond just replying to blogs that I visit loyally and get to know the bloggers on a closer level. When is it okay to e-mail them? Chat with them? How to get their trust more?
16 Steven // Jun 5, 2008 at 10:02 pm
Chris,
If a blogger has a contact form they are generally open to being contacted by readers. I would feel free to send a brief introduction message to them and maybe ask some basics questions if you have any. Keep it short and to the point at first. That’s a pretty good starting point.
17 clarence // Jun 6, 2008 at 5:46 am
Hi , Steven! Excellent 7 points on business lessons through blogging. I’m new but I 101% agree that networking and having a business plan is critical for success. Through my past experience, building a network can provide good feedbacks, ideas and not to mention referral for the blog to grow. As for point #2, a plan is important. It’s very easy to start a blog these days, but to consistently build the blog as a business, we need a plan as a focus or direction . Perhaps a direction on what the blog will specialized in 2 -3 years. Or else we will more likely to fail and never recover after setbacks which is very similar to traditional business world which is to understand our playing ground. Be a Purple Cow ?
18 Kirsty // Jun 6, 2008 at 9:44 am
Nice post and great site too. For me blogging is a fun thing and I make money from other sites. But I do feel like it’s taught me a lot and the points you’ve made apply to my experiences for sure.
19 BizOp Blogs - Small Business Opportunities For Entrepreneurs // Jun 9, 2008 at 1:03 pm
[...] 4. A Great Idea without Consistent Effort will Only Go So Far… [...]
20 Andrea J. Stenberg // Jun 9, 2008 at 6:50 pm
Steven,
The biggest thing I’ve learned from blogging is to try new things, even if I’m not sure I know what I’m doing. I set up my WordPress blog, learned how to edit the template and to add widgets, photos and audio.
I also learned that trying new things can be wildly successful. For example, I tried doing a couple of free teleseminars to promote my blog. I was nervous because I’d never led one before. They were wildly successful, and brought in lots of new traffic to my blog.
Andrea
21 LisaN // Jun 9, 2008 at 8:08 pm
I agree with a couple of the other comments, time management. Finding time to do everything that needs to be done isn’t easy.
Passion comes naturally, but planning, writing, researching, marketing, learning, and all the other aspects of blogging require time. But, I’m loving every minute of it.
22 Steven // Jun 9, 2008 at 10:48 pm
Andrea,
That’s a great point. Thanks for sharing. Yes, I think there’s something about running a blog that pushes you out of your comfort zone at times (I know it does for me) and that can be a very good thing. I was very hesitant to start freelance writing, and that turned out to be a good experience for me.
23 Daniel @ Secret Affiliate Code // Jun 14, 2008 at 1:21 am
The most important part I learned is not giving up. Keeping on with blogging. I think that’s the reason why most newbies fail. They just give up after a short time because they haven’t made the money they wanted to. And than the most of them jump on the next ebook or membership who gonna promise to show the secrets on how to make money online. But there are only two secrets who are the same for all of us: TAKING ACTION and DON’T GIVE UP.
Daniel
24 BloggerNewbie // Jun 18, 2008 at 12:14 pm
Great post! I have been an entrepreneur most of my life. I started a couple of successful businesses from scratch and sold them for a nice profit. The business plan is just as important in a blog as any other business. All your points are right on. Many people don’t see blogging as a business. A blogger (as well as his/her family and friends) needs to realize this is actually a business and treat it that way.
25 Melody Platz // Jun 27, 2008 at 1:58 am
As a blogger, I’ve learned that my passions can make a profit. That I’m much more professional then anyone gave me credit for when I lived the corporate life, and that if I work really hard and connect with other people, the audience will come.
26 Carnival of Making Money Online // Jul 9, 2008 at 2:55 am
I’ll echo diva, you’ve got to show up and keep showing up month after month.
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