If you are a software developer, tech whiz, methodical writer, or mostly anyone wishing to stay updated with the latest technology trends and fads, there is no way you would have missed out on TechCrunch. This technology media enterprise started as a simple technical blog spotlighting budding start-ups, reviewing state-of-the-art products, and publishing content on thriving technical know-how. Over 16 years, TechCrunch beat its competitors at their own game and emerged as the ultimate go-to for all geeks craving technical knowledge. TechCrunch now boasts of over 37 million viewers every month with a gross annual worth of 10 million USD! But TechCrunch wasn’t born with the millions. It was all acquired over years of perspiration, diligence, and persistence.
COMMENCEMENT OF THE STARTUP
TechCrunch was established in June 2005 by Michael Arrington. He wrote about companies and organizations enticing attention towards Web 2.0. Regular updates, tactical search engine optimization, and premeditated search engine marketing skills enabled TechCrunch to reach out to the targeted audience. Arrington was only a part-time blogger, but his resilience coupled with augmented advertising brought him optimal results. However, TechCrunch finally got its big break after it reported YouTube being purchased by Google for 1.65 billion USD on 13th November 2006. Since then, there has been no turning back and TechCrunch has subjugated infinitely many horizons.
ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND ENDEAVORS
Arrington was a God with the keyboard, but not many of us know that he owns a knoll of other unlucrative businesses. Achex, an online checking account-based money transfer service was set up by Arrington and Keval Desai in 1999. He founded an online movie downloading and renting kiosk company titled Zip in 2004. Unfortunately, the Canada-based business went defunct in 2014. He was also a member of the board of directors of an online organizing website called Foldera. However, not only is his prime creation TechCrunch, he has modified the enterprise and provisioned it with enthralling features. Surfing on the crest of this business, Arrington has an accrued net worth of 15 million USD! The company now hosts various conferences, including the renowned Disrupt series as well as the Crunchie Awards. Moreover, TechCrunch’s official database CrunchBase is an open-access database delivering statistical inputs for major IT and professional services firms.
We can see that Rome wasn’t built in a day and Arrington tried his hand at so many start-ups before he procreated a successful one on his own. Various interviewers and interrogators tried their best to extract the secret behind his success. Here is a list of blogging tactics to be kept in mind if you aspire to build a blog like TechCrunch, if not, better.
TECHCRUNCH’S SECRETS FOR A SUCCESSFUL CAREER IN BLOGGING
- Be passionate about what you do- “The most powerful weapon on earth is the human soul on fire.” Man can achieve anything he wants to if he is driven and passionate about his dreams and ambitions. But passion doesn’t just stem from musing and reveries. One needs to be calculative and perseverant to reap the fruits of success. The more time and effort you invest in blogging, the more beneficial would it prove for the blog. On analyzing the statistics of revenues, you could proceed from blogging part-time to full-time if the returns are high.
- Target specific fields– Always be very precise while selecting a topic to blog about. Vague topics might delude potential readers and pass on indistinct ideas. Henceforth, selecting an explicit topic is important. For instance, if you select a broad topic like ‘Cloud Computing’, the article might get lengthy and tedious. You should instead select a more specific topic like ‘Benefits of Cloud Computing in Business’. This theme is accurate, on-point and it delivers more relevant information to the readers.
- Money is not everything– While there is no denying that any start-up wants to fetch revenue, one should never base an innovation just to earn. Blogs ruin their reputation by struggling to mint money too early in their careers. You should first win the viewership of a stable and reliable audience who are interested in the consistency and quality of your posts. Only after you have an assured audience should you start thinking about monetary advantages.
- Devising the perfect marketing strategy– Sketch the perfect buyer persona by conducting regular surveys and Q/As. Once you analyze the temperaments of the buyers, it becomes convenient to tailor customized content. Search engine optimization (SEO) plays a key role in increasing the probability of viewing your blog on the search engine’s results page. Keyword stuffing is no longer effective as Google and other search engines keep on changing their result-page algorithms. Use Hubspot’s CRM content strategy tool to serve your purpose. Effective marketing encompasses profitable and strategic advertising. Remember to identify dependable and creditable influencers who have the potential to draw public eyes towards you and your blog. Finally, timely updating, repurposing, and republishing your old content plays a vital role in eliciting attention.
- Practice makes a man perfect– Lastly, it is of paramount importance to write as much as you can. Hiatuses can make your writing sloppy and unsmooth. You might release content every day, every week, or every fortnight; remember to highlight the quality of your posts and not just the quantity. Keep the flow of your articles consistent and stay in practice. Lastly, never get disheartened if your blog isn’t getting enough views. It takes time to carve a niche on stone. Keep on updating new and interesting content and see the viewership get flattered.
CONCLUSION
“The Future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” But the future is ruled by those who act accordingly. Verizon may own TechCrunch now, but the million-dollar company thrives on the ethics imparted by Arrington: a lawyer who blogged for his passion. Anyone aspiring to create wonders out of their blogs idolizes him and his principles. It was not the lust for money, but his passion for innovation that made him what he is today. So, keep working towards your blog and someday, your blog might plunder the maws of success and make TechCrunch feel small.
Sanya Sinha
Sanya Sinha is a part-time content-writer and author from Patna, Bihar. She is currently doing her B.Tech from Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra(2020-2024). She is the author of ‘An Ode to…Verity’ and co-author for ‘World Famous Mysteries Vol: 1’ and ‘World’s Literature Digest’. Sanya has vast experience in article-writing, editing and proof-reading. She has won multiple national and international level poetry and essay-writing contests. She has interned with Monomousumi Services.
