Discussion about blog
I often see a question repeatedly on redit
Now in 2025, under the impact of AI, is it worth writing a blog? Is it too late?
Because Google itself has begun to recommend AI, not websites, and the links to websites are only displayed in the content of AI, people usually don’t click on it
Other people now prefer short videos and video content, which have more traffic and more mature business systems, corresponding to more revenue
On the other hand, blogs are products of decades ago. People may go to the forum redit, read ins, read x, and go to Facebook, but they hardly read blogs
Even I rarely read other people’s blogs. There are almost no scenarios that require active reading, and there is no platform traffic to recommend reading
So the question is, is it still too late to write a blog now?
I think it is not too late, and I suggest that everyone should set up a blog as their own private space.
There is a proverb that says:
The best time to plant a tree is 10 years ago. The second-best time is now
It means that if you want to do something but don’t do it at the most appropriate time, it is not too late now. It is best to do it now and don’t wait.
The tree I drew with Excalidraw (simple drawing, as long as you can understand it, it avoids the problem of image copyright)
Blogs and Videos
Let’s talk about the comparison between blogs and videos first (some things cannot be seen without comparison)
When it comes to making money, I recommend YouTube and video production, not blogs
Because I have been blogging for several years, the income from Google ads has not reached $10, but YouTube has made $500 a year
Although not much, you can see that for me, the income from YouTube ads is 50 times or even 100 times that of blog ads
The money earned from blogs is not enough to cover the cost of the server, but YouTube is free, you don’t need to buy anything, you only need to use your mobile phone to shoot and edit, you can get traffic and get a certain amount of income, almost 0 cost
So in terms of cost, YouTube 0 cost is better than blog server cost
In terms of revenue, YouTube’s commercial revenue is 100 times or even more than blog advertising, so YouTube wins
In terms of operation, YouTube mobile phones can shoot and edit anytime and anywhere, but although blogs can be written on mobile phones, if you want a better layout, it is still recommended to use a laptop to edit the web page. People nowadays can live without laptops, but they cannot live without mobile phones, and almost everyone has a mobile phone, so in terms of operation, mobile phones have more advantages and are convenient and simple
So why do I still recommend having your own independent blog now?
The role of blogs
First, blogs are a supplement to youtube
Take me as an example, I want to make a video about self-hosted nextcloud, and I have made it successfully
But when I want to share the code of docker-compose.yml or some URLs and other information
Videos don’t share code very much. The audience can see it, but it is not easy to copy. The audience can write short codes by hand or put them in the video details, but when there are dozens or hundreds of lines of code, you need the code of blog articles to copy and paste
The code of blog articles can not only set code highlights, but also set a one-click copy button, which is more advantageous in reading experience
The code of blog articles is easy to modify. Imagine that the code in your video is missing a symbol or a code logic error, and you want to correct it, but once the video is released, it is almost impossible to modify it. The errors in it will always exist. Even if you correct and supplement the explanation in the comment area, the effect will not be good, and the blog can be modified at any time (provided that you build it yourself blog, not a third-party platform, which also has no right to modify)
There are some details. If you want to pause the video and check a certain detail, it is a very time-consuming and laborious thing, but the blog is suitable for stopping to check text and pictures, and can be watched repeatedly
Secondly, blogs are suitable for people who don’t show their faces, don’t make any noise, and quietly type and like to write
Videos are all good, but the requirements are also good, you need to shoot and edit
Shooting inevitably requires space and angles, and there is also a need to talk while shooting. For the YouTube algorithm, there is also a need to show your face
Imagine that in the middle of the night, in the early morning, if you shoot a video, you can’t speak loudly and naturally, and it’s not suitable to walk around, and I don’t want to show my face to let others know who I am and what I look like. If the video content requires outdoor scenes, it is not recommended to go out in the middle of the night. After all, it is not safe without the sun, and there is no light, so there are many restrictions
And videos usually need to be edited, for people who don’t understand technology and software For example, it is OK to shoot vlogs, but it is difficult to learn how to edit videos.
But blogging is very free. You can edit text anytime and anywhere with your mobile phone and laptop. An article does not need pictures, and it can be all text.
I can quickly type on the keyboard at 2 a.m. to record what I want to express, such as what I did today, how to build an independent blog, etc. (no need to speak, no need to show my face, and even no need for sunlight during the day). I can read books and write notes, share technical codes, share my food making process, and describe my way of thinking and lifestyle.
If I have a physical problem, I can’t do strenuous exercise, can’t go out, and even my legs can’t walk, then I will definitely not be able to find a good job, and it will be difficult to support myself. At this time, as long as I still have my hands, or even no hands, and can only speak (voice to text), then I can still continue to write blogs, books and other text content (but videos are difficult, or almost impossible)
Third, blogging can also make a lot of money
There are reasons why I made $10 in a few years. First, I didn’t use English, but a minority language, so the unit price of advertising would be 10 times lower.
Second, because Vultr, a garbage cloud server manufacturer, destroyed my server inexplicably, my blog of five or six years was gone, my Google ranking and traffic were gone, and Vultr only gave me a few dozen dollars in compensation, without any apology, and no way to contact. Compared with my blog data and traffic, a few dozen dollars is not enough for my monthly server fee. My blog data is priceless, and I have worked hard for many years.
Then my focus is not to make money from blogging. I still have a job. Blogging is a side job. I don’t have SEO, nor paid promotion, and I don’t even have the most basic commission alliance set up. I don’t sell my own e-books, courses, or my own e-commerce products. In short, I don’t have anything that blogging can make money, except Google ads.
If you focus on blogging and know SEO, then blogging can also make money when traffic is large. The benefits are huge
If you can promote with commissions and have your own paid products, then congratulations, you will earn more than the advertising fee
As long as you focus on blogging, even if the income is 1% of youtube, as long as you focus, this 1% income has the opportunity to meet the survival requirements and may earn more wealth
After all, in redit posts, many blogs have hundreds of thousands of traffic, or there are many people who make hundreds or thousands of dollars with blog commission promotion. Although it is rare, there is a chance that ordinary people can achieve it through hard work, skills and a certain amount of luck
The fourth point is more freedom
Try not to put blog articles on third-party platforms. Although there will be a certain amount of traffic, various operations are restricted, and even the data is no longer your own, but belongs to the platform
For example, why do you still have to build a blog yourself under the premise that youtube is very popular
Because youtube can be suspended at any time, so you have no advertising fees
youtube can limit the content of the videos you post at any time, such as You can’t post financial management, you can’t post vlogs, it says it can’t, it can’t, there is no freedom of speech
If you have 100,000 fans on YouTube and millions of traffic, it can also ban your channel at any time, making your fans and traffic go to 0, so that others can’t search your channel and can’t access it. All your previous operations are in vain, your previous fans can’t find you, you have no traffic, and the new channel will cycle like this (if you have a blog at this time, you usually actively guide them to collect your URL and subscribe to your email, then even if the YouTube channel is gone, they can still find you through the blog, you open another YouTube, your previous subscription fans and traffic can be quickly restored, or go to other platforms such as TK, at this time the independent blog is your base camp, your mobile fortress)
Similarly, third-party blog platforms will limit the number of your articles, the number of words, the type of content, your modifications, your traffic, your advertising, and countless other restrictions. Seriously, you write The copyright of the article belongs to the platform, and you are working for others for free (so it is recommended to pay for building an independent blog, even if it is a cheaper server, try not to use free ones, there are a lot of problems behind free ones)
The fifth point is the richness of blog content
The Internet has developed for decades, and it is essentially a text link of URL. Compared with the need to play videos, text links can allow you to reach any form of content
For example, commission links, such as blog addresses, can be expanded by clicking. I can insert pictures, voices, videos, maps, codes, icons, and various multimedia on the blog
I want to insert a mind map in the blog, and I can do it directly. Readers can click on the map to expand and shrink, structured interactive operations, rather than pictures of the map
I can add voice reading to the article, automatically play the corresponding text, suitable for people who don’t want to read but want to listen to podcast audio, and add background music to the blog
I can add beautiful picture configurations and data charts to the article. I can add visual charts with js, and click on the charts to interact and display Display the corresponding data, such as bar charts, etc.
I can add 3D models to articles, and readers can drag, view, AR, VR, panorama, etc.
I can add videos to articles, add videos where the text is suitable, complement each other, no need to jump to youtube, but the original video file, of course, youtube videos can also be added, which is also convenient, each has its own advantages, I can add gif animations
I can add html custom effects, such as carousel, text scrolling, etc., html, css, js effects are all supported, such as snowflake background, such as jumping to the top, etc.
I can add sharing, commenting, rewarding, liking and other functions, you can add anything you want or use plug-ins
I like the previous electronic magazines, exquisite graphic layout, I can design blog articles as electronic magazines, or album displays, I can also design a separate dynamic display page, have my own paid products, etc.
They all belong to the scope of blogs, and text is only the most basic form of expression
