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June 4, 2007
 Why do people return to a blog? I read some blogs that I don't particularly agree with every post. Yet I return. I read some that I find boring. And I return. I read some that I don't like the author's writing all that much, but I find myself returning there too. What's the common factor between these blogs, and why do I return to them? Because I've received something valuable from reading all of them at some point, some little shred of information that helped me in some way. So I return to the blogs I really enjoy and like reading, as well as the ones I'm not so crazy about, as long as I find them helpful, as long as ever so often something makes the visit worthwhile. Plus, some of them I return to because the personality of the author makes them really interesting.
Now you may be saying "Well Duh!". But hear me out.
If you have a blog or a web site, you may have, or may be, experimenting with various methods you've read about to generate more traffic. Like a lot of site owners, you may not have been very successful at getting more traffic. It's easy to get caught up in the vastness of the Internet and feel like a little speck of dust. It's easy to feel like my little site can't possibly be interesting enough to pull in thousands of readers. And it's easy to feel like my little ideas can't possibly be interesting enough to bring people back for future visits. These two fears can cause you to dilute the "You-ness" of your writing and of your blog with other people's thoughts, methods, and ideas.
We're saturated with ads and articles about SEO, keywords, and layout. We're constantly told one opinion after another about how to get our blog ranking higher in search engine result pages, or, how to get more visitors, or what colors we should use. Before long, it's not enough to write our blog posts, we are subconsciously second-guessing everything we write and, slowly eroding the natural flow of what we have to share with the world. So instead of building upon solid, interesting, unique, and helpful articles with value, we're writing homogenized, pasteurized, bland posts on blogs that all start to look too much alike, sound too much alike, and have too many similar articles, memes, or whatever the gimmick of the day is. No one returns for second helpings. (Now you can say "Well Duh"!)
So what's the secret to building long term, sustainable traffic: Patience, Time, Content with Value, and lots of "You-ness"!
Put as much of you, i.e. your "You-ness", into your blog, your products, your web site, and your writing as you can. It's that "You-ness" that makes each of us unique and interesting. It's best to use common sense and follow good design guidelines, so that your work is not gaudy, hard to read, or lame, but don't loose site of "you" while you're trying to build your site. Be yourself; don't feel like you have to be an exact copy of someone else to be successful.
Sincerely,
Fred
About the Author
Fred Black is an experienced programmer, web site developer, online business operator, systems integrator, father, husband, musician, and songwriter. Visit his Internet Business Blog at: http://www.pqInternet.com.
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Posted by Fred on June 4, 2007 | Printer-Friendly
TrackBack: http://www.pqInternet.com/Blog/mt-tb.cgi/57
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Internet Business
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Comments:
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Great article Fred!
Well..I hope you like to read my blog :)
Even if you don't, I still gain a hell lot as I gain alot from your blog.
Cheers!
Erwin
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You raise some quality points here, and it's interesting... I've actually found my way back to your blog having been here a couple of days ago on a search for something entirely unrelated.
The "you-ness" as you put it is a major thing that I've slowly identified in a lot of the blogs that I read. As a result, I'm trying to personalize things much more with my own blog.
Thanks again for the insightful post -- I'm sure others will appreciate it as I have.
Have an awesome day!
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I totally agree I know that the you-ness you speak of keeps me reading. There are so many sites and blogs that are pretty much exactly the same its refreshing to read a blog that is different or that you can tell someone put their heart into. Reading your blog here has encouraged me with my own website, I have neglected it because I get so bogged down in the thought that I need to be like the other guys. When being me is what is going to bring me what I am looking for.
Adam
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Wow, does this U comment I follow thing really work?
Personally, I would love to read more blogs but I don't seem to have the time.
Shame.
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It s a very interesting article. I am new in this area so i am not quite confident in myself. I am about to copy from other sucessful blogger, but this article change my way of thinking. Thank you!
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Interesting post Fred. I feel you're right - maybe I should put more of my own ideas onto my blog, but sometimes I feel I'm sucha grumpy old cynic it will just put people off !
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