Blogging is dying, or maybe it’s already dead. I’ve been noticing that people still do blog posts and that blog activity is still high (so say our analytics) but that people have started to comment less and less. This may be happening for a few reasons.
Why Blogs are Dying
1. When the blogging craze was picking up steam a few years back people followed 10-15 other people’s blog posts. Today it seems to have bloomed to dozens. In the old days if I were a Mommy Blogger sitting down in my spare 45 minutes between laundry, soccer practice, cooking dinner and church meetings I would have been able to squeeze off a post about cheerios in the nose and still blog surf and leave a few comments. But now, after writing that post I have to try and navigate 50 blogs with updates just so that the next free moment doesn’t greet me with 100 new posts. I’m fighting a losing battle.
2. Facebook. The present of the internet landscape has changed the way we interact. The advent of the ‘Like’ button has greatly sped up the ability to leave our stamp upon a status update, note, picture, etc. Plus, everything streams to one central place. No more hunting down, link to link, somebody’s most recent post. It shows up in a summarized feed.
I’ve had this blog since before the word was well understood and I haven’t always been the most active poster. I enjoy the medium but have found the centrality that facebook offers much more appealing in the long run.
Why Blogs Will Still Exist
1. Some people still use postal mail for letters. Some people haven’t adopted the reality that facebook isn’t a fad. Some people are slow to change.
2. It’s great for SEO (Search Engine Optimization). Although I feed this blog into my facebook profile it’s still a good source for increasing search engine rankings. Although the present and future of the web may be more focused on social networking sites blogging can be a great tool when properly applied.
3. Many people do it more for themselves than for others. For many, especially ‘Mommy Bloggers’ posting a new post on their blog provides 2 things. A sense of accomplishment and a journal for the future.
What’s Next?
I have no idea. I understood why Facebook would work but am still surprised that Twitter was such a crowd pleaser. There will certainly be new things in the future as change is the only constant. One thing I would recommend, don’t be afraid of change. Enjoy the technology and advancements, just don’t forget that real life relationships are what matter most.
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