If you’re reading this, then chances are that at some point, you’ve considered starting a blog. Maybe you already have. Bloggers pour their passions into writing, providing a unique perspective into a particular topic or interest that nobody else can provide. There are millions upon millions of blogs on the internet, and most remain relatively obscure to the masses. A few, however, manage to break through the noise and make it big. Of those, some even become major business empires of their own. Whether you’re looking for a bit of inspiration to continue blogging or are just curious, you’ll want to read about these four successful startups that got their start as simple blogs.
Groupon
If you’re looking for guidelines and tips for creating a blog that is successful, then look no further than Groupon. It originally began as a daily deals blog that provided visitors with special discounts on a select number of items and services. The deals were posted manually to the site by the team each day, based on which businesses bought onto the idea in the Chicago area. While the company isn’t worth as much as it once was, building a billion-dollar entity out of a blog still isn’t shabby at all.
FiveThirtyEight
One of the biggest and most recognized online political entities in the United States, FiveThirtyEight has gained quite a bit of a reputation based on its accuracy and statistical analysis. The website provides analysis and commentary on likely election outcomes, but has branched out into a wide variety of topic such as economics, sports and culture. Many people do not know that Nate Silver, the founder of 538, got his start in the arena of politics by maintaining a political blog on Daily Kos. From there, he branched out and was hired by both ESPN and the New York Times before going independent again. It has been reported that multiple staff members of the 538 team now make six-figures, which is a huge amount for a startup that began as a one-man-blog on a mass blog platform.
Ghost
Designed to be a new blogging platform with a visionary way of doing things, Ghost actually started out as nothing more than a simple blog post. Unlike some other startups, the premise of Ghost quickly got attention and gained steam across the web. Within days, hundreds of thousands of people had heard about it. The creator would then go on to create a Kickstarter campaign that would pull in nearly $300,000 before any tangible product was even available. As of right now, it has thousands of backers who are eagerly awaiting its release.
KISSmetrics
One of the most popular internet marketing and SEO businesses on the web, KISSmetrics didn’t always enjoy such notoriety. In its early days, it existed as a lowly blog ran by Neil Patel, known as QuickSprout.com. After about a year, the blog spun off into something bigger and began to grow at a rapid rate. As of now, KISSmetrics employs nearly 30 people and surprisingly enough, the business still earns most of its revenue through the blogging side.
There are many success stories out there which show that bloggers can become successful beyond their wildest dreams. Have a question about your own blog? Ask below and we’ll do our best to answer.
