This guest post is from Jayme Soulati, the president of Soulati Media, Inc. She’s not a power blogger; she doesn’t know if she aspires to be 
one, and she’s pretty happy with the progress of her nearly 1.5-year-old blog Soulati-‘TUDE! Her expertise is squarely at the core of public relations and blended and blurred with marketing and social media.
I’ve been feeling and seeing some angst on the blogosphere lately. Some folks are having a bit of confidence issues; blogs are folding, people are saying their writing does not stack up, and some wonder if being a power blogger is attainable.
What I’m also seeing is that the power bloggers — those who rank higher than the Ad Age Power 50 – are distinctly on a pedestal put there by their peers, themselves, or others in their communities.
This is not intended to be a negative; it’s a fact and it’s what the blogosphere thrives on — leaders. But sometimes leading bloggers are regarded so highly that new bloggers struggle with that influence also wondering whether they can stack up.
If your goal is to become a power blogger, take a look at those who have earned their position. These bloggers are rightly on pedestals. I am always amazed when I see another level of giving, counsel, time, and sharing that is delivered to complete and total strangers in the name of building community, brand and business.
I’ve had the distinct pleasure of meeting Mark Schaefer, Jay Baer, and Gini Dietrich IRL (in real life), and I feel like I’ve met Danny Brown (he is very accessible). These four peeps are to be congratulated for their positions as leaders on the blogosphere.
There is no guidebook how to be a power blogger; it happens over time and with a lot of hard work. In fact, I would suggest power bloggers’ blogs are true extensions and representations of their businesses. When you reach that level, monetization of a blog is moot; it happens automatically, and the blog is the business.
I know how competitive we humanoids are — we want to have the best blog with the most readers, comments, RTs, and highest rankings with awards badges in the margin. We want to have authority and influence, and we want to change the world with our insightful content. I’m certain that each of us will eventually get there, but only if we want to. It’s OK not to be a power blogger, but if you want to be on a pedestal, let me offer you some perspective.
The next time you’re chastising a power blogger for his or her comments, thoughts, opinions, articles, or the way they conduct themselves in their own house, know this:
- It’s lonely at the top.
- What I said above–there is no mentor for them to follow and fashion a set of rules after; each of them is writing their own guidebook.
- We are like paparazzi to them; everything they say, write, do, eat, share, photograph, we want a piece of. They are in the limelight because they sought that position and have earned it.
- When you feel like attacking as a troll or someone having a bad day, think twice about blogjacking the tone with your drivel.
- If you’ve ever left a snarky comment, ask yourself whether it was because of envy or jealousy?
- How many times have you learned from these people about new trends in social media, new apps, new tech, new devices, copied their blog design, or received your invite to Google+ or Spotify? It’s real easy for me to sit back and wait for a power blogger to do the work first with a post that paves the way.
- Lastly is simply about thanks. Have you ever genuinely recognized a blogger leader for their time, commitment and dedication to teaching you what they know? “Thank you” is a wonderfully unexpected two words.
I’ll say it again, folks, it’s lonely at the top and showing the love is one small courtesy to bloggers on your pedestals. Whether the bloggers you follow have a badge of honor or not doesn’t mean they are any less influential or authoritative. A pedestal can be as short or as tall as you deem.
Who do you view as power bloggers? Do they serve as an inspiration for you? Do you aspire to be a power blogger with high rankings, or are you happy with your current readership?
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[...] bet it’s challenging at the top. We’ve put bloggers on pedestals for years; wanna bet they’re tired too leading the pack as they do? Sometimes they show it; other [...]
[...] post first appeared at Ken Mueller’s house at Inkling Media. It is one of my all-time favorites and highly received [...]
[...] post first appeared at Ken Mueller’s house at Inkling Media. It is one of my all-time favorites and highly received [...]