Google’s move to make AI the future of search and how people are starting to turn to it for information has already changed blogging and writing online.
The shift to AI is real, and the impact is impossible to ignore.
Just look at those ‘Great Decoupling’ GSC graphs… site after site shows the same pattern. Search impressions keep climbing, but clicks are flat or dropping.
And that hits hard if you run a blog or depend on it for income. Fewer clicks means less traffic, and less traffic means less money in your pocket.
As a content creator, I see this firsthand and it concerns me deeply. One of my sites, which had just recovered from a previous Google update, is now showing the same traffic stagnation.
Seeing all this, it’s clear to me that anyone in blogging, content creation, content marketing, or similar fields needs to take action now or risk seeing their blog fade to irrelevance.
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New Blogging Approach
Since ChatGPT launched in November 2022, I started making changes to my content strategy. My strategy was simple: write posts AI can’t write.
As a travel content creator, I dropped simple Q&A posts like “is this place worth visiting,” listicles like “things to do in a destination,” and other pieces based on curation or general knowledge.
I focused instead on topics that need real human senses and experience—posts that are more visual or need spatial orientation, like DIY walking tours, hikes, and picturesque spots.
I also began writing articles that need full context, which AI struggles with, like itineraries and guides that consider time, distance, season, weather, and more.
While my audience appreciated my detailed and insightful posts (some even sent me heartwarming thank you messages), the Google updates in September 2023 and March 2024 left no doubt that my previously existing strategy had to improve, or I’d be left behind.
The traffic drop my sites experienced during those updates pushed me to think bigger.
So what did I decide? I’ll build my own online platform that’s independent of third-party tech companies and generates passive income. Also:
- A platform that works as a 24/7 salesman.
- A personal digital front desk attendant who’s always ready.
- A prospector for opportunity.
- A networker who helps me build a community.
- And an extension of my resume that could be what helps me land an interesting project if the content site part of my blog doesn’t go as planned.
Now, the big question is ‘how?’
The answer lies on my new blogging approach, which I shaped over months or years by learning from industry leaders, studying successful content creators, and paying attention to how the industry is changing.
Good to know: you’ll find a valuable summary of what I’ve learned over the years in the content creation wisdom sheet that comes with the welcome email of my newsletter.
The approach focuses on filling my blog with content that not only draws on my experience to generate income but also shares personal and professional insights that help me attract opportunities, build connections, and gain an edge in competitive situations.
Along with building a personal brand and doing other things to future-proof my online business, this way of building a blog makes sure the work I put in now won’t go to waste, even if artificial intelligence becomes the main way people get information online.
Let’s break this down further.
The approach uses three strategies that work like stepping stones, and they have one thing in common: publishing content that AI cannot write. Making the post distinct from AI-generated content should help keep the blog relevant over time.
Publishing content is not the only goal. In the process, I push myself to improve a skill that I can use to land interesting projects when opportunities arise. That might be content strategy, graphic design, or something else.
The First Strategy.
Here, passion and interest will be the key to creating content.
Not only will they help me create content faster, but they will also make the content more authentic. That is important for building a relationship with my audience and, of course, for monetization.
This strategy will focus on three types of posts:
- problem-solution articles based on real experience
- tutorials and how-to guides that involve context, and
- posts where visuals or other media are the main content.
I choose these because they rely on experience, context, and media. AI either lacks these or needs massive resources to create them.
When it comes to monetization, I will follow a niche site model with affiliate marketing, with an emphasis on authenticity and real helpfulness.
Meaning, the posts won’t be about pushing products or services. Instead, affiliate products will just serve as alternative solutions to what the post will already offer. In some cases, the product will be part of the solution, but not the full answer to the problem.
This way, I will build a reputation as someone who truly wants to help, not just another affiliate marketer chasing commissions.
You might be wondering why I wouldn’t just use ads to make money. Ads are a distraction. I don’t want my readers interrupted several times while reading a post. Ads also slow the site down, and our audience hates that.
Importantly, while ads might offer easy monetization, they don’t help me build the skills I need to grow as a professional blogger or digital marketer.
By using affiliate marketing, I can work on my copywriting, storytelling, and maybe even branding skills, which can help me land more opportunities like gigs and collaborations.
The Second Strategy.
The key here is the blog posts I produced through the first strategy.
I’ll use these blog posts as a reference for creating B2B articles that will help me achieve the goal of this strategy. Examples of these B2B articles include case studies, professional insights, resource guides, and similar materials.
The goal is simple: to land interesting projects, partnerships, or collaborations that generate income.
It’s content marketing at work. I draw in prospects through the articles I publish. I use the content from the first strategy as my portfolio and proof of what I can do.
At the very least, the articles I create under this strategy should highlight my style, personal brand, and key skills—things like analysis, research, strategy, critical thinking, and decision making.
Looking at it from another perspective, the second strategy is about sharing insights that help my main audience, other content creators and online business owners, and at the same time promote my business.
The Third Strategy.
This final strategy brings my new blogging approach together.
In this part, I’ll use new blog posts to show how the different parts of my life as a content creator and online business owner will connect. The key in creating these posts will be the content I will produce in the first two strategies, along with the personal experiences I will gain along the way.
From what I can imagine, connecting these aspects will be truly relatable and helpful for my audience, who share the same profession and passion as I do.
It will create a true connection between us, which will encourage them to support me in different ways. For example, through a paid subscription or by purchasing my product.
Doing this, I will also build a stronger personal brand, which is important for making my online business more sustainable.
Build a stronger personal brand. How? By showing how different parts of my life connect, what my work means to me, and how I get things done, I naturally share my values, skills, and what I stand for. All of that will play a part in shaping my image to my audience.
With a solid personal brand, I will be able to form and grow my own community, which will also play a big role in keeping my blog future-proof.
As I work on this strategy, I will keep sharpening my storytelling, persuasive writing, and personal branding—skills that will help me get better results from my monetization efforts.
Wrapping Up.
And that wraps up my new approach to blogging!
Before you go, I want to share one more thing. It’s not just the approach that I’ve improved.
I’ve also worked on how I write my blog posts by studying Google’s guidelines for creating helpful, reliable, and people-first content.
Here’s how I understand those guidelines, the foundation for quality writing that I’ve built from them, and how I balance SEO with people-first content. Be sure to check them out!
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