DISQUS

Will · 1 year ago

If your goal is to increase your readership, then I think I have to go with Markus (Eskimo Sparky) on this one - having a nieche is somewhat important, but good writing and self promotion is far more important.

Get out there, comment on other people's blogs, reference others in pingbacks, etc. It's important to also stick to some sort of schedule if you want to keep your readership up. It doesn't have to be a daily thing - once a week would do fine, even once a month if you're writing particularly stuffs.

Riayn · 1 year ago

Very good suggestions and they are things I am endeavouring to do.

Andrew Boyd · 1 year ago

Hi Riayn,

interesting discussion. Thanks for the backlink :)

I think, like Will, that good writing is more important than operating within the constraints of a niche. There is this circular argument that seems to go "a lot of well known bloggers are niche bloggers, I want to be well known, therefore I need to blog within a niche". It doesn't necessarily follow.

Cheers, Andrew

Kimota · 1 year ago

I did define my blog in terms of a niche, but triued to make that niche as broad as possible. By focussing my bog on my experiences as a writer, it allows me to cover virtually everything that interests me - online marketing, movies, tv, social media etc etc. I think there needs to be some sort of identifying topic for people to attach to and appropriately categorise. I find I'm less likely to subscribe to a blog with one article of interest if there is no guarantee that the next will also appeal, and a clearly defined topic area provides that assurance. Yet even the best niche blogs aren't immune from going off on tangents when the blogger feels they have something to say.

Vanessa · 1 year ago

I think the quality is more important than the niche. People like to read well written articles.

Kathy · 1 year ago

I started out having three niches: tech tips, language/linguistics, and humor. After a month or two of writing for this mixed bag of topics, it seems most of my readers preferred when I wrote humor. That told me to drop the other two and concentrate on humor writing. I do still think someone can do well with multiple niches, but I saw an increase in readership when I stuck to just one. Just my $0.02.

Riayn · 1 year ago

I am interested in how you judged your readers' preference towards your humor posts. Did more people comment on them? Read them? Linked to them? Or all of the above?
Also did you come right out and asked your readers what topic/s they preferred?
I am wondering if it is bad etiquette to ask your readers what they enjoy reading them most.

Kathy · 1 year ago

Riayn -- I based my decision to move to strictly humor pieces on the number of comments being left. It was definitely more on the humor posts. Another reason I switched to just humor is I enjoyed writing those posts more than anything else. I produce a better piece the more "into it" I am.

John Lampard · 1 year ago

Talking of ProBlogger I saw this video post (http://www.problogger.net/archives/2008/05/16/5...) a few weeks back when he talked about future trends in blogging, which included the "rise" of multi-topic blogging, and (from memory) a move away from strict niche type sites.

I tried niche blogging for a short time 18 months ago... and hated it. I think if you do something you enjoy then you will do well (dare I say succeed?), even it takes a little time to get there :)

Alex · 1 year ago

I'm new to the blogging world, so I don't have any expert opinion, but I think that blogging about what you want to blog about is the most important, because you're enjoyment will shine through your work. I'm looking forward to writing about queer issues, because it's something that's important to me, and I think the internet is a really valuable tool for community building, but I don't think that will necessarily mean that every single post is only queer specific, because there are so many areas of life which are interesting to share about!

If you have any suggestions for what has worked for you, I'd love to hear them!

Good luck!

Riayn · 1 year ago

John, thanks so much for the link to the video. I will watch it when I am not eating breakfast and trying to get ready for work.

I think you have raised here a very important point that most people forget when talking about blogging and that is that you have to love what you are blogging about. If you don't have a passion for your topic then it really comes out in your writing and there is nothing more discouraging for a reader then reading about a subject that the author is not passionate about.

**Dawn** · 1 year ago

I really think it's most important to draw your readers in. People like what they can identify with, in my opinion. I just blog about whatever I feel like. I feel as if that's the most accurate respresentation of myself. I have my faithful readers, the number seems to grow, and I am fine with that since I don't personally need to have 35 comments on my posts. I guess as far as niches go, unless there is one that encompasses "snapshot of self". I look at the blogs in my feed reader & sure, some of them are niche blogs (baseball, football, photography, Disney, etc) and yes, those have their place, but there are at least as many that have no specific niche. I like the blogs that are a means of getting to know another human being & the "surprise" of not knowing which part I may stumble upon next.

Riayn · 1 year ago

Dawn, one could say that you are a bioblogger and that your niche is yourself and your life. It is a pretty broad niche, which I guess is the best kind of niche to have. :)

frutto della passione · 1 year ago

Some of the blogs that I read have very specific topics and don't go outside of that. Others, which I happen to enjoy just as much, don't have a specific topic. They talk about what ever inspired them or what they are thinking or doing. The reason I keep going back is because they are well written. If the writing doesn't grab me, I don't go back. I am by no means an expert and I have to admit that my blog covers one topic only, I think that in this case it is better to go with what makes you happy, if not it may come out in your writing and that could turn folks off.
Happy Blogging!

Nona · 1 year ago

I think having a niche blog helps in the long run to being internet-famous, but I know a few personal or mixed bag type blogs that have a pretty large following and commentorship.

The biggest trick IS to get yourself out there. Read other peoples blogs. Leave good comments. They will visit (and hopefully comment) in turn, and if they like it they'll come back. And hopefully some of their readers will find you via their comments and become you readers too.

My own blog is a personal blog, and I know I'll never have a huge readership or more than 2 comments on a post, but I know that I have a handful of loyal readers and that has always been enough for me.

Zhey · 1 year ago

IMHO, having a niche is a choice we bloggers are free to make. It is difficult to maintain blogs that follow a certain niche so if you plan on having one, make sure it is something that you can write endlessly about. I started After His Own Heart with a niche and at first, I was so scared I might not be able to sustain it, but through God's grace I am still able to write about Christianity and keep the site going. However, I also maintain another blog that allows me to write freely on anything I happen to fancy.
In a nutshell, I personally believe that having a niche for your blog is entirely up to you, while niches give our blogs their own identity, it is still the content that makes it appealing to the reading public. It will also help to maintain your steady stream of visitors and readers by visiting them as well, leaving comments on their posts, etc. :)

Jayne · 1 year ago

Mine is pretty much a mixed bag within a very broad niche, if that makes sense lol.
I figure if a blogger enjoys and knows what they're blogging about, it not only shows in the post but it will attract the readers who find that particular subject(s) interesting.
Trying to squeeze into a blog niche can restrict a person too much, so it's probably best not to!