Creating Flagship Content
Where’s the flag on your ship?
If you’re one of the lucky leaders in the virtual world, that flag is stuck firmly in the bow of the ship, front and center. It’s visible from far, whipping in the wind, proudly displayed as an icon of moving forth to conquer the world.
Flagship bloggers like Dosh Dosh, Problogger and Copyblogger lead the fleets. These commanders are the forward thinkers that beat us all to the punch. They come up with content that makes us all nod and wish we’d thought of that first.
They predict upcoming trends or they throw out new ideas for everyone to discuss. They create followings of fans who hang on their every word. They shape the way people use the Internet.
For most bloggers, though, the flag on their content is somewhere over by the rowers, fluttering gently in the breeze. Some bloggers store their flag down in the belly of the ship out of view.
Some bloggers don’t even have a flag. They just follow the leader.
Flagship content writers could probably walk into a roomful of people, take charge of the situation and soon have the whole group outside digging a hole to China.
Why dig a hole to China? Well, no one really knows, but the leader told them to dig, so that’s what they’re doing.
Flagship content is different from all the content out there. It sets the standards for everyone else. Bloggers harbor dreams of making it to the big leagues and being one of those flagship icons to follow.
How do they do it? What does it take to create a following? What makes these people leaders of the fleets that follow them across the seven seas?
Creating flagship content demands innovative thinking and creative angles. It requires the confidence of expertise and the strength of leadership. It takes someone who can sit back and think on where the world is now, where the lack of knowledge is and where the world might be going.
Think about your flag when you write. Where will you plant it? Is it right there where people can see it? Do you even have your flag handy? Or have you seen the raising of the lead ship’s flag and just decided to wave your own in response?
Maybe it’s time to craft a new flag for your ship. Be different. Be confident and command respect. Take the time to think and research. Try to predict trends or see into the future. Trust yourself enough to take your ideas and turn them into reality. Believe in yourself and your ability to lead the fleet, not just to follow the other ships.
8 Responses to “Creating Flagship Content”
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When I started my main website I was all over the place; however, I started treating it like my business and I noticed a difference. I’m don’t want to be like everyone else. It’s hard to be heard. Now my main website receives a fair amount of traffic. Yes my flag is firmly planted. Can I make improvements? Of course and I can. I recently started adding those improvements to my website. The feedback has been amazing. I’m always looking for ways to improve my websites.
Hi Opal,
I have been to your site and was impressed. Question: Do you feel like treating your site as a business made you more focused in your writing for this site?
James,
Flags aren’t really a symbol I get into, but this article is inspirational. Funny, but I was drawn to this site, not to the “bigger” bloggers you mention. Then again, I have never been drawn to commercialism, but you certainly can learn from these people. The trick is to pick and choose what you need for your own particular marketing strategy.
Thanks.
@ Ellen – You’ve just made my day. Thank you for that compliment.
Thanks for helping me to remember that all content is valuable.
Ellen,
It helped tremendously.
With my main website, vegan momma, when it was created three years ago I didn’t treat it like a business. It was just a “personal journal” and I treated it as such. It showed. I’m also a business owner I started treating vegan momma like my “regular business”
When I started treating my main website like a business, my website changed. People noticed. My traffic increased. Solicitors started contacting me directly to write reviews or place ads on my website. They were willing to pay a lot of money. My main website gets contacted weekly by solicitors. I turn the majority down simply because I don’t do a lot of paid advertising. I keep them on file. Two of the solicitors are now my clients.
I will promote other websites/businesses that I enjoy however; those are personal reviews.
This year I created eleven additional website I treat them like a business. I learned from the mistakes I made with vegan momma, and I determined that I wouldn’t fall into the same trap. They’re are doing well.
I have big plans for Addicted To Writing, but presently I’m content to learn and improve my skills.
Like yourself I’m drawn to the smaller blogs; in fact, when I recognize people they are usually people that have a small audience. My feeling is the big blogs receive a lot of attention there is plenty of smaller blogs that are just as good, but they don’t get the same amount of recognition. I’ll do my part to change that. They deserve to be heard.
Just a small observation: the link to Dosh Dosh is broken.
By the way, I recently bumped into this website (I usually read DailyBlogTips and I really like the content, the approach and the tips you guys are putting on this website. I think it’s a really good site with resources for bloggers, and since I’m relatively new to blogging, I enjoyed all the posts I’ve read here and learned a lot. Thanks!
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@ Chris – Repaired with my thanks for catching that. Target=blank was the issue (doh!)
And you’re welcome
Good to have you as a reader.