Get more subscribers, grow your followers, you need more comments. The list and the never ending obsession to grow those numbers. But are these best practices or just number porn…and a big blogging mistake?
We get all hot and flustered about numbers which don’t really mean much to our business. Do you want to really grow your business or inflate your ego?
Most Common Blogging Mistakes
These are the three mistakes I see bloggers repeating as they try to grow their business online.
1. Hanging out with the wrong tribe
Some of you might have hung out with the wrong crowd when you were younger.
I know, what’s the ‘wrong crowd’ right? What is wrong for me might be the perfect crowd for you. Well let’s put it this way, if I’m a blogger and my tribe doesn’t help me get my word out, there is a problem.
These are the top 3 signs you are in the wrong tribe:
- Main objective and purpose of the tribe is to promote its leader
- Your personal goals are ignored
- You pay the price for the leader’s poor decisions
Sounds familiar? Get out of there. NOW!
2. Going wide instead of deep
Sure you want reach and you want your message to be spread across the blogosphere. So what do you do? You recruit more followers, list members, etc.
Except that after 150 people, also know as Dunbar’s number, you can’t humanely handle and track new people easily. That’s why, large human tribes tend to split in two after they reach this size. All our online networks go against this idea. They make us believe we can heave hundreds if not thousands of healthy, strong and supportive relationships.
It doesn’t scale. Sorry. No tribe leader can engage with thousands of people a day, even a week.
So instead of growing wide, go narrow and deep. Focus on the few, hardcore members of your tribe who will go out and spread your message. This is your job, keeping these relations active and healthy.
You aren’t here to recruit, you are here to have a communion with your tribe. Let them do the recruiting.
3. Creating a tribe instead of joining one
Most of the time it’s a lot more efficient to join an existing tribe than to create your own.
Does this mean you shouldn’t create your own ? Absolutely not, but be clear WHY you are creating a tribe. What is your big vision? What are you trying to change in the world around you? If you aren’t sure, or don’t have a clear idea yet, don’t worry. You can still grow your reach by joining someone else’s tribe.
This is why you are here at BlogcastFM, to share with other members of this great media outlet. The best part of it, is that you are lucky, Srinivas is a great tribe leader and will share your voice, your message outside this tribe. Joining this tribe is a great move.
There are many other tribes out there you can join, as long as you know why you join and what your goal is to join them. Keep that in mind and you can avoid these common blogging mistakes. And hopefully never end up in the wrong tribe.
Where do you feel challenged with your tribe online?
John is a dad, husband, coach, and serial-entrepreneur. After living and working with real desert tribes for the past ten years, he moved to the South of France three years ago to run 
My tribe abandoned me and left me in an Earth forest. I hope to join a new one using these tips.
@AstroGremlin Good luck buddy!
Hi John, I’ve never been fond of the word “tribe” for many reasons. Some of them you mentioned here like the idea that there has to be a leader and often when the tribe gets too big it splits. I like to use the word “community” instead because although it can have leaders, even if there is a split, it can still be a considered a whole unit. Thanks for the post John, it made me think – and that’s what a really good blog post should do. Cheers!
@Ileane Good point, I personally like the word tribe because I lived among real life ones for many years. Of course we can play semantics all day but your point about a tribe vs. community is a good one.
I think tribes split often also, because of geography, age, income or other factors. Each one of these sub-tribes usually has a leader.
I think tribe is mostly a mindset, there can be tribal communities and non tribal ones.
For me a tribe is really a community on steroids, it takes the idea of solidarity between members to another level.
Thanks for the kind words
@BigGirlBranding thanks Cori . Hope you’re having a great morning
@skooloflife Likewise! And off to a good start.
Trying my best to get some client work out of the way so I can focus on other things.
@BigGirlBranding I’m trying to do some writing and hoping that i feel up to a surf session
@skooloflife Hehe.. Yeah my writing brain is mushy at the moment. Hoping coffee perks it up!
Going camping this weekend.. can’t wait..
@BigGirlBranding yeah, I usually find my writing brain is a bit better after some #surfing
@skooloflife Floating down the river for 3 days sounds heavenly right about now. And hopefully will inspire my writing brain upon return!
@skooloflife See you’re working backwards then. #surf first.. then write!
@BigGirlBranding that’s the way i roll
#surf
@skooloflife Lol.. everybody’s a drummer.
I agree with Mr. J and LIKE the word tribe but call it what you want, it’s absolutely ESSENTIAL to build if you want to in crease your ROI. (Return on Influence)
Thanks for the shareage, Sir.
Goooooood day! :~)
@KathrynCWheat