Blogging is a commendable and even lucrative career option. Those who blog usually cannot do without it, even if they are not earning from this practice yet. However, for those who have made it their career and even those who just do it for fun, blogging trends are important.
Their importance stems from the fact that every blogger wants to be recognized. There are so many blogs in cyberspace, though, that making your blog stand out requires a lot of effort and know-how.
In order to attract more readers and retain them, bloggers need to update themselves on what is required. Of course, the content quality plays a huge role, but what is the best medium for that content? Keeping updated on the blogging trends would help out a lot in such cases.
To help you out, below are a few predictions about blogging trends in 2018. The year is yet to come, but it would be here before we know it! So read on and prepare yourself for effective and successful blogging in 2018:
- Video Galore
Video blogging is the real deal for 2018. You may be an amazing writer, but your content is best and most widely tapped into if you publish it in the form of a video. You can always use your writing skills in the video descriptions or by simply writing an article before making a video. There are people out there who appreciate having both options on hand.
However, videos are what bloggers need to focus a bit more on. This is because videos would capture the attention of viewers, and also be a timesaver for them. This works to reel in your audience and keep them visiting your blog over and over again.
The great part about videos is that smartphones now have very high-quality cameras. As a result, many bloggers are spiraling to fame through videos they make at home. With filters and special effects at hand for the layperson, even one individual can be four or five characters at once! Editing software is also easily downloaded for free or purchased at a nominal price.
- Live Streaming
Live streaming is in a wholly different capacity from regular videos. This is because it contains the unique factor of reaching out to audiences directly. This way, viewers can ask questions, give comments and reactions, and expect a response at the same time. As with normal videos, a blogger could go live at any time using Facebook or Instagram Live.
If one wants to hold time-limited competitions and wants a quick response, live video is the best option for 2018. Many people would tune in at once since they wouldn’t want to miss the chance of winning something. This would be excellent PR and advertising for your personal brand or any company you’re representing.
If a video starts immediately on the launch of a website or blog, however, it could be quite irritating. Facebook, though, seems to have overcome this obstacle by letting videos start as you’re scrolling past them, but muting the sound until you choose to click. This is quite a smart move, as it lets users decide if a video is worth watching before they open it up.
- Images, Graphics, Illustrations
Since readers now have a wide range of options, a blog would need much more beauty in 2018. By this, we mean that bloggers would have to spiffy up their platforms with beautiful illustrations, images, and anything that could immediately pull in a visitor.
Images, illustrations, charts, graphs and the like are better at this than video. This is because a video cannot be watched everywhere. Flat designs like these are also more easily downloadable and integrated with any kind of content you have. Plus, they are immediately viewable by any first-time visitor. Clicking on a video requires a bit more commitment and interest.
- Focus On Content
You can make all the live streams and videos you want, but they have to mean something. Your content should not be compromised on any level if you want to remain a popular blogger in 2018. If you simply cannot post high-quality content every day, don’t it may be better for your audience to get a couple of good articles or videos every week.
However, content also needs to be high quality in terms of frequency. If you are facing a creativity block, don’t let months go by without an update. Force yourself to hold a question and answer session or a giveaway if nothing else. If even that is not possible, hire someone to take over your blog for a bit. As a last resort, you can always sell your blog for a tidy sum if that’s at all possible.
In a nutshell, your content needs to be good enough to be shared. This is why you have to engage your audience and really reach out to them. Even if you’re living abroad, you could connect with the culture of your home country. People love watching videos that relate to their own lives and would share and tag accordingly.
- Longer And Longer
This may surprise some, but longer articles and even videos are trending nowadays. This pattern is expected to continue on into 2018. People are spending more time on the internet and seek information from it every day. As a blogger, you would be expected to deliver not only the news about a product but also its reviews and relevance. So be ready to talk and write in more detail, with more passion, and at more length!
Neil Patel has talked about how his blog posts are rarely under at least two or three thousand words. He also mentions how a blogger can condense a few posts into a larger one. They can then condense the points to deliver easily read yet detailed lessons about their specific interests. Since Patel is one the most popular digital marketing influencers of this age, what he says has a lot of weight.
Posts in 2018 are going towards amazing style. The most shared and widely read blog posts were at least two thousand words long. So you may want to change up your game if you’re still working with five hundred word posts and one-minute videos. People want more entertainment and more information.
This is also why reaction and Easter egg videos on YouTube are so popular. For instance, Ready Player One is an anticipated upcoming Spielberg movie. The trailer is already out, and so are several reaction videos. There is even a video pinpointing all the Easter eggs dealing with the 1980s in the trailer itself. This work is no less than eighteen minutes long, yet has raked in hundreds of thousands of views. An extended trailer is also almost as popular as the two-minute trailer itself.
To sum up, readers and viewers alike are looking for in-depth detail, research, and a genuine interest. So make sure you know what you’re talking about. This is because your followers are sure to demand more from you in 2018.
- Telling A Story
Even though we’ve progressed so much, there are still some things that human instinctively love. Among other things, these include the attraction towards storytelling. Telling stories around a campfire, dinner table, or just when staying up late has an irreplaceable charm of its own.
In 2018, though, visitors to your blog would crave the same storytelling experience that they get in real life. Many platforms are now engaging in this method of drawing audiences to themselves. Storytelling could work with blogs in several ways.
One of these is to create a story and let viewers get invested in the characters. The actors and script could allow for some tasteful product placement. You get to earn from sponsorship along with telling a story and gaining viewers at the same time. It’s a win-win all around. Indian web series is now all the rage among the youth in that country. They touch upon a wide series of societal issues that are not dealt with in their mainstream media.
Another way of storytelling is in the traditional article form. Look up any popular cooking blog, and you would see that it starts with a story before they get to the actual recipe. This serves to create a connection between the blogger and reader by allowing a glimpse of real life to shine through. This makes the act of viewing the blog more enjoyable than otherwise.
Wrap-Up…
You may be a successful blogger now, but no one can afford to stay stagnant in their career. Technology and trends are moving at a rapid pace, and we need to keep up if we want to stay relevant. Following the trends above would help us to do just that.
It doesn’t matter whether you are blogging for money or to create awareness. Following the blogging trends are essential to get the traffic coming in. Not only would this help you in your endeavor, but also jack up your rankings in the search results. You may even get recognized and become a popular brand if you play your cards right!
jessica-barden
Latest posts by jessica-barden (see all)
- 6 Blogging Trends You Should Prepare For 2018! - October 25, 2017