Laura’s Blog

By Kevin Conner
Guest Contributor

Blogging can be an amazing tool for your business or a way to start a new endeavor. But it isn’t as easy as opening a Google Doc and typing away.

Here are five costs that beginning (and experienced) bloggers must consider when creating a long-term blogging plan:

1. Solid and Stable Internet Connection

If you don’t have internet access, you can’t blog.

You can certainly write, but without a stable connection you might not be able to get access to research materials, you won’t be able to easily edit your posts, and you can forget about high-quality photos and video content.

If you’re serious about blogging, you must take your internet connection seriously.

That might mean investing in a better internet service. Take some time to research the best internet service in your area and hook yourself up.

Coffee shops are ok as a stopgap, but relying on an internet connection outside your home or office is a recipe for inefficiency.

2. Server and Service Maintenance

The costs of hosting a blog (or a blog that’s built into a website, which most blogs are) can vary wildly. As a general rule, worthwhile blog hosting is at least $10 a month and your domain name is a smaller but notable yearly cost.

As your audience expands and you need more substantial hosting, those costs will likely increase. Look into these costs in advance and make sure you can afford them. Also, try to either bundle related hosting services or get a yearly plan if you’re in for the long haul.

3. Proper Marketing

You don’t need to hire a top-tier marketing agency for your blog. That would be wildly expensive and useless if your blog isn’t already getting a great deal of traffic. However, in the oversaturated blogging world, some form of marketing is required.

Don’t assume that marketing isn’t needed because it’s “just” a blog.

Nor should you assume that your content will be successful on its own. (This usually happens only after a long time, a lot hard work, and a little luck.)

Doing marketing yourself is an option, but it might not be the best option, certainly not long-term. You will need to spend your time on other factors, and a simple Facebook ad campaign can make its money back if targeted properly.

Make sure you are up-to-date on your marketing knowledge so you know which services and practices to avoid. Look up the best outreach practices for your niche. Determine what costs are appropriate to you, and think of value and the return on your investment instead of cost.

4. Your Time

You need to track your time for the simple fact that even though it may cost $$, outsourcing some of your content writing, editing, and/or formatting might be the more economical option.

Calculate the cost of your own time. You might be surprised! Then start making decisions about your blog with a time budget in mind.

5. Equipment and Tool Maintenance

Eventually, your computer is going to break, or you are going to need a new keyboard. To keep blogging, you’re going to need to quickly fix and replace these items.

Should you expand into other forms of content such as podcasting or vlogging, this cost will only grow.

Create a small emergency fund earmarked for equipment and maintenance, including items such as security software repairs.

Conclusion

Don’t be discouraged from blogging by these hidden costs (they aren’t as expensive as costs in most other enterprises). You should, however, understand them so you can budget properly and have realistic expectations.

With enough planning, you can also efficiently manage your resources to make your blog a more effective one.

About the Author

Kevin Conner is the founder and CEO of Vast Bridges, a customer acquisition and lead generation company in the home services arena, and he specializes in leading teams to fulfill well-thought-out strategic visions.