After almost five years of blogging (I started way back in high school!), I’ve picked up a few tricks of the trade. While I still feel like I have a lot of work ahead of me, these tips have helped me get this far. Blogging is one of my favorite creative outlets, I love it! Here are five of my best blogging secrets. XO
HAVE A PLAN. The first few years of blogging, I never had a plan. Posts were written spur of the moment and published on the spot. Sometimes I wrote every day and other times weeks went by and my blog was silent. There was no consistency! And while I still love spontaneous posts, sitting down every single day to write a post is overwhelming! Now I have a calendar and schedule most of my posts at least a few days in advance, if not a week or two. I will still take some blogging breaks throughout the year because it’s so important to recharge and not get too burned out! But for the most part, I try to stay consistent with posting 4-6 times a week.
PICTURES ARE KEY. I rarely, if ever, read blogs that do not contain photos. Having at least one photo adds appeal to your post and makes your post more pinnable (meaning, more traffic!) The best images for Pinterest are vertical images, they stand out in the sea of pins. Another thing to remember, don’t post every photo you take. Narrow them down a bit! On any given idea or project, I will have 70-100 useable photos. That’s a lot! While I love having a lot of photos (I’m a very visual person), 100 is excessive! I always narrow them down to the best ones in the batch. Even if you don’t own a fancy camera, you can still have awesome images on your site. Find photography tips for bloggers here.
BE BRAVE. I’ve learned that the posts that are the hardest to publish and that make me feel vulnerable, are often times the best posts! For example, after having Ellie, I completed the Insanity program and lost all the baby weight. I was really, really nervous to share my experience and my before and after photos. Turns out, that post is my most popular post of all time! I still get hundreds and hundreds of hits on it every day.
THEY’RE JUST LIKE YOU. All those followers on bloglovin? The numbers on instagram? They are all people. They all have feelings, dreams, goals, and lives, just like you! Always be kind. The value of a person is not based on how many followers they have on twitter or the rank of their blog. Never hide behind your computer to write a mean post, a mean tweet, or a mean comment. Even if you think they will never read it, ever, ever, ever (!!!), they just might come across it. Kindness matters.
MAKE IT FUN. Blogging can quickly turn into a chore. Sometimes if I don’t get a post out “on time” or miss a day, I start to feel guilty! I’m learning to move past that and remember that blogging is my way to document this fun stage of life. It’s a way to document my little family and our day to day activities. I finally have a place to share the photos that I take, instead of having them stored away in a box or on my hard drive. And when it starts feeling like a chore, take break! You deserve it!
What secret blogging tips would you add to the list?
I love everything about this. Especially the one about treating others kindly. Sometimes I base my own value as a blogger on the number of followers I have and I let myself dream of the day when I have a thousand or two but you're right, my value does not come from how many followers I have. Thanks for sharing!
Love every one of these tips, but my favorite is the one about being kind. Far too many people these days hide behind their computer screen and dish out the rudest comments, judgements, and sarcasm. The world simply needs a lot more kindness and gentleness! Great tips!
Love all of these. I don't think I'm in a position to give tips but I just like people who keep it real and keep their blog authentic. Some of my favorite blogs are the ones that keep and gain their audience by posting engaging and interesting content and not through doing giveaways all the time to gain their followers (although there is no harm in an occasional one).
Love this! I love blogging for the creative outlet it gives me and for the relationships it helps me form. I'm not a big blogger by any means, but I do feel like I've made some fantastic friends from it! And seriously, who doesn't want to relate with people who are in similar spots in life? It does wonders for a girl!
Great tips! I'm working on getting on a better schedule with my posts, it can be a struggle at first.
Sunflowers & Love
These are awesome tips Lex! I love the reminder that even your numbers have real life people with feelings behind them. That's something all of us need to remember, myself included.
Also, I just wanted to let you know, I think you forgot to link your blogger photography tips post to this one. Just wanted you to know, because it's a fabulous post and I don't want anyone to miss out on it. 🙂
Great tips! I'm starting to take my blog more seriously and post on a schedule. It's exciting when you realize what you want to do with your blog. Thanks for the advice!
haha thank you for pointing that out! oops! there's another blogging tips. PROOF READ! ha 🙂
I agree with this.
The photos are key! I LOVE your photos and LOVE your bloggy and cute little family!
Great tips! I live the advice to never be mean. Also, I am a big fan of taking little breaks (or pacing yourself) so that you don't get burnt out.