Following People With Huge Followings: A Mirage of Success

When I first started blogging, I was looking for that "edge" that would help me get going.  I had found a few resources and moved forward. And through the years, I stuck with the few newsletters that I had subscribed to.  And for new bloggers, I recommend looking up the more respected sources, authors or sites.  My advice... don't believe their own self-hype.  Look at what other people say about resources.

But there's a certain set of blinders some authors seem to have on when they write, that don't click with some of their insights.   Insights that equate to their results when they try new websites or services.

Overblown Experiments

But one of my gripes about well established bloggers is that when they play with new services and then seem to think there's something to them or not.

One particular SEO expert, who has over 100,000 followers or subscribers across several social network sites has an interesting perspective.  So when he goes off to start a new blog or try a new service, people will follow him.  Or, he instantly has a new or established base of followers wherever he goes.  So his endeavors appear pretty successful.

So for me, when he writes up his experience with "setting up a new..." blog or service account, it's hard to trust the experience this professional blogger sees, because he already has this huge established fan base.  And thus, unlike you or me, when he starts something & puts his name to it, it will, of course, take off.  For you or me, it's going to be one new follower at at time, per day or week.

This uber popular blogger also has a huge amount of resources to apply to a new account of whatever service he starts.  He has staff and he has the followers to boost/repost/like/ whatever it is he initiates.

So when he conducts a Pinterest Experiment, though everyone appreciates it, you have to look it over with a discerning eye and remember...  it was easy for him because he has a huge fan-base.  And though he demonstrates good ideas about some things based off his experience, please don't set yourself up for disappointment if you think you might get the same or similar results.

That's really all I'm saying.  Don't get wound up thinking you have found the end-all traffic booster in a single article.  Blogging is a long haul marathon.

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A few observational footnotes:

Side-note 1:  For one... I have noticed that well established and long running sites tend to repeat subjects they cover every year.  That's not a bad thing when there's an update to the subject.  And it's not a bad thing because there's always new bloggers in the world every year.

Side-note 2:  One of my frustrations is when a site gets popular and then the person for whom I am following the site for starts filling their site with guest posts.  Sure, he or his infrastructure trust the guest poster, but it's not him.  I followed the newsletter or account because of the original person. So I have a subtle level of frustration.


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