London UK
I never became a fan of building an email list.
Top pros told me to build a list; without it my blog seemed sure to die.
Blogging leaders claimed this.
Yet my blog took off without a large, responsive list supporting it.
As of the current publish date, my email list dissolved into oblivion. Click rates dropped into the blogging morgue. Open rates died in the blogging cemetery. Who cares? I broke the rule to win with my special blogging talents most truly helpful for you. I never broke it to be some blogging renegade; that never really works out well over the long term.
Hey guys; build that list. Drive traffic on demand. Owning a responsive list can make driving traffic easier. Getting the inbox can help you mightily. I am not against list-building but this technique never worked effectively for me.
Your blog is not your email list.
I proved that it is not.
I fought my intuition on this one for years. Goodness knows I attempted to build a large, loyal list.
But my attempts always went to custard. Frustration followed. I looked past what worked and tried to force a square blogging peg into a round list-building hole.
Surrendering changed my perspective. No one ever figured out how to ram a square peg into a round hole. I tried to force my list building efforts but the numbers proved me wrong.
I eventually discovered something: everyone breaks at least one or two commonly held blogging rules at some point. No one follows every single mainstream regulation. Blogging leaders may break ever more than one or two generally accepted rules. I never fancy myself to be a blogging leader. Yet I have been in this game for 17 years. Without a doubt, when I really consider it, I break scores of common blogging rules.
Some bloggers look past list building. Other bloggers forgive Google traffic. Some slay it with short-form content. Others rock it out with pillar-style posts seemingly better suited for eBooks than blog content. Bloggers ignore billions of social media users and thrive. Some build a tiny list of highly responsive subs who co-create a full-time blogging business for the pro blogger.
Why?
Blogging is not one size fits all.
Every blogger walks a different blogging path.
You and I have special roles to fulfill as bloggers.
I do a few things well.
You may do other things well.
We eventually cover all bases by honoring our unique blogging talents.
Every Blogger Follows a Different Path
I teach a specific blogging system based on creating content and building connections with resonant readers.
But some bloggers follow my guidelines closely while others look past various aspects of the system.
Trusting your blogging intuition guides you more dependably than following a specific blogging system rigidly.
Every blogger follows a different path for a variety of reasons.
I stopped trying to build an email list. Now I email a few active subscribers.
What happened after I stopped forcing things through one marketing channel? What occurred after I broke this cardinal blogging rule?
I became highly prolific through other channels because my talents seemed most in demand via those methods.
I engaged in video marketing, guest blogging and genuine blog commenting. Toss in social media marketing.
Your feedback proved to me; you view me as being most truly helpful through those streams.
Imagine if I stubbornly attempted to build my email list for years after making the shift?
I would have robbed you of my video marketing, guest blogging, genuine blog commenting and social media marketing talents.
Certainly I am no gift to these marketing tactics. But I work each stream fairly well; your predominantly positive feedback verifies my observation.
I took a different path from most established bloggers because breaking a few commonly held rules became necessary to bolster my increasing blogging success.
How It Works
You break specific blogging rules based on intuitive hunches.
Building an email list feels heavy. Driving Google traffic feels stressful. Publishing weekly blog posts feels overwhelming.
Something feels wrong.
Yet chatter in your mind warns you against breaking the blogging rule.
Being at an impasse, you either plod forward in frustration or break the rule to move in a different, fun, freeing direction.
Break the common blogging rule that feels burdensome. Let your gut pull you towards what feels fun, freeing and truly helpful for your targeted reader.
Don’t worry; seasoned professionals teach a wide variety of tactics to fit your tastes. Video marketing alone presents you with live broadcasting, reels and long form options. Do you love to gab? Consider podcasting. Embed podcasts with a rich text summary to publish robust content; you *are* still a blogger at the end of the day.
Beware Being a Rule Breaking Rebel
Bloggers err in breaking popular rules as an “Eff You!” to the blogging establishment.
Google becomes a common object of blogging ire.
Turning your back on Google traffic to screw big business – and to sound cool in the process – is foolish because fear is force, force negates and the strategy falls apart.
Break rules not to be cool; that leads to ruin because what you resist persists with alarming power.
Look past rules if the guidelines feel like shackles stifling your true helpfulness.
Blogging Is Mindset
Blogging is mindset because the actions you take or resist depend on your mind.
You choose; action follows.
Follow mainstream blogging strategies if it feels fun to do so. True helpfulness exists there.
Look past commonly held rules if sticking to these tactics feels like a drag; depression, struggles and failure await there.
Conclusion
I shall now break one of my blogging rules.
Checkout the shorter form word count compared to my prior posts.
I’m typing these words 37,000 feet Atlantic Ocean as we fly from London to NYC.
After a bit of bumpy turbulence for a good 20 minutes I want to take a stroll down the aisle.
Smooth sailing awaits for me and for your blog if you become a flexible blogger who breaks the right rules for your audience and peace of mind.
