5 Reasons Your Blog Needs a Niche

Starting a blog is not too difficult, and in all likelihood you already have one if you’re like many readers out there. But finding a blog niche can be a harder task. Every blog needs a niche—a specific and unique focus that drives all written and visual content and the blog’s brand. Having a niche has many benefits which will ultimately help drive more traffic – and ideally, revenue – to your blog. Here are just a few reasons why your blog needs a niche.

1. A niche makes your blog unique. Yes, yes, every blog is unique, but some more than others. Nearly every blog fits into one of these crowded categories: celebrity gossip, politics, fashion, music, and sports. There are over 180 million blogs out there right now. What separates yours from the other 179,999,999? Choosing a specific niche weeds out other competition and gives your platform something unique to offer. Many bloggers write about generic trendy music, but how many focus on East London electronic artists? Be specific in your niche, and choose a topic around which you have a lot of knowledge and insight.
2. A niche helps your blog be part of a community. Though I mentioned competition earlier, blogging isn’t so much about ruthlessly elbowing into a community; rather it’s an opportunity to be heard (and also to hear others.) Earn respect as a trusted voice. Show that you know what you’re talking about amongst a specific group of ravenous fans, and you will have built-in readers for the long run. Plus, by engaging in dialogues with other bloggers, you’ll not only earn them as followers but earn their followers as well through link-backs and commentary on your posts. The more discussion, the more readers. It’s that simple.
3. A niche allows for more exclusives. A boost in blog traffic is often the result of getting exclusives that cannot be found elsewhere, whether that be new tracks from popular bands or scoops on breaking insider news. If blogging within a niche, it is much easier to get exclusive content (simply because fewer people will be asking for it.) Getting exclusive interviews, videos, etc. adds useful content to a niche community and will have other bloggers talking about your work—and ideally attracting their readers’ attention as well.
4. A niche attracts advertisers. Advertisers are always looking to reach specific demographics, and there are surely some who would want to target the niche community your blog is a part of. By advertising on a respected niche blog in an unobtrusive way, advertisers can align themselves with a respected expert and benefit. Find a niche, build a following, and advertisers will come calling.
5. A niche makes it easier to earn. Too many bloggers want to be the next Huffington Post or Perez Hilton. Those bloggers have already carved out their niches, and it takes extraordinary talent and effort for a new blogger to begin to carve out even a sliver of their territory. There’s more room for bloggers writing about specific, less-discussed niches, and as such, there are more opportunities to earn revenue from advertisers seeking to reach a niche audience that is currently under-served.