Some advice needed regarding blogging

[Hints404]

Hello blackhatters, Im a dev so i'm building sites using a static site generator like hugo and jekkyll. Im also practicing writing ( i'm actually just spinning content to get 65% uniqueness using edubirdie's plagiarism checker) and i hope to get some sort of advertising revenue. Im planning 40 articles per niche for 4 diff niches at launch.

Most of you swear by wordpress? Is there a particular reason for this?

The niches i'm targeting are

• Linux tips and tutorials
• Programming tips and tutorials
• Agriculturals news and guides
• Female - oriented news and stories

Are these niches ok? Do i have to fine-tune anything, do you have a process i can use to ascertain how good or bad a niche is?

Do the technical aspects of SEO really matter, im choosing static because i want ~< 4secs loading time, PWA capabilities and ease of config/usage. Plus static sites can't be hacked in the traditional sense of the word. They do lack in plugins so if there's any plugin i should keep in mind, do mention so i find a workaround.

On this forum, backlinks and domain authority is like the matrix, its everywhere, what must i absolutely keep in mind concerning this?

Advise?

ps: hopefully this spawns into my niche journey thread. Thank you for answering!

 

[aidenhera]

backlinking is most important seo aspect

 

[Hints404]

backlinking is most important seo aspect

Thanks, im absorbing various journey threads on BHW. Is it a bad idea to go for all the free backlinks building services?

 

[aidenhera]

Thanks, im absorbing various journey threads on BHW. Is it a bad idea to go for all the free backlinks building services?

what is free backlinking service?

 

[SlayWriter]

I think the reason most would use WordPress is because it's easy to use. There's not much code to mess around with if you don't want to, creating content is WYSIWYG and there's lots of easy to customize templates.

But if you're already comfortable with building sites with static pages, I don't see any reason why not to continue using it. From what I understand there's quite a few advantages to doing so as you mentioned. Security wise (no database to hack) and speed wise (pre rendered pages) to list a few. And seo wise it shouldn't be any different than WordPress pages. Although I'm not sure how you Seo Optimize a page but I'm guessing there is a way.

Regarding your niche selection, it seems interesting enough, even though it's a bit general, you could always niche it down further or find a new angle on it. The same rules of keyword research and competition research would apply before starting as with any other niche.

Regarding backlinks, you already chose the red pill so to speak, and the reality is without backlinks you can't really compete in the long run. Whether you like it or not, good content is not enough, and learning how to build backlinks, be it whitehat, blackhat or any coloured hat is a required skill.

 

[Akanagi]

As so far your content is readable and unique you should not have any problems. Mind me asking what kind of spinner will you be using?

 

[Hints404]

what is free backlinking service?

i see them in freebies section of BHW

I think the reason most would use WordPress is because it's easy to use. There's not much code to mess around with if you don't want to, creating content is WYSIWYG and there's lots of easy to customize templates.

But if you're already comfortable with building sites with static pages, I don't see any reason why not to continue using it. From what I understand there's quite a few advantages to doing so as you mentioned. Security wise (no database to hack) and speed wise (pre rendered pages) to list a few. And seo wise it shouldn't be any different than WordPress pages. Although I'm not sure how you Seo Optimize a page but I'm guessing there is a way.

Regarding your niche selection, it seems interesting enough, even though it's a bit general, you could always niche it down further or find a new angle on it. The same rules of keyword research and competition research would apply before starting as with any other niche.

Regarding backlinks, you already chose the red pill so to speak, and the reality is without backlinks you can't really compete in the long run. Whether you like it or not, good content is not enough, and learning how to build backlinks, be it whitehat, blackhat or any coloured hat is a required skill.

i admit im a little worried concerning my niche, i need to learn keyword and competitor research asap and update my choices. as for backlinks, i will be relying exclusively on BHW.

As so far your content is readable and unique you should not have any problems. Mind me asking what kind of spinner will you be using?

i have a commandline thingy (not on PC now, i'll check and update the name) and for the webs i use quillbot a lot.

 

[SlayWriter]

i see them in freebies section of BHW



i admit im a little worried concerning my niche, i need to learn keyword and competitor research asap and update my choices. as for backlinks, i will be relying exclusively on BHW.



i have a commandline thingy (not on PC now, i'll check and update the name) and for the webs i use quillbot a lot.

Competitor and keyword research is quite easy once you get the hang of it. And you never run out of resources as it's abundant online.

The following info is from Ahref, it's a long read but you'll definitely learn something if you're new.

https://ahrefs.com/blog/competitive-analysis/

 

[Akanagi]

i see them in freebies section of BHW



i admit im a little worried concerning my niche, i need to learn keyword and competitor research asap and update my choices. as for backlinks, i will be relying exclusively on BHW.



i have a commandline thingy (not on PC now, i'll check and update the name) and for the webs i use quillbot a lot.

I have never head of quillbot before, it is better than the other spinners out there?

 

[Colton C]

Hey, just wanted to wish you good luck with your blog.

I can already imagine that you will have a great blog seeing the dedication you have. Good luck!

 

[prcreative]

Following this - I just started my own blog myself this month and focusing on creating engaging content for the niche I am attempting to operate in (traveling to Southeast Asia). Best of luck my friend.

 

[Fibermayo]

If you're just starting out, do some keyword research and build backlinks to your blog.

 

[Dextercoding]

You have to find a niche you would love to write about , 3-4 articles per day , do some seo and backlinks

 

[Hints404]

Competitor and keyword research is quite easy once you get the hang of it. And you never run out of resources as it's abundant online.

The following info is from Ahref, it's a long read but you'll definitely learn something if you're new.

https://ahrefs.com/blog/competitive-analysis/

Oh boy! What a long read! Just completed this and will attempt to explain it my own way

I have never head of quillbot before, it is better than the other spinners out there?

I just prefer it for its nifty 404s, im a dev and i like that sort of originality.

Hey, just wanted to wish you good luck with your blog.

I can already imagine that you will have a great blog seeing the dedication you have. Good luck!

Thanks!

Following this - I just started my own blog myself this month and focusing on creating engaging content for the niche I am attempting to operate in (traveling to Southeast Asia). Best of luck my friend.

Nice one! Hope your blog is successful too!

If you're just starting out, do some keyword research and build backlinks to your blog.

Good advice if you're starting out

You have to find a niche you would love to write about , 3-4 articles per day , do some seo and backlinks

Exactly!

 

[Deleted member 813988]

Wordpress because it's ready to use out of the box and probably the best among all others for blogging.
Has lots of free plugins, add-ons, and features.

Load below 4 seconds? Easily.

Plus static sites can't be hacked in the traditional sense of the word

There should be a reason for someone to hack you. Who would want to hack you?

Niches: any niche is good as long as you passionate about it. You can have a very popular blog about concrete and no-so popular about women. Choose something that you enjoy writing about.

 

[Hints404]

So i spent some time reading some articles, particularly https://www.blackhatworld.com/seo/s...-step-by-step-blueprint-9-parts.825593/page-7 and https://ahrefs.com/blog/competitive-analysis/

One idea i picked up easily is structure and siloing. I have been able fashion a simple SEO OK structure for a small website.
Niche (core keyword) = Home with offers
similar keyword = Page
similar keyword = Page
similar keyword = Page
similar keyword = Page

Each of these similar keywords then has 5 articles that have long tail keywords relevant to my core keyword.

Let me use a real life example.

Niche is wordpress theme, so my website landing page or home exists to let you know im into wordpress themes. On my home page i have 4 links in the menu, Free Themes, Premium Themes, Trending Themes and Custom Themes.
These 4 links are my similar keywords, each of them are related to the core. Then my 5 articles on each is a long tail keyword.

Top 10 free wordpress theme of 2019
5 reasons to get a free wordspress theme in 2019
How to install X. My free 2019 wordpress theme
A guide to using X. A free wordpress theme
Best 2019 free wordpress theme.

This is an example of what the 5 articles for each of my similar keywords.

I believe i can then add affiliate links and minimal ads and i have a monetised website (in theory at least)

My next course of action is to find a way to do keyword/niche research automation. My goal is to create a workflow then see if i can get any process into the commandline.

If not i'll do it the old fashion way and update.

 

[goflippa]

Niches are fine. But which niche are you familiar? Give first priority to that website.

Content and keywords is king for blogging. So write a unique content with full copyscape. Ok! That's very important for your blog and readers will impress.

Improve your writing skills. Please refer some popular blogs and write something new content for your readers. According to popular blog, 80% of users ignore paid search, focusing solely on organic results. When done correctly, blog can powerfully improve your traffic performance.

Then, start your promotion via link building and social media.

For programming niche, target Facebook and Pinterest.

Keep it mind one thing, it doesn't matter wether your friends believe in your cause or not. It doesn't matter what other people think you will do, if they think you'll quit.

If that bothers you then show them otherwise, but here is the kicker... Bitching about it, ain't gonna help you.

You won't success unless you believe you can. Do you let them hold you back, or are you ready to succeed?

Why I motivate you? Because blogging requires strategy. It takes time. It takes patience.

 

[Hints404]

WordPress has a lot of inbuilt advantages for SEO, I have decided to use wordpress to generate sites.

My env is based on dynamic to static.
Dynamic will have WordPress env and plugins. The static site will be a copy of the local. I will use wp-cli and plugin for this.

Installed WordPress on localhost. Looking at plugins I want to work with.

So far;
Yoast seo
All in one wp migration
Classic editor
Mobile menu
Wp editor.md
Wp2static

For builder, I'm conflicted between Divi and elementor. I lean towards Divi because I've invested time to learn it.

Themes, usually depends on the builder they play with. If I use divi builder, I'm using extra theme, else I search and filter themes by, accessibility ready(they follow WCAG section 58),full width template, and Theme options.

So far I have done siloing (for the sites on paper) and will fine-tune those things this week.

For keyword planning and research, I've decided there is no point in re-inventing the will. ahrefs covers everything you need for a starter plus 7 days free trial. Sweet!

Writing skills, came across Hemingway writer. Together with grammarly, errors should be minimal. Trying to enforce a discipline of certain amount of writing stuff daily.

Will most likely be going with AdSense. Will need to research this later. Hopefully lots of good threads on the subject.

Some questions!

Is a pbn the same thing as a multisite?
Did I miss any crucial plugin?
Themes ?
What else do you optimize?

 

[Hints404]

Niches are fine. But which niche are you familiar? Give first priority to that website.

Content and keywords is king for blogging. So write a unique content with full copyscape. Ok! That's very important for your blog and readers will impress.

Improve your writing skills. Please refer some popular blogs and write something new content for your readers. According to popular blog, 80% of users ignore paid search, focusing solely on organic results. When done correctly, blog can powerfully improve your traffic performance.

Then, start your promotion via link building and social media.

For programming niche, target Facebook and Pinterest.

Keep it mind one thing, it doesn't matter wether your friends believe in your cause or not. It doesn't matter what other people think you will do, if they think you'll quit.

If that bothers you then show them otherwise, but here is the kicker... Bitching about it, ain't gonna help you.

You won't success unless you believe you can. Do you let them hold you back, or are you ready to succeed?

Why I motivate you? Because blogging requires strategy. It takes time. It takes patience.

Thanks.

 

[fb3003]

@Hints404 - I think as we all progress in this SEO journey and deal with google consent updates, the following attributes are jumping out

1. on-site optimization and technical optimization (i.e. speed) are becoming more and more important
2. Backlink is taking a back seat to on-site optimization, but still important. more than ever quality and getting back links from relevant pages are becoming key to getting ranked. please take a look at this: https://www.blackhatworld.com/seo/john-mueller-impact-of-social-bookmarking-on-links.1125574/
   • "A page with inbound links relevant for Topic A, will make that page relevant for Topic A. But if your page is about Topic Z, that link is probably not going to be useful to you in terms obtaining a ranking benefit. A web page does not inherit authority, it only inherits links and those links only matter when they are also relevant. So obtaining links from social media or social bookmarking sites does not confer any particular benefit because they are inherently irrelevant and any inbound links are also irrelevant."
3. So with John M. is saying domain authority is not as important as the relevancy of the backlink.
4. can't comment on the niches you mentioned. i dont have any clue on those.
5. for speed, what I have found based on my experience that getting a solid score on "first byte" by https://webpagetest.org has the most direct correlation to higher serp position
6. For my personal experience, you get to a point that getting a new backlink is not as important as having new content added to your tier 1 links. I am currently at that stage. I keep adding duplicate and spun content to my tier 1 including PBN's.
7. Wordpress is the way to go, because of all the plugins and how SEO friendly it is. Just make sure you use a lite theme that gives solid speed scores.
8. content on your pages need to match user intention. "health benefit of red apple" vs. "where to get cheapest red apples" have totally two different content outlines to match user intentions. take a look at the top 2 position in your niche to get a sense on what works.
9. Ultimately, you want to leverage reports like CORA or POPS to fine tune your site against your top competitors.

hope these help