When you hear the word “blogger,” what image comes to mind? Is it someone documenting their adventures in an exotic destination? Or perhaps a passionate foodie sharing mouthwatering discoveries? Or maybe a fitness enthusiast guiding you through their workout routines?
Examples from these diverse blogs show that nowadays, almost anyone can be a blogger! Blogging has become a popular way for people to share their passions, ideas, and life experiences with a global audience. From cooking and beauty to business and politics, there’s a blog for almost every topic you can imagine.
If you’re considering picking up your virtual pen and starting your own blogging journey, I’ve compiled a list of some of the most successful blog examples to inspire you. So sit back, relax, and let’s dive into the exciting world of blogging!
First up: What is a blog?
A blog is a regularly updated website (or a section of a website) typically written in an informal or conversational style. It provides individuals and organizations a platform to share their thoughts, experiences, and information with an audience. Blog content is usually displayed in reverse chronological order, with the most recent posts appearing first. Many blogs focus on a specific topic or theme and provide a platform for discussion and idea exchange through features like comment sections or forums. But in our list, you’ll find blogs that cover almost every subject under the sun!
Why should I start a blog? What’s in it for me?
There are several good reasons to start a blog:
Ready to take the plunge and start your own blog? Then you might want to check out the top 5 website builders for starting a blog!
In 2023, here are some fantastic examples of blogs to find your inspiration:
A..Dezeen – Architecture and Design Blog
Dezeen is one of the most influential architecture, interiors, and design magazines globally. Founded in 2006, it has since become one of the largest design publications in the world, with over 2 million unique visitors to its blog every month.
Dezeen covers a wide range of topics, including:
Dezeen also features regular columns, including Dezeen Daily, a daily newsletter providing a roundup of the latest architecture and design news, and Dezeen Jobs, a job board for architecture and design professionals. With its cutting-edge content and global perspective, Dezeen has cultivated a loyal following of readers passionate about architecture and design.
For more inspiration, you can explore other popular architecture, interior design, and design blogs that can serve as a source of inspiration if you’re looking to create a blog in this niche:
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 1M/month
Blogging Platform: WordPress
B..Zion Adventure Photography – Photography and Nature Blog
Zion National Park is a breathtaking natural area known for its towering red rock cliffs, stunning vistas, and diverse flora and fauna. Zion Adventure Photography provides visitors with a guide to the park’s awe-inspiring natural scenery and outdoor activities such as canyoneering and hiking.
The blog ensures that its readers are inspired by photography capturing the park’s stunning natural landscapes and offers tips for outdoor activities. Additionally, if they’re looking for a photographer who can capture their visit, they’ll know who to contact!
URL: zionadventurephotog.com/blog
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 7K/month
These examples show the incredible diversity and potential of blogging. Whether you’re passionate about design, photography, or any other topic, there’s a world of opportunity waiting for you in the blogosphere!
Blogging Platform: Wiks
Ever Active: The leading operator of gyms and leisure facilities in the UK, with hundreds of locations nationwide. In their blog, readers can learn how to maximize their fitness routines with tips and a vast library of activities.
Active for Everyone: Not everyone creates lengthy posts all the time, but they’re easy to read: short paragraphs, plenty of headlines, and full HD photos. They cover the most engaging topics, though, spanning gym, online tools, home workouts, senior fitness, and much more. Organizing these sections makes it easier for users to find relevant content.
Everyone’s Active: With time, your blog will likely have numerous posts, so make sure you’ve already thought about some categories.
Showcase Your Company’s Path: Showing your company’s vision is crucial for building trust and professionalism. For example, in this post, Ever Active showcases a daily routine of a tennis coach. It’s not lengthy because the video is central. Smart move adding two attractive call-to-action buttons before and after the video.
Another Notable Feature: Every Active’s Podcast. Podcasts have gained popularity in recent years, and it’s an excellent complement to your blog. Find the best platforms to create your podcast.
URL: https://www.everyoneactive.com/content-hub/
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 216K/month
Blogging Platform: WordPress
This popular blog shares tips to help readers improve their food, nutrition, and fitness routines.
Live Strong Articles: Direct to the point: short paragraphs, bullet-pointed lists. Copy is easy to understand. We appreciate they cite their sources, as seen in this health article. It builds credibility for the company and reassures readers. So, if you’re writing about health or scientific topics, don’t forget to mention your sources at the end of the article.
Stay Strong: Challenges are popular on social networks, and LiveStrong has embraced this trend, gathering them on their blog. It’s a concrete and clever way to engage your readers.
Wide-Ranging Topics: Live Strong covers a lot of ground, as you can see in their health section:
Improving your SEO means fully covering your main topic. It establishes authority in your domain.
URL: livestrong.com/
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 3.9M/month
Writing Cooperative: A community in Dallas for writers: here you’ll find tips and support to become a better writer. The publication features experienced authors and articles, tutorials, and tips on writing, editing, and publishing.
Writing’s Cooperative Nature: The community aspect of The Writing Cooperative connects writers to share work, split tasks, and give feedback and support. The Writing Cooperative aims to create an assisting and educational environment for writers, which I genuinely believe is a noble mission!
URL: https://writingcooperative.com/
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 112K/month
Blogging Platform: Medium
My Modern Met publishes thought-provoking articles on various topics: art, design, photography, architecture, technology, and environmental issues. The magazine aims to showcase the works of talented individuals and explore the latest trends and developments in the creative world, inspiring and informing its audience.
My Modern Met: Whether showcasing unique aspects of art, highlighting the works of emerging artists, or exploring the cutting edge of technology and creativity, My Modern Met provides its readers with a diverse and engaging perspective on the world of art and design.
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 1.5M/month
Blogging Platform: WordPress
Rough Trade: A well-known independent music retailer and record label, established primarily in 1976 in London, England. Since then, it has expanded to several locations, including New York City and Paris.
Brand Focus: Known for its discerning selection of music across different genres and styles. The store has a strong focus on independent and alternative music and is regarded as a primary destination for music enthusiasts and collectors seeking rare and hard-to-find albums.
Rough Business: Rough Trade is also renowned for its record label, which has released albums from many influential and groundbreaking artists, such as The Smiths, The Strokes, and Arcade Fire. The label is dedicated to supporting independent artists and helping them reach wider audiences, making it one of the most important and influential independent labels in the music industry.
URL: https://blog.roughtrade.com/gb/
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 7K/month
Blogging Platform: Ghost
Preventive Vet is an online hub for pet health and safety. Their goal is to help pet owners keep their cats and dogs happy, healthy, and safe. The website provides information on nutrition, behavior, and preventive care just like a trusted friend would.
Starting from practical tips for taking care of your pets to more in-depth articles about pet health and well-being, the blog covers a wide range of topics.
Preventive Pet Care
To help users navigate the blog, Preventive Vet has created a unique filtering system. It’s important to organize your content logically and skillfully as you create your blog, as having hundreds of articles can make it overwhelming. However, creating too many categories isn’t necessary: selecting categories that are broad enough to be meaningful in a comparative way is sufficient. It’s an art.
Preventive pet care is appealing because of the length and breadth of its articles. They truly cover their topics comprehensively.
URL: https://www.preventivevet.com/
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 354K
Blogging Platform: HubSpot
Mind Tools is a wealth of resources on management, leadership, and personal effectiveness skills to help professionals become more successful in their work. The website offers various tools, articles, and resources designed to help individuals develop their skills and advance their careers. It covers topics like leadership, project management, communication, time management, and problem-solving, among many others.
Mind Tools
From entry-level employees to experienced managers and executives, Mind Tools is designed to be accessible and useful for all stages of their careers. It provides interactive tools and assessments, along with practical and effective advice, to help individuals recognize their strengths and weaknesses and create a plan for growth and development.
The website hosts a large community of like-minded individuals who are looking to improve their skills and advance their careers. Members can connect with each other, share ideas and advice, and participate in forums and discussion groups.
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 15.5K
Blogging Platform: WordPress
Thought Catalog is a digital youth culture magazine based in New York City. Its articles are written in various styles, ranging from first-person essays and personal narratives to more analytical pieces exploring a wide range of cultural and social issues.
The website covers various topics related to relationships, mental health, personal growth, and self-improvement, and its articles are designed to be thought-provoking and inspirational.
Thought Catalog
Thought Catalog hosts a vibrant online community of readers and writers who are engaged with each other and share their own stories and experiences. The website provides a space for individuals to connect, share their thoughts and experiences, and support each other on their journey of self-discovery and growth.
Three things make this blog inspiring. Firstly, there’s a share bar at the end of each article, making it easy to post to social networks. Secondly, the blog is linked to an online store (you can find all the necessary information here to create an online store). And finally, Infinite Scroll (similar to Instagram): you can simply scroll through the page to go from one article to another. It encourages reading and significantly improves time spent on the site. Best wishes to Thought Catalog!
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 2.9M
Blogging Platform: WordPress
Hootsuite is one of the most popular social media management tools in the marketing world. Its blog offers articles, tutorials, and resources on various topics related to social media, including best practices for using social media for business, recent trends in the social media landscape, and tips for using Hootsuite’s platform.
The blog covers the fundamentals of social media marketing but also delves into more advanced skills for using social media effectively for specific business goals. It provides helpful resources and tools, such as templates and checklists, to assist businesses and organizations in getting the most out of their social media efforts.
Hootsuite
Posts target a diverse audience of businesses, organizations, and individuals who are looking to leverage social media to reach their goals. Hootsuite offers free resources but requires users to provide their details for downloading, which helps Hootsuite in lead generation. You might also consider using your blog as an inbound marketing channel.
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 6.7M
Blogging Platform: WordPress
Gaiam is a lifestyle brand that offers products and resources designed to help individuals live healthy, mindful, and sustainable lives. Founded in 1988, the company has since become a leading provider of health products, including yoga mats, fitness equipment, and organic clothing, alongside books, videos, and online classes for educational purposes.
Gaiam
While there’s nothing particularly unique about the design of this blog’s articles, it effectively integrates the brand’s products with skill, as seen in this article about five ways to stay healthy while traveling.
Some may argue this method is overly commercial, but it’s fair and necessary in this context for readers.
They’ve added a “blog also featured
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 180K/month
11. MovieWeb – Cinema and Movie News
MovieWeb is a website dedicated to movie and entertainment news, providing up-to-date information on recent film releases, movie trailers, celebrity interviews, and entertainment news. The website is designed for cinephiles and insiders of the industry.
The blog covers various topics including movie reviews, box office reports, and movie news.
MovieWeb
Another key feature of MovieWeb is its movie database, which provides extensive information on thousands of movies, including cast and crew details, synopses, and reviews.
It also offers a platform for movie enthusiasts to share their own movie reviews and ratings and connect with others by sharing their emotions about movies.
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 7.1M/month
Blogging Platform: WordPress
Big Interview is an online platform that provides resources and tools for job seekers to prepare for job interviews. The service offers video-based interview training, mock questions and answers, and personalized feedback on interview performance.
Big Interview
Big Interview’s blog provides tips and advice on resume writing, networking, salary negotiations, and various topics related to job interviews. The platform also provides access to a community of career experts who can answer questions and provide guidance and assistance to job seekers.
A share bar is always available on the right side of the screen, encouraging readers to share the article at any time:
Social Media Share Bar Big Interview
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 170K/month
Blogging Platform: WordPress
“Cup of Jo” is a popular lifestyle and parenting blog founded by Joanna Goddard in 2007. The blog covers a wide range of topics including personal stories, fashion, beauty, home decor, travel, and motherhood. Jo’s Cup
Cup of Jo is known for its relatable and down-to-earth approach to celebrating everyday joys in life alongside relationship and parenting advice. The blog has become a popular destination for inspiring, advising, and connecting with women who seek inspiration, advice, and community experiences, and has been featured in numerous media outlets including The New York Times, Forbes, and Real Simple.
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 114K/month
Blogging Platform: WordPress
Hepper
Hepper is a modern pet accessories and essentials brand, and a lifestyle brand that provides daily essentials for pet owners and pet lovers. With a mission statement of “by pet lovers, for pet lovers,” Hepper strives to create tech-savvy products with thoughtful applications and attempts to focus on cats. Primarily focused on cats, the brand now offers various products for dogs and other pets.
Hepper’s pet research blog features articles written by pet owners and veterinary professionals, covering topics such as pet nutrition, behavior, and gear. Readers can find the latest information on pet food recalls and get answers to pressing questions in the Vet FAQ section.
Hepper’s unique integration of high-end pet products and authentic pet care institutions has garnered a growing following with the company.
Estimated Monthly Organic Traffic: 1.1M/month
Blogging Platform: WordPress
Looking for more beautiful blog examples? SiteBuilderReport has a list of 71 standout blogs.
What Makes a Blog Successful?
There’s no one-size-fits-all formula for success in blogging, as the concept of “success” depends largely on an individual’s goals and aspirations, which can vary widely. However, we can offer some top practices to help you maximize your blog’s utility:
Unique and Valuable Content: Blogs that consistently provide fresh, relevant, and high-quality content attract and retain readers.
Consistency: Regularly posting new content keeps readers engaged and establishes a loyal following.
SEO Optimization: Using search engine optimization (SEO) techniques like keyword research, meta tags, and quality backlinks can help your blog rank higher in search engine results and attract more traffic.
Engagement: Encouraging reader engagement through comments, social media, and email newsletters fosters a sense of community around your blog and encourages readers to return for more.
Branding: A memorable domain name, attractive logo, and consistent branding help differentiate your blog and establish a strong online presence.
Networking: Building relationships with other bloggers and influencers can help you gain exposure and expand your reach.
Monetization: While not essential, having a clear monetization strategy (such as through advertising or affiliate marketing) can ensure the long-term sustainability of your blog.
Most Important Advice: Be Honest with Yourself and Your Readers: The most crucial advice: be honest with yourself and your readers, and invest in providing value to your readers. By doing this, you’ll build trust with your audience and be able to achieve your blogging goals.
Conclusion: How do I start a blog?
Starting a blog can be comparatively easy, and it can be done in several steps:
Choose a Blogging Platform: There are many blogging platforms available, such as WordPress, Blogger, and Medium, offering both paid and free options. Consider your technical expertise, budget, and customization needs for your blog when making your choice.
Select a Domain Name and Hosting: Your domain name is the web address that people will use to access your blog. You can register a domain name through domain registrars like GoDaddy or Namecheap. If you’re using WordPress, you’ll also need to choose a hosting provider to store your blog and make it accessible to the world.
Design and Customize Your Blog: Most blogging platforms offer various themes and templates for you to customize the look and feel of your blog. You can enhance its functionality by adding plugins and widgets.
Create and Publish Your First Post: Write a post that introduces yourself and your blog to your readers. Make sure to include relevant keywords to help people find your blog through search engines.
Promote Your Blog: Share your blog and its posts on social media, and consider reaching out to other bloggers in your niche to expand your exposure.
Monetize Your Blog: If you want to earn income from your blog, you can do so through advertising, affiliate marketing, sponsored posts, or offering products and services.
Starting a blog requires time, effort, and patience. However, if you’re passionate about your topic and committed to providing valuable content, you can create a successful blog over time.