Blog vs Vlog – Are you planning to start any one of the online platforms to share knowledge and make money from it?
Then, which is the best against blogging vs vlogging?
This blog and vlog debate has been going on across all the people while coming into making money online.
So, to overcome that, we have brought this detailed article to help you learn which is the best one for you to start, what challenges you will face on both, and how much potential money you can make from it.
By the end of this article, you’ll get a better idea.
Blog vs Vlog: The Complete Guide
In the following chapters, we will examine the meanings, differences, and examples of blogs and vlogs.
What Is a Vlog?
A person who creates content in the form of short or long-form videos in any medium is called a Vlog (a.k.a Vlogging). The standard mediums used by vloggers to create content are YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.
The detailed definition of Vlog, Vlogging, & Vlogger:
What Is a Blog?
Content that is in the written form to convey the point to the audience through texts, images, or infographics is called a Blog. For example, the content you’re reading now is the perfect blog article.
Generally, search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo rank blog articles based on different algorithmic factors, and the users can read based on the search.
I hope you understand the meaning of a blog and a vlog. Let’s now see some of the major differences between them.
Major Differences Between a Vlog and a Blog
Let me point out the 10+ significant differences between vlogs and blogs. However, if you’re not ready to read it, check out the table below for easy understanding.
Process | Blog | Vlog |
---|---|---|
Started Year | 1990 | 2000 |
Where to Stream | WordPress, Tumblr, Medium | YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook |
Going to Live | Live-stream not possible | Live-stream is possible |
Is Monetization Possible? | Yes | Yes |
Cost to Start | $1000 – $3000 | $200 – $2000 |
Monthly Users | 3.8 Billion | 2 Billion |
Ways to Make Money | โข Google AdSense, โข Affiliate Marketing, โข SponsorPost, โข Guest Post, โข Online Courses, etc | โข YouTube AdSense, โข Affiliate Marketing, โข Channel Membership, โข SponsorVideos, โข Super Chat, etc. |
Potential to Earn (first year) (per month) | $700* | $1000* |
Competition | Hard | Medium |
Man Power | 1 person | 1 or 2 persons |
Successful Creators | PatFlynn: making $1,67,000/month | Ryan: making $30 million/year |
Here is a short explanation of the differences of a vlog vs blog:
1. Equipment & Cost to Start
The general question asked by creator before starting their blogging or vlogging as their platform is, really, how much does it cost to start?
The answer depends on the equipment or software you’re choosing for that.
Let’s say you want to start a blog; what equipment do you need, and how much does it cost?
Blog Cost to Start:
- Domain Name: Firstly, what is your blog name? It is also called the domain name. So, you have to check and find whether the domain name you’re searching for is available or not; then you need to purchase it. Click here to check the domain name availability.
- Hosting: Hosting is nothing but the server on which you need to place your website or blog with specific storage. This is the mandatory thing you must buy to start a blog as your business. One of the best and cheapest hosting services is Bluehost.
- Themes: Themes are used to design blog pages with attractive designs and templates. For instance, we are using the Astra theme on this blog to look decent and readable to the users. You can also go for the WordPress free themes in the initial stage. However, premium themes are the best for building audiences with more informative designs.
- Keyword Tool: Targeting the audiences on Google is tricky. You have to do tremendous keyword research and target the right audiences with the blogging keyword tools.
- Plugins: Millions of WordPress plugins support bloggers for easy blog management. Some are free to use, and some are premium. Let me list the standard plugins most of the top bloggers use.
- ConvertKit – Email Marketing Management
- Akismet – Spam Protection
- Jetpack – Security, Marketing, and Performance management tool
- Cache – To enable the cache on the website to speed up the page load.
- Social Snap – Enabling Social Sharing buttons
In current situations, it would cost bloggers around $1000 to $3000 to buy the software and effectively run the blog.
Vlog Cost to Start:
- Recording Equipment: When you want to become a vlogger, you need to have this essential equipment to start recording the videos such as Camera, Microphone, Lights, Tripod, Lens, etc.,
- Screen Recorder: Sometimes, recording the screen on your computer is possible. In such a case, you must have screen recording software like Camtasia.
- Editing Software: The raw footage from the camera is not always watchable. You need to have the best editing software to add some spices and trim unwanted clips.
- Keyword Tool: Like the blog, you must also have a keyword tool for vlogs. The tool helps you find the best high-search-volume, low-competition, and high-CPC-value keywords. Hence, the videos will get more views, traffic, and revenue. Currently, TubeBuddy is the best keyword-research tool for YouTubers to earn more money.
- Miscellaneous: Buying miscellaneous software or gadgets for your vlogging is possible. Some are:
- Canva: Thumbnail creation, Image editing Software
- Envato Elements: It helps to download royalty-free music, stock footage, and videos.
So, it would cost around $300 to $2000 for vloggers to buy the equipment and run a successful vlogging channel on YouTube or any other medium.
Moreover, the above points show significant differences in the price of standard equipment in both the vlog and blog. But beyond that, you may need to spend additional money on branding your business, such as logo creation, marketing, outsourcing, etc.
2. Platforms
Where do I need to upload the video or write the blog article? No worries, let me explain it clearly.
For a Blog, you can start writing on WordPress.com, BlogSpot, Medium.com, Tumblr, Quora, Reddit, and even LinkedIn.
However, if you’re a brand or full-time business looking to boost your visibility on Google, you’ll need to take a few extra steps. These include purchasing a domain and hosting your WordPress account with a company like Bluehost. Then, you’ll be ready to start writing.
For example, when you search for keywords like How to start a YouTube channel or Cost to Start a YouTube channel, our blog “StrangerShow.com” will appear at the top of the search engine.
We have hosted this blog on Bluehost, and the writing content manager is WordPress.
For a Vlog, you can start uploading your videos on Instagram Reel, Facebook, and YouTube.
These are the currently trending social platforms to enhance your business or content creation.
However, YouTube is a dedicated platform for vloggers who want to share their knowledge and ideas, make decent money, and live boss-free lives.
3. Competition
Let’s see what is the competition level.
Firstly, the competition depends on the niche of your content. However, the platform also plays a significant role in that.
For example, taking the niche that Mr.Beast is doing on YouTube is the riskiest job. Since he is the best one, you’ve had to do tremendous hard work for years to beat at least one video’s ranking for Mr.Beast.
Likewise, in the Blog. So, the battle for blog vs vlog almost concludes when you check the competition level. When you ask me about the current market level, blogging is the most competitive platform compared to vlogging.
Blog Vs Vlog: Pros and Cons
Now, let’s see the pros and cons of blogs and vlogs.
Pro’s
- Blog maintenance is relatively easy. For example, if you’re writing a post about the best iPhone to buy and want to update it based on the current year; it’s easy to edit and update the post.
- Both blogging and vlogging present exciting opportunities for financial success. Whether through affiliate marketing, direct sponsorships, or email marketing, the potential to earn a substantial income is within reach for those who are dedicated and strategic.
- WFA โ Work From Anywhere, even though you’re on vacation or out of the station. You only need a phone or laptop to create/write/edit the post and video.
- Vlog visual content is attractive and easily understandable.
- Due to high internet speed, people nowadays prefer watching videos than reading.
- Also, Vlog doesn’t require much SEO optimization to rank the video.
- When delivering highly engaging content, a person can soon become famous through blogs and vlogs.
- Direct advertising and sponsor ads are the mainstream income for vloggers and bloggers.
Con’s
- Blogs and Vlogs require extensive maintenance. If the content is not updated or does not keep up with current technology, there is a high risk of going out of business.
- The blog needs more visual and graphic content.
- A blog requires a lot of handwork to rank the article on Google, such as on-page SEO, off-page SEO, link building, etc.
- Email marketing is quite complex for vloggers. However, it’s possible to do.
How to Make Money from Blogs and Vlogs?
Many bloggers and Vloggers quit their jobs and start working as full-time creators. Hard work, dedication, and consistency are key to success in any career.
Both blogs and vlogs lead to monetization and making decent money. If you want to quit a 9 โ 6 job and be your boss, then both these platforms are the right choice. But many of them donโt know how to make money from it. Well, the ways are,
Make Money | Blog | Vlog |
---|---|---|
AdSense | โ | โ |
Affiliate Marketing | โ | โ |
Ebook Selling | โ | X |
Online Courses | โ | X |
Channel Membership | X | โ |
Freelancing | โ | X |
Merchandise | X | โ |
Let me explain in depth how you can earn money from both blogging and vlogging.
Blogging & Vlogging
- AdSense: The process is straightforward. Once your content appears, advertising starts playing on your blog article or video, and you start earning a commission from the AdSense team. It’s as simple as that. For blogging, you can apply Google AdSense; for YouTubing, you can use YouTube AdSense.
- Affiliate Marketing: I’m not sure if you’re aware of Affiliate marketing. It’s a lucrative way to make money for both bloggers and vloggers. Once you promote the product and someone purchases it through your shared link, you’ll get a certain amount as commission.
- Online Courses: Online courses help to make recurring income. However, they’re not suitable for vloggers as you’re already creating content on a video type. Audiences may need to communicate with you directly after reading your article. So, depending on the niche, this is the best place to earn money for bloggers all the time and for vloggers only occasionally.
- Ebook: Build your Email list and start publishing the E-book content. Suitable for blogging content.
- Freelance Writing: If you’re a good writer, you can start publishing your content on other sites and make money.
- Channel Membership: Vlogging audiences will pay to join your channel once you reach specific requirements. Nothing is free when you decide.
- Merchandise: When you have loyal and conversion audiences, you could start selling your product through the merchandise program on YouTube.
Okay, to help you start with more confidence, let’s look at some of the blogger’s and vlogger’s income reports. From there, you’ll get some ideas.
Blog vs Vlog – Income Report
Firstly, look at famous vloggers’ (especially YouTubers’) income reports.
- Ali Abdaal – $25,143 for Single video
- Pivot call – $9,536 for last 28 days
- Gillian Perkins – $1,255 per month
Also, some of the other top-notch YouTuber’s Yearly income report list is here:
- Ryan Toys Review โ $30 million
- Mr.Beast โ $23 million
- Dude Perfect โ $23 million
- Markipiler โ $19 million
- Preston Arsement โ $19 million
Blogger’s Monthly Income Report
- PatFlynn โ $1,67,000
- Amit Agarwal โ $1,00,000
- Harsh Agarwal โ $80,000
- Anil Agarwal โ $10,000
- Kristin Larsen โ $18,000
Nothing is Impossible when we set a goal for it. If you work hard, it will pay off. The above income report numbers are round-off and approximately mentioned.
Blog Vs Vlog: Which One Should I Start?
Finally, let’s decide on either Blogging or Vlogging. Frankly, both platforms take consistent hard work, dedication, and patience from the creators.
But in return, it provides a tremendous result. However, you can only do both with an extensive support team. Otherwise, either a blog or vlog is an option.
So, which one Should I use for my career?
If your answer is “Yes” to the three questions below, you can start your career as a blogger.
- Can you spend at least 3 hours daily free to work on the blog?
- Are you willing to invest now and work hard for the next year without expecting any return?
- Are you good with English or your native language, and can you write the content without grammatical errors?
As said, If you have “YES” as an answer to the above questions, you can Start Blogging.
Blogging Guidance:
To be a blogger, refer to the below-mentioned bloggers to motivate and learn blogging skills.
- Shoutmeloud.com โ Help you to start, learn, and run a profitable blog for beginners.
- Wpbeginner.com โ If your blog runs on WordPress, this blog helps solve all your WordPress plugin and technical doubts.
- Backlinko.com โ A brief blogging SEO blog to learn On-Page and Off-Page SEO to rank the posts.
- Neilpatel.com โ Helps to solve SEO, online marketing, and email marketing doubts on the blog.
Vlogging Guidance:
Answer “Yes” to the three questions below and become a Vlogger.
- Do you have 4 to 5 hours of your daily time for filming, editing, script writing, etc.?
- Have sufficient balance to buy YouTubing equipment like cameras, microphones, software, etc.?
- Don’t have hesitation in making videos in front of a camera?
If you have “YES” as an answer to the above questions, you can Start Vlogging.
To be a vlogger, refer to the below-mentioned bloggers to motivate and learn vlogging skills.
- StrangerShow.com – It helps start a YouTube channel from scratch, teach YouTube how-to techniques, tips, and video SEO, and make money from YouTube.
- Vlogtribe – Helps to choose the equipment for your vlogging purpose.
With all the above information, I hope you can now choose the stream to share your knowledge. If you have any doubts or struggle to decide, comment here, and I will definitely respond to clarify it.
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