When people ask me, what is better, Blogging or Vlogging? My answer is, it depends. Your niche may be more suitable for a particular platform. Plus your budget and skillset may be more appropriate for one of the platforms. So which channel is better for showcasing your niche and earning money and should we use both? Let’s go through it together in our latest comparison – Blog vs YouTube.
Which platform is best for your niche
Firstly, before you begin you need to decide what your niche is. Your niche may change over time since you learn as you go what you genuinely like discussing about. However, it is important to have a general idea of what you’re after.
Your niche may require certain media platforms that are more suitable to portray your work. Let’s say your niche is mostly product-based. Then you need to ask yourself if your reviews will reach more people and be more understanding through a video or a blog.
You also need to see who your audience will be. A younger audience will tend to prefer more interaction, hence videos are a way forward. Adults, such as parents, may not have as much time on their hands, so if you are writing about parental tips, perhaps its better to be more focused on blog posts.
Skills you require
Both platforms require different skills. Your skills at hand can help you understand which platform you should use to help get you a head start. Here are the main skills you require in blogging and vlogging:
Blogging
- You must be knowledgable and adhere to the Google Webmaster Guidelines.
- You must also have a basic understanding of SEO and high proficiency in English (or other languages depending on what you choose).
Vlogging
- You will require good communication skills, creativeness and efficiency in delivering what you want to say in your preferred language.
- Video editing skills are not required but it will set you ahead of the game. Just a quick look at the trending videos from vloggers, you can easily tell that the finished product required several hours of professional editing.
Pros & Cons of Blogging
As with all things, there are pros and cons. Some of the pros and cons are dependent on what you have readily available and what you are after:
Pros
- Low start-up costs – costs little to nothing to start, especially if you use WordPress with a free template to start with.
- Introvert paradise – if you are not camera-friendly, writing behind the screen is probably the more appropriate media for you.
- Monetization – Having your platform will give you many more options to gain income.
- Controlled creative outlet – Free will to add anything you want without adhering to strict guidelines of YouTube.
Cons
- Takes time to any income from writing blogs – A lot of SEO factors need to be addressed and Google does not send organic traffic unless you work for it over time.
- Learning curve – if you are not familiar with SEO optimization techniques, it will take quite a long time to learn.
- Aggressive competition – Certain popular keywords are already overtaken by most websites. You need to start small and choose less popular keywords used by users. This will get you more traffic, but trying to reach the top of the game, is a hard battle.
Pros & Cons of Vlogs
When it comes to vlogs, most of the cons will be time and money. Therefore, if these two are not an issue for you, you will find that vlogs are more suitable for you:
Pros
- Low startup costs – If you already own a good smartphone or camera, then your startup costs should be relatively low.
- Free content promotion from YouTube.
- A great creative outlet – YouTube sees around 2 billion users worldwide. That’s almost one-third of the users on the Internet.
- Broader niche – YouTube gives you more ability to show off your niche through videos.
Cons
- Time-consuming – to set up filming equipment takes a lot of time. This is especially so if you need to set it up each time.
- Expensive gear – Video gear may be expensive. If you want to create professional videos to keep your users captivated, you need to invest in proper gear.
- No platform – The risk of not having your platform is that YouTube can at any point choose to remove your content or demonetize your videos.
- Practicality – Sometimes filming is out of the question due to various reasons. If users expect weekly content from you, it’s not always manageable.
- Not as easy to earn money anymore – You must have 1000s of views per day on your channel to make any decent money. For startup vloggers, this isn’t easy to achieve.
Expenses
For blogging, the expenses of starting a professional blog will see you at around 50-100 USD. You need to buy a hosting plan and register a domain name. Another alternative is to start a free blog on Blogspot or Medium.
If you choose to buy a hosting plan, there are many different options. The best hosting and domain registration companies usually have a yearly plan. This means that the expense will be yearly since it needs to be renewed. It may prove costly but at least you have control over all your content.
On the other hand, if you want to opt for vlogs, YouTube provides all of its users a free channel. But to take videos, you will need to purchase a camera or smartphone that records at least 720p. The higher the quality, the more it will attract users.
YouTube hosts your videos without any costs. However, if you do not adhere to YouTube policies, you are at risk of your channel being put down, your content being removed or demonetized. Your content needs to be checked and updated, to make sure they still follow in line with their policies.
Should I do both?
As locationrebel.com explains it,
Two is the Magic Number for Most of Us
They found that trying to access more platforms than two will result in desultory work. One of the platforms will end up being neglected.
Instead, they leverage YouTube videos on their blog posts, and vice versa, links inside their videos, point to their blog posts. Do not try to add other sources such as Instagram or Pinterest. Try focus on two platforms and stick with those two primarily.
Having two platforms will gain you a wider audience. Also, since YouTube content may be dropped at any point in time, it’s best that vloggers also have a website with their content uploaded there too.
Final thoughts and recommendations
Here are some notes you should take from this.
Research the audience for your niche and analyze which platform will suit your topic better.
Think clearly which skills you are confident in. Are your skills better satisfied with YouTube or blogging?
Don’t neglect your budget, if your funds are slim, it may be better to consider starting blogging before delving into vlogging.
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Veteran content writer with focus on Technology and SEO.
