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If you're thinking about starting a blog, here is what
you need to know about using Blogger (aka Blogspot). |
Call it Blogger or Blogspot, everyone knows about this service. I've used it for years. I write for more than 1 blog and I don't spend much time on this one. I'll tell you why: my other blogs get more traffic. Yes, it's sad that I've poured my heart into the articles on this site and only a few people read them every month. I'm not selling anything and I think it's pretty good information. So what's wrong with this blog, or what's wrong with Blogger? Let's take a deep dive into the mysteries and frustrations of blogging on a Google platform.
When Blogger first started, it was without question one of the most popular platforms. It made building a Website so easy for you. The standalone WordPress software - an evolution of the old B2 blogging software - wasn't very good. Blogger seemed to have everything going for it.
But then Blogger was bought by Google and things started to change. At first Google seemed very interested in making Blogger a successful platform. But even Google couldn't see the future coming along the Information Highway.
One of Blogger's greatest strengths is its simple interface. Anyone can use this platform. But the interface failed to keep up with the times. You can do so much more with WordPress now than you can with Blogger.
Even so, I like the way I was able to redesign this site a couple years back. I think it looks really good on both desktop and mobile phones. Blogger may have limited selections in themes, but you can pick from a nice bundle of off-the-shelf themes.
And if you self-host a Blogger site, you can develop your own themes. I know some people who have done that.
Google Stopped Giving Blogs Special Treatment
For a few years Google had a blog search tool. It was a really good way to find new blogs you'd never read before.
Because I knew I could always find interesting stuff on the Web, I didn't use the Blog Search tool as much as I should have. But whenever I wanted to find a blog about a specific topic, I always turned to that tool.
And then one day the blog search results looked different. I can't explain it. All I can tell you is that it suddenly became much harder to find good blogs on Google Blog Search. I was disgusted by the way they gave up on good content.
And so I stopped using Google's blog search altogether. I must not have been the only person to walk away because the blog search tool vanished years ago.
SEO Marketers Spammed Blogs to Death
It wasn't all Google's fault. The SEO industry is famous for ruining every good thing that happens on the Web.
They wasted no time turning every blog into an advertising platform for cheap affiliate sites, bad marketing tools, and their own badly written sites.
What really hurt independent blogging was the way big companies threw money around the Internet like there was no end to the good times. As more bloggers succumbed to the temptations of accepting money for posts, more blogs disappeared from Google's search results.
In the place of real, legitimate blogs, Google's search engine began showing us page after page from noisy, advertising-crushed garbage sites pretending to be real blogs. What's worse, when Google recognized there was a problem with blogs, they just gave up on blogs altogether.
Blog Networks Became a Big Problem
About 10 years ago Google unleashed a Penguin algorithm on the world. This algorithm was supposed to stop all the spammy blogs.
Instead, it took down a lot of small business sites. What happened? Well, those small businesses were desperate for customers. So they hired SEO agencies to buy links for them. And where did the links come from? Spammy blogs.
Google did the right thing in getting rid of the spammy links. But they also punished sites for buying links. Google doesn't do that any more but the harm was done. Trust was broken between Google and bloggers, and trust was broken between small businesses and bloggers.
Now you can still find plenty of blogs selling links. It's called a Whack-A-Mole strategy. As soon as Google punishes one blog for selling links, the owner sets up another blog.
So the blogs are still selling links. And I think that makes Blogger look bad. How many Blogger sites are really just cheap link building networks?
Social Media All But Killed Real Blogging
I used to read blogs by professors, teachers, librarians, and business analysts. A lot of them had Blogger blogs. But even if you can find their sites on Blogger, they haven't written anything in years.
I think social media killed the independent blogging spirit. If people want to write a long, thoughtful post they put it on Facebook. Scientists and engineers use The Conversation. Everyone else uses Medium.
These sites have large audiences but the average writer isn't going to get many readers.
And for the people who do attract large followings, it isn't long before they head over to Patreon where they can charge subscribers by the post.
The demand for money has turned everyone into an amateur professional writer. Real writing pros are screaming that they can't sell their content to magazines and newspapers any more. That's because the magazines and newspapers that still exist can sell their online publishing space to companies willing to pay for "sponsored posts".
We have too many people trying to make money from writing and not enough people wanting to write anything interesting.
Conclusion
I'm not giving up on Blogger. I think it's a miracle that anyone reads this site. I've spent years writing content for people in the affiliate industry. They're not interested in sharing real information with anyone. They just want to attract visitors who click on their ads and referral links.
YouTube has become the goto place for finding real information. Now instead of looking for pictures of how to fix a doorknob, you can look for videos that show you how to do the job. I can't blame people for wanting a quick, simple video guide to life's simple problems.
But have you noticed what is happening to all the YouTube videos? They're flooded with commercials and the YouTube creators are pitching sponsorships. YouTube is going the same way that blogging did. And I can't help but wonder where people will turn to next for real information without all the promotional context.
If you're not sure where to start your blog, I can understand your confusion. I'd probably have more visitors here if I wrote 1 post a week. I don't have time for that much personal writing. But when I do write a post on Blogger, it takes almost no time for me to do it. I don't have to mess any stupid block editors. I can start writing at the top of the post and keep going. That's what real blogging is all about: just writing until you're finished writing.
Just in case you still want tips on how to make money without all the ads, this blog will still be here.
