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You probably have already heard about and possibly are participating in the new Group Writing Project over at ProBlogger. Darren is asking people to contribute by writing a post about What They Would Do Differently if they had to Start Their Blog(ging) Over.
Well, if you have followed my progress for the past couple of weeks, you should have a Good Guess as to what I would do differently. Take the past month’s worth of changes via my Time Machine back to October 2005.
3 Major changes would then occur:
~~ I would have bought my Own Domain. Other than Ego, I think the biggest advantage of picking the right Domain is that it helps quite a bit with SEO.
~~ I would have set up with a Good Hosting Service. There is much more control of what happens with you site(s) ie. my own E-mail addresses, Spam control and real communication with the Host to name a few.
~~ I would have Started using WordPress (not Blogger). Again, I have control of the Presentation, Links, Plug-ins and other Options that other platforms don’t offer.
In hind-sight, using a free service has probably cost me more in terms of visitors, pageviews and revenue by not having Good Search Engine Opitmization. Not to mention the Down Time I have had to endure with the problems Blogger has had in the recent past.
On the opposite end of the spectrum 3 things I would Not have changed:
~~ Joining Forums. I have learned a lot from them and have had visitors stop by because (in spite) of things I contributed.
~~ Comment on other Blogs. I have built some good relationships through commenting and joining in on conversations on many Blogs I visit.
~~ Links to Other Blogs. I have always linked to other Blogs that I thought would be helpful to Work at Home people. I think this has helped build some loyalty in my readers.
It might not sound like much, but with just those 3 changes and keeping the other 3, I think I could have been a lot more successful sooner.
What if anything would you change? Did you join the Project? If so, you can leave a link in comments if you wish.
18 Comments
I’m thankful that I did all three of your things (ah, and the three you wouldn’t have changed
) from the beginning 
– ah, I think we always have something we would have changed, but the joy of the medium is that we can always change it!! My project link is here: http://lilduckduck.com/archive/187
Hey MamaDuck,
Thanks for stopping by, I think this is a good project because it helps us reflect on what we might have done differently, but More Importantly, what we did right the first time as well.
I’ll be over to visit you as soon as I am done typing this.
Joe
That’s interesting about the forums. I used to participate and often act as if I was a honorary support person in many forums I visited (cyberschmooz, tax forums, etc) but once blogging started to overwhelm my spare time – I basically became a lurker and ultimately just a user when I need support. There are lots of forums that I am heavily in the archives – I should probably go back and do something to revive my good name!
Hey HART,
Unfortunately, I’m not as active in the forums as I once was. But, I still contribute when there is anything I can help with. More often than not, I am like you… lurking and contributing when I can. Busy, busy, busy…
Joe
As a new blogger, I appreciate all the advise I can get. It’s a big world out there and sometimes you feel alone. Thanks for your helpful hints, I’ll get moving on them.
I agree with you Joe, those things make a lot of difference. I am enjoying having time to participate in other’s blogs now I’ve got the technical things sorted out.
Hey Brian,
Welcome to my Blog and to the Blogosphere in general. You will find some very rewarding things Blogging.
Good luck and join in on as many conversations as you can.
Best,
Joe
Hey Matthew,
It does take time to get settled, but once you do, look out world.
I’m still learning and hopefully can pass on some good info.
Thanks for stopping by, and in case you didn’t know, Liz at Successful Blog is having an Open Mic Night tonight.
Hope to see you all there.
Best,
Joe
Good point about the forums, I guess they’re the equivalent of cyber-networking!
Hey Katy,
Yeah, I was actually active in forums from the beginning. I learned a lot and got quite a few visitors from them as well.
Thanks for stopping by,
Joe
Nice list. I really like the way you made a list of things you would NOT have changed. My post for the group project is here:
My Vision Was Too Cloudy
All the best,
George
Hey George,
Thanks.
Yeah, I thought Everything I did wasn’t wrong
I’ll be over in a minute to see your post.
Thanks for stopping by… read today’s post, once you visit you are no longer a stranger.
Joe
Hi George,
I jumped over from problogger. One of the things you said got my attention. I actually own the domain survivingnj.com but I like the ease of blogger. I guess moving it would make the most sense. Right now I just forward to my blog…I thought when i started this it would just be a simple little blog, blah, blah, blah..and now it’s turned into a small project that will only grow. Moving early makes better sense! When I finish a few other projects, maybe i’ll finally make the move.
Enjoyed reading your post. Best to you.
Hey Jersey Girl,
You can call me Joe…
I think the longer you wait to change over, the harder it will be. I know from experience.
Especially if you have any following and SEO built up.
But, it is well worth it in the end.
Joe
I am getting to like group writing projects. Where else can you get so many good blogs in one easy to read list?
I like your entry. It is good to continuously refine but keep what works. Thanks for sharing this with us.
– Dorai
Hey Dorai,
I really enjoy the writing projects too, as you said they are always intresting.
Thanks for stopping by, visit any time you like, IT’S FREE…
Joe
Great post. I would add: make sure your template is optimized. Not only with good visuals, but also with well defined areas for blogroll, ads, archives, social bookmarking links, comments/trackbacks, etc. Obviously, I’m still working on some of these things
http://www.simplifythis.com
Hey Sanjay,
All good tips. I’m the type that even after I find a good template, I have to tweak it.
I just like to keep improving and trying to make it the best I can.
Joe
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