Does your blog really need a niche?
Today we’re going to talk about one of the most debated topics amongst bloggers- the need for a niche.
Some bloggers out there will tell you that a super specific niche is necessary if you want to be successful. Others say it’s not so important. So which is it?
If you’re struggling with coming up with a niche, or even deciding if this is necessary, then stick around.
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What is a niche?
If you haven’t really heard the term ‘niche’ before, it’s actually quite simple. ‘Niche’ is basically just a fancy word for ‘topic’.
Your niche as a blogger would be the topic(s) you write and create content about.
Now this can be something broad like ‘home decor’ or as specific as ‘home decor tips for renters in New York City’.
What is the argument for a blog niche?
You’ve likely heard bloggers or business gurus out there say “a niche is absolutely necessary for a successful business”.
Some bloggers even say that the more specific your niche is has a direct correlation with how successful you will be. More specific = More successful.
Their argument for this is that if you are creating content for a very specific audience, then that audience is likely to be better, meaning they are more engaged, more likely to buy your products, etc. Kind of the ‘quality over quantity’ mindset.
And it’s not a bad argument. There is some proof to the pudding that people who have a very specific audience tend to have a more engaged audience.
But that isn’t the whole story.
What is the argument against a blog niche?
While some bloggers say that it’s nearly impossible to gain an audience without a niche, some bloggers say the opposite.
This second type of bloggers argue that having a broader content topic allows you to ‘cast a wider net’ of sorts. You are creating content for a variety of slightly different audiences.
These bloggers also argue that it is totally possible to gain a dedicated audience, even when writing about varying topics. With this, you might be creating content that provides solutions to multiple problems your ideal audience may have, rather than just one problem.
So what should you do? Niche or no niche?
When deciding whether to pick a niche or not, I have one piece of advice: take a good look at who you are and why you started your blog.
Let me give you a little insight into my very mentally taxing journey through picking a niche.
When I started my blog a few years ago, everyone out there was telling me I HAD to pick a niche. Not only that, but I was being told that having a topic wasn’t enough, I needed to have a super specific topic in an unsaturated market. I remember one blogger saying “if you want to write about travel, having a travel blog is not enough. You need to pick a specific part of travel such as solo travel for women who are in Europe”.
This made me want to scream.
I’ve always known I wanted to be a blogger, but I had never had one set topic in mind. I knew I wanted to write and help others and turn my blog into my career.
Not only that, but I have ADHD, and my interests tend to change a little bit every few weeks or months, so forcing myself to stick to one very specific topic felt like I was setting myself up for failure.
Despite me knowing this didn’t feel right, I picked a niche because I thought that was my only chance at success.
Then after a few months, I got burnt out on that niche and ran out of ideas. So I changed my niche. Then got burnt out on that one, and the cycle kept going.
I continued this way for a couple of years until I realized that even when I was spending months forcing myself to write posts about one topic only, my traffic wasn’t growing. I was miserable, and I had nothing to show for it.
So I decided to un-niche my blog.
This is when I started to love blogging again AND when I started actually seeing traffic and income with my blog.
If my feelings above sound familiar to you, then having a blog niche might not be right for you.
A blog niche is great for you if:
- You started a blog with the intention of writing about one topic only. (maybe something you are really great at, passionate about, or know a lot about)
- You have a very specific audience in mind and are already seeing that audience form
- You have a long-time interest in a topic and can truly see yourself creating content about that idea long-term.
There are two types of bloggers.
Type 1: Those who are already doing something/working on something/are good at something and decide to start a blog about it.
Example: If you own a leather-working business and decide you want to start teaching others how to do leather-working.
Type 2: Those who decide to start a blog FIRST without any particular topic in mind.
Example: If you decide you want to start a blog because you want to work for yourself rather than because you have a specific skill you want to teach people.
Those in Type 1 seem to be much better suited for having a specific blog niche. Afterall, if you started a blog for the very reason to teach someone your skill, it’s probably not difficult to commit to that topic!
Those in Type 2 can certainly still pick a niche and do well with it, but also tend to do better by choosing to have a broader topic.
So if you’re in Type 2 and you feel like a blog niche isn’t for you, what do you do? How do you decide what to write about?
If you don’t feel dedicated to one specific topic, I highly recommend starting a ‘lifestyle blog’.
Lifestyle blogs are vague, adaptable, but still super popular and somewhat easier to gain traction with! You can write/create content about a variety of topics.
It might be harder to create a super specific audience, but it isn’t impossible.
[mailerlite_form form_id=8]Tips for non-niched blogs
I do have one tip for starting a lifestyle (or otherwise broader niched) blog:
Make sure the content you create isn’t ALL over the map. Yes you can write about a variety of topics, but they should still have the same root or still (for the most part) interest the same group of people.
Example: My blog motto is ‘cultivate the life of your dreams’.
I chose this because it ties together all the stuff I write about: mental health, starting a business, personal growth, creating a cozy home, and traveling. All of these are things people can do to create better/happier lives.
Now if I decided one day to write about how to replace the oil in your car, it would feel completely off-base for my brand. No, my blog isn’t super specific. But my audience is likely not going to be interested in how to replace oil in a car.
How to tie everything together
If you have a lot of niche ideas that interest you, think about how you can tie them together with one underlying theme or goal. Think about your intentions with the content you create.
Maybe you are interested in fashion AND home decor. Maybe your blog can be about helping women find their style both at home and in what they wear.
A lot of different topics can be somewhat tied in with one another if you dig deep.
In 2024, niching is becoming less and less popular. What is way more important than niching is providing value for your audience.
Your audience is NOT going to be disappointed if you are writing about something slightly different than usual as long as they are still gaining value from it.
Keep your audience’s needs and wants at the forefront of your business and you will find success!
So, are you going to pick a niche for your blog? Or are you going to take a broader more value-focused approach?
Let me know down in the comments!
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