To BLOG or to STARTUP....What's the difference?

Blogging and Podcasting has become a big phenomenon everywhere,be it IT,ITES,mainstream media and on & on...Every bloggger when he/she looks down their continual blogging journey,they would find a huge maturity being developed over a perriod of time.Maturity in naive terms could be changes with respect to your personality,your confidence,your communication....Be whatever is the theme of the blog(personal/IT/Business..), it is sure that initially your blog would not be known to others in the blogosphere , which means there are no readers(or customers) of your blog.This means that you are the bottom of the pyramid and now comes all the energy(and planning) to move your blog up the value chain So, your newly created blog is your own BABY or should I call your startup?

Isn't Blogging related to Startup? Below are some of lessons a blogger learns over a period of time,which are the key elements to any startup:

1. Market Study
2. Bootstrapping your blog
3. Brand Building
4. Marketing (reach out people)
5. Get Customer feedback
6. Revenue Model
7. Mentorship & Ecosystem building

a. Market Study:
You have decided to take a plunge into Blogging but don't know where to start? Some say Blogger is good and for others Wordpress is better(and yes it is open source).Other bloggers say "Better to have your own domain name?" and list of suggestions keep on coming.This in turn helps you interact with lot of bloggers and check up,where the technology is heading and plus,who knows the people with whom you have interacted will be your future readers(or customers).

b. Bootstrapping your blog:
When you have a startup,the initial hurdle is bootstrapping your startup.So,after the initial market study,you have decided to have your own domain name.If you are still in your teens,you have to hunt out for that initial sum to register your domain.You reach out parents,friends or others in your locality(and trying to convince them for the amount and ROI you would fetch through your blog.You haven't made a business plan but still learnt lot of aspects about funding

c. Brand Building:
So,you have done the market study,done the bootstrapping.Bigger confusion now,what should be the blog URL?Will my target be just the local audience or would it address the international community as well? So,you need a Blog name that is easy to be spelt/easy to search on Google or one which would be recognized by international audience as well.Need to build a band image for your blog which is very much needed at each and every phase of a startup.

d. Marketing (reach out people):
Now,you are ready with few posts,but you are not getting enough readership.Oops,you have not marketed your blog?You now build a strategy to get more readers(so called customers).This in turn helps you to polish you marketing skills and build a larger customer base

e. Get Customer feedback:
Now after effective marketing,you have managed to build a larger customer-base.But with this comes lot of suggestions or feedback.You being the founder of your blog,have to figure out which comment/feedback to incorporate in your blog.Thus,blog helps you form a strong communication channel between you(as a blog owner) and your readers(who are the customers of your blog).

f. Revenue Model:
(Note: This is only applicable for people who are blogging for money)
You have a blog , marketed it and built a strong customer base(same readers do turn back,which is very motivating for your startup).As many say "If you have a Good idea,money follows you" but if that does not happen,you would now need to have proper model in place.Should I put Google Ads, Text Link Ads or Review Me ....Yes, you never knew that doing this, you were building a revenue model,just like every startup has a model.

g. Mentorship and Ecosystem building:
Every Entrepreneur would love to have a mentor.But how does it feel that you(as a blogger), being a mentor?.As you begin to devote more time creating a brand for your blog,you have already built a strong market knowledge !!! Very soon,you would find mails flowing into your mailbox with the new aged bloggers asking for help(guidance).This does not seem to stop with just one blogger but you would be the change agent to many of such new age bloggers. You are now a mentor for these bloggers and are indirectly building a healthy Entrepreneurial Ecosystem,which would have been very difficult without your blog

These are some random thoughts coming from my startup ThoughtsPrevail,if you have some more thoughts do share them by leaving a comment.