The first lesson of our How to promote your blog series was titled “Know where you’re going”. In it we talked about the importance of planning and setting goals for your blog. Creating that vision before starting out on your journey creates a real destination in your mind; it gives you something to work towards and allows you to visualize what it will take to get there.
In this, our second lesson, I want to caution you about a trap that can happen to bloggers, especially as your blog becomes more and more successful. Let’s just call it stinginess.
When I started Search-This in June of 2003 it was the height of Google’s PageRank. People were crazy about PageRank and acquiring it and hording it. I was no different. I didn’t want to link out to anyone and transfer
my precious to anyone else. In a word, I was stingy.
Stinginess is rampant in the business world — to concentrate so much on the prize that you forget to help others along the way. Guy Kawasaki in his book The Art of The Start begins the first chapter by saying, “The best reason to start an organization is to make meaning — to create a product or service that makes the world a better place.” I couldn’t agree more and while blogging may not allow you to change the world, you can still give back to the community of which you are a part.
So I would caution you to not fall victim to stinginess as you blog, like I did.
Thankfully in 2007 when I relaunched Search-This I, like Frodo, conquered the strangle-hold that my precious had over me. Search-This today now gives without concern for link-juice to others. In addition, when we come up with a new or improved way of doing things, you can be sure to hear about it right here; we give away all our tools and techniques for others to use.
Here are some ways to give back to your community:
1. Link Freely
Give away the link-juice — really, it’s ok.
2. Blogroll
Let others know what blogs you enjoy reading and reward those blogs by placing them in your blogroll.
3. Teach a Man To Fish
If you have developed a successful technique for doing something, then share it with others. Stinginess can really creep up on you with this one. We often think “damn I spent a lot of time coming up with this solution, I’m not giving it away.” We all learn from each other, one day it’s your turn to learn, the next day it’s your turn to teach. Everyone wins.
4. Give it Away Now
If you’ve made a great plugin or wiget perhaps others might like it too? Again, try not to succumb to stinginess. Surely you are benefiting from someone else’s plugin. Now let others benefit from yours.
Remember, nobody gets to the top by themselves. Someone helped you along the way. Make sure you do the same.
