Posted on December 4, 2007
More on Why People Stop Blogging
BY JENNIFER EUBANKS
As a follow-up to my esteemed colleague Jason's post on why people stop blogging, I thought that I would weigh in with my own insight, especially since he so subtly hinted at my dearth of entries.
I came across another blog entry on SEO-Scoop coincidentally(?) written on same day as Jason's in which the author weighs the pros and cons of blogging daily versus blogging when one has something worthwhile to say.
I suppose my lack of consistent posting can be attributed to the latter school of thought. I haven't posted regularly, but I like to think that when I have, that it has been of interest to my readers. At the very least, they are topics which caught my attention enough to stop what I was doing and share my thoughts. Blogging daily is a hard task--after awhile it is simply inevitable that you will feel as though you have run out of things to say. As Jason points out, however, it is indeed easier to join an existing conversation than to start a new one.
With RSS, a blog's audience does not have to check back several times a day, only to be disappointed when there is no new content. Therefore, the blog might not suffer from a drop in readership when you're less than disciplined about publishing an entry. However, blogging consistently can make sure that your site stays in the forefront of your audience's minds, as they start to feel that they can reasonably expect to be alerted to new posts on a regular basis. There is of course an additional bonus to frequent posting--that of the increased search engine visibility and ranking.
Blogging, especially that of a corporate nature, can seem a bit daunting when faced with the prospect of keeping the content updated. As opposed to stopping completely, it would seem preferable to post on topics that you feel passionate about--regardless of how frequent that might be. However, if you find yourself in the position where you MUST blog, do a little research first. Find sites that discuss topics which interest you and deal with your industry. Look at what they are discussing and see if there is a way in which you can continue the conversation with a post of your own.
Blogging regularly is a discipline, and one that comes easier with time and practice. At least, that is what I will be telling myself as I attempt to become a more regular contributor to this site.
I blog for search ranking but it doesn't take everyday blogging once you get the high ranking that you desire. It does take effort to get there.