Open Talk @DSIM
An Interview with Manan Vyas, blogger by profession
Manan whose native place is Ahmedabad is a blogger by profession. He has been in many locations during his childhood days including Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Vadodara. After completing his higher education from Ahmedabad, he moved to Delhi and took admission in Hindu College of Delhi University and studied B.Com Honours there.
Q1. Hey Manan, Tell us something about your blogs?
Ans. The Indian Economist is a digital magazine that brings together individuals from all across the world to write on subjects they are passionate about. We publish a wide range of subject articles from Business & Economics to Policy, Politics, Foreign Affairs and Culture & Society. We currently have a team of more than 55 individuals across India, a passionate team full of individuals that want to contribute to our mission of delivering knowledge to Curious Minds. The motto of The Indian Economist is ‘For the Curious Mind’.
Q2.What gave you a kick to start your career as a blogger?
Ans.My co-founder Abhisek & I were passionate about connecting knowledge with people. We believe there are a lot of accomplished individuals across the world who have valuable insights derived from their work & experiences. These individuals generally do not have a platform to express these insights. We wanted The Indian Economist to be a platform where credible individuals can share knowledge, and readers can gain value by reading material that is not commonly available.
Q3. Have you ever faced any hurdles while entering into the blogosphere .If yes than how you overcome them and became a successful blogger?
Ans.The challenge is always with regard to convincing readers that your magazine is one worthy of devoting their time to. In a crowded media landscape, readers are always the winners as they have an unlimited number of choices. Breaking free of the clutter and creating and communicating your unique value proposition is always the primary challenge. The Indian Economist has, over the years, succeeded in creating a niche for itself as a magazine that focuses primarily high quality commentary and analysis, as opposed to a focus on ‘news’.
Q4. Did you ever think that a blog will turn you into an entrepreneur?
Ans. The initial vision of The Indian Economist was to remain a not for profit enterprise. Over a period of time, as we grew, we have begun to explore means to monetize the magazine. We believe in advertising that does not spoil the reading experience, therefore we believe engaging in native advertising or branded content only. We have provided great outreach solutions to prominent financial institutions in India. It has been a relationship that has added tremendous value to these institutions while allowing us to provide good content to our readers as well.
Q5. What is the future of blogging? Do you think it will be the one of the most promising careers in the coming time?
Ans. Blogging as a career has potential, but two things are paramount – quality and niche. Bloggers cannot compromise on quality. Readers have no lack of options nowadays, and most media across the world remains free to access. Therefore there is space only for the highest quality media outlets. Secondly, blogs need to find their niche. If they try to compete in a crowded space, it may not necessarily work out well for them.
Q6. As this space i.e. blogosphere is getting competitive day by day .So, what tips you want to give to the newbie’s blogger?
Ans.Write passionately on subjects you love. Look to provide value to readers. Try to tell the readers something that they don’t know. Put readers first, always.
Q7. Who all are the bloggers you get inspiration from?
Ans. We take inspiration from magazines that have succeeded in adding extraordinary value to readers. The Atlantic globally, and Quartz India in India, are magazines that have succeeded in creating world class content across a wide range of categories and have managed to create a loyal fan following.
Q8 . Tell us 3 mantras that help you to become a blogger in a short span of time.
Ans.Your article needs to have three things:Something New – the article should attempt to unearth a new subject that readers are not aware of.
Fresh Take – if the article is focusing on an existing subject, it should look at providing a completely fresh take on the subject to add value to the readers.
Credibility – Talk about areas where you have credibility. Readers want to read content from those who have credibility and experience to back what they are saying. A blogger should know what he is saying & publishing via either in-depth research, industry experience or primary investigation.
Q9. What is the future of Digital Marketing? What all are the channels you are using most to bring the targeted traffic to your website?
Ans. From a content perspective, there are primarily two channels that are growth drivers. Firstly, we have the content aggregators such as Google Newsstand, Apple News, News 360 and more that bring together content and readers on the same platform. This is a good opportunity for a magazine to reach out to a wider pool of readers. Secondly, we have social, which continues to remain a powerful growth driver in the content space. Initiatives such as Facebook Instant (which makes mobile browsing of articles easier) continue to drive social growth in the content space. Moreover, social is a great channel for increasing discoverability.
Q10. Thought for our readers
Ans. The Delhi School of Internet Marketing provides a fantastic opportunity for individuals to learn the tricks of the trade in digital marketing, a career with a fantastic prospect for growth. Love the work your institution is doing, and wishing you the best with it.
DSIM Team
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