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
