Blogging is a fantastic thing to do for software engineers and developers. Not only is it a way to express yourself individually, but you can have your company on a blog site, telling the world how things run at your end. Countless platforms today offer an easy solution to create your website without knowing web development. You can build a space for yourself within minutes and write to your heart’s content.
Aside from being able to educate others, blogging is also a great way to reinforce knowledge, build your brand, and earn money, among other things. As a result of continuity, blogging has only grown in popularity with the evolution of websites and blogs despite seeing tough competition from long and shot video content consumption trends.
There are many good reasons to start a blog today, especially if blogging as a developer. Bear with us as we tell you how you can do the same with little to no confusion.
Can Anyone Do Blogging?
The most asked question about blogging as a developer is if it is for everyone. Granted, not everyone has a way with words. People can accurately convey their thoughts in a much more efficient way, even with the bare minimum effort.
If you are here to get the short answer, then, yes, anyone can blog. A common misconception about content writing is that people think they need to be proficient in the English language to be able to write something. You do not need to use words like “tendencious” and “Bacchanalia” to sound smart online. A basic understanding of blogging and language grammar is enough.
Word Count for Blogging Entries
Developers would know that good codes have no limits. They can either be a few lines or thousands upon thousands of lines, which does not matter. Regarding blogging and blog entries, there is no hard-and-fast rule either—post as much or as little as you want. As long as you are consistent with it, you will get the traffic.
Look at it this way: Sometimes, a few paragraphs are enough to write about a tip or trick you’ve learned, a pattern you like using, or a solution to a problem you faced.
It often makes sense to break things down to make them more accessible to readers if you have an essay to pen. At other times, long-form posts may work too. Some experts might add that it works much better than short-form posts.
Reasons for Blogging As a Developer
Imagine that you have just solved an excellent coding problem at work. Your software development process had hit a grinding halt because of the issue, but now you have crossed the barrier. Wouldn’t you want to keep a record of the code which made magic happen?
How do you think GitHub came to being in the first place? Even though it’s not a blogging site, it’s a place where people come together and discuss how they fixed the issues they faced in software development. Making a dedicated space where you express yourself and learn from many other professionals can only thrive if some written content is involved. Purely video content can get a bit murky and jargon-filled.
Many other reasons should tell a dedicated developer that blogging is necessary for an online presence. These reasons include:
Better Communication
If you stick with anything long enough, you can master the craft deftly. As a developer, this concept should not be that hard to grasp. Blogging helps you communicate and channel your thoughts better and streamlined way.
Knowledge Gaining and Imparting
When blogging as a developer, there are several categories you can choose to write about. Writing technical articles such as tutorials will benefit you by improving how you convey technical information. You can also write about topics not directly related to a technical subject but still very relevant for developers, such as productivity, organization, and career growth.
When you blog, you’ll need to do research for your posts. The amount of research you’ll do for each position will vary depending on your level of knowledge on the topic or how much insight you want to gain from others while writing your posts. All forms of research will benefit you by providing a constant trickle of information on various topics and categories of software development.
Showcasing Technical Skills
The more qualified you get, the more professional opportunities will come. Blogging is a great way to show a little more about yourself. Your future client/employer will know everything about you before you meet.
Blogging is like an evolving resumé that highlights your personality and how you survive in the software development environment, which is why you would see many professionals writing about their skills and competencies on LinkedIn.
Keeping Up with Software Trends
Wonder how you know every detail about the Kardashians without following them? It’s all because of properly planned content and its utilization towards the right audience.
As it happens, the software development world is highly dynamic, and the industry constantly evolves towards new technologies and obsoleting existing ones.
It’s to your advantage to stay on top of such advancements in the field to know how they may potentially affect your projects, whether professional or personal endeavors.
It may not seem evident initially, but blogging as a developer is one way to stay on top of the industry. This has the advantage of making you aware of both the industry’s history and what’s currently happening. This can, in turn, alert you to significant changes affecting your field of interest or to new technologies you may want to explore and eventually adapt.
Building a Brand
At first, it may seem like nobody is watching or noticing your blogging skills. But over time, people will get to know you for the type of tech and software articles you write. And that, my friend, is an excellent way to build your brand.
Blogging consecutively about a specific programming language or tech concept will make you known in that respective developer community. This can lead to recommendations, opportunities, job offers, and more.
When recruiters see your blog posts, it can also increase your chances of getting the job over others who don’t write technical articles because it shows them you are knowledgeable about the subject matter and have good communication skills.
Making Money
Who doesn’t like a bit of side money? Listed below are some ways to make money while blogging as a developer;
- Ads: Adding ads to your blog is one of the most popular ways to make money through tech blogging. But most developers don’t like seeing a lot of ads when they read articles, so we recommend using Carbon Ads because it is centered around content for developers and designers, so developers may not leave your blog when they see these ads.
- Web monetization: If you are not a fan of ads, you can integrate Web Monetization into your blog.
- Paid community writing programs: Many tech companies and communities pay developers to write technical articles for them. Most of them pay between 100 to 2000 dollars.
- Affiliate links: You can add affiliate links from various tech companies to your blog posts.
- Community funding: Getting community funding is another way to make money as a tech blogger. With a Patreon or Buy Me a Coffee account, various people in the developer community can support you financially monthly.
To Sum It Up
It doesn’t matter whether some blogging posts are better than others. If you put time and effort into a topic, it will radiate through the base. Share your views on trending situations, describe your workflow and tools, or explain development parts. Maybe even come up with something completely new and start discussions.
Many developers are curious about their thoughts, but because they do not have a blogging medium, they can only guess the answers. Your passion will reflect positively once you start.
Happy blogging, developers!
