Why Quantity Matters

Blogging offers a way for you to build a website one page at a time. Anything goes in terms of the content you choose to publish and the purpose you want to achieve. Realistically speaking, however, if your blog doesn't have visitors, then even the most wonderful content you create won't achieve your purpose.

It's equally true - especially in the beginning - that if your blog doesn't have enough content, you won't find it easy to attract visitors. Even your early subscribers and other people you know well will stop visiting your blog if there is nothing new for them to see. (Wouldn't you?)

What's more, there are many promotional tools and income generating possibilities out there that only allow you to participate when your blog has a minimum number of "quality" posts that fit with the description of your blog.

Below are some concrete examples of early quantity benchmarks for new blogs that you might want to keep in mind.

With at least 5 posts you can:

• get your blog listed in search engines
• get your blog approved for listing at blogging communities like Entrecard, BlogCatalog and MyBlogLog
  

With 10-15 posts you can:

• list your blog in most blog directories

With minimum 30 posts you can:

• sell advertising on your blog through systems like ProjectWonderful (and others)
  
• apply to earn money writing sponsored posts to your blog through sites like PayPerPost
  

PLEASE NOTE: I have been waiting for the ourwwworld team blogs to have a minimum of 5 quality posts each so that we can start some ourwwworld contests that could win you some bonus cash for Christmas. Any blog currently in the ourwwworld sidebar that does not have a minimum of 5 posts relevant to your stated topic by 15 November will not be able to participate, and your blog will be deleted from the sidebar until you've caught up with the rest of the team. For those of you who already have reached that 5 post target, congratulations - and sorry for the delay!

Keep an eye out on 15 November (internet willing!) for the contest details.

Becoming sustainable bloggers

There are lots of folks out there who will tell you that they are earning thousands of dollars per month blogging. Many will sell you their secrets, but almost all of the people who are worth listening to will tell you that it didn't happen for them and it's not going to happen to you without work.

Blogging CAN earn some very ingenious people a lot of money within a very short time. For the vast majority of people like me and you who are struggling to keep up with the information overload, however, blogging is not going to earn significant amounts of money without an investment in learning time and energy in doing the groundwork it takes to put the components of a sustainable blog in place.

The good news is, if you're willing to learn how to do the work that sustainable bloggers do, your blog most certainly can develop into a rewarding hobby that not only pays for itself, but also pays you a salary for nurturing it that can increase over time.

There are four basic categories of blog-related work that any blogger concerned with sustainability must be prepared to get done in equal measures:

1. Produce content

2. Let audiences know your content is available

3. Identify, implement, test & manage revenue streams

4. Learn constantly about 1, 2, and 3 by interacting with other bloggers

As I delve into the blogosphere of late in search of knowledge about how it all works, my quest is to find ways that the ourwwworld team can collaborate effectively as a team, to help each other get the 4 main parts of the work involved in sustainable blogging done, and maximize the value of the scarce time we each have to spend online. Ever present in my mind are the language, time and cost constraints that our non-US team members face.

In future posts here, my plan is to offer knowledge, time-saving tips and collaborative ideas for each of the 4 categories of stuff that needs to be done to create blogs that increase in value over time. Though I will certainly share whatever I think I'm learning I honestly don't have all the answers for us by a longshot. I'm thinking about interviewing some guest bloggers who I believe will have some useful experience to share in helping us understand the work involved in all of these areas, and tips for getting it done efficiently. I'll also be pointing you in the direction of bloggers I am learning from in a number of different spheres.

Please let's use the comment space here at the ourwwworld blog to discuss (with each other and other bloggers who will hopefully pass by) the different strategy options available to us as we explore the path to sustainable blogging as a team.

Sustainable blogging, from and for Africa

Just in time for Blog Action Day 2008, we've redesigned the ourwwworld team blogs to have our say about poverty, and to start using our blogs to raise money for a poverty-related cause.

The ourwwworld team is a small global group of people who are learning to blog together. More than half of our team is blogging from East Africa, where poverty is rampant and the costs of blogging are very high. The ourwwworld team blogs are monetized with the double intention of raising money for Life in Africa - the cause that binds our team together - and sharing revenues with the bloggers to offset their costs. Ideally, we'll develop a way that can make it financially feasible for more people who are affected by poverty to participate actively in the online world, and possibly even some extra income.

As we begin on this blogging journey, the ourwwworld team revenue sharing plan is as follows:

Team revenues will be earned through adsense, the sale of electronic books related to sustainable living, and other jointly promoted income generating mechanisms to be introduced at a later date. All team funds raised though the end of December 2008 will be subject to the following split:

• 20% to the blogger who raised the funds
• 20% for the bloggers' monthly cash prize fund
• 20% for ourwwworld site administration & promotion
• 20% to Life in Africa USA for overhead and admin support
• 20% to Life in Africa USA for disbursal to community projects in Africa

(Donations made directly to Life in Africa and/or craft sales made through ourwwworld team blogs shall not be subject to the split above.)

In order to make this revenue sharing model meaningful, the ourwwworld team blogs will need broad exposure to audiences that will read, click, purchase and resonate with the social message that each of the blogs has to offer. This blog will explore promotional and cross-promotional techniques that others in the blogosphere are using to develop their audience, and post regular round-ups of content created by the team. Cash prize contests designed to encourage team members to cross-promote each other will be announced at the ourwwworld blog monthly. The first round of ourwwworld team promotion contests will be announced on 1 November 2008.

Until then, the focus is on content! Ourwwworld bloggers must make at least 4 new posts between 16 and 31 October in order to participate in the November contests.