Starting a true crime is a great way to shed some light and share your theories on interesting cases. It’s also a proven way to earn money online.
We’ve taught over 15,000 people how to build profitable blogs, and some of our proteges have gone on to build successful true crime blogs.
We’ve also found success in starting our own blogs. Here’s a small sample of what we’ve earned over the years through our blogging efforts:
This 10-step guide will help you find similar success with your own profitable true crime blog.
Why Start a True Crime Blog
Starting a true crime blog can be extremely rewarding.
For starters, it’s a great way to make money. Our affiliate marketing statistics show that bloggers in the entertainment sector – including the true crime niche – earn an average of $4,416 per month.
Launching a true crime blog can also help you share your passion with a huge audience. According to one poll, half of all Americans love true crime stories, and 13% define it as their favorite genre.
True crime writers can also help to raise awareness of lesser-known cases that haven’t received much media attention. This can launch discussions, debates, and campaigns that bring justice to victims and their families.
Examples of Successful True Crime Blogs
Before you start your new venture as a true crime blogger, it’s worth checking out some of the blogs already thriving in this niche. Here are three examples:
Canada Unsolved
Canada Unsolved writes about cold cases for murders and missing people in Canada.
The Innocence Project
The Innocence Project takes a unique look at the world of true crime and focuses on sharing the stories of the wrongly accused. The blog is managed by a non-profit organization dedicated to exonerating wrongly convicted individuals.
Stories of the Unsolved
Stories of the Unsolved has been raising awareness for unsolved murders and disappearances since its launch in 2018.
How To Start a True Crime Blog in 10 Steps
Here are the steps you’ll need to follow to launch your own true crime blog.
1 Narrow Down Your True Crime Niche
The first step is to choose the area of true crime you want to focus on.
While writing about all things true crime is tempting, this approach is less likely to bring you success.
It’s easier to build a brand in a sub-genre of true crime rather than cover all aspects of the topic.
Some people are primarily interested in unsolved murders. Others want the drama of covering ongoing murder trials. Others still want true crime stories about well-known celebrities.
Trying to cater to all those tastes will spread you thin and make it harder to satisfy any particular audience.
Focusing on a specific niche also gives you more scope to select highly focused keywords and topics for your true crime articles, which can improve your search engine optimization (SEO) and make it easier to get organic search traffic.
The easiest way to choose a niche is to choose something you’re passionate and knowledgeable about. Passion will help you stay motivated during the blog-building process, and knowledge will improve the quality of your content.
Here are some potential true crime niches you can write about:
- Forensic science. If you have a scientific background, bringing your forensic knowledge into discussions of popular and recent cases can give your writing an edge.
- Recent true crime cases. Discuss the latest events and crimes in your country, city, or state, and share your opinions on the case details.
- Famous cold cases. Dive into the research and case studies of famous serial killers and mysteries throughout history.
- Unsolved mysteries. Discuss many unsolved cases, from kidnapping and human trafficking crimes to murders and break-ins.
- Murders and serial killers. Write articles and case studies about some of the most horrific serial killers in the world, with insights into their crimes and psychology.
Once you know what topics you want to write about, you must qualify your ideas for traffic. Without a sufficient number of people looking for content in your niche, you won’t be able to grow a following or make money.
The first step in niche qualification is to make a list of successful blogs in your niche. You can do this by searching Google for keywords you might write about or checking a blog aggregator like Feedspot.
Once you find a relevant blog, you can also use the Organic Competitors section in Ahrefs to find other websites that write about similar topics.
Once you have your list of blogs, you can get a free trial of SE Ranking to see how much monthly traffic each one receives.
If you’re stuck between a few niches, you can compare their popularity with Google Trends.
If you’re still struggling, check out our video on niche selection for more guidance.
While picking a niche is important, don’t get caught up in over-analysis. Once you’ve found a topic that gets good traffic, proceed to the next step!
2 Choose a Blogging Platform
Now you have your niche, you need to find a home for your content. A blogging platform allows you to publish, promote, and share your content on the web.
Many bloggers opt for free social blogging platforms like Medium or Blogger. While the ease of use is nice, these platforms have a lot of limitations:
- They can restrict the content you produce, particularly when you’re covering sensitive topics like crime and murder.
- Your monetization options are limited.
- You have little control over the design and functionality of your blog.
Though it takes more work, building your own website is the smart option.
- It gives you full control over your true crime content, branding strategy, and how you promote your pieces.
- No one can shut down your site or remove your content.
- Monetizing your blog through affiliate marketing, display ads, and other strategies is much easier.
- You’re building an asset that you can sell. Take it from us — we’ve sold multiple blogs for 6-figure exits.
My favorite platform is WordPress.org (not to be confused with WordPress.com). It’s free, beginner-friendly, and has thousands of plugins and themes that let you customize your site however you want.
3 Choose Your Domain Name
The next step is choosing a domain name – the address visitors use to find your site. Your domain name includes your blog’s name and a domain extension (like .com).
When choosing a domain name, the most important thing you can do is check that your name is unique. Use a trademark search database to look for any companies with similar titles. Then, follow these quick tips for an effective name:
- Make it descriptive. Help your readers understand what your blog is about with niche-focused words like “mystery”, “murder”, or “true crime”.
- Keep it concise. Avoid long domain names. Shorter names (1-2 words) are easier to remember.
- Stay simple. Choose simple words that are easier to spell. This will make it easier for your customers to find and share your blog with friends.
- Get a .com domain. The .com domain name is still the most trustworthy, memorable, and authoritative option. If you have a great name with an unavailable .com, you can consider some .com alternatives.
- Experiment with language. Linguistic strategies, like using alliteration in your domain name, can make your URL more memorable.
- Leave room for expansion. Even if you’re starting with a specific focus, you should allow yourself to expand to broader topics.
If you’re struggling to find a domain name that captivates readers, an AI domain generator like Brandsnap can help.
Once you’ve chosen your name, you can purchase it from Namecheap for as little as $10 per year.
4 Buy Web Hosting
Since WordPress.org is self-hosted, you’ll need to subscribe to a web hosting service. A web host provides the infrastructure to store, manage, and deliver content to online readers.
While many bloggers recommend companies like Bluehost for their low-cost plans, I’d suggest SiteGround instead. SiteGround offers affordable plans for beginners (though they can be more expensive when you renew). It’s also more reliable and faster than Bluehost.
Getting started with SiteGround is easy. Here’s a step-by-step guide:
Step 1: Visit their WordPress hosting page and choose a plan. I recommend the StartUp plan as a cheap option for beginners.
Step 2: Enter your domain name: Click “I already have a domain” and enter the name into the form field provided.
Step 3: Enter account and location information.
Step 4: Enter payment information and choose a subscription duration. You’ll get a discount if you pay for at least 1 year upfront.
Step 5: Skip the extra services. You won’t need features like a site scanner on a new blog.
Step 6: Point your domain to SiteGround: Change the DNS settings on your domain registrar account to point your domain to SiteGround. This guide shows you how. If you have trouble, contact SiteGround’s support team.
Congratulations! Now, you have hosting for your true crime blogging venture.
5 Choose a Theme for your True Crime Blog
To be a successful true crime blogger, you must make your site stand out. A theme — a template for your site’s appearance and structure — will help you do that.
There are plenty of free and premium themes available for WordPress.
While you might prefer to use a free theme, make sure there’s an option to upgrade to a premium version of your theme when necessary. Premium themes offer more advanced features and capabilities, which can become crucial as your site grows.
Here are my top three freemium recommendations:
Once you choose your theme, you can add it to your site in just a few clicks. Log into your WordPress dashboard, then click on Appearance > Themes.
Click “Add New” then search for your theme name.
Once you find your theme, click “Activate” to install it onto your blog.
After your theme is installed, you can edit the sections, fonts, color palettes, and other factors to make it unique to your true crime brand.
6 Decide on Design & Branding
It’s time to make some foundational branding decisions: choosing your color palette and creating your logo.
Let’s start with the color palette. Your blog’s color scheme can directly impact your customers’ feelings about it, so it must match your site’s overall feel. Dark and mysterious shades like black, red, and purple are common on true crime blogs, and they can set expectations for what your customers can expect to see.
You don’t need to be an artist to create a compelling color palette. Sites like Coolors make it simple to generate harmonious color schemes in seconds.
Next up is creating your logo. I recommend using Canva for this process, as it’s extremely easy to use and affordable. All you need to do is search for “true crime logo template,” and you’ll find many options.
Click on a template you like, and you’ll be directed to the Canva editor to alter the colors, shapes, designs, and typography.
7 Create Essential Pages
You’re almost ready to write your first blog post. But before you start writing, you need to get some essential pages on your blog:
The Homepage
Every site needs a homepage. This page introduces readers to your true crime blog, highlights your latest posts, and showcases your brand.
An About Page
An “About page” is where you tell readers about yourself. It can be a great tool for validating your expertise and lets you tell your audience where your content ideas and passion come from.
The Contact Page
A contact page lets your audience get in touch, whether requesting more information about a case, sharing praise, or exploring collaboration opportunities. Your contact page should include links to social media profiles, a contact form, and an email address.
Privacy Policy + Terms & Conditions pages
These legal pages detail the information you collect from users and how people can use your website.
Although they might seem complex, you can generate these pages for free using a tool like PrivacyPolicies.com.
Adding new pages to your WordPress site is simple. Log into your admin account and click the “Pages” tab on the left-hand menu. Then click “Add New” to create a page.
8 Start Creating Content
Finally, it’s time to start writing your blog!
However, you shouldn’t just be producing pieces at random. Every blog post you create should elevate your site’s visibility in search engine results. That’s why I recommend a keyword-focused content strategy.
Producing keyword-focused content involves writing content that satisfies queries people are typing into search engines like Google.
Choosing the right keywords for your true crime blog can be tricky. While broader terms like “unsolved murders” might get a lot of traffic, they’re also targeted by a wider range of sites, which means more competition.
The trick is finding keywords with decent search volume and low competition. You can use the Ahrefs Keyword Explorer tool to find them – here are a few examples using “unsolved murders” as a seed keyword:
| Keyword | Search Volume | Keyword Difficulty |
|---|---|---|
| Unsolved murders 1970s | 500 | 8 |
| Unsolved murders in michigan | 300 | 8 |
| Most famous unsolved murders | 250 | 26 |
| Unsolved murders in kansas city | 200 | 2 |
Using these keywords, you can come up with ideas for blog titles, such as:
- 5 Notorious Unsolved Murders in the 1970s
- 10 Most Famous Unsolved Murders in the US
- 7 Unsolved Murders in Kansas City
Once you have 10 blog titles prepared, you can start writing posts. Here are some tips to boost the quality of your content from day one:
- Know your audience. Ensure you know what kind of content your audience is looking for and use language they’ll understand. Don’t use confusing jargon.
- Access case files. Use databases like Uncovered and The True Crime Database to elevate your research.
- Become an investigator. Research true crime cases and murders to develop unique theories to share with your audience.
- Stay compliant. Ensure you have permission to use images from cold case files or statements from witnesses and law enforcement professionals.
- Implement expertise. If you have experience with the criminal justice system, forensic science, or other relevant topics, implement that into your blog post.
- Join forums. Join forums and subreddits to get insights into the unsolved mysteries and crimes people are already talking about.
- Expand your education. Read case studies, listen to true crime podcasts, and watch true crime documentaries to present stories from multiple perspectives.
The golden rule? Any content you create should always be engaging and valuable. Don’t just regurgitate opinions from other sources. Bring your own thoughts and perspectives into your posts.
9 Promote Your True Crime Blog
Generating organic search traffic is the best way to get people to your blog, but the buildup can be slow.
You can get some early visitors to your blog through the following promotional tactics:
- Collaborate with influencers. Work with other true crime bloggers and influencers in your space. They can share your work with their audience, and you can boost your profile by associating with more established brands.
- Join true crime communities. Join social media groups, subreddits, and forums dedicated to true crime. Participate in discussions and share links to your posts when you can add value.
- Start a podcast. True crime podcasts are wildly popular. Starting one can elevate your brand’s reach and build a new revenue stream.
However you promote your blog, make sure your efforts are genuine. Nobody likes a blogger who spams their content everywhere without offering real value.
10 Monetize Your True Crime Blog
While starting a true crime blog might be a passion project for most, it can also be a lucrative way to earn extra income. Here are a few of the best monetization strategies:
Affiliate Marketing
Recommend true crime books and audiobooks, apparel, and other relevant products. Get paid a commission if one of your referrals makes a purchase.
Why It’s Great: You can earn money from products without dealing with product creation and distribution hassles.
Get Started: Read our guide on how to start affiliate marketing. An easy way to start is by joining the Amazon affiliate program and recommending books on Amazon and audiobooks on Audible.
Display Ads
Show ads on your website and earn money whenever someone views or clicks one.
Why It’s Great: You can earn money as long as you generate traffic.
Get Started: Join Ezoic to get ads on your site when starting. Switch to a higher-paying network like Mediavine or Raptive when you get more traffic.
Selling Your Own Products
Create and sell physical or digital products like books, courses, and true crime merchandise.
Why It’s Great: Selling your own products usually earns more than other monetization methods.
Get Started: Start by affiliate marketing and making your own version of your best-performing recommendations. Shopify and WooCommerce are good options for hosting physical products, while Teachable is a solid choice for courses.
Summing Up
This guide has covered the essential steps to starting a true crime blog…
…but there’s so much more you need to know to take your blog to the next level.
To help cover that gap, we’ve created a free training that shares our top strategies for building a profitable blog in [current_year].
These 7 blogging secrets are borne of 10+ years in the blogging game – and we’re giving them away for free.
FAQs
True Crime blogs do make money. The average affiliate marketer in the entertainment industry earns about $4,416 per month. Plus, you can increase your income by selling ad space, or promoting and selling your own products, like eBooks and paid memberships.
As a blogger, you can get paid every time a customer purchases a product you recommend through an affiliate program or every time a customer interacts with a display ad. Other blog monetization options include selling your own products, offering consulting services, creating a course, and selling sponsored posts.
