From Blog to Small Business

Deb’s note: I started writing this post on the plane to Las Vegas (and BlogWorld) last week. Since then I’ve seen Darren Rowse’s post at ProBlogger called, “The #1 One Reason My Blogging Grew into a Business.” Check it out if you can, it’s a must -read for anyone who wants to blog for a living.

FWJ began four years ago as a blog filled with leads for work at home moms like me. As you know, it’s evolved quite a bit over the past few years. Something happened this past spring that caused me to change my outlook about FWJ. Instead of a simple blog or network of blogs, I treated it like a business. Don’t get me wrong, I was always business-like in my dealings and accounting, but in June, I took it to a whole new level.

When I lost my full time job, I decided I wasn’t going to look for another. Instead, I wanted to work harder on making this network more profitable, and more beneficial to those reading it. Instead of looking for a job, I was going to make FWJ my full time job. It made a difference.  Instead of simply posting and building traffic, I’ve also been:

• Meeting with accountants to find out my next course of action as a small business owner.
• Negotiating with advertisers
• Researching advertising, traffic, SEO and other blog building techniques
• Working hard on branding
• Working hard on FWJ’s (and Deb Ng’s) social media presence
• Forming lucrative partnerships which will enable this network to keep going
• Doing some heavy analysis into the demographics of this community and other freelance writing communities
• Networking, not only with other freelancers, but with other people and businesses to form mutually beneficial relationships

Some of the things I learned at this time:

• You can’t please everyone
• You have to spend money to make money
• Networking totally rocks
• If you focus on one thing, instead of multitasking, you’ll have better results
• Sometimes you just have to go for it

Some of the changes I noticed since devoting my full time attention to FWJ:

• Traffic has seen a significant increase
• Advertisers have been coming to FWJ, instead of the other way around
• Ad revenue beyond private sales (Adsense, etc.) has increased to the point where it’s a full time income
• A major online brand inquired about purchasing FWJ
• Lots of Tweets and ReTweets featuring FWJ links
• Community growth
• A whooooole lot of email
• More links to blog posts at FWJ
• Major brands have taken notice

This is only a few months worth of work and effort. Can you imagine if I had put this much time and energy into FWJ since day one? Of course, that wasn’t possible because I needed to help provide for my family. However, being patient and persistant and not giving up over 4 1/2 years enabled met build FWJ and see it to its potential.

Luck vs Hard Work

Someone once told me I was lucky. This has nothing to do with luck. I worked hard to build this network. It became a huge part of my life. I focus attention to it every day. It’s kept me up late, and caused me to rise very early. It’s been the subject of blog wars and forum spats. It’s my life, not luck. I have to tell you, it’s not easy to come up with content every single day for 4 1/2 years.

Is it Worth it?

You bet it’s worth it. I’m not going to claim to be some expert, guru, A-list problogger, but I managed to find something that I love – something that works. It’s been worth all the time and effort I put into it. As Darren Rowse said in his post about blogging as a business, when I stopped treated my blog as a hobby and more as a business, it began to work for me.

If you want to make your blog work for you, know that it’s not easy. It’s not as simple as opening up a blog, stocking it with keywords and slapping on some ads. There’s a lot of research, promoting and networking involved.

Tell us the story of your blog. Is it a business? Can it become a business? What are you doing to ensure its success, and what are some of the results you’ve seen since beginning?

Why You Won’t Get Famous Blogging for Someone Else

I think I’m going to ramble a bit…

As a professional blogger and consultant, I take pride in my brand. My name, Deborah Ng, is my brand. My brand is also this blog network, Freelance Writing Jobs. I hope it doesn’t sound like a big load of ego to say that many people equate my name and my brand, with the freelance writing jobs niche. Though I didn’t set out to have a heavy web presence, once I my reputation began to build I realized the importance of my name and my brand. I worked hard to get to this point and I’m very proud of my brand and what it’s become.

As much as I will do everything in my power to help them succeed and make names for themselves, the bloggers who write for FWJ aren’t as well known as the “Freelance Writing Jobs” brand. This has nothing to do with them or me. When you write for someone else, you’re paying more attention to their brand than your own.

In the past I wrote for many brands including b5Media, Oxygen Media and About.com. It wasn’t my name that stuck in everyone’s minds when they read my work, it was the brand. That’s not a complaint, I was happy to get my start with some well-known names. However, if you want to make money as a blogger, it’s important to think about whose brand is more important – yours or the people you’re blogging for. If the answer is you, think about how you can build your own brand while still earning money elsewhere. If you’re happy building someone else’s brand without being well-known, that’s OK too.

If you want to build up your name as a writer for someone else’s brand, you’re going to have to think about ways for people to remember your name above or in addition to the name of the brand. The last thing you want to do is overshadow the brand you’re being paid to promote. You’re also going to have to consider how your employer feels about you building up your own brand while being paid to build up his. I recently experienced that very conflict.

Very few bloggers make a name for themselves on someone else’s blog. I’ve blogged for enough people and businesses to know this is true. Blogging for other people pays the bills, blogging for you builds your brand (and can also pay the bills). Blogging for other people enables you to earn some of the money coming in from that blog. Blogging for yourself allows you take control of all of your blog’s income. Blogging for myself allows me to take this blog/network in any direction I’d like. Blogging for someone else has me going someone else’s route, and I may not always agree with where we’re headed.

This blog is called (and about) “Blogging for a Living”. I’d be doing you a disservice if I told you you’ll become a household name blogging for someone else. However, you can earn very good money as a blogger for hire. Not all bloggers make thousands of dollars each month with their own blogs. Not all bloggers for hire are “A Listers”. If you want to make money as a blogger, the first thing you’ll have to determine is whether or not you want to do so building up your own brand or someone else’s. You can do both, but then you’ll also have to be prepared the people who pay you to blog won’t like you spending so much time on you. Knowing where you want to take your name or your brand will help you to determine where to exert most of your energy.

If you want to spend more time building up your own brand, think about how you’re going to reach the people you want to reach and how to create trust and build a good reputation. Just as you want your clients to trust you, you’ll also want your community to trust you. Trust breeds success. When you blog for someone else, you’re working more to create trust with your client than your community. Hopefully as a professional blogger, you’re also building trust in your byline, but the community’s happiness is secondary to your client’s happiness. I once had a client who felt comments were too distracting and turned them off. She didn’t care about community, she cared about content. You’ll work for all kinds as a blogger for hire. Some bloggers enjoy letting an employer handling all the sordid details so they can just write. I prefer having the best of both worlds.

Tell us about your brand. Is your brand important or is it your preference to build up someone else’s brand? Do you want to be famous or are you happy enough to do your job, earn your check and enjoy the incognito life?

Discuss…

Blogging is All About the Delivery: Getting Your Point Across Without Being Abrasive

When I was in highschool and on the job,  there were a few people I did my best to avoid. It was the girls and women who said what was on their minds, no matter how much it hurt. Not only did I find their manner abrasive, I felt they fed into that catty woman stereotype and gave women a bad name in general. They didn’t agree.They excused their rudeness by saying they were honest. I have a nephew who does the same thing. He’s rude, but feels people need to get over it because it’s the truth and that’s always a good thing. I’m not feeling it. I never though honesty was an excuse to be rude and I’m not a fan of the tough love approach to blogging. I feel there are ways to tell the truth or to get a point across without being mean or hurting people.

Bloggers need to be honest with their readers, for sure but I also feel we need to think about our delivery. Indeed, I’ve had a few ranty moments here myself but I find that angry posts only lead to angry responses. Negativity breeds negativity. Who needs all that?

Bloggers can still be honest without being rude or abrasive.

• Present the facts: Even the most popular bloggers can’t reach everyone. Like highschool cliques, we all have a community of people who think the way we do but we also have people who disagree. There’s even folks who (gasp!) don’t like us at all. Getting all preachy and angry won’t convince anyone outside our cliques to drink our Kool Aid. Presenting facts and discussing issues in a respectful manner works better than raising our voices.
• Intelligent people know how to use words rather than insults: To say the people who don’t think the way we do are idiots or don’t know any better shows a lack of intelligence. Certainly there are better ways to convince others to see things our way? If I was to read a blog post and the blogger said anyone who felt a certain way is a moron, I wouldn’t want to come back.  However, if a blogger presented his case in a respectful manner, I’d be more inclined to tune him in. Maybe instead of turning me off, he’d at least give me something to think about.
• Positivity breeds positivity: As bloggers we’re in a position to reach people. The blogs that do the best are the ones that empower people or make them feel good about themselves and the world around them. If our tones are negative, brash, condescending, lecturing and “blunt” all the time all we’re doing is promoting more negativity.
• There are no experts: There are no experts. There are no gurus. Only bloggers who share ideas. We know what worked for us and we’re sharing it with others. It doesn’t mean our way is best. To get all tough love and my way or the highway on our communities only displays our ignorance. Intelligent bloggers may know when to share an idea, but they also know other people are allowed to have ideas too. What a sad place this world would be if everyone had to follow one person’s rules. Oh wait, this does happen and it’s called communism.

Talk to me. How do you feel about “tough love” bloggers and blunt honesty? Which bloggers illicit the best response -positive posting or an in your face approach?

Is Freelance Writing a Transient Niche?

I have freelance writing on my mind today, or rather, the freelance writing niche. For those of you who haven’t been with this blog network from the beginning, Freelance Writing Jobs started out as a single standalone blog posting job leads every day. From there, we branched out to having some advice posts on the weekend, then a mixture of the two during the week. Now we’re a full-fledged network of eight blogs.

Here’s the interesting thing. This blog/network has been around for about four and a half years. We have some regulars who have been with us since day one (thanks, guys!) but for the most part this is a transient niche. It’s an interesting thing about blogging, some niches do very well, others do OK, and some only have a few loyal readers. While the FWJ network does better than I ever expected, I do notice the names and faces change often. This is a different experience than some of my other blogs. Here’s why I feel the freelance writing community is different – a transient community.

• Unlike many writing niches, this niche is freelance writing jobs. We handle everything you need to know about finding and keeping freelance writing work.  Because of this, many of the freelance writers who visit FWJ are new. As they advance, they move on.
• Freelance writers either move back to day jobs or they move on to bigger and better clients. As their level of success grows, they don’t exactly need blogs like mine anymore.
• Folks come here to find work. Once they have a decent amount of clients, they’re to busy to spend time at blogs.
• As freelance writers become more successful, they build a word of mouth business.

This isn’t only FWJ. I notice this about many writing forums too. The regulars particpate heavily for a while and move on, I hope because they’re advancing in their careers. Every now and then I’ll bump into someone from here or “the boards” and learn they’re just too busy to socialize as they used to. Transience isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I may lose members of this community as they branch out, but that’s a very good thing.

What are some other transient blog niches you can think of?

Guest Blog Posts: Good P.R or Free Content?

I’ve been thinking a lot about guest blog posts lately. I used guest blog posts often in the past. For FWJ’s third anniversary we unveiled guest blogger month where each day featured another guest posting. I also had a “FWJ Idol” contest where a dozen bloggers competed for a slot on the blogging team here (and Terrece won!). I was called out for stocking FWJ with free content and I was a little angry. Don’t people understand guest posts aren’t the same as writing for free? It’s good public relations. It’s a way to get our names out there. I’m not hurting writers, I’m helping them. Right? Believe me, I didn’t sleep well for a long time after getting called out for stocking FWJ with free content – even if it was a contest and even if I had good intentions. I thought about it long and hard.

I also wrote a few guest blog posts at a couple of very famous blogs and wouldn’t have even thought about asking for money. For me, that was very good exposure. If the big name probloggers are soliciting guest posts that’s not the same as writing for free, right?

Maybe some others might not agree with me, but guest blog posts are exactly like writing for free. Someone is asking writers to blog for them without offering compensation. Writing. For. Free.

Guest Blogger or Free Content Writer?

Every day we express outrage over the ads on Craigslist. How dare these scammy people promise exposure to those who write for them! How dare they take advantage of writers that way! How dare they offer low wages or promise exposure!

How is this different than writing a blog post for free?

Now, I understand favors for friends, we all do that. I wouldn’t ask my friends for money to help them move or paint their family rooms. I even wrote a friend’s newsletter because she’s a good friend and I don’t charge good friends. I won’t put out a call for content without paying writers though.

Has writing guests posts become the new “it’s good exposure” scam?

What is the difference between the Craigslist guy looking for someone to blog for free and the random blogger who is looking for guest bloggers, any guest bloggers to, well, write for free? Why isn’t it good P.R. or good networking to write for some website guy, but it’s considered paying one’s blogging dues to write guest blog posts?

Are writing guest blog posts good P.R.?

I suppose it depends on the blog. I mean, it’s a different thing to write for an unknown newspaper for free than to write a free article for Cosmopolitan, right? Nowadays, I still guest blog a bit but I won’t charge my friends or I’ll make it an even trade. I also pay for guest posts here at FWJ, it’s not hundreds of dollars but enough for me to feel like I’m not taking advantage.

Here are some things to consider when writing guest blog posts:

• Who are you blogging for? Is it a top blogger with a well-trafficked blog? If so, the exposure might be worth it.
• Are you doing a favor for a friend? We all do favors for friends.
• What are you getting in return? What are you really getting in return? Who is benefiting? If the blog doesn’t get any traffic, you’re not doing yourself any favors.
• What is the other blogger getting in return? Is he getting traffic and revenue thanks to you?

What are your thoughts about guest blogging? How is it different than “writing for free?”

Blogs as Real Estate: On Receiving Offers for FWJ

I always liken blogs to real estate. There are several similarities. For example if you choose a good domain name, your location, you can sell your property for a good price. Moreover, if you have curb appeal, the right kind of traffic and valuable content and a steady revenue base, you can sell for a good price.

I’ve entertained several offers to sell over the past couple of years, but turned them all down. Usually those offers weren’t enough money to warrant serious consideration. Not when you consider I earn a steady income, have over 6500 subscribers and thousands of visitors each day. Not when you consider how many advertisers seek me out on a regular basis. Not when you consider how many new writers consider FWJ to be the place to go for advice for getting started.

Yesterday the CEO of a very recognizable brand asked about buying FWJ. After I picked myself up off the floor, I experienced a flood of emotion:

• Validation: A major name in our business likes what I’ve done here enough to not only notice FWJ but to own it.
• Confusion: Why do they want to buy MY blog? There are thousands of blogs about writing and freelancing? Why does mine have value – and how much is it worth to them? Why FWJ?
• Greed: It would have to be a really (and I mean REALLY) good offer to sell FWJ.
• Sadness: What would I do if I didn’t have FWJ? This is my life and my livelihood. It’s my biggest source of income and my favorite thing to do each day. What will I do every day if I can’t blog for you?
• Pride: See validation above. Plus, to have this company want to own my “baby” is truly an honor.

Now, as I write this I know I won’t be idle. I have several other properties, one set to launch very soon. I enjoy building things from scratch. I can flip blogs like some people flip property. However, it’s FWJ. Not just some little blog, but my pride and joy. Something I put my heart and my life into. How can you put a price on passion?

I’m torn and I didn’t sleep well last night. We’re talking about FWJ. The little writing job blog I built into a network in four and a half years. It’s like selling a beloved family home or marrying off a child. FWJ is me, it’s my brand.

Think about your blog and everything you put into it. Would you sell? At what price?

What Have I Done for You Lately?

I regularly receive emails from bloggers asking me to promote a new service, review ebooks, donate to their contests and post affiliate links. Many of these requests are from very popular bloggers who I haven’t heard from since the last time they had something to promote.

I also hear from friends who haven’t had the time to chat or email in years, but now they’re wondering if there isn’t something to this making money online thing or they’re out of work and wondering if they should write.

I don’t mind helping. I enjoy promoting products I feel are a good fit for this community and I like helping my friends. I especially enjoy promoting books and ebooks from members of this community. However, the words “friend” and “relationship” indicate a two way street. I’m not saying anyone owes me anything, but sometimes I wonder about the people who only contact me when they need something.

If you’re looking to reach out to bloggers for help, here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Contact your blogging friends every now and then to say hello and not because you need something.
• Become a part of the other blogger’s community. Build relationships with others and join in the conversation, they’ll be more likely to check out your product or service if you’re a friend or productive member of the community.
• When that same blogger reaches out to you for an interview, ebook promotion, or just to say hello, don’t blow him off.
• If you haven’t spoken to a blogger in years, you may want to take time to reconnect before asking for favors.
• There’s a difference between networking and using.
• If you see your blogging friend at conferences or networking events, make a point of saying hello or inviting him or her to a meal or cup of coffee. You don’t have to buy, but it’s nice karma to reach out.
• Even if you don’t have time for lots of chit chat and small talk, say hello on Twitter or Facebook now and then.
• Link to the bloggers who help to promote your stuff. It’ll make them at least feel as if you appreciate their efforts.

I know blogger outreach is important for promotion and networking. I’m all about it. For heaven’s sake, stop only contacting people when you want a stumble or ebook review. We’re all busy people and don’t always have time for online socializing, I get that. If you contact your blogging friends for other reasons than promotional requests they’ll be more likely to help you out.

Blog Contests: Bribery or Motivation?

There are some interesting discussions going around now regarding the purpose of contests at blogs, especially contests building community. Is it bribery or buying community to offer a contest encouraging community?

As you know, the FWJ network is having a comment contest for the month of October. The reason for this contest is:

• To encourage long-time members to come back into the discussion after recent negativity.
• To encourage visitors to each individual blog to visit the other blogs in the network.
• To encourage newer or lurking members of the community to add their two cents.
• To give something back to the community after a very good month.

Am I buying my community? Perhaps, if you want to see it that way. I prefer to think of it as a reward or incentive for contributing. Blogs have contests all the time, many give away sponsored prizes. I never thought of them as buying comments as much as I thought of them as tools for building traffic and encouraging community. I can’t afford to do this often, but I thought it might be a good way to invest back into a community that’s been so supportive over the years. I could have said “well, the 60th comment gets the prize” but that’s not adding much in the way of substance.

Some blog posts at FWJ receive 50 comments and more. Why not reward our top commentators somehow and encourage them to keep doing what we’re doing? We have other ways of building community here as well. For example we offer stimulating content and useful resources while encourage everyone to add their two cents – and many do. I’d like to encourage others to weigh in too.

Now, I can’t speak for other bloggers, but this is why I have the occasional comment contest. Why do you have contests at your blog?

What do you think – are blog contests a way to buy community or are they a useful tool in motivating a sleeping community – and rewarding them for their loyalty?

Bringing Community Back: FWJ is Giving Away $150

Once upon a time there was a blog. This blog had several thousand visitors each day. They shared. They chatted. They commiserated. It was all good. Soon some mean people came by and began scaring away the happy chatters. The vibe changed from warm and fuzzy to not so much fun anymore. The owner did her best to build up community, but she was so busy with her projects and her job it wasn’t happening. She put a comment policy into place but the damage was already done. She had a reputation for having a community that liked to bicker.

She wants to change that.

If you remember the days when FWJ was a huge, lively community of writers helping writers, you may miss the golden days as well. Let’s try and get it all back. Several years ago, we built this community with a contest – a comments contest. We offered a $25 gift certficate to the person with the most comments. People came and never left. It was good.

We’re doing it again, except we’re upping the ante.

Beginning today, October 1st, we’re giving away $150 to the people who help to bring back this wonderful community. We’re giving away three $50 prizes.

• The person with the most comments between now and October 31st, on the homepage Freelance Writing Jobs blog, will receive $50.
• The person with the most comments across the whole FWJ network by the end of the month, that’s all of the blogs, will receive $50.
• The FWJ blogger who does the most to build community and join the conversation will win $50 at the end of the month.

Just a few notes:

• Comments that only say ” I agree” or add nothing to the conversation won’t count.
• Comments not adhering to our comment policy will be deleted and won’t count.
• Spammy comments or comment dropping links – unless they’re truly offering something to the conversation – won’t count.

I know you’re here. I see the numbers. Thousand of people visit each day and even more subscribe. Come join the conversation. Let’s bring community back!

On Taking Swipes at Other Bloggers

Writers often ask each other about their “passion”. Passion is what leads us to write about what we love every single day. Passion is what makes us good at what we do. Passion makes us who we are. My passion is blogging. It’s an addiction.  I wake up and all I want to do is blog. That may sound silly to some, but it’s what I love and what I hope to do forever.

What makes me not so passionate is all the “I’m so not like you so I’m going to do everything I can to trash you and bring you down without actually mentioning your name” blogging that’s going on among my peers. It makes blogging less fun, less enjoyable.  I’m guilty of it too – I’ve used “certain bloggers” or “some bloggers” when I disagree. I’m pretty sure those bloggers know exactly who I’m talking about. I also know when they’re talking about me with their swipes, especially when they quote specific words from my daily arsenal. I read your message loud and clear.

All this anger and swiping at people who don’t agree is making blogging lose its luster. Can’t we all get along?

Here’s my vow: no more swipes at “other bloggers.” If I disagree with something, I’ll do so in a respectful manner. I’m not out to ruin anyone’s reputation. I’m not on campaigns to knock anyone down a peg or steal away their community. I’m not boycotting anyone or encouraging others to do the same. I’m not doing searches on other bloggers’ blogs to find stuff to throw in their faces or hold against them. That’s not me or how I work.

I’m happy if I have 10 visitors or 10,000 as long as they’re all positive members of this community.  It’s hard to lead by example when in the middle of cat fights and disputes over wages, sponsorships or writing for free. I’m putting a stop to it on this end.  It’s too silly and too petty. Everyone has good advice and valid points. I’m not going to discourage anyone from taking another blogger’s advice because everyone brings a valid point or opinion to the table. I think we get so caught up in making sure our message is the right one, or that our point of view is the one that counts the most, that we lost site of what’s most important – helping other writers and bloggers succeed.

Life’s too short for negativity.

No more swiping. At least not from me.

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