“Blogging is dead.”
How many times have you heard that?
Over the past nine years since I started professionally blogging, I think I’ve heard it at least a couple of times a year.
But, in 2022, is it finally true? Is blogging dead?
If we’re talking about the blogging where people share random parts of their life and people flocked to read their latest adventure… yeah, that might be dead (or just moved over to Instagram).
Or if we are talking about creating random posts on random topics and google ranking them right away and Pinterest sending loads of traffic to whatever you share… yeah that’s probably dead, too.
But if we’re talking about creating a content based website on a specific topic… nope.
In fact, I’d be willing to argue that the right kind of blogging is one of the most lucrative ways to make money on the web these days.
No silly dancing required.
What about Social Media?
With the uprising of social media influencers on Instagram and TikTok, many people have shifted their focus to growing an audience there.
While I believe social media can be a great place for promoting your business, I still don’t think it’s a better option for stable and consistent growth and revenue.
For instance, if my traffic on any of my sites was as variable as the number of people liking my posts (3000 one day, 10 the next!), I’d be in a load of trouble.
Yes, my traffic has ebbed and flowed over the years – but for the most part, it has been reliable and consistent.
I understand that social media is the sole focus for many – and you CAN make a ton of money. But if you are trying to decide between becoming a social media influencer and creating a niche blogging site….if you have the skills and stamina for the second, I would do that.
What Do I Know?
Not surprisingly, blogging is a huge niche that many people write about.
Unfortunately, many people choose the blogging niche that don’t actually know a lick about blogging – so you’ll find a lot of information out there that isn’t very good.
So why should you listen to me?
I have grown four successful blogs, with about six more in the works.
I like to joke that I collect websites like some people collect real estate.
From these blogs, we’ve gotten millions of page views, generated hundreds of thousands of dollars, and through it all, I’ve learned a lot.
My first site – the one that we focused on solely for years – is not a niche site.
It used to rank really well for lots of things. Now it does fine, but many of our posts have been outranked by sites that are more niche-specific.
When we suffered a huge loss in traffic, we shifted our focus and started a niche website. And then another. And another….and you get the point.
Those sites have grown, primarily from search traffic. We use the same techniques and see the same patterns for growth.
Sometimes the growth is slow, but it eventually comes.
I don’t claim to be the all-knowing expert on niche blogging…but I sure know a lot. This is why I relaunched my blogging site – because I want to teach you the things I’ve learned about blogging (and from a variety of niches).
Niche Blogging isn’t for the Faint of Heart
Having a successful niche blog requires more than just enjoying writing.
The content you create IS important – but your strategy is far more important.
You need to know how to find the right keywords, write blog posts that Google actually wants to rank, and you have to have patience.
Most niche blogs take a year or longer to really take off (and that’s if you are really putting everything into it).
But – as with most things – the work can pay off. You just have to actually put the work in.
What is the End Goal?
People start blogs for various reasons. Most people just have one that they pour their heart and souls into.
I did that for years…and then we lost over half our traffic (and income) along with it.
It was at that point that I realized we needed to diversify. Sure, we kept working on that site and we have increased the traffic and revenue – but in the end, creating new sites is our primary business purpose right now.
For beginners, though, I recommend starting with just one site 🙂
Our end goal is to sell these sites – some we’ll sell when they reach a lower threshold for profit, others we have much bigger goals in sight. But our goal with niche blogging is to eventually sell all the sites we build and retire.
Though, we may keep one or two for some passive income in the end 🙂
How to Get Started with Niche Blogging
There is no simple answer to this. People have dedicated courses to this – and for good reason. I plan to share my own insights on this site. But here are a few tips for getting started:
Pick a Niche
This will be crucial to your success with niche blogging – picking the right niche.
While I do think it’s helpful to be interested in the niche you choose, you need to make sure there are actually people searching for it.
There’s a lot that goes into picking a niche site – and the best resource I can point you to for finding your diamond in the ou
Build a Simple Site
Focus less on making your site beautiful and more on creating amazing content.
Yes, your site should be fast. It should be easy to read. It should have a unique logo.
But at the end of the day, the most important thing is that it is readable on mobile.
Make it look useable, but your focus should be on content, not aesthetics.
Find Great Keywords
Keywords will make or break your site. Don’t just start writing articles you think will do well – make sure they are keywords that:
- People are actually searching
- Aren’t dominated by high-competition websites
- You can easily write content on
Makes sense?
I do believe that niche blogging has the potential to change a person’s life. I know it has for us. I invite you to follow along as I share our experiences and journey to growing and eventually selling our websites – and I hope I can join in yours, too!