I can’t remember many details of that April day, the one that marked my debut as a blogger.

The only thing I remember is that I got an email from my contact at the university with a link to the post. Below my name, the words “guest author.” Not long after that, the guest designation disappeared and I officially began my work as the writer, developer, and promoter of that blog.

Since I started this blog on my own — and only a few weeks ago — the details of the launch are fresh in my mind, especially my last minute scrambling to get basic design elements in place, with help from several very talented and generous friends.

Do you remember your blog beginnings? Did you plan and prepare for months in advance or jump in with both feet on a whim? Did you have a careful plan for your launch, with clearly articulated ideas for promotion? Or did you start your blog hoping that people would find you organically?

When I began promoting the other blog, I had some ideas and plans in place. Some of my ideas worked great, while others flopped. I enjoyed the experimentation process, though. Over time, I found some methods that worked well. I stopped doing the ones that didn’t seem as useful.

If you want to increase your influence as a blogger, you will likely need to go through an experimentation process of your own. Considering a plan and goals is a great place to start. In my last post, I encouraged you to identify your objectives as a blogger.

Once you have identified your objectives, you can begin to:

  • Think strategically about how to accomplish your objectives
  • Identify specific action steps to take as you work toward your objectives

In the next posts of this series, I will share some methods that have worked for me and offer suggestions of how you can implement them to increase your influence. To prepare, consider these questions. Answer here, in the comments, or answer in a post on your blog and link in the comments here so we can all learn from your ideas.

What has worked well for you so far in growing your blog’s influence?

What has not worked well?

What resources are you willing to invest in order to see your blog grow in influence?