goals

This is the most important thing you’ll ever do for your blog!

1. Defining your mission –
Make sure your mission identifies your target, and what you want it to communicate.

IE – My blog at Manlihood.com has this as it’s mission statement:

We are committed to equip, educate, and entertain men in a way that is engaging and fun.

Keep your mission statement simple, write it down – print it out – and memorize it. Everything your blog does should be GUIDED by your mission statement.

2. Vision –
This goes beyond your mission. This is what you hope your blog will accomplish. What you hope your blog will become. Keep in mind that monetization may be a part of this!

I’d like it if Manlihood.com could be a site with dozens of writers, and with several posts a day, and a weekly podcast. I’d like it to generate revenue from affiliate links and advertisers, as well as to promote books and products from my writers. I’m hoping that one day it can become an actual men’s magazine!

Is this a detailed vision? No. Does it have to be a specific vision statement? No. But it helps to have an idea where you would like it to go – and what you want it to accomplish.

MAYBE you want to be an author – in which case your blog should help establish you as an expert in your field, and showcase your writing styles, and to build your platform. Eventually you want it to become a communication and PR hub for your work, as well as a sales tool to sell your books!

MAYBE you have a storefront in a small town – you might be using your blog to help promote your products, and inform your customers of specials and savings. You could say that your vision is to grow to an ecommerce site, or just to engage your clientele and attract new customers as well.

3. Goals –

Write some goals for your blog. This could include content goals – ie – I hope to have three posts a week written and schedule for the entire year by the end of January.

They may include readership goals – I hope to have 100 visitors a day to my blog by the end of June.

Remember that goals need to be S.M.A.R.T.

S- Specific
M- Measurable
A – Attainable
R – Results-Focused
T – Timebound (give it a deadline!)

Stay tuned next week for So You Think You Can Blog? Make a Plan! Work Ahead!
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