The other night, Joanne and I were watching 60 minutes and during their story on the worth of pennies, I could hear exactly how their story pertained to blogging.

You see, the US Mint produces 8 billion dollars a year in just pennies. And although the penny is just worth 1 cent when spent, it costs nearly 2 cents to actually make a penny.

Sounds really economical right? But there’s a high demand for pennies, they must be produced, even with the rising cost.

How does this pertain to blogging?

Blogs are created every single day. Someone discovers blogging, they think it’s for them; they setup a blog and poof, insta writer. It’s really a great concept. But few of those blogs ever make it past the three month mark. Quickly, the new blogger realizes something, blogging is difficult. And it’s especially more difficult when you have a niche blog and need to find topics to keep your blog fresh.

A new blog, just after setup is worth two cents to the new blogger. They can see the value, even without monetization. The blogger then however, has to show the worth to the public because when used, it’s still only worth a penny.

And now, we’ve have found the problem.

Newcomers to the blogosphere rarely know how to increase a blog’s worth from a penny to a nickel, a dime, a quarter, etc.

Let’s discuss how we can create value with our blogs, old and new, so that the general viewing audience sees the value of our blogs… for what they’re worth, not the depreciated value.

Know Your Niche
It’s easy to lose direction when you start a blog. Know what you want to write about it, display your expertise on the subject with an about me page, and build your knowledge in your niche. Even personal blogs have a niche.

Build
Your blog is never complete, build resources, information, research, and expand what your blog has to offer with valuable links. Once your initial setup is complete, don’t believe that you’re done adding information. Content is king, but the worth of your blog is the entire blog, not just the content you have. Offer resources that are helpful to your niche.

Research
Has someone else written on the topic of your blog post today? Research to find out. “Google it” and see what information turns up for the keywords in your blog post. Don’t hesitate to link to these blog posts as additional information for your reader. Gather sites about your niche that can provide you with additional information to keep your content fresh.

Network
I’ve already asked, are you an effective networker? Become one! Know other people; don’t be afraid to reach out to others in your niche and the bloggers that can support your niche!

Link
No one likes someone who is greedy with linking out. If someone knows something about a topic you’re writing about, reference them. Pass out link love when it’s appropriate for the topic of your blog post.

Keep Going
Building value for your readers and post regularly isn’t easy. But show that you’re in it for the long haul. Keep going, don’t give up. Don’t get blog burn out. Find ways to that boost your creativity and your writing skills and continue to work at it. Established blogs are hard to come by, don’t let yours fall.

Conclusion
When you’re working at it, you’ll not only begin to see the full value of your blog, well beyond a penny but your readers will to. Be helpful, give them value, not yourself. Be understanding, supportive, and give your readers a reason to come back by giving them something of value.

In the end, your readers see value when they learn something new, find someone that they enjoy reading, and are spoken to… after all, no one likes to ignored. Value, above everything else, is what is needed to sustain a blog. There are so many different ways to create value; it’s just a matter of actually doing it.

So, start today. How are you creating value for your readers? What are you doing that could be done more efficiently? What are you giving back with the vast amount of knowledge that you alone have?

Reference: 60 Minutes video about pennies and the US Mint

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