Is that really you behind the curtain?

Posted on | June 1, 2009 | No Comments

Whether you are an experienced blogger or just starting out, one thing is critically important to your success at building followers – individualism and authenticity. I know, these words are popping up everywhere it seems these days. But what do they really mean?

To me it is all about building a “Persona” with your audience – helping them understand who the “real person is behind the curtain” as we saw in the Wizard of Oz. If you don’t know the real person behind the text, how can you really build a relationship with that person so you are compelled to follow them and their rants and raves? You can’t.

Who writes your blog entries – you or someone in your organization? If it isn’t you, then it isn’t you. Meaning, if you have a “ghost writer” or “editor” or anyone else that messes with the way you write, then you aren’t developing your own persona or individualism – it’s that simple. The audience will eventually find this out and eventually stop following you. And worse, they will tell others it really isn’t you and you won’t get their followers either. End result – your blog will eventually die.

So write when you feel like writing but make sure it is your writing. If it isn’t, don’t publish it unless you let your audience know it isn’t you. More on how to use “Guest Writers” effectively in another post…

Blaine

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