Whether you are just starting out or you have been in blogging for profit for a couple of years now, you are most likely fully aware how important a carefully defined niche is. But the problem is, while most know and understand the concept; many have not properly applied it.
You see, in order to penetrate a particular segment of society, it is not enough that you picked out a niche. This is especially true in this day and age where competition is so much tougher than ever before. You need to study, understand and fully define your niche and who your target audience exactly is.
This decision can significantly impact the overall look and feel of your website, your logo, your tagline, your writing style and of course, your content. Every element should complement each other. Here are some guidelines to help you out:
Pick Out An Audience, Not Just A Topic
If you are to decide what your blog is about, what would your answer be? Chances are, you will probably answer a topic on which your blog will focus on. Is it about organic living, photography or fashion? While this may be a good starting point, you will need to delve deeper. For one, photography is such a huge niche that is too broad a topic.
Start With The Right Questions
Try asking yourelf, “Who am I exactly writing for?” Who are the people you want to reach out and cater to? Are these beginners or novices? Or maybe you want to concentrate on experienced photographers focusing on landscape photography? From there, you will need to determine who these people are, what are they interested in, what they talk about, what are the latest trends in this particular industry– you get the drift. In short, you need to determine what their specific needs are that you can address in relevance to photography.
From here, you will be able to define the real purpose of your blog and who are the people you are writing for. If you have a blog that’s been up and running for years but fail to generate blogging income, maybe it’s because you are not targeting anyone in particular or addressing specific needs.
Learn From The Experts
Check out your competition or sites that are considered an authority in a particular niche. You will notice, they are not merely known for the topic they write about, but you can easily determine what type of audience they cater to.
So here are some personal insights I’d like to share that you may want to think about the next time you assess your blog or evaluate your lack of blogging income:
- Don’t simply write about something, instead write for someone.
- With every blog you write, consider asking yourself, what is the purpose of this article and how can the information I provide address my readers’ needs?
- Know by heart the focus of your blog.
Stand Out From The Rest
Stand out, be different.
It’s so easy to say this, but how does one exactly do that? Once you have a clearly defined your niche, study the market segment and the existing competition.
List down the top 10 competition under your niche and write down how one is different from the rest. From there, think of how you can be able to position your blog differently from the rest.
How do you fit your blog into the rest of the top 10 and compete strategically and aggressively? This needs careful research and planning.
You are essentially competing with authority sites and all other blogs targeting the same audience. How can you present your information in a more interesting manner?
Set The Direction
It’s not enough that you have a blog up and running and putting out regular content. You need to know where exactly you want to take your blog a year from now. Be specific. If you need to come up with a reasonable and achievable blogging income figure, then do so. Write it down. Know the end result you want to achieve and not merely operate for the sake of having an online presence.
These are simple, practical tips that are too often taken for granted. Re-evaluate your blogging income strategy and find out what specific changes you need to make to be more effective.