Updated: January 19th, 2024
Blogging is dead. We hear it often. But is it? In this article, I’ll answer the common question: Do people still read blogs?
I write blogs almost daily, so I’ve asked myself this question, too. I’ve also done a lot of research on the topic, which I’ll discuss below.
Keep reading to learn if people still read blogs, what you need to know about business blogging, and if it’s even worth blogging.
Do people still read blogs?
Not only do countless studies report that people read blogs every day, but my own experiences as a blog writer confirm this.
In the images below, you can see results from a couple of blogs I wrote for one of my clients. These results show how many clicks each article has gotten from Google in the past 6 months.
I also shared a poll on Instagram, asking, “do people still read blogs.” Here are the results:
Is blogging still relevant in 2024? The stats
The stats don’t lie either.
Here are some insightful, up-to-date blogging statistics:
77% of internet users report regularly reading blog posts.
80% of bloggers say that blogging drives results.
44% of buyers report consuming 3 to 5 pieces of content before engaging with the seller.
Food, lifestyle, and travel niches have the highest percentage of blogs and more than 50,000 blog visits per month.
71% of bloggers say SEO is their most significant traffic source.
Bloggers who prioritize SEO earn over $50,000 annually, and their #1 traffic source is Google.
Guest blogging is still alive and well, as 60% of bloggers write 1 to 5 guest posts per month.
71% of marketers report content marketing has become significant in the past year.
Source: Ahrefs.comCountless blogging statistics show just how powerful blogs are. And my favorite fun fact: people like to read topics that interest them.
The evolution of blogging
Blogging used to be more of an online diary. Today, blogging is mostly used for educating your target audience, marketing services or products, and earning money via ad revenue.
While people used to keep account of personal experiences via their blog content (and some still do), blogs have moved more towards a money-making strategy.
What I appreciate about the evolution of blogging is that people can still use their blogs to share personal experiences. That's because blogs can generate more leads by incorporating storytelling to connect with your readers and evoke emotion–more on this below.
Today, people read blogs to:
Find answers to their questions
Learn new information
Get relevant information on trends, news, products, etc.
Decide if they should buy something or what to buy
Connect with a community
Get advice from an expert or someone they trust
Tips for blogging in 2024
Now that we know the answer is yes, people still read blogs, how do you make yours stand out with 600 million blogs on the internet?
I use these blogging tips for every article to attract and keep blog readers:
Quality and quantity matter
Meet user intent
Make your articles easy to read and skimmable.
Share unique content.
Help people solve their biggest problems.
Optimize for SEO.
Get traffic to your blog.
For customizable blogging templates and my go-to resources, check out this SEO Blogging Toolbox.
Quality and quantity matter
Two big debates in blogging are about quality vs quantity and blog length.
I’ve written blogs almost daily for the last few years, and here’s what I’m seeing matters in 2024:
Long-form content (1K+ words per article) drives more traffic, but shorter articles can also do well
Meaningful content is more important than word count
The more articles you publish, the better results you’ll usually see (2+ articles per month is ideal)
It’s better to write fewer high-quality articles than a bunch of subpar ones
I recommend setting a specific number of hours you can spend on blogging each week and using that time to write quality content. Don't skimp on research, the article's visibility, editing, etc.
To learn more about creating a content calendar that works for you and get a customizable content planning template to help you stay on track, check out my SEO blogging course.
Meet user intent
This is the most significant change I’ve seen in blogging in recent months and since AI started taking over.
Meeting user intent means you’re answering the search query. For example, if you write an article that targets the keyword “healthy dinner recipes,” you shouldn’t write about sweet treats.
Google wants to show users content that directly meets user intent and avoids ranking content that’s fluffy and indirect.
To meet user intent, you need to:
Be specific about answering the search query
Answer the query right away so the reader knows they’re in the right place
Use the target keyword in the first few sentences
Get to the point in meeting user intent and avoid unnecessary fluff
Share any valuable information that helps meet user intent (i.e., relevant examples, resources, and visuals)
If you want to include helpful information that doesn’t directly meet the user intent, do it at the end. For example, if someone is searching for budget-friendly vacation destinations, the majority of the article should focus on this. If you want to include tips for budgeting on vacation, include this at the end because it’s related, could add value, and the user intent has already been met.
Make your articles easy to read & skimmable
If we know anything to be true, it’s that people’s attention spans are only getting shorter.
Even though many people still read blogs, many are just skimming. They want to find the information that's important to them. And if it's interesting enough and easy to read, they'll read most or all of the article.
Make your article easy to read and skimmable with:
Headers to break up the text and highlight important content.
Lists and charts.
Short sentences and paragraphs. 1-3 sentences in a paragraph are enough.
Content that’s broken up with visuals (images, videos, graphics, etc.).
Important information that stands out via bold, underlined, and italicized text.
Share unique content
Remember when I said millions of blog articles are published per day? Yours needs to be different.
If your article is the same as all the others, what’s the point?
It’s okay to share the important big ideas that might already be out there but also share something unique. For example, this article shows results from my very own poll and a client’s results (see above).
Be unique by:
Storytelling
Sharing personal experiences
Discussing specific examples
When I started tying more personal stories into my content, I started getting daily inquiries for my copywriting services because I started building connections and trust.
Help people solve their biggest problems
Attract and keep your audience’s attention by solving their biggest problems. What they’re searching (your topic/keyword) lets you understand the user intent, and you need to address this.
When writing your blog content, address the problem your target audience is struggling with.
For this article, people are searching for “Do people still read blogs.”So, I know your pain point (or problem) is that you want to figure out if there’s any point in blogging.
I’ve made it clear to answer this question and share helpful information on writing blogs that people will read.
Optimize for SEO
If you want people to organically find your blog articles for more reach, you must optimize for SEO.
Search engine optimization (SEO) practices help Google determine what your content is about and if it’s helpful for its users. Optimizing for SEO is how your blog articles can show up in search engines.
SEO strategies include:
High-traffic keywords your audience is searching for
Appropriate headers throughout your articles for effective formatting
Reader-friendly content (short sentences and paragraphs, lists, visuals, etc.)
Meaningful content that helps the reader
Get traffic to your blog
SEO is one of the best ways to get traffic to your blog because it lets you create helpful content and target various keywords your audience is searching.
That said, there’s a lot of competition on Google, and it takes time to build up your SEO and brand awareness.
Even when you’ve nailed SEO, having other sources of traffic to your blog is always beneficial.
Here are ways to promote your blog for more traffic:
Social media platforms: Share your articles on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok to boost traffic
Email marketing: I love Flodesk for email marketing, which is an effective way to connect and stay in touch with your audience
YouTube: Share videos related to your blog, then link your article(s)
Pinterest: This is another popular search engine, but it’s a long-term game, like Google SEO
Guest blogging: Write guest blog posts for blogs with more traffic and ask to link your blog
Who reads blogs?
Most people who use the internet to purchase or learn more about a topic read blogs.
Think of five people you know. Do they use Google? If so, there's a high chance they read blogs.
Even if people don't intentionally look for a blog, one will usually come up if you search for something like:
Places to travel during winter
Free activities near me
Best remote work jobs
Easy dinner recipes
How to earn more money
When you search phrases like these, Google usually provides information via blogs. If you’ve ever seen the “People also ask” section, which shares a quick overview, this content is pulled from blog articles.
What has replaced blogging?
While some argue that social media tools have replaced blogging, this simply isn’t true. Blogging is unique in that it’s long-form content you can optimize for SEO that lives on your website and the internet forever. It also serves different purposes than other types of content and marketing strategies.
While social media is popular for consuming content, many people on social platforms aren’t ready to buy. When people search Google and find blogs, they’re often in a buyer mindset.
For example, if I search Google for “the best all-natural skincare products,” I’m probably interested in buying skincare products. If I come across a related article, I may decide to buy.
On the other hand, social media is designed for entertainment and making connections, so people aren’t usually thinking about buying. If I come across skincare brands on social media, I’ll probably follow a brand for a while before buying.
Think about your own experiences. You might behave similarly. We all use the internet differently. Different types of content and platforms inspire us to take action.
Do people still read blogs, or have they been replaced by YouTube videos?
People definitely still read blogs, and blogging is a style of long-form content unlike any other. While vlogs are also often long-form, those who prefer reading their content can’t do this with videos like blogs.
How you can save time using multiple content platforms
Because there are so many content marketing platforms now, it’s best to use them to your advantage. If you use multiple platforms, you can reach more people.
Remember, your target audience may consume content in various ways.
It’s best to consider where your ideal clients or customers are:
Google
Facebook
Pinterest
YouTube
Instagram
TikTok
Email
Podcast
Choose 2-3 platforms to reach your target audience. I don’t recommend trying to be on all platforms, especially right away.
Right now, I show up on my website/blog, LinkedIn, and email. I use Pinterest some, too.
You might ask your audience which platforms they prefer via your email newsletter or polls on your social media platform(s). You can also choose the ones that feel best for you.
Because blogs are long-form content, you can pull content from your blog to create content for your other platforms.For example, I could use this blog article to create various Instagram posts (no longer on Instagram), Pinterest pins, and email newsletter content with something like this:
Do people still read blogs? Conclusion
I hope this article was helpful for you in better understanding the purpose of blogging. People absolutely still read blogs regularly. And with the most recent stats, blogging isn't going anywhere for a long time.
Blogs are an excellent marketing tool to help you reach your business goals and make more money if you’re willing to put in the effort or can pay someone to help you.
If you’d like to DIY your blog, check out these resources for helpful blogging templates, tools, and information on how to write blogs that drive results. If you’re looking for blogging support, contact me to learn more about how I can help you.
