As part of my entry to the The Blogpreneur Contest, being run by Chitika I’m supposed to write a bit about the success of Obzokee.com. Where do I start? Here is the trouble I’m having with this… how does one measure success in the case of a blog? I’m sure the people at Chitika are probably looking for stories about how much money people like John Chow etc are making with their blogs, but what about the guy who’s doing it for other reasons?

My success so far as I see it with Obzokee.com.

- I get the daily pleasure of being able to speak about something I do (work from home) and at the same time help others who are either wanting to secure a job they can do from home or who are currently working out of their home offices. There are so many misconceptions and untruths when it comes to telecommuting, I see what I and the others who contribute being a guiding light in a world full of scams.

- Yes, I do make some money from the ads and affiliate links that are include amongst the posts and I’d be lying if I said I could care less if I make money or not. I’d like to be able to make enough money from this blog one day so I can dedicate more time to it and pay others who contribute. But at this point the $50 or so a month that’s generated is barely enough to pay the hosting charges etc Mind-you, 1 month ago income was ZERO, so there is progress when it come to financial gain.

- Satisfaction. Obzokee.com went over a year with barely any visitors and only 8 subscribers to the feed. Last month we did a redesign and things have really changed. With over 500 feed subscribers and in excess of 5700 visitors the past 30 days and over 14,000 page views, things are going in the right direction. We’re reaching more people on a daily basis and really connecting with them which would explain the increase in subscribers and increase in visitors.

- People are speaking up. One of the key elements as I see it to a successful blog, is when readers are leaving comments. Shows that they are connecting with what you’re saying and are not shy to give their opinion on the subject. One of the things I’ve noticed besides the comments that are now being left in response to posts, people are using the “contact” link on the blog. Slowly I’m being sort-after as an expert on the subject of the blog.

So is Obzokee.com successful? Without hesitation YES! It’s covering the expense of itself, subscribers and visitors are growing very fast, people are commenting on posts, people are seeking me out as an expert on telecommuting and as mentioned at the start, I get to speak about what I do. Does it get any better?

In closing I’d like to share these few words. If you blog… organize the content so it’s easy to follow, try and stick to the topic as much as you can, try your best to add a personal touch with pictures and life stories (readers like to know that you’re just like them), attract writers who also share your passion for the topic of the blog and invite them to share their experiences (means you’ll always have something to post even when you get writer’s block), ask and show readers how to take action (ask them to comment, ask them to subscribe to your blog’s feed), be sure to keep your blog updated or readers will loose interest very fast - there are hundreds or similar blogs just waiting for their attention and most of all… have fun.

Fingers Crossed - Let’s hope my entry gets chosen