When I mention mixing business with personality, I am not talking about a 9-5 job where you go out with your coworkers and party all night after work. I am talking about the life of a blogger. What I am talking about is how far you go in mixing your personality into your blog.
For most of us, it starts out as a side business that happens to be something we enjoy doing. At some point blogging turns into a time of enjoyment and I would venture to say an addiction. I love blogging. I have become addicted to meeting new people, sharing ideas, writing my own posts, and so much more.
How far should you go in mixing yourself into your blog? This is essentially going to be or already is your home business. Before I answer that question, I think it is necessary to share both the pros and cons of both sides.
Connections Build Relationships
There is no debate that connecting with people produces better results when it comes to internet marketing. I have practiced this on all the internet businesses I have started, not to mention using it with jobs that I have had in the past. When you have personalized any business to a level that makes your customers feel that they are talking to someone face to face, you will have created a nearly perfect online model to duplicate over and over again.
You’ll Build Faster Connections With Other Blogs
This takes skill and lots of practice, but anybody can do it with the right dedication. It also opens doors for building relationships with other businesses. In order to maintain a successful blog, you will have to gain favor, respect, and a relationship with other bloggers of the same niche. From their, you can expand to other related niches.
You Will Give A Human Face To Your Business
I have always been successful in anything that I have done because I work hard at it. I put in the time plus more to get the results I want. I was once told by one of my supervisors that, if I wanted to be noticed for my hard work, I would have to put a face with the name. My name came up a lot during corporate meetings, and I was known for the great achievements I had been doing. Whenever these big corporate guys would stop by, they wouldn’t be able to place my face with the name. This hindered my growth potential and made me very frustrated on numerous occasions.
You Will Build Your Blog Faster
You will have a faster rate of growth by making your blog personable. This could simply be responding to comments or giving advice to your readers. The point is that you are interacting with your readers and letting them know that there is a person behind all those words.
You Will Be A Turn Off
This is where your personality can hurt your blog. Not everyone will mesh well with the type of person that you are. If your personality comes out too strong or negatively to someone, you will loose out on readers, business opportunities and the overall success of your blog.
Your Business Turns Into A Personal Update Of Your Life
You might start to add to much personal info about what you have been doing. What you are doing right now. Or just talk too much about yourself instead of what your blog was originally meant to do (Make You Money). You can set up a different blog that talks about that if you want to. Many online authorities do this to keep things separate. I think you get the idea.
Now comes the part where I give you my response to the question. How far should you go in mixing yourself into your blog? It really all depends on the business model you have set up. You can make your blog as personable as you want to! It will come at a price if you decide to say something on your blog that ends up hurting your business. I try and keep things as balanced as possible.
That is easier said than done. If you are having problems trying to balance it out, I suggest you take a look at how your readers respond to your posts. Switch it up some and see what kind of response you get. That is the best way to see where the line is. If you start seeing less visitors or people leaving your RSS feed, than make the necessary changes.
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{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
Blogging for me is personal, although it may have some business properties. You’re right about the ramifications you’ve stated above and I guess it’s up to one’s character on how he/she will handle each situation.
Of course, as you have said, it’s easier said than done.
Hello
Thak you for the wonderful insight. I am new at blogging and trying really hard. Your blog shows me what to strive for! Thank You.
Gerald Friend
Hey, another cool post, dude. The first ever blog I created is personal, but with my 3rd blog (The Web Marketer Depot), I follow a less personal route. I would always try to add personality to my writings but I won’t put, say my face, on the front page (like John Chow, Yaro, etc). And I believe in consistency, so I won’t mix my current writing style with a more personal ones(with rants or ramblings)
Hello Gerald.
I am happy to see that you enjoyed it! Welcome to the world of blogging too! I really enjoy meeting new people and sharing ideas ( as i mentioned). It requires lots of work and dedication. I look forward to seeing more of you! There are lots of people willing to help you out with any questions you might get along the way. If you haven’t, visit my feedback forum to suggest some ideas on topics that you are currently trying to find more about. I will look into making some posts about any questions you have!
Thanks for the insight Walter!
That is what i enjoy the most with blogging. You can manipulate it to however you want it to be. You are sure to find people who will be interested in what you have to say. Whether it is a personal blog or business blog.
One of the reasons i follow your blog is because you are consistent Andi! You have published some great posts too. I just like how you have set it up. That is what I look for in other blogs. (Marketing blogs that is)
Hey, thanks, Josh. Btw, what plugin do you use for your social bookmarking thing…(the one below all your blog posts)? They looks cool.
It is called sexy bookmarks. There are a couple others i was looking into, but i liked this one the best!
Hey Josh! Thanks for the pointers.
I have tried a few other blogging formats before, but I am trying to combine them all on my new website. I try to let my humor shine through in my blogs, but I am not sure if I always hit the mark.
I like the idea of creating a seperate blog for the more personal or perhaps controversial topics like religion or politics. For now, I am just steering away from those topics.
Hey Josh.
Great topic – and lots of interesting observation.
Cheers
Will