Before You Blog

I'm new to blogging but I know that in order to be a valuable resource to readers, a blog must accomplish three things.

1.  Make a promise...and deliver
By letting readers know the purpose behind your writing, you are not only creating a mission statement to help guide your topics but you're showing that you value your reader's time.  I try to write purposeful content that provides insight on my experiences starting a company in the hope that someone somewhere will learn something from my experiences.

2.  Provide solutions
Problems are easy to list, solutions are not.  As a reader of many blogs, I find myself most engaged when authors provide not only engaging content but insight into their process and how they conquer their own issues.  Research shows that people have the attention span of rabid ferrets online; I too enjoy quick bullets of information and try to utilize this format in many of my posts.  Readers check the bullets first and decide if reading further is worth their time.  Odds are you've already skipped over half the information in the paragraphs of this post, but you've probably been paying attention to the bullets. 

3.  Don't force it
If you don't have anything of substance to write about then don't write anything at all.  No one wants to read about your Saturday shopping experience or your drive to work.  People like to feel that someone cares about their situation rather than just listening to someone talk about their own issues.  If you want to write like that I suggest you get a journal.

Here are very different and excellent examples from pros:
http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/
http://www.workshifting.com/

As I move along the path to what I hope is an insanely successful business, I'll continue to provide resources on startup issues and being a young entrepreneur.  That's my promise to you.

Cheers,

EM