Most Bloggers Don't Blog to Become Famous

Posted on October 22, 2005

Wayne Hurlbert, the blogger of Blog Business World, has an article on Webpronews.com about blogging for celebrity. Wayne says most bloggers are not blogging to become famous and that many non-bloggers have a misconception that people are blogging for fame.

The idea that is circulating, and usually among those who have little or no concept of blogging, is people blog to become famous. The possibility could be true in many cases, as some bloggers do set out intentionally to blog for fame. It could even be argued that business people blog for that reason. If the goal is to spread the word about their business, then at least becoming better known is the motivation.
That said, fame is not likely the main driving force for most bloggers to set fingers to keyboard. Bloggers write to express themselves, and very often to extremely limited audiences. By the way, if you are one of those unfortunates, we should talk; or at least read my blog on a more regular basis.

Studies like AOL's Blog Trends Survey which found that over half of all bloggers surveyed agreed that blogging served as a "form of self-therapy" would back up the idea that most bloggers are just blogging because they just have something to say or because it makes them feel better. Another survey found that 36% blog because they like to write and 14% blog just because "it's fun."

Blogs and bloggers are so diversified, in their countless motivations and goals, that it's literally impossible to pigeonhole the reasons for starting a blog. With literally millions of blogs on the internet, similarity of thought and ideas went out of the window long ago. There are as many classifications of blogs, topics, and themes as there are numbers of blogs. It's a bit like counting grains of sand on a beach.
I'm sure that a search for bloggers who seek only fame, would turn up many examples. The opposite case is also true. A similar search for bloggers who go out of their way to avoid publicity for their blogs, beyond a select circle of readers, would also find large numbers.

There are blogs about an enormous variety of subjects and there are bloggers who pursue popularity and those who do not. The misconception by non-bloggers may come from the louder fame-seeking bloggers that boast of their earnings and inbound links. However, there are many more bloggers who quietly blog away about their life or a particular subject. The social networks are also full of bloggers that just use the blog and photograph tools to share photos and stories with friends.