We all want to be liked, don’t we? Whether it’s by the popular girls or your favourite teacher at school; your parents, siblings or children at home (I’m assuming your partner likes you!); your boss or colleagues at work; or just by people in general. Some people want to be liked for who they are, but I personally, want to be liked for what I do. I want to think that people like my blog posts, my writing, my cartoons, my website, my products and services. If you don’t like who I am and what I stand for, I’m not massively bothered, but in the words of the Spice Girls, I really really want you to like what I do.
But because of what I do, where I do it, and normal human behaviour, I don’t often get the reassurance I’d like in an ideal world. Writing blog posts, on the internet, when a normal human reaction to the written word is to read it, absorb what’s relevant, and move on, doesn’t provide much proof that anyone is actually reading what I write, never mind finding it interesting or useful.
Every now and then, however, I get a reminder that people are out there and they’re reading what I write. Like when a blog post I write gets some Likes and Comments on LinkedIn or Facebook; or Retweeted on Twitter. My last blog post, where I outlined 15+ suggestions of what you can blog about, got all of the above, including a Comment from someone I thought had given up on blogging altogether: not so, it seems!
This week’s newsletter also reminded me that people are reading, and paying attention to what I write. It prompted more replies than usual, including one from someone saying that he’s trying the same thing (guest blogging), and one from another reader who wished me luck with the guest blogging, and told me he likes my emails and finds them ‘useful, easy to read, and not too long.’ Exactly what I aim for each week!
The most recent reminder came via my hairdresser when I went for my appointment earlier this week. A few weeks ago, someone in my local ladies Facebook Group posted that they were looking for a new hairdresser. This happens every now and again, and I always pitch in and recommend my hairdresser, Robbie from Arthaus on Broughton Street. (If you don’t know how much I love my hairdresser, heres a link to a blog post I wrote about him.) This particular time, I wrote a rave review, and someone else replied to my Comment raving about him too. This led to an exchange of raving, and another of Robbie’s clients also joined in. When I went to my appointment this week, Robbie told me that he’s had four new clients as a result of my recommendation and the subsequent exchange. At least three of those ladies were not an active part of the post: they read it, liked what they read, and took action as a result of it. In trying to influence one person’s decision, we ended up persuading at least three other people to try our hairdresser, and if he hadn’t told me, I’d never have known.
So next time you’re wondering what the point of writing your blog post is, or why you’re wasting your time offering your valuable knowledge, expertise, and experience to strangers on Social Media, remember Robbie!