Main Entry: blogger
Pronunciation: blog – ger
Function: noun
Definitions:
- A nobody that always wanted to write and thinks people will finally notice their talent online
- A lonely geek looking for attention
- A marketer that publishes promotional fluff as an attraction strategy for a product
- A depressed 9-to-5er that desperately wants to quit and work from home
- A Darren Rowse or Steve Pavlina wannabe
- A get-rich-quick schemer that thinks blogging is the key to making millions online
- A lazy homebody looking for a source of passive income so they never have to work again
- An author that can’t get published
- A CEO that wants the board to think he’s on the cutting edge
- A techy tag along that starts a blog because everyone else has one
- A tiny voice amongst millions that doesn’t have a prayer of getting noticed or making any money
But… but… but…
Doesn’t the word “blogger” just refer to someone that “keeps a web log (blog)?” After all, that’s what the dictionary says.
Not anymore.
Over time, the connotation of a word changes, and its meaning expands. In the case of blogging, it’s taking on an air of failure, almost like being called a musician or actor.
In those fields though, we’ve developed separate terms. We call successful musicians rock stars or pop stars. We call successful actors movie stars.
So what do we call someone who runs a profitable blog? And more importantly, how do you become one?
Post a comment, telling me what you think. I’ll give you my take tomorrow.
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PowerBlogger!? BlogStar?!
I love your blog! Very insightful and inspiring. Can’t wait to read more! Thanks.
Interesting ideas Charlie. I like the powerblogger one.
Currently, the standard term seems to be Problogger, but I’m going to argue against that tomorrow.
Oh… and I love you for loving my blog
Gonna disagree with you on that, because what matters in this case is who’s creating these connotations. And that is people and industries that are being disrupted by blogging, such as traditional marketers, PR people, and journalists. They look down their noses at bloggers and smear them in their mainstream publications, dismissing them as “just” bloggers. They act as though what they say is what matters, as if this entirely new world wasn’t being constructed right in front of them which they choose to not see.
Meanwhile, bloggers are a big part of this disruptive force rewriting all the rules. This thing hasn’t even barely started! How many bloggers do you think are going to quit their jobs and become full-time professional journalists?
Exactly. But the opposite is happening.
Let’s look at this from a sports angle: should someone stop playing golf because they’re not Tiger? Heavens, no. And what do we call Tiger? He’s a pro golfer.
But hey, anyone who can coin a new term or get me to see things in a new way has my interest. Looking forward to what you have to say about this.
[...] is being construed as “loser” or “wannabe” over in hist post 11 Meanings for “Blogger†You May Have Never Noticed Doesn’t the word “blogger†just refer to someone that “keeps a web log (blog)?†After [...]
I completely agree that blogger, in most instance, equals wannabes. But so does youtube these days. I recently started blogging and I am actually not a wannabe, have plenty of credits. But I joined this network of bloggers to increase traffic and it’s just all these kids trying to prove themselves to one another, patting each other on the back, all the while hoping to somehow land the big break. But what they’re generally doing is regurgitating information, and have nary a creative bone in their bodies. Well, I’m sure a few do. Back to youtube to watch My Dog’s First Fart.
[...] Yesterday, I ended with a question: so what do we call someone who runs a profitable blog? [...]
Q: So what do we call someone who runs a profitable blog?
A: Employed
Q: And more importantly, how do you become one?
A: Hard Work
That was an awesome list.
I tried my best but I couldn’t disagree to one single point.
Cheers!
Mani
Thanks- I am trying to place one of those Defs on my self and I hope I will not always be in the last one. I have been at it a year and have seen a little progress so I guess I will keep plugging away but in my niche I doubt ill ever be a problogger but I hope to turn it into a stream of income anyway.
See Ya in the Hills!
I am the fourth bullet kind of a guy…moving onto the last bullet after going through your blog.
I think that there are also people who blog not necessarily for the fame or expertise, but as a way to build relationships and network in a way that also allows people to see and interact with their ideas. They may never grow to ProBlogger standards, they may never make a living from it, but through blogging, within their own niche, they can be rockstars. That’s a pretty valuable definition, I think.
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Nice article