When I began as a junior web developer in 2014, I also started blogging [0] about React.js on the side. Despite hearing that "blogging is dead," I kept at it because I enjoyed sharing what I was learning as a junior dev.
Three years later, I began receiving job offers through my blog, which led me to try freelancing as a web developer. Fast forward seven years, and I've never had to actively seek out projects, because clients have consistently reached out to me via my website. In fact, blogging has allowed me to stay fully booked as a freelance web developer. I had freelance gigs at governments, at a DAO, at enterprise companies and startups which reached from code monkey positions to lead positions.
Would I do it again? Absolutely. But would I start blogging in 2024 just to get job offers? Probably not. The developer content landscape has changed significantly, with many more people now blogging. However, if your goal is personal growth and learning, a well-maintained blog can still be a valuable way to attract clients.
I have no questions, but I want to say that you’re a gem, Robin. At (thankfully) rare times when I’ve questioned my sanity or needed a quick refresher on something in React I was stuck on, your blog popped up for me in SERP and cleared things up. You have a nice, uncluttered writing style. At least a time or two when I was working too much or too late, you managed to make me feel a little bit less alone by writing about things in a way that showed me someone else was reading the docs and figured it out too. Thank you. You’ve made the ecosystem a little brighter.
Three years later, I began receiving job offers through my blog, which led me to try freelancing as a web developer. Fast forward seven years, and I've never had to actively seek out projects, because clients have consistently reached out to me via my website. In fact, blogging has allowed me to stay fully booked as a freelance web developer. I had freelance gigs at governments, at a DAO, at enterprise companies and startups which reached from code monkey positions to lead positions.
Would I do it again? Absolutely. But would I start blogging in 2024 just to get job offers? Probably not. The developer content landscape has changed significantly, with many more people now blogging. However, if your goal is personal growth and learning, a well-maintained blog can still be a valuable way to attract clients.
AMA :)
[0] https://www.robinwieruch.de/