Creating a Mental Shift about Blogging in Nigeria
It amuses me that in the present age, many Nigerians still do not know what blogging is all about. They find it difficult to comprehend how you can make a living through blogging.
Call yourself a full-time blogger, and they’ll quickly label you an unserious fellow that lacks vision and ambition.
In this part of the world, blogging is still unpopular; it can’t be placed side-by-side with professions such as Medicine, Accounting, Engineering, and Law. At best, it should be taken as a hobby and nothing more.
That was why the erstwhile president of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo told Omojuwa that blogging isn’t a profession. That was why Wizkid called Linda Ikeji ‘nothing but a blogger’ during their faceoff on social media earlier in this year. And this is the way majority (even educated Nigerians) see blogging.
As Nigerians, we need to realize that things are rapidly changing in the global landscape and start aligning ourselves accordingly. In other parts of the world, the workplace culture has transformed from the regular office setup to creative innovations like virtual offices, co-working, and freelancing.
Based on this premise, I’ll like to put the records straight about blogging and bloggers.
Blogging is a career
Blogging is one of the smartest career paths of the 21st century. It’s a unique profession which provides flexibility and an unrestricted career growth opportunity. With blogging, you can maximize your time by working from your comfort zone and reducing commuting time. You can also build a direct relationship with industry influencers; a situation that’s almost impossible in the corporate world.
In advanced societies, people are proud to call themselves bloggers because the society recognizes them as job owners and employers of labor. A standard blog is made up of a team of designers, content writers, social media experts, email marketers, and product development experts.
Again, the corporate world knows the benefit of leveraging blogging for their businesses and sees bloggers as collaborators. That’s why it’s very easy for content marketers like Neil Patel to help big companies Amazon, NBC, GM, HP and Viacom grow their revenue.
Blogging is about creating value
Yes. Blogging is all about creating value and you heard that right. Brush aside your sentiments and ask yourself if you’ve not learned something or made a big discovery through your favorite blogs.
According to Jon Morrow, bloggers make a living teaching other people what they know. Professors do it. So do public speakers and best-selling authors. Consulting is a $415 billion industry, and what are all those consultants doing? Getting paid to teach, of course (emphasis mine)!
Blogging is no different. It’s just the same old models with some rocket fuel thrown in, courtesy of social media.
For example, I teach people how to make money blogging, and the trio of Opeyemi Awoyemi, Ayodeji Adewunmi and Olalekan Olude of Jobberman help people find jobs, and we all create value.
Really, it doesn’t have to be the same thing. Everyone should look for something that they’re passionate about and see how people can benefit from their knowledge.
Bloggers are entrepreneurs
Bloggers are online entrepreneurs because they make money through blogging. There are many ways through which bloggers make money. And any doubting Thomas has probably seen advert banners and digital products on that popular blogs they visit.
Popular Nigerian bloggers such as Uche Pedro (Bella Naija), Linda Ikeji (Linda Ikeji’s Blog), Yemisi Odusanya (Sisi Yemmie), Jide Ogunsanya (Ogbonge Blog), among others are typical examples of bloggers earning handsomely via their blogs.
If anything, blogging has really helped the Nigerian entertainment and sports industries in terms creating more awareness. This should tell us that bloggers will continue to remain relevant so long these industries continue to thrive.
Lastly on this, the level of unemployment affecting the teeming Nigerian youth will be drastically reduced if more youths take to blogging. I say this because Nigerian youths are resourceful and they have what it takes to make a successful career blogging.
Blogging is a tool for social change
The amount of influence that blogging has is inestimable. The amount of energy channeled into blogging makes it a vibrant tool that can be used to effect social change. According to Marketing Profs, about 2 million blog posts are written every day.
A typical example of the power of blogging is the massive publicity the ‘Bring Back Our Girls’ campaign enjoyed on Nigerian blogs. Not only did it create awareness for the campaign, the rate at which this awareness spread was pretty fast.
Therefore, the implication is that blogging, if used constructively, can create a huge social impact. But we have to give bloggers the support and encouragement they need by reading and sharing their content.
Conclusion
There’s no denying the fact that the unethical activities of some pseudo-bloggers have contributed immensely to smearing the image of the blogging profession. But this isn’t exclusive to blogging as every profession has its bad eggs.
There are quacks parading themselves as doctors, and we’ve seen cases of college teachers sexually assaulting their students. Did we stop going to clinics or stop attending universities? We only condemn the individuals and not their professions. So why should blogging be any different?
Interested in blogging? Learn how to create a blog here: http://www.expertfreelancewriter.net/concise-guide-how-to-start-a-blog/