Are you Problogger 2? Blogging is becoming one of the biggest professions, with thousands of new bloggers being added every day. Most of them are influenced by hugely successful websites (I will call them big boys) and believe that if they follow the same steps as big boys took, they will also become successful.
I will follow ProBlogger and will become ProBlogger 2
They work sleepless nights, try to do everything right, and follow in the footsteps of big boys. However, they realize in a few months that they are nowhere near to where they hoped to be. As Hans mentioned in his recent article, most of the new bloggers give up blogging within 3 months.
Why Am I not on Page 1 of Google, just below ProBlogger?
Most of the big boys started many years back, and they had an early mover advantage. At that time, their competition used to be pretty less. However, that is not true anymore. Now, there are hundreds of thousands of blogs in any niche that you want to start in (unless it is something as specific as “How to Unclog Cap of Ketchup Bottle”).
If I search Google for my niche “Freeware”, I get more than 54 million results. All the big boys are on page 1, and I don’t’ have the patience to browse through all the pages to find which page I might be on.
I get the point, what can I do to at least become ProBlogger 875, instead of ProBlogger 1,545,254?
COLLABORATE. You have been working all alone to gain success. There are tons of other bloggers out there in the same boat as you are. Collaborate with them.
TEAM: Together Each Achieves More.
I did Collaborate, but still failed.
Nope, you did not. You just did some link exchange and some guest posts. That is just the start of Collaboration. Collaborate in all possible areas.
What are the areas for Collaboration?
Let me explain (and prove) this point by taking some examples of collaborative efforts that I undertook.
1. Setup a Website Together: I wanted to set up another freeware blog focused on Netbook Freeware. I realized quickly that I do not have enough time to run this blog by myself. So, I reached out to a fellow blogger Mezanul at MyTechGuide, who works in the same niche as I do. I pitched to him the idea to collaborate together on this website. He immediately agreed.
We hammered out all the details, including, who will be responsible for what, how to split revenue, and where do we want the website to be. Then we set up our collective website: Netbook Freeware. There was no looking back after that. The collaboration has been working really well, and it is a win-win for both of us.
2. Find Advertisers Together: I was trying to sell ads on my freeware blog and found it extremely difficult to do that. I came across Michael at CravingTech. He was also experiencing the same problems that I was. We decided to pitch our websites to advertisers together.
We told advertisers that if they buy ads on both of our websites together, they will get a good discount. This worked extremely well, and we were able to quickly sell some ads. Win-Win for both of us.
Some other ideas for Collaboration
1. Collaborate on Content: Let’s take a step back and look at this website QOT. It actively encourages Guest Posts. This takes away a big pain area of blogging – getting content. Of course, it has lot of benefits for Guest Bloggers too. Win-Win for everyone.
2. Share Google Site Search: Many of the bloggers now use Google Search in their blogs. Google Search allows you to include results from multiple websites in those search results. Collaborate with other bloggers who have Google Search implemented, and add each other’s websites in your search results.
Where do I find other Bloggers willing to Collaborate?
Let me warn you: this would not be as simple as I made it sound. I was turned down by lots of bloggers before people agreed to collaborate with me. So, you will need to be very patient.
To make it simple, let’s use the Comments section of this post to find other bloggers who are willing to collaborate. If you are interested in collaboration, just mention that in the comments, along with ways you want to collaborate. Other bloggers who read your comments will be able to reach out to you.
Of course, if you want to collaborate with me, feel free to drop me an email. I would love to collaborate with you.
Any closing thoughts?
There are just 3 things to keep in mind to be successful in your collaboration efforts:
1. Be Honest: You might be able to taste some success by a collaboration that you were not seeing earlier. Good money might start flowing in. However, don’t let that make you greedy. Split the money as you had agreed to, and be absolutely honest with your fellow blogger who is working with you. Remember the story about the hen that lays golden eggs.
2. Win-Win: You will be able to find a fellow blogger for collaboration only if you tell them what they gain by it. The collaboration effort will be successful only if it is a win-win for both of you. If you try to be over smart and try to pitch ideas in which there is more gain for you, instead of your fellow blogger, you WILL fail.
3. Actively work for Success of your Fellow Blogger: Do not miss any opportunity to do something good for your fellow blogger. This will prove to them that you are honest and sincere in your efforts. I added links of both of my friends in this article. This does good for them, without any additional effort at my end. Happy Collaborating!
Guest author Ishan is a tech blogger and loves to write about Free Software on his website ILoveFreeSoftware.com, and NetbookFreeware.com. You can also write guest articles and share your blogging ideas to become more successful.