Blogging has evolved over time, traditional blogging may be considered a niche and not as popular as it once was. However, it still serves a purpose for personal or professional marketing. Relying solely on blogging for high search engine rankings has become increasingly difficult in the modern era as more and more content is consumed on social media platforms and video streaming sites like YouTube.
As technology continues to advance, new platforms and ways of creating and consuming content have emerged and replaced older ones. For those looking to make money through online content creation, platforms like YouTube and Instagram have become more popular and offer greater visibility. As the majority of consumers spend their time on these platforms, it has become more convenient for content creators to focus on one platform and use it to reach a larger audience. Email marketing can also be used to drive traffic to a personal website or blog. Email marketing may not be as effective in generating clicks and increasing desire for a product or service as newer forms of media, such as TikTok. It may not be able to compete with the engagement and reach of these newer platforms.
The blogging landscape has changed, with many famous and unique bloggers no longer active. The abundance of content online has made it harder to stand out and attract readers, with many people duplicating and creating similar content. In order to be successful, it may be beneficial to focus on a specific niche and consistently produce content in that area. The days of simply writing a blog post and expecting readers to come are gone. People now prefer audio-visual content such as videos, with eye-catching images. Blogs that rely heavily on text can be difficult to read. Video content is likely to become increasingly popular, as internet bandwidth and streaming costs continue to improve.
Ultimately, the decision to maintain a personal website should be based on why you want to have one. If the goal is to make money, a business approach must be taken. For me, my personal website serves as an outlet to express my thoughts and opinions, and also serves as a means to associate my name, Lim Kim Keong, with a dotcom domain. In the long term, I believe this is the right choice for me, as the website is not meant for commercial purposes, but for personal expression. Traffic or revenue is not the main criteria for me in this case. Therefore, my website covers a wide range of subjects and topics. For those looking to have a popular blog, it is important to focus on a specific niche, such as a hobby, and produce all related content. However, for me, it is not feasible to maintain such a focus and I prefer to use a generic website to cover all subjects, using sections and keyword tags to organize the content. This approach may not be perfect, but it is more manageable for me to consistently produce content in this way.
I have been trying to create a personal website since the early days of the internet, during the HTML era. However, I have consistently failed to maintain the habit of using it frequently. Technology changes are just one of many factors that contribute to this. In today’s fast-paced world, more and more demands on our time make it increasingly difficult to be a successful blogger unless one is willing to dedicate the necessary time and effort.
