How to Choose a Niche for Your Blog:Strategy, Mistakes & Income Reports (2024)

Just 2 years ago I had no clue what a blogging niche was.

And yet, I started my blog on the topic I’m passionate about – Art. And quit my job within the next year!

Now, as I began writing on this blog, I thought about all of the questions I had at the beginning of my blogging path, and one of them was – How to choose a Niche.

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A niche is a specific topic, a group of people, a community. It can be as broad as “Artists” or as concentrated as “Keto Diet Lifestyle for Busy Moms”.

Whatever the niche – that’s what you will be talking about on your blog, and that’s the kind of audience you will be attracting.

Maybe you know exactly what you are planning to blog about. However, most people find it rather tough and I don’t blame them.

Choosing your perfect niche is not an easy task, but it has to be done as early as possible.

Finding a niche is deciding on the topic of your site, or a particular group of people you want to write for.

A good niche is popular, evergreen and is something people are already searching for.

You can, of course, write about anything you want! But this blog is about launching a successful blog. So let me be straight with you, can I?

Not every blog will be successful. That’s just the sad truth. Sometimes it happens because blogs are not thought through. And sometimes it happens because of unrealistic expectations or going “too niche”.

Let me give you an example.

Let’s say you start writing about microwaves. Why not? They are your passion and you know everything there is on the topic.

And your expectations are that you will get super famous, thousands of people will visit your blog every day and you will make a lot of money from home.

via GIPHY

What will happen, most probably, is that you will write 10-30 good articles and you will stop. Why? Because you already wrote about everything you know on the topic.

Some people will come to your site but not a lot since people search for microwaves when they are looking to buy or fix an issue.

Obviously, you won’t make a lot of money either. Since very little traffic won’t bring much of advertisem*nt money, not a lot of people buy microwaves online (shipping cost, delivery issues) so here goes your affiliate income and there aren’t many products you can make on the topic (and there aren’t a lot of people who would buy it).

That’s a great example of going “too niche” and unrealistic expectations.

On the other hand, if you talked about home improvement or kitchen appliances and organization you would have much better chances.

This could be not the greatest example, but I hope I’m delivering the point.

Another way of thinking about the decision is by asking yourself, “Is my topic needed and always relevant?”

People will always want to be healthier, make more money, be better people (self-improvement) and have better relationships.If you can help them in any of those broad niches then you are already setting yourself up for success.

For example, yourartpath.com (my first blog) is all about how beginner artists can improve their drawing/painting skills. I think it falls under the self-improvement category.

Yet, it’s still very broad. I started out speaking to both traditional and digital artists (as I practice both) and it led to some confusion down the road. If I could start over, I would niche down even further and just speak to digital artists since day 1.

I believe that this approach would take my blog further and it would grow faster (due to the right audience).

I will ask you a couple of questions that will hopefully help you with the decision making.

But no pressure! Remember, your blog is fluid. As you grow and learn new skills – it will change. So don’t be afraid, just answer truthfully and think about what value you are going to be providing.

Follow your passion… And choose a niche that can teach people how to be a better version of themselves.

• What are you passionate about?
• What are your hobbies?
• What are the topics you could talk about for hours?
• What topic could you write about for years?
• Which out of these topics fall under one of the 4 categories I mentioned earlier(health, wealth, relationship, self-improvement)?
• Are people searching for the topic already (hot niche)?

I hope these questions will help you get closer to your perfect niche.

I also want to say that if you are blogging to make money or gain popularity, sometimes it’s better to blog about huge important topics. Even if you are not that passionate about them, you could become passionate about the results the blog gives you and the lifestyle it allows you to live.

Being a passionate blogger doesn’t have to mean blogging about things you are passionate about, but also blogging simply because you are passionate about blogging.

Side Note: You don’t NEED to be an Expert on the topic you are planning to blog about. You BECOME an expert with time. A little bit of passion, knowledge, or experience will do just fine at the beginning.

Your Why is The Answer

Your niche will depend highly on WHY you are starting a blog.

• To make money?
• To get authority?
• To build a community?
• To learn more about your passion?

Depending on your answer, there will be different reasons why you want to choose one niche or the other.

Myself, I wanted to gain all of these things! So I figured that I must choose a Hot Passionate Niche.

Note: learn how to make your first $100 blogging here.

Finding a Hot Niche You Are Passionate About

Hot Niches usually have to do something with Health, Wealth, Relationships and Self-Improvement.

People want to be happier, wealthier, slimmer, smarter, have better relationships and so on. And you have to give them what they want if you want to succeed.

Think about your passions and hobbies and check if it applies to any of the above.

For example, Your Art Path (my first blog) is an art blog for beginner artists. It’s full of tutorial articles and products (self-improvement, smarter, skilled). Some of the articles and products are about how to achieve art career goals (wealth, happier).

You can think of a niche as a third layer. Category -> Sub-Category -> Your Niche

For example, Your Art Path:

Art and Entertainment(Category) -> Drawing and Painting (Sub-Category) -> Tutorials and Inspiration for Aspiring Artists (Niche).

If I was starting all over again, I would go even further and choose “Digital Art Tutorials And Inspiration for Aspiring Artists” as my niche. Since Traditional and Digital artists are two different niches and it brought some confusion.

If you are in a health niche, you can teach people how to get slimmer. Get slimmer through yoga or get slimmer through dieting are two different niches. You can then gradually add new topics/ideas and checking how it corresponds with your audience. If you talk about many niches within your sub-category at once, you might just confuse people.

• The niche shouldn’t be too broad: Health.
• Or too niched down: Losing weight with yoga for moms over 40+ who gave birth 3+ times.
• Somewhere in the middle: Losing weight with yoga for women.

So here are some things to consider in this step:

• Am I passionate/knowledgable on the topic?
• Does it fall under the 4 categories or can I connect it in some way to them?
• Is it too broad or too niched down?
• Are people searching for the topic already?

Just a quick note, that you can make money blogging in any niche. Some are just easier than others. It depends on how well you do it!

That’s why I want to start with a few miscellaneous examples first and then move ahead to some more obvious ones. All of this information is for your reference and inspiration!

Miscellaneous

• Celebrity Baby Scoop – a blog on celebrity parenting. Lisa mixed her two passions: babies and celebrities, interviewed famous people and build a community of people who are interested in the topic.

In 2015 the blog was making $300,000 per year as seen here.

• Succulents and Sunshine – a blog run by Cassidy Tuttle that’s all about growing succulents and teaching people how to take care of them indoors, as well as in areas with freezing temperature.

In 2016, they ended up grossing just over $100,000, as she shares on a podcast with Pat Flynn.

• Boho Berry – a blog for artists working with ink. It’s run by Kara Bens and is pretty niched down!

The last income report she published was from October 2016, when she earned a total of $5,199.88 that month.

There are many other bloggers in miscellaneous niches who make a great income, yet not a lot of them do income reports. The main takeaway is: if you are passionate and know what you are doing – you can make money blogging on any topic.

How to Make Money Niche

• Melyssa Griffin – a blog that talks about how to grow income and impact online. The latest blog income report was published in December of 2016 with a total income of $283,680.

• SmartPassiveIncome – a blog/podcast run by Pat Flynn that teaches strategies for running an online business and optimizing for passive income. The latest blog income report was published in December 2017 with a total net profit of $127,906.

• Fire Nation – a blog for entrepreneurs on fire run by John Lee Dumas. In December 2018, total gross income was $171,068. Total gross income for 2018: $2,029,744.

Personal Finance Niche

• Making Sense of Cents – a personal finance blog run by Michelle Gardner. In 2018 she made over $1,500,000 with her blog and shared her last income report.
• Busy Budgeter – blog on the organization of your budget, home, and life by Rosemarie Groner. She started her blog in 2014 and made $86,438 in January of 2017.
• Millennial Money Man – run by Bobby Hoyt. In September 2018 he made $127,213.

Health and Food Niche

• Pinch of Yum – Lindsay’s recipe blog. The last income report she shared was in November 2016, totaling about $100,000 thatmonth.
• Show Me the Yummy – a blog by Trevor and Jenniferwith a lot of awesome healthy recipes. The last income report they shared was from December 2016, total revenue: $46,367.
• The Bewitchin’ Kitchen – recipes, health, and nutrition. Last income report posted on February 2018, with a total of $6312.

Travel Niche

• One Step 4Ward – dream big, travel far, live full blog by Johnny Ward. In the time he has been blogging, he made over $1,500,000+ with the best month of about $60,000.
• Local Adventurer – run by Esther and Jacob that explore a new city every year. In October 2018 they made $28,729 travel blogging.
• Adventure in You – run by 2 travelers Tom and Anna that have been traveling the world for the past 4 years. In June of 2018, they made $19,233.

Family Niche

• It’s a Lovely Life – family life and family travel blog. In November 2018, their total income was $123,533.
• Sarah Titus – a blog that touched many hearts. In 2017 she earned nineteen thousand short of $1,000,000.
• Rose Atwater – family, faith, and finance blog. November 2016 blogging income report: $10,126

Lifestyle Niche

Lifestyle niches usually cover a wide range of topics, here are some to check out and see for yourself:

• Just a Girl and Her Blog – a blog run by Aby Lawson about organizing, decoration, and blogging. December 2016 income report $41,700.
• Chasing Foxes – lifestyle, money, style guide, travel, food, and how to blog. It’s run by Silas and Grace that reported $10,266 income in February.
• Hot Beauty Health – lifestyle blog for women covering fashion, lifestyle, wellness, food, travel, and career. In September of 2018, Diana made $9655.

As you can hopefully see by now, you can get amazing results blogging in any niche. It’s all up to your dedication and knowledge to make it work!

Have a strategy, set goals and make sure that there are other people interested in your topic.

Also, it might be scary to look at all of these huge income reports when getting started. But the goal isn’t to catch up to them, it’s to start a profitable blog and make your first bit of meaningful income. One step at a time.

#1. Taking Too Long

Agonizing and trying to choose a perfect niche isn’t always a good strategy. It’s important to do your research beforehand, but what’s more important is to make that first step and start a blog. Your first step could be choosing a niche, or picking a name, or signing up for Bluehost and starting to design your website.

Make a decision to start a blog today and act on it. And one day, if you are dedicated, you will be writing your own income reports.

#2. Being Afraid of Competition

Repeat after me: Competition is a good thing!

Many people are afraid to get started because there are so many successful people on the market now. Some end up not even trying, others go into a niche without competition and only a few take control in their own hands and believe in themselves.

Those who don’t even try – will always regret it.

Those who go into niches where there is no competition – there is a 99% chance that’s because there is no market, demand or interest for it!

And only those who give themselves a chance – succeed. Not all will become 6ix figure bloggers, but the experience itself is worth it!

#3. Giving Up too Early

Strategy and planning are the keys to success. There are many reasons why that is, but one of them is that if you think things through you won’t be surprised or disappointed by setbacks and obstacles.

So many bloggers create stunning content, websites and even begin building readership, but then give up right before their blogs take off.

Here is the truth – blogging takes time. It’s not a get-rich-quick scheme. It’s a long game where you build success over time, and that success stays with you even if you decide to take a few months off.

Dedication. Knowledge. Action.

I hope you enjoyed reading this article and got some inspiration and ideas for your new blog’s niche. When you are ready to get started, follow this guide where I laid out the first few steps of blogging.

I wish you luck and persistence!