So you’ve decided to start a blog! This can be a really exciting time, but it can also be a really disillusioning time if you don’t really understand what you are getting yourself into. A lot of people think they will blog, and that thousands will amass to their written word within weeks of putting up their .com! There is a little bit more to blogging than that! I have been blogging for about five months now, and I wanted to share with you what tips I have learned along the way to get people to come to my blog, and things that I have learned to keep my sane in the process.
When I started my blog, it was merely to share deals and shopping tips with friends and family because I had family all across the country. I didn’t really go into blogging with any specific ideas or goals about what I wanted my blog to be, or what I specifically wanted to write about. That was my first big mistake. Before you start your blog, you should really do the prework! What do I mean by prework? Decide for yourself these few questions:
- Why do you want to blog? :Are you blogging so you can share your ideas with the masses? Do you really care if anyone ever really reads what you put out into cyberspace? Are you trying to earn income from blogging? Asking questions about your motivation to blog, will really help you later on to decide where you want to spend our time on your blog.
- How are you going to set your blog apart from the millions of other blogs out there?: If getting traffic is your goal, this one is really important. It’s not as important if you really don’t care who reads your blog. If you are a deal bloggers, there are thousands if not millions of deal bloggers out there. Why would someone come to your blog over others? What can you do to make it different? Maybe you have a different writing style? Maybe you talk about another topic of interest that others don’t? This will really help to create the brand for your blog, and make you stand out among the crowd.
After asking yourself these few questions, you really need to figure out how much time you have or want to spend blogging. This is where I think a lot of people have a misperception on how blogs work. When I started blogging, I put in well over full time hours getting my blog started up. As I said, at first it started as just a site to share deals with family members, but I quickly realized I loved blogging, and I did care people read what I wrote. Bottom line you will need to put in a lot of work to get your blog traffic. It’s up to you how you space out this time, and it’s really important to avoid burnout. When you first start blogging, here are some tips for traffic and to avoid getting burnt out and giving up!
Traffic
- Blog hops: Blog hops are where I started to get traffic when I first started. For those of you who have no clue what a blog hop is, it is a place where you list your site on someone else’s blog. Other blogs also join up, then they “hop” to you site to check it out and follow you. This is a great way to get to see what other bloggers do out there. It’s also a great way to network! Crunchy Frugalista offers a different blog hop everyday, so if you need a place to start this is a great place!
- Networking: Networking is huge in blogging. This does not mean email every blogger that you can get your grubby little hands on. It means building genuine and lasting relationships with other blogs. When you are blog hopping, it means taking the time to actually read a bloggers post and sincerely comment on their blog. Don’t just leave a comment “I am so and so from the hop, follow me back.” Networking does take some time, but it is time well spent! Through networking I have met several blog friends that have helped host events, have shared companies contacts, and even shared my page with their readers. If you spend your time doing anything at first, networking is a great place to spend your time!
- Facebook: Almost as soon as you get your blog up and running, I would recommend a Facebook page. Facebook is still my number one source of traffic. You can find various vehicles to post your blog posts to Facebook, and it will help send them over to your page! I personally recommend Hootsuite because it allows you schedule what you post on Facebook, so you can space them out. It even allows for a brief description of your post.
Ultimately traffic is the number one spot I would spend time when you first start blogging. Obviously you need to have content on your blog, but no matter how amazingly wonderful your content it is no one is going to come to read it if you don’t spend time getting your name out there.
I wanted to clarify about traffic though. It is really easy to burnout as a beginning blogger if you are spending too much time obsessing about your numbers. I would get so upset because I was spending hours and hours building up my blog, but felt like no one was reading anything. I would post a question on my Facebook page, and no one would respond. It was really driving me crazy! Here are some tips to avoid some of the mistakes I made as a newbie blogger. It will help you keep your hair and avoid burnout!
Burnout
- Get a good analytics established on your page to track traffic, but DON’T stare at it 10 times a day. Ok, so maybe you’re only staring at 9 times a day, but don’t focus on the negative when you first start. Installing a good traffic tracker on your page is really important to help you see where your traffic is coming from, but don’t get discouraged when you have spent 12 hours blogging and only had 4 visitors all day. We ALL had to start somewhere. Google Analytics is a great tool to help you see where your traffic is coming from, but don’t let it discourage you. At the beginning, I would check it maybe once or twice a week. Then I would only check it to see what is working and what isn’t, but don’t obsess about the fact you don’t have hundreds flocking to your blog.
- Don’t assume no is reading, because you are getting silence: When I first started blogging, it would frustrate me so much that I never had ANY comments on my posts. I would sometimes put a question up on my fan page on Facebook, and get crickets. I felt like NO ONE was reading my blog. That’s where Google Analytics is good. Even though I felt like no one out there even cared if I wrote another single word, I could see that people were indeed visiting my blog! Don’t take the silence personally. It takes time to get your readers engaged enough to comment. A lot of people enjoy lurking through your blog, and getting what they need even if they never, ever share a word with you. So just remember someone out there is glad that your blog is out there!
- Pull yourself away from the computer: I promise you if you step away from your blog for a few days it will NOT spontaneously combust! You don’t have to sit there for hours and hours waiting to see if someone is reading or commenting your blog. If you need to take a day or two off to spend with your family, your blog will still be there when you get back! I wouldn’t recommend leaving it for weeks at at time because your traffic will die down, but if you are a little spread thin TAKE A BREAK! It’s ok, your blog WILL be there when you get back!
- It’s ok to miss a deal: This one is for my fellow deal bloggers! I would spend hours upon hours on my blog, for fear of missing a hot deal. It is ok to miss out on a hot deal! Your readers will forgive you. I know my readers love getting hot deals on my blog, but they are not going to run for the hills if you miss a deal or two. The idea with a blog is to build loyal readers that truly enjoy how you write and what you share. So if people do run, it’s ok. For everyone that runs, you will find a loyal reader that loves you anyway.
- Find support in your fellow bloggers: Again, this doesn’t mean to send a whiny email to every blogger you can get your hands on, but hopefully through the networking you have done you have built at least a few good relationship that if you need some support and motivation you can ask for a shoulder to cry on. I would be pretty confident to say almost all bloggers have had times when they needed motivation or wondered why the even bothered blogging at all. When you need an extra kick in the pants, reach out to your blogging buddies. I am sure they have been there too!
Blogging can be an amazingly rewarding hobby or career if that’s the direction you want to take it! I love blogging because the sky is truly the limit. If you have something to share or say you can be a blogger! It’s just important to realize that blogging does take time and patience to become successful at it. Even the really big blogs didn’t get there overnight. So with these tips, a little time and patience you will get your blog where you want it to be!~
About Ashley Sears
These are great tips. Some days I think that I’m writing for a ghost, but then there are days I get so mich response. It’s good to connect with people all over.
This is such a great post! I have only been blogging for a short time too (about 6 months, I think? haha) and this has so much helpful info in it! I totally agree with not staring at your stats 10x a day. I have been trying to work on that one haha.
Great post about things to consider when starting out. Getting serious about blogging definitely takes more time & energy than I think most people expect. It really is like a second (or a first) job and it’s important we stay focused but still take time for ourselves.
Thanks so much for writing this! I have been blogging for about a month now and I so needed these tips!
you are right! It is a ton of work getting posts and products to your blogs. It is very time consuming and can be very depressing at the start when you feel like you are doing all the work for nothing. Stick with it though and it will pay off. Just make sure to have great content on your site. Thanks Lisa
This post was just what I needed today. I started my blog about three weeks ago. The information explains the steps I need to take in order to get it on track.
Thank you. Glo
Congrats on the new blog! So glad you enjoyed the article. It’s fun being a blogger but great to remember to take baby steps!
This is really great for a new blogger, wish you wrote this a year ago
Written very well!
As a part of networking, I’d like to mention how handy it can be to look at blog posts that are relevant to you/your blog and use them for inspiration for your own blog. Then it’s very easy to email the blog owner and say, “Hi! Your xy post inspired me to post about z. Thank you, and here’s a link to the post you inspired if you’d like to check it out.” It’s a way to greet a more experienced blogger that you admire AND work on your content at the same time.
Great post with alot of wonderful information! Sometimes you have to pull yourself away..I have to remind myself of that from time to time
Thank you so much for writing this post – its just what I’ve been needing to read. I’ve been “blogging” (if you want to call it that) for a few months now, but I struggle. My layout is not how I want it and … well the whole thing is just not how I want it. As I study your post, I hope to figure out just what it is that I need to do to get on track.
Thanks for writing this. It is good to remember that most people received the “silent treatment” on comments or it would be easy to give up. At first I thought, why do I keep writing this if no one is reading, then I saw my monthly statistics and was shocked! People were reading!
This is one blog post I hope that beginners and a little more experienced people read. It never hurts to refocus!
Thanks for the tips! I’m going to be starting a health and fitness blog.
Thanks for sharing this. I have been contemplating a blog, but we have a local blogger. She does a good job on deals at most of the major stores, but she misses out on some of the other stores. I thought about putting my focus there so as not to intrude. There is over 500,000 people to share in surrounding area. Is there always room to share without stepping on toes?
Oh, absolutely. I am a big believer that there is always room for one more. As long as you find your content on your own, I wouldn’t worry about “stepping on toes.” You do your thing, and if she feels threatened thats on her
Hello! I started a blog about a week ago. I am posting daily deals and coupons. My only problem/question I have is where and how do I get all of the deals andalso when/if visitors purchase a deal through my site is there a way to earn revenue/commision? I’m a stay at home mom and trying to find a way to “work from home” that will earn me a good dollar but still be fun and informational. Any help would be greatly appreciated. My site is http://www.dailystealsdailydeals.blogspot.com if anyone want to check it out and give me some pointers. Not trying to whine lol I just genuinley need some help
Thank you
Being a deal blogger there are several ways to monetize your blog. I am going to shoot you an email and give you a few sites I work with . Congrats on your blog. I warn you that it is really addicting. Mine is like my fourth child
Thank you for sharing this information. I am still pretty new to this and am looking for ways to increase my traffic as my numbers are so small. You’re blog is great and I look forward to continuing to look around it!
Congrats on your blog. Traffic comes after time, but spending time on it is well worth it.
Hello, thanks for the great post. I have been trying to deal blog for almost a year now, have to renew my domain soon! I do feel like I am blogging to myself sometimes. How do I get going more with out shoving it down peoples throats- my extended family seem to hate coupons and such.. I don’t feel like I have enough time to post everything and as soon as I get done it seems like there is 20 post exactly like it. I am scared to of copyright issues and am wondering how you feel when deal bloggers just post “revenue items”? Do you concider youself employed by your blog and have you legally made it a business? Thanks for you continued awesomeness! Jaime
Thanks for the information! I am seriously looking into starting a blog and have no idea where to go and what to do…lol.