Is Your Blog Doomed Before You Even Start?
Most likely the answer to that question is yes!
At least if your goal is to make money from it.
Market Research for Your Blog
“Blog your passion”
How many times have you heard that given as advice for what to start blogging about. It’s actually pretty good advice, but it is only the very start of picking a topic.
I might love hockey, but that doesn’t mean I can make money by blogging about it.
The questions we want to answer are:
- Does my niche have any traffic?
- Can I make money from that niche?
The only other factor is whether or not you’re prepared to compete. With each spot in a search engine results page (SERP) worth potentially $1000s of dollars, blogging or any other website building is a highly competitive way to make money.
The good news is that most people, even many at the top of the SERPs suck at it, but the reality is if you are against, or shy about competition, then someone else is going to cash your affiliate checks.
Most People Would Answer, “I Dunno”
To my two questions above.
That’s why most blogs are doomed before they even start. They don’t know if there is a market, and they don’t understand how they will capitalize on the market.
Knowing if there is a market that can be capitalized is much different than thinking there is a market.
Most people realize that they need to be an expert on their topic to do well, but they don’t realize that they need to also be an expert on their topic’s market, which is the commercial activity surrounding a topic.
Sharpen First then Chop
Here’s a favorite quote of mine:
If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend seven sharpening my axe.
-Abraham Lincoln
In the $100 a day project, we’ll spend what seems like an inordinate amount of time doing market research, simply because it is not only the secret to success before you start a blog, but for ongoing success as well.
One more note…don’t worry if you have already started your site, it isn’t too late to re-frame your topic or re-invent your site. That’s precisely what I’m doing with Art of Money.
Start thinking about my two questions and how they apply to your topic. If you find any sites or tools for answering the questions, leave a comment. I’ll provide you with some of my ideas in the next installment.
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Comments ( 5 )
[...] The sad fact is that most blogs are doomed to low earnings before they ever begin. [...]
$100 a Day Blogging! Discover My Top 5 Action Steps · Art Of Money added these pithy words on May 09 07 at 7:28 amDonald added these pithy words on May 03 07 at 6:30 amJon, Count me in for the $100 a day project. I think both of us could benefit from that. Thanks for the great content and the encouragement.
Promod added these pithy words on May 03 07 at 8:57 amWhat about the idea of building something, seeing who arrives, tracking what interests them, and then making changes (which could even include sister sites to specialize further)?
One of my favorite quotes is from Zig Ziglar who said “People don’t know what they want, because they don’t know what’s available.”
My strategy is doing what others are not. That can work quite well for people with a reasonable amount of skill and determination. So that won’t be a problem here
So if you can find topics that are not widely covered (or not covered well), there may be even more opportunities. My experience shows that very few people understand how to measure and manage their financial risks. Luckily, that’s an area in which I have
- expertise (day job)
- credibility (as an actuary)
- willingness to learn more
- sincere desire to help others
So that becomes my niche.I’d like to be part of your intriguing project.
Tyler added these pithy words on May 03 07 at 10:29 amJon,
Is that hockey blogging note a shot at me?
If so, it was well aimed. It’s not the highest traffic topic on the radar!
I still squeaking by with small profits…but I’m looking to leverage it.
junger added these pithy words on May 03 07 at 5:45 pmProper preparation is the key to success — it’s as simple as that. But not everyone is willing to put in the amount of time and effort it takes to prepare — and that’s when they’ll be doomed.
Great post.