Welcome back to Day 2 of the Ultimate Blog Challenge: How it all began.
Today we're supposed to talk about our niche or market, and why we're doing what we're doing.
As I was saying in yesterday's post, I started blogging in 2012. My first post was the story of a purse I was *forced* to purchase, and the story seemed to lengthy to post on Facebook, so without thinking about target groups, niches, continuity and other factors, I quickly set up my blog and took it from there...
When I first started in 2012, my blog was called "Confessions of a part-time working Mom". My son was four years old, and unlike other Mommy Bloggers I did not feel called to provide parenting advice. Heck, I barely knew what I was doing myself!
However, I found that writing about our daily life and small adventures helped me to reflect on things and connect with likeminded people.
As my son's hobby progressed and got more time-intense - he plays ice hockey - I felt my job title, and for that matter, my blog's name, deserved an upgrade. That's where "Part-time working Hockey Mom" came in.
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| 2016 |
Sadly - or naturally - I didn't do many "free posts" about our life anymore and reduced my writing to monthly and annual challenges. That's pretty much still the case today, and I recognize one of the reasons, beside time constraints, is that my blog doesn't really have a purpose. I like to write and connect with other bloggers, but I don't have a recurring theme or an overall message. I am an HR person, I might write about recruiting, interview techniques and the likes, but frankly that wouldn't be much fun.
So that's where I am now. How about you? What's your niche? How did you end up there?
Let me know in the comments below.
Challenges can be good if it helps build familiarity with a group. And if you sometimes wrote about your son, "hockey mom" could be a niche you marketed to from time to time. Fo me, I would say mine is women who love Hallmark Christmas movies but feel a little lost when the season is over, and I help them find ways to feel as happy during the rest of the year as they do during the Christmas season.
ReplyDeleteIt's great hearing stories about your family.
ReplyDeleteYour niche may be just sharing your life and what each day shows you. This builds connection and relationship with like-minded people. You’re off to a great start because I want to learn more.
ReplyDeleteMy blog's purpose is to ignite people's creativity and awaken their writing muse (or in some cases, re-awaken.) Sometimes this comes from tips and videos, sometimes this comes from me telling stories, sometimes it comes in coaching client examples. I am strange to some because my interests are wide and vast... and speaking of Mommying - my kids appear in my blog sometimes too -- either in their past selves or their now selves. Mostly, I try to be real... authentic... and a friendly voice to my readers while I hope to also provide value they can take away with them.
ReplyDeleteHmm. I thought hockey mom became too pejorative after Sarah Palin. (Just so you know- I am not against hockey, one of my clients supplies hockey paraphernalia to amateurs and professionals.)
ReplyDeleteI agree with Debi's comments above.
My niche is spirituality, death and rebirth! I want to continue my blog long after these 30 days are over, because it has become a large part of my spiritual practice. When I stopped writing in the summer months, I felt lost. Now I found myself, again. Namaste.
ReplyDeleteI think you have found your niche!
ReplyDeleteI enjoy reading your posts. I know it is easier for me to post when I have some challenge or theme.
ReplyDeleteJanet’s Smiles
Interesting post, finding one's self is good
ReplyDeleteTamara, there is an entire contingent of "niche-free" bloggers out there, myself included. Why confine yourself to a specific topic? There's more freedom to write what you want, this way. I love your posts and your photos! 👌
ReplyDeleteMine started because I am a writer hoping to be published and I thought it might be a fun way to record my writing journey, but it really morphed into a whatever I feel like talking about space...a bit like yours :)
ReplyDelete