Week after week, we come across headlines such as ‘Twitter is Dead’ or ‘SEO is Dead’. Recently there has been a lot of talk regarding blogs and how they are slowly fizzling out of existence. This just shows how some digital marketers don’t understand how the internet works.
As a blogger or a person looking to venture into this field, coming across topics such as ‘Blogging is Dead’ can make you question your entire digital ambitions. But, before you make a conclusion, you need to ask yourself; is blogging dead?
1. History of Blogs
To fully understand whether blogs are dead or alive, we need to go back in history and look at where blogs came from. If you were of age by the 2000s, then you must have had a LiveJournal back then. It was the trend at the moment and everyone was doing it.
Later on, there rose the need to discuss more serious topics such as business, politics, technology and even travel. Marketers being the smart people they are, took notice of this and blogging for business sprouted.
By 2007 and 2008, blogging was at the top of the digital food chain. It created a conduit for professionals and experts to share their thoughts on different topics. Fast forward to 2020, nothing has changed. Blogs are more relevant than ever. The modern-day consumer turns to the internet for research before buying a commodity, service or even for general knowledge.
2. Is Blogging Really Dead?
No matter what image some people might want to paint the blogging narrative, it is far from dead. As a matter of fact, blogging is more effective than ever. It can help you accomplish everything it ever did 10 years ago and even more. According to CMI and MarketingProfs, at least 71% of buyers used blogs when making a purchase decision. This is a 5% increase from a survey done the previous year.
Blogging is not dead, the only thing that happened to it is that it has reincarnated. As companies and businesses gradually adopted the use of blogs, there was a need for consumers to sort through the noise and this is where search engines developed algorithms to make this possible.
Even the way we blog had to change to suit modern-day trends and consumer patterns. The only problem was, not everyone is willing to accept this change and continue using this platform in digital marketing.
3. What Changed?
If you have been around for a while, then you can bear witness on the key changes affecting blogging. Back in 2020, you could easily use one keyword and create hundreds of blog posts to rank higher on search engine result pages. Today, that is considered spamming and it is not allowed.
Blogging today is more genuine and traffic generated is organic. This is a win-win situation for both bloggers and consumers. Back in the day, you could find a poorly written blog post at the top of page one of Google. The reason for this, most people were writing to please search engines and not readers. As of now, content found on page one of Google is factual, accurate and concise. On the other hand, bloggers are getting pure organic traffic that they can convert into leads.
4. What Hasn’t Changed?
We have talked a lot about the changes blogging has gone through. However, some things haven’t and won’t change. Blogs have always followed the principle; ‘They Ask–You Answer’. And to date, that’s exactly what happens. As an expert blogger, you need to dig deeper into your niche and find out the thing that your audience wants to know and answer it.
Although both search engines and your audience’s needs will always change with time, this principle will remain constant. This is why you should focus on creating researched and unique articles that seek to answer the queries of your audience.
Here are some things bloggers need to remember;
4.1. Everything is a trend
In the digital world, nearly everything is a trend. When Myspace started fizzling out, Facebook became more popular. Although blogging sites are pretty much the same, the design, layout, and functioning has completely changed. Bloggers need to be updated with the latest trends to ensure you are at the top of your game.
4.2. Think outside the box
Blogging is not dead, but your niche can in the next couple of years. You need to be ready for this by always thinking outside the box. Make a habit of producing more multimedia content and experiment with new technologies.
Final Thoughts
The bottom line is that blogging is not dead. More bloggers are rising from all corners of the world and companies are continuing to make use of blogs to increase their brand visibility. Blogging is still alive and kicking. But it is changing and don’t be left behind.
