More than ever, it seems Internet marketing experts are making bold proclamations that blogging is now dead.
You can run a Google search for “blogging is dead” and find hundreds of such articles written within the past 12 months. Interestingly, many of these articles were posted on blogs.
So why is blogging dead?
The correct question should be, “is blogging actually dead?”
The answer is “no”.
The reason why this subject has come up as of late is because so many bloggers are experiencing decreases in traffic, and therefore decreases in income. Part of the cause for that is Google releasing updated search engine algorithms that put greater emphasis on promoting popular authors, rather than just websites with lots of inbound links. The other cause is that there’s just far more blogs and websites competing for attention than there used to be.
But many bloggers are blaming mobile phones for their decrease in page views…
“Now a huge percentage of content (getting on for 50%) is devoured on the move via mobile devices. Smartphones and tablets just don’t lend themselves well to reading long text based articles, especially when using them on the move.”
…writes Alan Egan, blogger behind “BookingsPlus4G“.
True, there are many times when people pull out their phones to just skim through Facebook, Twitter, and check e-mail. But that doesn’t mean people today have shorter attention spans.
What I found is that people have learned to filter out junk. Even when scanning through Facebook, people typically just scroll and scroll until they find something interesting. The amount of junk on Facebook and Twitter is so pervasive, that we’ve learned to discriminate much more quickly.
And there are a lot of junk blogs out there too. Revenue programs like AdSense, affiliate marketing and MLM, have produced scores of boring, uninteresting blogs. Which is why Google has demoted so many blogs to the dismay of so many bloggers.
The solution?
Be a blogger that someone actually wants to read.
Don’t put too much focus on facts and figures. Instead, put more emphasis on your own unique voice. Write from the heart. Don’t be afraid of what others think. Be passionate!
No one reads blogs; they read bloggers.
Each person still keeps a short list of bloggers, columnists, and authors they follow closely because they really enjoy them as people. People seem to care little about facts and figures, and just want to know what their favorite writers have to say personally.
Your writings should reflect your unique style and flair. Your blog design should reflect your personality. And don’t try to optimize for keywords anymore. BE REAL!
You’ll find that people still take the time to read long form articles when they’re written by people they actually like.