Over the last year or so I have slowly came to the conclusion that blogs are not as popular as they once were. It is something that I should have realised sooner.
Blogging is dead.
It is no longer the same as it once was. Of course, everything evolves over time, however I believe that in most ways blogging has went backwards, not forwards.
I discuss this in great detail in the video below.
Before I go on, allow me get one thing straight. I love blogging and I am going to continue blogging :)
The Death of Blogging
Building a successful blog today is more difficult than it was ten years ago. There is no doubt about that.
Back then we did not have to vie for readers attention from social media services as much and we did not have SEO companies regurgitating crap content in order to generate backlinks.
The landscape is so different today. Popular blogs that used to generate hundreds or even thousands of comments are now struggling to generate a few comments. It is more common for readers to share an article on social media and post their opinion there than leave a comment on the blog itself.
One of the greatest things about blogging was that when you published an article it became the hub for the discussion. Whether people agreed or disagreed with you, they would let you know in the comment area. The discussion is no longer centralised so the overall experience of blogging has been diminished in that regard. There is, in my opinion, a great argument for disabling comments on a blog altogether.
I am sure you have all noticed that I am blogging less than I used to. This is partly because I am focusing more on producing videos for my YouTube channels, but it also because it has become harder and harder to grow a blog without a large budget.
Those of you who do not own a blog and are looking at this from the outside might feel that what I am saying sounds like sour grapes. Those of you who have run a blog for many years will understand where I am coming from.
As I noted earlier, I am going to continue to blog as it is something that I enjoy, however I believe that bloggers need to start integrating other mediums into their content such as video and audio.
It is becoming harder and harder to stand out from the crowd because the market has become so crowded, but the key to being successful at blogging remains the same: Connections. You need to make a connection to your audience. In the past you could make those connections directly through your writing, but today you need to embrace video, audio, and social media.
Good luck.
Kevin
I don’t think you watched all of my video.
The change that SEO companies have made cannot be underestimated. Before Google changed all their rules there were many keywords that were dominated by bloggers. Now those same keywords are being dominated by companies and company blogs. It’s made it so much harder for smaller companies and individual bloggers to make their mark.
Blogging I believe is not dead. We live in an information age. People are constantly searching for information. People use Amazon search engine to look for products and buy . In the same vein people use google search engine for information. To say blogging is dead I do not agree
I agree with you.
“We” are at fault here. By we I really mean SEOs and SEMs. Overly emphasizing our efforts to “blog every day” or at least “3 times a week” and/or by paying people from other countries to write your content so every damn post I read says “Whilst” which I’ve never, ever said in my life except when complaining about content written this way. My thoughts are “write your own content” OR “hire a native speaker of your language in your country and region AND review their work carefully before it is posted” don’t write anything to meet a quota, if you are uninspired don’t write more drivel..
I have nothing against people in other countries writing for themselves or others who speak their native language. I encourage people to HIRE LOCALLY.
Google is also at fault – focus on quality and uniqueness of content is more important than ever. Otherwise this trend of just dumping more repetetive content on the web will continue.
I completely agree Kevin.
I was making money from affiliate marketing for many years through blogging but gradually it has become much harder work.
I completely stopped blogging for a while but I found I missed it. So I brought my main blog back to life a few months ago. It’s become more of a personal blog these days though. It doesn’t get many comments or social media shares. I found I used to get more when I commented more myself.
I haven’t done any videos so far but it’s something I’m considering getting into.
Are you referring more to news blogs?
In just about every niche news blogs dominate. Whilst news is great, I have always gravitated towards review blogs and those that have a personal touch :)
I have no plans on stopping blogging as I enjoy it. I do think the landscape is very different though.
The most successful blogs online are news blogs that are publishing up to 50 articles per day. Yes there are still opportunities, but I think that if the blogging situation was like this ten years ago I would have focused my efforts on different projects as there are many other ways to make money that do not require such an investment in time with such a low return. For example, something like dropshipping is a better avenue today.
I think it comes down to blogs who are specified in some interesting subjects or so. Like sport or tech etc.
Personally, I love to go to blog sites who are catering to motor sport and info blogs.
But, indeed not sure about if blogs are behind us. Viewers will always find the interesting blogs to read and to follow.
Not sure about “dead” or “behind us”, but CERTAINLY a lot more competitive. There are still opportunities though: for those prepared to really put the effort in. IMO. :)