Have you updated your blog lately?
In the last few months I’ve been neglecting my own projects in exchange for client projects. Not smart. I mean I have excuses; job cuts in the writers market, fewer jobs around, and just because I’ve been busy in general, but if you’ve got some personal projects going it’s not wise to ignore them. Why not?
If you pay for hosting for your own blogs, that’s money down the drain if you’re not making money with your blogs. While some of my blogs make a little money just sitting around, they could make a lot more if I actually worked at it.
Your blogs represent you to a point. I have my links to a couple of my own blogs in bios of mine online and in the sig line of my work email. If a potential client clicks on that link, they may not realize that it’s my blog, and mistake it for a client blog. No updates is a BAD sign of my productivity level.
It’s good practice. You can make mistakes on your own blog, play around, see what works best, and mess with ideas that you can’t screw with at client blogs. Why not use your own blogs as a learning experience?
Your blogs, when well done can drive traffic to your client’s blogs which one, clients like, and two, if you’re paid in any sort of page view revenue, can increase your paycheck.
When you don’t update you lose any traffic base you’ve built. It’s like starting all over from scratch – blah.
If you can learn to make money with your own blog, you’ve got some back-up for when client blogs go belly-up. It takes a long time to create some decent income with your own blogs. The only way to make it happen is to keep up with your blogs. While blog income is unstable there’s still a chance you’ll hit on a good niche and make some money. However, when you ignore said blogs you lose any shot at making some of your own blogging income.
So… when times get tough, are your own projects the first to lose your attention, or do you try to make time for them anyhow?
FYI – I may be back with some new blog and online writing gigs later today if time permits so stay tuned.
