Blogger interview with Chirag Sachdeva, a young engineering student and a blogger
Interview with Chirag Sachdeva, a young engineering student, who is also a passionate blogger and an SEO expert. His blogs include ExamsExpert.in and TechBase.in. Learn more about this young blogger and get inspired. Read the complete conversation and know more about blogging.
We recently approached Chirag Sachdeva who is an engineering student, a blogger and SEO expert by passion. You will certainly get inspired from this interview with Chirag Sachdeva.
Blogger Interview with Chirag Sachdeva
Could you please tell our readers something about yourself?
I am Chirag Sachdeva, an Engineering student, SEO expert and a Blogger. I started my studies to be an engineer three years back. I am currently pursuing B.Tech(4th year) from Maharaja Surajmal Institute of Technology, New Delhi. I am very close to students and my inspiration is Shaheed Bhagat Singh.
Could you reveal your age to us? Do you get any kind of support from your family for blogging?
I am 22 years old and I started blogging 3 years back. I still remember during my engineering entrance exam, when I was hunting for exam related educational material; I came across a website i.e. IndiaStudyChannel(ISC). At that time, the header banner of ISC was - "Earn while you learn". It convinced me to give a trail to this website. Those days, I did not know the definition of blogging and what it was all about.
I started working in ISC ask experts section and used to post 2-3 questions every day. The responses I got from those questions were superb and I started reading other sections as well. In between, I started writing articles. I started writing articles with poor grammar. Initially, I was struggling to write an article of 400 words. With the passage of time, I have improved my writing skills and am still learning. I am running 2 major blogs and many small niche blogs as well, one is a educational blog i.e. ExamsExpert.in and other is a technology blog i.e. TechBase.in. My father does not consider blogging as a full-time career. I am blogging on my own. I am planning to switch my career from engineer to blogger.
Could you tell us about your first blog? How was your journey?
As I said before, my blogging career started from ISC, where I was writing for me. I was happy with cash credits awarded by the ISC team and in between I switched my niche from educational to technology blog. I started working on Techulator (Earlier Known as MyWindowsclub.com) and contributed many related technology articles. One day, the owner of Techulator, Mr Tony John received a domain conflict notice from Microsoft. That was a tough time from me and other Techulator members. So, my actual blogging career starts from there. I started a blog named as Examsexpert, which brings me very close to students. I have more than 1K active subscribers at Examsexpert, all of them are students. My focus is crystal clear - maintain readership and traffic will come automatically.
This formula worked for me and now my mail box is full of student's comments. Students even call me on my number to clarify their doubts. Reader satisfaction is the first priority for me.
How do you make your blog popular?
I am writing for my readers and search engine. Being a blogger, you must understand what readers will search and what the market scope is. My first priority is to provide updated and unique content and this makes me successful. In my free time, I always think how to provide something exceptional to my readers. I think these steps keep my blogs popular.
What is your experience in the blogging area?
I have worked with Indiastudychannel for one year and two years with Techulator. So, I am capable of writing on the educational and technology niche. Being an engineer, getting connected with technology is so easy for me. You must write on a niche in which you are compatible. Do not go with a niche that you are not interested in. The purpose of starting an educational blog is to get in touch with students. I started a technology blog just to update my knowledge and earning.
Which websites do you browse regularly? What is your source of up to date knowledge?
I have subscribed to websites like shoutmeloud.com, labnol.org etc. Moreover, the main tools I use include Google Alerts, Google Trend and Google Adwords. It keeps me updated with volume searches, profitable niches and other latest information.
How many blogs do you have? Do you write articles on other sites?
I am associated with two major blogs- Examsexpert and Techbase. I used to do guest postings on other websites. As of now, I am thinking twice before posting a guest post, as Google's optimization spy bot will suck your website. Content is king and consistent posting is the key to success.
How is your daily schedule?
I spend about 5-6 hours daily on the Internet. Writing an article is an easy task and making it popular among audience require special skills like SEO and SMO. So, I am always working to improve my SEO and SMO skills.
Which webmaster/blogger is your role model? Which sites/blogs you like to follow?
I follow Amit Aggarwal from labnol.org and Tony John from Techulator.com and Indiastudychannel.com. These two personalities are ruling the Internet world.
What do you think about the future of blogging?
The Internet world is full of surprises.No one can predict on what basis Google rank articles. Many young bloggers are joining the Web without understanding the Web. Their first priority is to make money using black hat techniques. Spamming has increased over the past few years; Bloggers are running for backlinks, paid posts, author bios, page rank, etc. Thus, it ruins the Web. The game is profitable for big players and authority websites. I do not think small websites will sustain in the long run.
Are you planning to be a full-time blogger?
I am planning to register my company and start my own online business as a full-time blogger. Right time, I am playing the game of a night watchman and analyzing the web business closely.
How much do you make from your blogs?
I am not going to disclose my income but I can hint you my major income source. Google AdSense is a major source of income for me. I monetize my websites with Google AdSense, Kontera, Infolinks, Paid posts, Link selling, and Affiliate marketing.
Do you use affiliate marketing to earn revenue? What is your advice to others on affiliate marketing?
Yes, I am using affiliate marketing but I am a newbie here. The basic thing I learned from Affiliate marketing is convincing power in your words. Your words should be integrated in such a manner that readers get convinced with your words.
Note: Always promote genuine products and never mislead your customers. My definition of affiliate marketing is to promote the right products at the right time.
what do you suggest as an alternative to Google AdSense?
I find BuySellAds and Tribal fusion as a good alternative for Google Adsense, for those who are getting high traffic and pageviews.
Which are the online social communities you are most active on?
I am active on Facebook, GooglePlus, and Twitter.
Most big bloggers have reported that their revenue has been coming down in the last few years due to high competition. How are your earnings in the last few years?
It's about smart work. Google made it easy for the big players to get the maximum profit. As small blogs cannot stand strongly against authorized blogs, small blogs are affected by Panda, Penguin and the rest of them are hit by Exact Match Domain. It makes living difficult for new blogs. So, the advantage is for authority websites. My earning over the past few years has increased and I am breaking my own records. I started my definition as - "Smart work is the key to success", not the preferred statement - "Hard work is the key to success".
How did blogging help you personally other than making money?
As already said, I am very close to students. Blogging helps me to get recognition among students. Earlier, I used to call my father for my mobile bills, Internet bill, College fees, and other expenses but Blogging makes my life easier and helps me to get recognition which I cannot get through engineering. It feels good when someone uses a "blogger" tag before my name.
How do you socialize?
I prefer Google Plus, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Digg, StumbleUpon, and other bookmarking networks.
What does your family think about your blogs?
My family is happy with my blogs. Earlier, my father was not happy with blogging because it was a new concept for him but now I have convinced my father.
What do you think about the Panda and Penguin updates from Google? What advice you give to other bloggers to avoid Panda/Penguin penalties?
It is a good step by Google, as it would remove those taking advantage of keyword stuffing and keyword density. Yes, December Panda Update affected my blog but I have recovered from the update. Write unique content consistently would be a good idea. The best ways to recover from Panda are to use the nofollow tags and check existing resources with NULL traffic and try to figure out the reason for getting low traffic. If someone copies your content then chances are there that you will be getting hit by Panda. So, start thinking for the long run.
What do you think about the future of SEO?
I suggest bloggers write genuine and unique content and never focus on backlinks, Pagerank, paid posts, selling links, etc. Content is King. So, make it simple by posting content regularly.
Note: The external links from your page produces negative results. Try to include a few links as possible.
What do you advise - focus on a single site or create several sites in the various niche?
CPC and CTR are terms that complement each other. Different Niche websites vary with these parameters. So, it is a good idea to get a taste of various niche websites. It would helpful for getting knowledge and proceed in the long run.
Which technology company you like the most - Microsoft/Google/Apple? And why?
I love Google because Google pays me (Just Kidding). My vote goes for Google because I love Google products, just like all other digital marketers.
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