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Size of audience not what matters for blog success

December 30, 2007

Robert ScobleScoble’s spot on this morning that building a big blog audience is not what matters in blogging.

Robert was referencing what advertisers care about, but the same applies equally to you lawyers trying to achieve blog success.

So, what should you care about per Robert? (with my added commentary)

  • Are you getting content that no one else is? Some lawyers are all over niche subjects that no one is covering. Cover a niche and you will not be able to keep your target audience away with a stick.
  • Does that content cause conversations to happen? If you use Google Blog Search, do you find anyone linking to it? Conversations take place by others referencing points you raise, not necessarily via comments on your blog.
  • Does that content get noticed in the niche you’re covering? Do you get noticed by conference coordinators and trade magazines?
  • Even more importantly, does it get the most credible and authoritative to link to you? Who are the bloggers most respected in your area of law or in industries who want to represent? Who are the reporters covering your niche? Get referenced by them and it’s ten times as valuable as any ad or any PR person plugging for you.
  • Don’t ask how big your blog audience can be. That’s not the end game. Ask how far can I take myself as a lawyer. Ask can I take myself to the top in my niche area of the law.

Again, blogging isn’t about search engine dominance (though you’ll do very well) and getting a huge audience, it’s about establishing yourself as an authority in a niche through entering online conversations with the key influencers in your field.

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