It’s great to be versatile and write about a range of topics- but stretching yourself too thinly could be detrimental to the quality and potential of your blog. Especially when you’re starting out, it’s certainly worth thinking about a small range of topics which work well together. Not only this, you need to remember that you will need to be producing a constant flow of content for each section so make sure you’re confident you have enough to say about each genre you cover! Here are a few signs to watch out for, and if you’re guilty of too many of the below it might be worth streamlining your site.
Are any of your categories rarely updated?
Having categories which you update less than every couple of weeks can be a little off putting to readers. If people check back 2 or 3 times to find a section has been neglected for weeks on end, they’re likely to stop looking at that section at all! If you’re leaving sections without new content it might be time to consider concentrating on the sections you update more often.
Are there any sections you’ve lost interest in?
Don’t continue to update sections because you feel you have to. Your blog should be enjoyable not only for your readers but for you too. If a section of your site has become a drag to update it might be time to stop writing on that particular topic.
Do you have the time?
This is something you should consider before starting a blog, but sometimes it’s hard to work out exactly how much time an additional section takes! My advice would be to start small and build. Pick one, or perhaps two topics which you know a lot about and if you find yourself thriving then perhaps consider doing more. However, if you have a really great little niche, don’t feel any pressure to start writing on new topics unnecessarily!
Do your categories go together?
You need to think about your readership here. Blogging about gardening, tech and beauty may not have the greatest appeal to a common reader. You need to be aware of who your readership are and what they want to read. Widening your scope too far could end up alienating some of your loyalist readers so be careful!
Are you thinking about scaling down? Let us know how you deal with targeting your blog below!
GREAT post and such a good question! I know mine probably isn’t although thankfully my readers rock and have stuck around as I go back and forth as to what I want to write about. Targeting is important however, especially having consistent branding.