Do People Still Read Blogs in 2020?

Is blogging a dying art?

I recently received an email from a marketing company selling video advertising services, the subject line read “Blogging is dead in 2020.”

They argued that people don’t read blogs anymore and if you are planning on starting a blog, and if you already have one, you should focus on creating video adverts for the products and services you want to sell instead.

The message really got me thinking because I have several blogs, I write long-form blog posts for clients and I continue to write daily. In fact, today is a 10,000-word blog post day for me. Reading that message made me start to doubt the time I put into blogging. After all, I make money from blogging and writing in general so how could blogging be dead?

After reading the message about blogging being a dying art in 2020, I decided to read more articles to gain a greater understanding of this argument that blogging is pointless in 2020.

I stumbled across many opinions, some said that video is the way now, some said audio is the best thing. It reminds of when mini discs were introduced in 1992, they said that CD’s were dead, mini discs never really took off. However, currently, people no longer use CD’S (well not many people) the way we consume music has evolved, certainly. However, people still read books, eBooks, printed books, people still read.

I just don’t buy the idea that reading is dead and video is the best way of conveying a message now.

I read recently that more than 70% of Internet users read blog posts on a regular basis. It seems people still read blogs but there has been one obvious shift. People have very short attention spans these days, spending less time reading, more time taking the information, and implementing what they have learned.

People read blog posts to find answers, some just scroll to the bottom of the page and search for the conclusion, or just scan through the main points to get the gist of the article. People are hungry for information but they don’t want to spend too much time reading every single word on a page. Therefore, I think it is important to consider how you plan out your blog posts.

I believe that the key to keeping your blog alive is providing your readers with a very easy, breezy reading experience. Let’s get into the meat of this before we do dive in, let me give you a bit of a rundown of how blogging actually started, a short history so to speak.

1993: The birth of blogging

1994: Personal blogging becomes a thing with Justin Hall

1997: The word “Weblog” becomes a buzzword, it is later shortened to “blog”

1998: Open Diary is launched (blogging interface)

1999: LiveJournal and Blogger launch

2003: WordPress and Typepad and Google acquires Blogger and introduces Adsense

2005: YouTube launches and vlogging becomes the new buzzword

2006: Huffington Post introduce the idea of merging news and blogging

2006: Hubpages launched as an open blogging revenue share platform

2007: Short form blog posts become the thing(microblogging)

2012: Medium is launched (open blogging platform)

2020: More than 30 million bloggers in the United States

Why Do People Still Read Blogs?

There are various reasons why people still read blogs, here are a few of them:

Some People Prefer Reading to Learn

Some people prefer reading to watching videos or listening to audio. Remember that we are all wired differently, your cousin might prefer to watch hours of YouTube videos to learn a new skill. However, you might prefer to read and make notes. I like a mixture of the two, reading and watching, I still spend a lot of time reading blog posts, articles on Medium and reading books on my Kindle, however, YouTube is my second best friend when it comes to gaining small nuggets of information.

To Copy and Paste

Aaaah to copy and paste a quote directly into the notes on your phone to reference it when writing an article. The beauty of copy and paste cannot be denied, I will forever be a fan of the good old-fashioned blog post or article, copying and pasting is the best thing.

Learning will never go out of style, the way we learn might be evolving but reading will always be part of the learning process. People read blogs to seek and assimilate information, take quick notes, and learn a new skill.

Why Do People Write Blogs?

People write blogs for the following reasons:

-Inform

-Educate

-Advocate

-Sell

-Support

Why Should You Start a Blog in 2020?

53% of marketers still rank blogging as their number one content marketing priority. Whether your primary goal is to drive sales and clients to your website or to just build a personal brand, blogging is a tried and tested method to help you achieve your online marketing goals.

Blogging Builds Credibility

Companies, individuals, and small organizations should still consider blogging because it builds authority, trust, and credibility. It also cultivates a deep connection to your audience. You don’t necessarily need to launch your own personal blog, just start writing on platforms like Medium, Hubpages, or LinkedIn.

People Trust High-Quality Written Content

Blogs have been rated the 5th most trusted source of finding information online. People still want to read, learn, and achieve more, especially in the age of personal development and self-improvement. If blogging was truly dead, Medium wouldn’t exist, neither would Hubpages. Writing articles on LinkedIn would also be a dead and pointless practice.

Builds Search Engine Rankings

Regular high, quality blog content can drive valuable traffic to your website. Blogging does the following things:

-Builds brand awareness

-Grows your audience

-Generates more sales and leads

-Builds credibility and authority

The landscape of blogging is changing however, it is not a dying art yet. In this digital age, people crave personal connections. When they are choosing a brand or company to purchase a service from, they want to feel connected to the company. Blogging helps to cultivate that connection.

The Way People Read Blogs Has Changed

The way people read blogs has certainly changed, attention spans are definitely shorter in 2020 therefore, the way you arrange your blog posts needs to accommodate that. Your content needs to be arranged in an attention-grabbing way. Bullet points, numbers, short summaries, images and sometimes video.

When you create blog posts think about the following things:

-Fonts — — Choose clear and readable fonts

-Make your content easy to scan through

-Use high-quality pictures and infographics

-Connect with your audience

-Your content should serve a clear purpose

-Think about page load time

-Do not overstuff your blog posts with images

-Brand your content to fit your branding

To answer the question, is blogging dead in 2020? I don’t think so, what do you think?

I am currently doing 30 articles in 30 days and this is day 13.

Read day 12’s article here >>>> Time Management Tips For Writers: How I Manage My Time For Highly Productive Days