It’s early Saturday morning. The sun is glinting off the dusty window of the house opposite as we hop in the car and head off on our adventure. Driving along a wide expanse of green, a small battered white car nips past us, dust trailing behind. Finally we weave our way through dry streets, past houses that look like they’ve been held up my magic for over one hundred years.
Where are we? Patience. We’re nearly there. Time for a walk. The rest of our journey needs to be done on foot. Be careful though. It’s busy. Look at all the people jostling around, doing their thing.
Grab my hand if you’re afraid we’ll get separated. What can you see?
Stupid question you’re thinking. I don’t know where we are yet! We’re in a little town in the Loire Valley in France. We’ve come to enjoy the weekly market. So now tell me, what can you see? The people. Faces. Colours. Stalls.
Oh, but what is that smell?! Hang on.
Can you see the crowd gathering around that stall? They seem pretty keen about something. Let’s have a look.
Row upon row of little beady eyes stare up from the ice and, oh boy! The smell! It’s fish. Very smelly fish! I absolutely detest fish (unless it’s tuna and from a tin) and can’t hang around here a moment longer but here are five reasons why your blog must be like a smelly French fish market stall if you want to be as awesome as an A-lister.
Have you ever been to a French outdoor market? There’s nothing quite like it. The fresh produce and the magic of trading in a foreign language is unbeatable. But here’s the thing: markets need traffic, lots of it.
Your blog is a treasure trove of deliciousness just waiting to be gobbled up by hungry surfers but they need to know you exist. It reminds me of the time we visited Blois. Do you think we could find the market that day? The city was so vast (and my French so very, very poor) that we got totally lost!
People online need directions in their own language if they are to find their way to your place. Twitter, Facebook and SEO are all great in their different ways but they need to be used right.
You don’t get much more over-saturated than a French market. Four different fruit & veg stalls, three crepe vans, ooodles of bakery stalls and of course, more than one fish pitch. How does your typical French Mademoiselle choose where to shop? Yes, she will probably go where she’s gotten to know the owner but before that? When she was brand new to this particular market?
Something will have attracted her to one stall. It might have been the giant fresh tuna in the front of the display cabinet. Maybe the stall holder got her attention with his winning smile. Perhaps the price was amazing.
Even if you’re blogging about dental care for felines, you will be entering an arena that has competition. (Seriously, I checked and found several blogs about cats teeth!) You need to help people decide why they should choose to invest (their time, money and love) in your blog. What is special about your place? What makes you unique?
There are two things about fish that I detest: the smell and those little teeny tiny bones that you have no idea are there until it’s too late. When I visit the French market, where is the last place I’m likely to hang out? You’ve got it – the fish stall. I get a whiff from a distance and stay well away. But that’s great. The fish vendor does not want me hanging around his stall. I will never buy his stuff.
Same with your place. Seriously. You want to repel people. The wrong people. As awesome as your place is, if you’re doing your thing to stand out, you will turn people off. Have a look at my place. (Go ahead and click here. The link will open in a new window so you can come straight back very easily.)
You’re back? Fabulous. If I’ve done my job right, my place will have given you one of two general reactions. Either ‘Hmmm, this looks interesting. I’ll have a little poke around while I’m here and see what she’s about.’ Or ‘This place is weird. I mean, look at the colours and the clouds and … what is the deal?! I’m outta here!’
I wantthat reaction. I spent hours in PhotoShop for that reaction. If you think my place is a bit weird, that’s OK. You’re not one of my people. You won’t like the stuff I write about and you probably won’t get me. What would be the value (for either of us) in you hanging around?
Same with your place. Do whatever it takes to stick your neck out and start repelling people, your wrong people.
Did you ever see a fish stall selling sausages? Or maybe bacon? They all come from animals so why not? Because a fish stall sells fish. People come to the stall expecting to buy fish and if they want bacon, they’ll get it from the butcher.
Would a fish stall sell fish sauce? Or a book full of fish recipes. I’ve never seen it done but they could. But ‘100 recipes for banana cake’ or tomato sauce? Not likely!
If you’re selling stuff on your blog (be that services or products) does your stuff match who you are and what your readers expect?
Week after week, come rain or glorious sunshine, the fish stall holder is there. He doesn’t wake up one morning with a bit of a sniffle and decide to take the day off. If he’d rather hang out at the beach all day, what does he do? He shows up anyway. Either that, or he sends someone in his place.
However often you write and publish new content for your blog, stick with it. If you decide to change the frequency, that’s cool. There is no right or wrong answer. People have been battling over this one, literally, for years. The most important thing is that you stick with it.
Get sick or need a rest? Look for people to guest post for you. Can’t find anything to write about? Come back next week and we’ll have that one covered. Whatever you do, be the person your lovely readers can depend on.
But now it’s over to you. Are you as fishy as an A-lister or could you use a little help? What are you doing to ensure the right people, your people, keep returning to your place, week after week?
Great analogy. Some salient points made here too. Being relevant is so important and you are right. We need to attract the right customers and that isn't everyone. I am in a small niche so haven't monetized my blog yet; still building up traffic and I have been surprised by the interest my blog is attracting in some of the most unlikely places. Getting to know other bloggers means I get to know why they visit my blog and whether they share my love for my niche or not.
Patricia Perth Australia
Being successful usually means having the courage, the perseverance, and also the will to become the individual you believe you were meant to be
i really thought it was all about fishes and stuff…nice tagline..i enjoy reading these of course..
hahahahahahahaha!!! I mean… I've seen other articles that compair fish with your website for marketing… but this way! Man! Really got me going reading at the begining and when I saw where you were going… hahah my god… that smell.
Anyway, great post it! I liked it when you write about the sensation that your site can bring a possible client. Good stuff..
I never knew you knew so much about fish El. Some high quality fish metaphors in here that I'll probably never use, but you never know.
BTW, the link will NOT open in a new window, because there is no link. That link is a bit like the Loch Ness Monster, some people think it's real, but it almost certainly isn't.
#3 is often overlooked by many bloggers – take note!
If you're trying to attract comments, generate a revenue or have active participation you really don't want those that are untargeted. Don't worry about the big numbers, just look at the conversions!
My recent post Unbelievable Stories Of Niche Market Success
Great analogy and the best post title I've seen in some time!
My recent post Google Instant Search is Live – Features and Effects on Marketers