Why I’m Still Bullish on Content Creation in 2026

People keep telling me blogging is dead.

They’ve been saying it for years. First it was social media that was supposed to kill blogs. Then it was video. Then it was podcasts. Now it’s AI. Every few years, someone declares that blogging is finished, that nobody reads anymore, that the whole model is obsolete.

And yet, here I am. Still creating content. Still building audiences. Still making money from it.

After 25+ years of doing this, I’ve learned to ignore the “blogging is dead” crowd. Not because they’re always wrong — the landscape has genuinely changed. But because they’re missing the bigger picture.

Blogging isn’t dead. It just evolved.

The Word “Blogging” Is Outdated. The Concept Isn’t.

When I started ZacJohnson.com in 2007, “blogging” meant something specific. It meant writing articles on a WordPress site, building an RSS subscriber base, and hoping Google would send you traffic. That model worked incredibly well for a long time.

Today? Google actively punishes the kind of content bloggers create. The search engine that built a generation of online businesses now treats content creators like an inconvenience. They’d rather show AI summaries and keep users on their own platform than send traffic to independent sites.

So yeah — if “blogging” means writing articles and waiting for Google traffic, that’s a tough game in 2026.

But that was never the real skill. The real skill was content creation.

What Blogging Actually Taught Us

The best practices of blogging have always been bigger than just blog posts. They’re principles that apply to any form of content:

Consistency wins. The bloggers who succeeded weren’t necessarily the most talented writers. They were the ones who showed up every week, every month, every year. They published when they didn’t feel like it. They kept going when nobody was reading. Consistency compounds. This is true whether you’re writing blog posts, making YouTube videos, recording podcasts, or posting on social media.

Provide genuine value. The blogs that built real audiences solved real problems. They answered questions. They helped people accomplish things. The format didn’t matter — what mattered was whether readers walked away better off than when they arrived. That principle applies everywhere.

Build your own platform. Smart bloggers always knew that their website was home base. Social media, search traffic, email subscribers — those were distribution channels. But the blog itself was the asset. Today that might be a YouTube channel, a newsletter, a podcast. The principle is the same: own something.

Develop your voice. The most successful bloggers weren’t just information dispensers. They had a point of view. A personality. A way of explaining things that was uniquely theirs. That’s what built loyal audiences. It’s still what builds loyal audiences, regardless of medium.

Apply Blogging Principles to Everything

I’ve watched people take what they learned from blogging and absolutely dominate in other formats.

Video creators who understand content strategy because they blogged first. Podcasters who know how to structure an episode because they wrote outlines for articles. Social media personalities who can actually communicate because they spent years writing and editing their thoughts.

The skills transfer. The principles transfer. The discipline transfers.

If you want to succeed with video content in 2026, study what worked for blogs in 2012. Consistency. Value. Personality. Patience. It’s the same playbook, different format.

If you want to build a podcast audience, look at how successful bloggers built email lists. Provide something valuable enough that people want to come back. Make it easy to subscribe. Show up reliably.

If you want to win on social media, understand that the algorithms reward the same things blog readers rewarded: content that makes people stop, think, engage, and share.

Why I’m Optimistic About Content Creation

Here’s what hasn’t changed: people consume more content than ever. They watch videos on their phones during lunch. They listen to podcasts during their commute. They scroll social media before bed. They read newsletters in the morning.

The appetite for content is infinite. The opportunity for creators is massive.

What’s changed is how that content gets discovered and distributed. Google isn’t the only game in town anymore. YouTube, TikTok, podcasts, newsletters, social platforms — there are more ways to reach an audience than ever before.

Yes, it’s more competitive. Yes, attention is fragmented. Yes, algorithms are unpredictable. But these are solvable problems for people willing to adapt.

The Real Reason Most People Fail

When people tell me they tried blogging (or video, or podcasting) and it didn’t work, I always ask the same question: How long did you try?

Usually the answer is a few months. Sometimes less.

That’s not a real attempt. That’s barely getting started.

I’ve been creating content online since 1997. My blog has been running since 2007. The people I know who’ve built real audiences and real businesses from content creation have been at it for years, sometimes decades.

Content creation isn’t a get-rich-quick scheme. It’s a long-term investment in building an audience, developing skills, and creating assets that compound over time. Most people quit before the compounding kicks in.

If you’re willing to stick with it — really stick with it, through the months of low traffic and minimal engagement and wondering if anyone’s listening — you have a massive advantage over everyone who gives up.

What I’d Tell Someone Starting Today

If you’re starting from zero in 2026, here’s my honest advice:

Don’t depend on any single platform. Build an email list from day one. Create content that can live on multiple platforms. Never let one algorithm control your entire business.

Pick a format you can sustain. The best format is the one you’ll actually keep doing. If you hate being on camera, don’t start a YouTube channel. If you hate writing, don’t start a blog. Find the medium that fits your strengths and preferences, because consistency matters more than format.

Focus on a specific audience. “Everyone” is not a target audience. The more specific you get, the easier it is to create content that resonates and build a loyal following. You can always expand later.

Create more than you consume. It’s easy to spend all your time watching what other creators do. Studying the game. Analyzing strategies. At some point, you have to actually create. Ship something. Put it out there. Learn from real feedback, not theoretical knowledge.

Think in years, not months. If you’re expecting results in 90 days, you’ll probably quit in 90 days. Set your timeline to 3-5 years. Build something sustainable. Let compounding do its work.

The Game Has Changed. The Opportunity Hasn’t.

I’ve been doing this long enough to watch entire platforms rise and fall. I’ve seen strategies that worked for years suddenly stop working overnight. I’ve had to adapt, pivot, and rebuild more times than I can count.

But I’ve never seen a time when creating valuable content wasn’t a viable path to building an audience and a business. The channels change. The tactics evolve. The fundamentals remain.

Blogging as a term might sound dated. But content creation — real, valuable, consistent content creation — is more relevant than ever.

I’m still bullish. I’m still building. And if you’re willing to put in the work and play the long game, you should be too.

The opportunity is there. It’s always been there. The question is whether you’re willing to show up long enough to capture it.