I tossed in “purist blogging” at the end of a recent blog post.
It’s a term I came up with on the fly, although somebody else may have used it before.
30 seconds after sending the email, a reader replied asking “what’s a purist blogger?”
Good question.
I just threw it out there with no explanation.
What I meant by purist blogger is a blogger whose blog is 100% them. It’s their personality. Their audience comes to read, watch and/or listen to them, not some hired gun.
Fat Stacks is mostly a purist blog. I have some outsourced content to target keywords, but the lion’s share is me.
My niche sites, such as cyclebaron.com, on the other hand, are not purist blogs. While I do contribute content to most niche sites, the sites are NOT centered around me. The brand is the focus.
They’re corporate sites. The content is sourced from many writers. There’s no “one person” behind them. There’s no singular voice.
Examples of non-purist blogs are Huffpost, TMZ, Searchenginejournal.com,
Examples of purist blogs include Greaterfool.ca, Fatstacksblog.com and DCrainmaker.com.
There are more non-purist blogs than purist blogs. After all, most folks don’t want to do all that writing yet love the online publishing model.
Should you publish a purist blog?
Only do so if you like writing or creating content. You also need an overarching message.
The Fat Stacks message is “how to build high-traffic and high ad revenue content sites by publishing lots of great content targeting low competition keywords without spending copious amounts of time building links.”
That’s it. That’s the theme. Most content revolves around that message.
The Greaterfool.ca message is “diversify your investments. Don’t put all your eggs into a one asset investment strategy such as a house.”
The DCrainmaker.com message is “what tech should you get and how to use it to improve your fitness and performance.”
My non-purist niche sites don’t have such a succinct message. They don’t have to.
Can you convert a purist blog to a non-purist niche site?
Yes, you can but you may lose some of your audience.
Huffpost was started by Ariana Huffington and a few others. I didn’t read it back in the day but my understanding is it was a curated news site with a distinct voice.
Now it’s a mainstream news outlet.
It’s still successful. The transition worked.
If your content quality remains high, transitioning shouldn’t be a big problem in the long run. Perhaps at first readers might revolt but over time the days of a lone voice will be forgotten.
Perhaps a better approach, at least during the transition, is to continue contributing but also have contributors publish to scale content.
Purist blogging is fun
Having an audience who appreciates your writing (or vids/podcasts) is fun. It really is. The Fat Stacks audience isn’t huge but I derive great pleasure writing these emails and doing the vids. The fact a few people read this stuff is great.
Can you target keywords as a purist blogger?
You can certainly target keywords. DCrainmaker.com targets keywords like crazy. Not only does he scoop up search traffic with both hands but his direct traffic levels are high as well. His audience trusts his opinions about tech and buy based on his write-ups.
Speaking of trust, if your audience trusts you, affiliate marketing is child’s play. How much DCrainmaker earns from affiliate commissions is anyone’s guess but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was 6 figures per month. Tens of thousands of people seek out his opinon on high-priced tech/fitness gadgets monthly.
Another example is Greaterfool.com. On the face of it, his wildly popular blog is not monetized. He says he gets 1.4 million monthly visits. Ads alone would generate $30K to $50K per month.
However, the guy behond Greaterfool.ca owns a wealth management company in Canada. He scoops up high net worth clients by the hundreds or thousands via his blog netting him millions in management fees. His purist blog is the ultimate advertising vehicle. He does no promotion. Doesn’t have an email list. He just publishes good content read by tons of people, many of whom trust him enough to hand over their millions to be managed.
Yes, purist blogging works great.
It’s different than non-purist blogging, which also works.
I’m such a believer in both that I do both.
Jon Dykstra is a six figure niche site creator with 10+ years of experience. His willingness to openly share his wins and losses in the email newsletter he publishes has made him a go-to source of guidance and motivation for many. His popular “Niche site profits” course has helped thousands follow his footsteps in creating simple niche sites that earn big.
