So you’ve decided on a blogging platform and found a beautiful design to showcase your content. All the behind-the-scenes work is done, but one of the biggest questions every blogger asks themselves is leaving you feeling stuck:
“What am I going to blog about?”
I started this How To Start A Blog series with the intention of helping new bloggers bypass the struggles I dealt with just over a year ago. While I was pretty confident on the techy side of things, big decisions like deciding what to blog about and choosing a domain name were always tough for me. I would spend weeks just waiting for the right idea to come to me, and spent even longer putting off the launch of my blog because I wasn’t sure if I was making the right choice. I feel like I’ve finally found my blogging niche, but there are so many tips I wish I’d known about from the start.
As anyone who’s been following me for a while knows, I love writing about my blogging experiences and sharing the knowledge I’ve gained in blogging, business, and design. I find such joy in helping other bloggers and seeing their excitement when they reach one of their goals or relate to one of my posts. In no way am I a blogging expert (yet), but I spend every day learning new things and building up my skill set in order to provide The Blogging Brew readers with content that will help them create the blog of their dreams. I’ve been amazed at the growth of this blog over the past few months, and I’m confident I’ve found my calling.
Why did I just share that story? Because that’s what finding your niche feels like. It gets you excited, and gives you a sense of fullness and belonging that I want all of my readers to feel. Finding your niche not only defines where your blog will go, but ensures you will enjoy blogging longer than just a few months. I hope this post will help you find that calling and set you and your blog on a track for success!
One of the biggest mistakes I made when deciding on my blogging niche was expecting it to just come to me. Staring at a wall waiting for an idea to pop into your mind is not the best way to go at this, trust me. Grab a sheet of paper and pencil, and prepare to do some writing, because this is big stuff!
Define Your Interests
You want your topic to be something you’re passionate about, so figuring out what your interests are is the first step to this process. Jot down a few of your favorite topics, even if you don’t think you could blog about them. Do you like cooking? Talking about your faith? Finding new tips for college life? Include your hobbies and anything you do when there’s a moment to spare—those moments really define who you are and what you love.
Look For Inspiration
If you have a list of favorite bloggers or online presences, now is the time to figure out what exactly you like about them so much. Look through their posts and write down which ones you enjoyed, or which ones you think you could rewrite with your own take on the topic. This isn’t supposed to encourage you to copy another blogger, but seeing someone talk about a topic you enjoy may get those ideas flowing!
Identify Your Strengths
Blogging about something you’re informed about can be extremely beneficial, especially if it’s a topic that not many people are proficient in. Of course, this is not a requirement by any means, and I definitely didn’t fit into that category. My main topics are blogging and design, and I can guarantee you that a year ago, I knew close to nothing about these topics. I did know that they were topics I wanted to learn more about though, and blogging about them has forced me to keep learning every day in order to put the best out for my readers. Write down the strengths you possess, but include any topics you would love to learn about as well.
Consider The Unconventional
Now is when you get to be creative! One big thing to consider when coming up with your blogging niche is the audience you’re trying to attract. You want to solve a problem those readers are facing, and being original will help you stand out. There are tons of copycat bloggers out there, and while you may think that following the exact path of a successful blogger will bring you equivalent success, you’ll only end up being shadowed by the original blogger and potentially losing readership when your followers realize what you’re doing. Besides, being original is fun! It gives you the opportunity to create something that helps people, and you’ll establish yourself as a professional in that field.
Narrow Down Your Focus
Ask yourself these questions and try to create a finalized list of your favorite topics:
- What motivated you to start a blog?
- What do you enjoy about the blogs you read? What keeps you going back?
- What’s missing in the blog you read? How can you fill that hole?
- How can your blog help other people?
- What topics can you come up with the most post ideas for?
Choose The Winning Topic
Hopefully you have a list of 3 or 4 topics now that you would enjoy writing about. There really isn’t a “rule” as to how many topics you’re allowed to blog about, but making that list as small as possible will really help you define your niche and audience. Ask yourself these final questions about each topic to determine which one(s) will be the best for you:
- How many other people are blogging about this topic? Is the niche saturated?
- Is this topic solving a problem? Would readers find a benefit in reading your blog?
- Can you see yourself writing about this topic once a week? Twice, three times?
- Are you passionate about this topic?
Your blogging niche will truly define the future and success of your blog, so spend a decent amount of time on this decision! If you aren’t confident about your choice, don’t feel pressured to just stick with it and hope for the best. Search for more inspiration, and eventually, you’ll know what the right niche is for you. I’d love to hear about your decision and see where your niche takes you!
