In this post Jeff Chandler takes a look at the future of blogging.
Every Wednesday, I publish a new interview on BloggerTalks.com and as part of the interview process, there is one particular question which is asked to each individual that I interview which is “What Is The Future Of Blogging“? Well, for this weeks installment on Problogger, I thought I would compile the answers I’ve received thus far. At the end of the article, feel free to contribute by leaving a comment explaining what you think the future of blogging will be.
Christina Warren:
Microblogging (Twitter, Friendfeed, Tumbler, et. al.) is already changing personal sites and blogs — I think that will continue. I also think that blogs will continue to become more interactive, more immediate and that video will continue to grow in importance. I think the hard part about video is that for anyone wanting to do anything other than the stare at the webcam in bad lighting YouTube confessional, there are skills and techniques that are necessary to its success.
Mobile blogging and mobile communication is also certainly going to continue to take off. The iPhone has played a huge role in that and Google’s Android platform will help push that as well.
Steven Hodson:
I think blogging is definitely here to stay. Hell it hasn’t even really hit the mainstream yet as far as readership so the marketplace is still to be developed. I also think that over the next few years we will see a real amalgamation of heritage media and new media – we can learn so much from each other if we’d just stop being so territorial. Yeah, I think the future for blogging is still very bright and I hopefully will still be doing for a very long time to come. I look forward to growing with it.
Kevin Muldoon:
I think blogging will be here with us in some shape or form for a long time. Over the next few years I believe the major growth will be in mobile blogging. Most smartphones are now coming with blogging type software pre-installed (eg. lifeblog) and most can use Twitter and other microblogging software too. Just a few months ago WordPress released a version for the iphone so that people could blog on the move.
Over the next few years I’m sure that we will see more and more blogs being launched as there are still many countries where Internet usage is increasing by a large amount every year.
David Peralty:
I am not sure. Any guess would be pulling at straws. I see it continuing to take over more attention from mainstream media, enough so that those businesses continue to dump more money into the space to drag people back to their brands, but other than that, it really depends on the advancement of technology, and the sociological issues and changes.
John Kolbert:
The future of blogging looks very bright. I believe that blogging to going to play a significantly bigger and better role in how the average person gets their daily information. Even major news sources understand the necessity of blogging (just look at CNN’s news blogs) and people reported news (iReport.com, anyone?). It is important to remember, though, that not everyone will be a big time, money making blogger. Blogging has basically no barriers to entry, economically meaning that there are lots of bloggers and low profit margins overall. But it’s not, and shouldn’t be, all about the money. Blogging is a healthy, enjoyable, lifestyle or hobby that’s here to stay.
Jonathan Bailey:
I definitely see the future of blogging as being more multi-media. I know I personally have been dipping my toes more in audio and video over the past year and plan to increase those efforts after the beginning of the year in a major way. This is partly due to the YouTube revolution but, more importantly, due to the declining barriers of entry into these media, especially in terms of skill required.
Other than that, the future of blogging is going to be about growth in all directions. We’re going to see more of the ridiculous and silly, but also more of the serious. More and more great minds are going to get involved with blogging and more and more of the dialog about our society is going to take place on the Web, away from TV and newspapers.
I’m not one that thinks mainstream media is doomed, it will always have a place, but its role as an influencer of policy and of people will wane some as it moves more toward being a straightforward news source.
The real question though is will this idea of blogging as a profession become more common and that is a tough one. Most pro bloggers, like myself, do so indirectly from their activities, the advertising revenue simply is not there for 99% of bloggers unless you do something unethical.
I see nothing wrong with blogging as an amateur activity and most great bloggers are amateurs, but as with anything the more time and energy one can afford to put into their work, the better the product and, at some point, that is going to require funding.
If blogger business models can be hammered out, the sky is literally the limit for what blogging can do.
Lee Robertson:
The future of blogging is to help in creating community. To connect with those around us, whether they live across town or across the world. Blogging is about telling stories, whether the stories are for your business, your hobby or your family. Blogging makes it easy to tell those stories and connect with the people that want to hear them. I might be a bit of an idealist that sharing information can help us actually get to know each other and understand each other better. I have to wonder if the future for blogging is perhaps to take a step back from the professional blogging that we are seeing so much of and becoming a little more personal again.
Conclusion:
I have to admit, when I ask this question to each person I interview, the first response I get is similar to ‘WTF’. It’s a tough question to answer considering the mold of blogging can change rapidly into something none of us see coming
You’ve read their responses, now it’s time for you to give us your thoughts as to what you think the future of blogging will be. As far as I’m concerned, there can be no wrong answer as we won’t know until after the fact. At that point, hindsight becomes 20/20.
I agree with Christina Warren. Video is going to be a big deal, and if bloggers don’t know how to do it they may find themselves falling behind.
i personally think blogging like anything else is just anouther ‘way’ and not an end all. we may see some changes in the internet, technology and even information technologies may shift offline but i think that most bloggers who are early adaptors will always get rewarded and its not so much about small trends like the iphone turns into the g1 phone but rather the major seismic shifts like we saw when the internet very quickly became cheap and accessable. in the same way things may shift but anyone who loves staying informed to technology even beyond internet technology will be best suited…so as always an open mind and an innovative mind is most likely going to love the future be it blogging or otherwise.
Duh , blogging can never die, blogging is referred to as something which we do to express our views and we won’t stop expressing our views in the future as well , it may evolve to micro blogging as well but , Future is the toughest thing to predict !
Blogging is still in it’s infancy for many people. WordPress is making it easier to use and understand and as more people decide to blog there will be great ideas that come of that and new technologies will be created on top of blogging. I believe that blogging is the platform of the future. Websites are old news!
While more blogs will use audio and video, they’re not the future of blogging. The (properly) written word gets information across so much quicker.
I usually skip videos because I can’t scan them for the important information while skipping the fluff like I can with a page of text. My laptop struggles with most video as well, and I never go back and watch them when I get home.
The above doesn’t apply to blogs that are for entertainment, as the readers or watchers aren’t trying to get to the important bits. They have a different purpose.
We’re really going to see an explosion in multi-author blogs, more so than we already have.
I am sure blogging is forever. I don’t think blogosphere will decline. Because its vast and cannot be destroyed by any forces.
Blogging is going to dominate the Internet until something better comes along. I have no idea what could be better, so unless someone comes along with some kind of breakthrough, blogging will just evolve into bigger and better things.
I think blogs will become more accepted as a mainstream way to advertise and even become more accepted as a mainstream News source.
With the looming world economies, most businesses will cut their online ads expenses and will use blogs as their main traffic generator,
Yep. Blogging is here to stay will continue to grow at a substantial pace…
Chris Brogan made a statement in a blog entry that I will never forget. He said,
“Twitter isn’t amazing. The ability to connect to many voices in a collaborative way is amazing. Facebook isn’t the future. Having mutual social environments that permit the deeper understanding of each others interests is the future. It’s important that we learn how to talk in terms of benefits and not the features.”
I think this is also true of blogging.
As long as their is that need for interaction among individuals, blogging in some form will always exist.
I think blogs are the way to go. I see alot of companies changing their standard site over to blogs.
I still think blogging has a long way to go in its current form, even without embracing video and audio fully. Mainstream internet users have hardly embraced blogs but I think the next couple of years will see that change, to what level I have no idea! Especially as bloggers get better at all aspects of blogging, they will become more desirable to the mainstream interested in all topics.
Christina Warren:
Thanks for your insights on the growth of video use on blogs and the poor quality of most blogger videos. As a video producer I cringe at some of the video I see on so many blogs today.
Even having good content is not enough to get around poor production quality. Poor lighting and bad audio distract viewers from absorbing your message.
A couple of quick tips:
– Use a lamp to illuminate web cam vids: seat the lamp at 4 o’clock to your body and use the shade to direct the beam at your face. Put it on a dimmer to control the amount of light.
– For audio: Get the mic as close to you or your talent as possible. Consider a handycam that accepts external microphones
– For conferences (noisy locations): Position your talent such that the noise source is behind him/her and show it. People will forgive the noise if they see the source of it.
John Easton
Follow Me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/jeaston1
I see two things that make the future bright for blogging: 1) As more countries come on line, we will see more and more bloggers, and a larger readership, and 2) More websites will change over to the blogging format, with regular updates rather than static content.
The readership issue is the real question in the future as it is now. Who will read all these blogs? How many good blogs with good content will die because of lack of readership?
That makes it all the more important to read, digest, and put into action information such as provided here on ProBlogger.
Great article! Thanks!
I think micro blogging will get HUGE. Once it is adopted by well known personalities who are using it right, and large companies use it more effectively I believe we’ll see that medium grow exponentially.
Matt
I definitely think that blogging is here to stay also. I just don’t see the Internet without blogging. I mean, who really wants to go back to all the static web pages? That would be an absolute outrage. I say that blogging will definitely live on.
I also think so-called micro-blogging will be huge, despite the fact it somewhat makes me sad. The power of blogging lies in getting the raw data and figures and come up with a new analysis, a fresh perspective, so to speak. Surely micro is nice and cool but also shallow.
In retrospect, that is exactly why we still need papers and TV as very few bloggers, if any, will have the means to acquire the raw news.
There is no death for blogging. although microblogging is patronized by most of the bloggers, blogging will be develop slowly but steadily…
Peoples blogs still never get any media attention really. It is a shame because you have a lot of great ones which people don’t know about and will never find.
We really need a show on mainstream TV that showcases the best blogs of the internet in all areas. Some blogs are more interesting than websites.
You can spend years talking about photography blogs. Someone will take the idea one day I hope and do a show on blogs.
I don’t see video supplanting blogging as much as supplanting a site like Youtube. Once everyone has a decent cell phone with video capability you’ll see Seismic or one of those explode in growth while Youtube dwindles.
That said, a blog is essentially a magazine no matter how you cut it. So that format will never truly go away.
I love blogging and the blogosphere, but I am a little worried about the blog world’s viability. When I consider things like cutbacks at Technoratti, I begin to wonder if the girth of blogs online has contributed to the lack of influence that blogs overall seem to have. While Web 2.0 is definitely here to stay, my “jury is still out” when it comes to blogging.
Blogs are increasing like mushrooms.But this will not a fact.Blogs will grow and will get attention of readers day by day.Only the difference is Publicity.Future Media is only and only Blog.
I think, at least I hope, that blogs will become more organized — it seems to be so haphazard right now to find other bloggers that share the same passions that I do. There are too many networks out there to join and hope to find a kindred spirit — some of them have fallen recently like blogrush and pownce. I believe that will continue until only the strongest survive.
Ultimately, there should be a central “yellow pages” for bloggers to connect, interact and share on various categories, instead of having to blindly find similar blogs by happenstance. That effort takes much time, time that could be spent solving real problems by real people, real bloggers, like me and you.
I believe that most blogs that are getting attention are run by what average internet users would still consider “geeks.”
The point about blogging not hitting the mainstream yet is pretty accurate in my view. I think it applies to blogs where the goal is to be a pro blogger and not just a diary or a “fun blog.”
Most people outside the ‘sphere are still mystified by what we do and how we do it.
I’d have to agree the the future of blogging will be very strong. Like mention above, multimedia will become more and more important as people become less patient to read, and more interested in listening and watching video.
Also, reader interaction will become much more important as well. The more the reader feels they can contribute, the more likely they will become a daily reader.
It might even be possible that video comments become more mainstream as more and more people get webcams and cameras become more affordable. This allows people to share their feedback via video which gives it a lot more customization and personal feel to it.
Christina and @Ben are right on about video. We associate interactivity with the web. Those that will get the training and risk will be the ones that will get the “first to market” prize
If blogging is going to be that big as many of the pro-bloggers here predicts, then I better get in the sphere then (just kidding!!). Blogging isn’t not as easy as it looks or as some people may say. It’s like handle a restaurant alone since you don’t have any capital to get some help. If one of the things that make a blog popular is the size of the archive, then of course it will take a lot of time and effort, and more important patience… and lots of it, and may be a little wit to keep you sane on this blogging journey. I do wish blogs get more attention on tv since let’s face it people still spends more time on tv than on the net. How will the future of blogging be? I am not qualified to answer this. Let’s leave it to the pros who knows the ins and outs of this new type of interaction.
I think blogging will become more personal, niche blogs will reduce, personal ramblings will increase and the bigger more successful ones will morph into more professional news-blogs type of media (like techcrunch).
When I explore my own thoughts about the future of blogging I see numerous connections and similarities in mind set and vision with those presented here.
Regardless of the changes in platforms, trends or preferences, we must remember that specific skills will continue to be needed – clarity of message; presentation design; and timeliness will continue to be important. Success of communication is measured and judged by the receiver. If you can not connect with your audience, you fail!
What are the impacts of your blog/message being lost in the rising tides of the oceans of mediocrity? Put your boots on, time will tell who gets wet.
Internet buying vs going to a store has grown immensely in the past couple of years. At the same time many many sites have taken advantaged of buyers through scams.
Pulling out your credit card and giving your numbers away to a complete stranger is a big risk. Many people are scared to do this (and at times with good reason).
Blogging lets the buyer know what they are getting into and who they are buying from.
Free information (articles, ebooks, podcasts) allow the buyer to get their feet wet before completely committing to buying a product. It allows them to feel safer when it comes time to pull out their credit card.
I’m new to blogging and never realized the full potential of what it could be used for until I found this site. I can only imagine what has yet to be accomplished or invented for the world of bloggers. I’m excited to see how this will evolve in the future.
There are many different kinds of blogs, but in the years to come I think a few will be seen as works of literature. The blog could become a new art form, that may even rival the novel. Of course, it will take a hundred years or more for the snooty literary establishment to accept it, but I can definitely see it happening. The people who start now will be the pioneers.
My blog will soon be archived by the British Library. That doesn’t mean much in itself because they also archive business websites. But they are committed to preserving websites and blogs for a hundred years or more. I don’t want to be morbid, but this gives me peace of mind over what will happen to my blog when I shuffle off this mortal coil.
I believe blogs will last as long as the internet does. That basically means, as long as humans survive. After all, the printing press hasn’t gone away, has it?
Blogging</b is here to stay…we are the main catapults for information nowadays. If too many bloggers team up againgst you, you’re done!
So blogging must be respected. I believe it will get more interactive because ppl simply love to be part of something and once they’r “down with you they are going to want more ways to express themselves.
This question seems to come up fairly often in social media circles. Scoble has declared it dead and he isn’t the only one. I agree with Steve Hodson, though. Blogging hasn’t even reached mainstream yet. There is room for growth. Yes, social media will impact it and already has. But, I view the blog as a hub for a larger online presence, with social media being all the individual spokes of the wheel.
As for blogging as a profession, it is a tough one but there is certain more room for people in the fold. I blog professionally and make good money at it, however as anybody who makes real money at this will attest, it is a lot more than writing and hitting “Publish”.
Blogging is just the beginning of the move towards self-publishing and producing. I don’t think blogging in its current form will remain long, there is simply too much information. I imagine that something will come along that is able to take blogging to the next level. A true social networking platform.
It looks like micro blogging and multi-media blogging is the way to go, but at the same time. I think that personal blogs, the ones where you tell your story about a very specific niche always will be interesting.
The problem though is that more and more blogs get most of the search engine traffic. About a year ago it would be fairly easy to get great results from search engines, now it’s a bit harder.
I think that this is all because we see more “big” blogs with more quality posts on every niche, more blogs with guest writers, and this is probably going to happen in the future as well… so, it will probably be harder to stand out from the crowd when it comes to blogging in the future.
But if you become “really” personal in your niche, I guess the future will still be bright.
I think blogging will become more personal, niche blogs will reduce, personal ramblings will increase and the bigger more successful ones will morph into more professional news-blogs type of media
Hey there !
Recently I stumbled through the post on Problogger with the same title :- ‘The Future of Blogging’. The post is a collection of views from different people about the future of blogging. Well it differs in most of cases and the most common thing in what almost everyone believes is that the mode and media of blogging is going to get a major overhaul.
But what I think is that it may be the case for many established bloggers who already have a huge fan following and can afford to feed their readers with their ideas in other forms like video and audio podcasting as well as online video websites like You Tube etc.. but I don’t think they can solely rely on media other than the text on the traditional blogs. I have written more on my blog at TuuBol.com. I would like your comments on my views on the same topic.
Content was and will be the king of the net.
It doesn’t matter how technology evolves, it all comes down to CONTENT.
The future is already here! We all ready have all we need to spread our ideas in any medium that we choose and without investing any money on it.
You have to come with big ideas, to be real, be authentic…just be YOU and give the best content that you can give to make people’s life better… people will visit your Blogs because they want something…they want you to deliver something they need for their growth or just to make them feel better in a certain way.
The best publicity that always was and always will be is:
Word to mouth (or email to email) and people will deliver your message to their friends not because you’re using the latest Hi Tech…They will do it because of YOU and your CONTENT.
So the real future as I see it is in QUALITY! More quality personal Blogs…you need to invest your time in delivering the best quality content that you can give…
“You always get what you give”
Thank you : )
Alex Ziv (alexziv.com)
I definitely see blogging providing the off-beat and between the lines type coverage of mainstream news. For underdeveloped niches (example would be dating/relationships where I exist), blogging has the potential to break ground and create exciting change. In my life, blogging is a big big deal.
Video will definetly be one big part of the future of blogging. Microblogging, Twitter etc is propably the way the future world of blogging is going to be, well the future will tell us who was right or wrong :).
I hope that blogging will be developed by bloggers in non-english speaking countries. Becouse in coutry is not developed.
I think blogging will become more and more interactive. Because of all of the new technologies that are popping up, we may even see a new form of blogging that totally transcends the prior.