Last June, I finally told my friends and family about my blog. It still feels weird when I talk to a new person about it, mainly because I was so private about it for so long.
Many of my friends (and friends of friends) ask me a blogging question whenever they can, which is kind of funny.
I never thought that someone would come to me for blogging advice. I even have friends asking me to sit down with them for a day and show them how to start a blog and go through everything with them.
One of my good friends even told me the other day that she had a super nerdy thing to tell me – she said my blog opened her eyes up to a whole new world.
Like with my story, I never thought about blogging before I actually started. I knew nothing about it and I didn’t know anyone who blogged. Now that I’m blogging, I’m getting a lot of the people around me interested in it as well.
Since everyone is always asking me for blogging advice, I have decided to make a blog post about this. Starting a brand new blog can be a little scary and overwhelming, but hopefully with my tips below you can start a successful website.
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1. Start on WordPress.
I made a very detailed post about this last year. Whatever you do, try to skip Blogger and start right away on WordPress. With Blogger, yes, it is FREE to start your blog, but I don’t think it’s worth it.
Also, I created a guide on starting your WordPress blog on BlueHost. The steps are very easy, and you can do it all on your own.
It may be worth it to have a free blog if you’re not even sure if you want to blog. This way you don’t have to put any money into it until you are sure. BUT, in almost all other cases I think you should start immediately on WordPress. It doesn’t cost much to start a blog from scratch.
I made the mistake of staying on Blogger for far too long… It’s one of my biggest blogging regrets!
Related: How To Start A Blog
2. Find a niche.
This is not exactly a need, but finding a niche to blog about can be a great thing. There are so many topics out there that are waiting for you to blog about.
Some ideas include:
- Personal finance. Making Sense of Cents is primarily a personal finance website, but I also blog about my trips and life as well.
- Travel. Travel blogs are one of my favorite niches to read. I can never get enough.
- Lifestyle.
- Parenting.
- Food.
- Fashion.
If you have a favorite blog, share the link below. I always love finding new websites!
3. Have personality.
If you sound like a robot in all of your posts, I think it would be very hard for anyone to enjoy reading your blog. You should inject as much personality as you can into your posts.
My favorite blogs are ones where the authors have awesome personalities that I can relate to. They can turn a boring subject into something that I actually want to read. I also like to read about how REAL people approach a problem.
If I wanted to read a textbook then I would be doing that 🙂
4. Produce high-quality content.
If you are going to blog, always make sure to produce high quality content. If you are pumping out content that is boring and adds no value to the blogging world, then you are just wasting your time.
ProBlogger has a bunch of great articles that show you how to produce high-quality content. I recommend that you head over there and read How To Write Great Blog Content.
5. Get on social media.
If you want to be a blogger, I think it’s absolutely necessary to have a Twitter and Facebook account. Even if you don’t understand it, start an account and just go with it.
Whenever I tell a new blogger this tip, they almost ALWAYS tell me that they don’t understand social media so they are not interested in starting an account. However, once you get started you will get hooked, and it is so helpful.
Social media is a great way to network with your readers and other bloggers in the community.
6. Don’t get caught up with your stats.
When you are blogging, it is very easy to check your blog’s statistics all the time. I can’t blame you for doing that. You are probably curious as to whether or not someone is actually reading your blog, and numbers may help you determine if you are doing something right or wrong.
It is important to not get carried away with it though. If you find yourself checking your stats every 5 minutes, then you are probably checking it too much! Restrict yourself to only checking it every so often such as once a day or once a week.
7. Make sure all of your links work.
One thing that really bothers me with a blog is when there are links that don’t lead anywhere. Always make sure that links in your sidebar go to the correct places.
An example would be if you have social media icons on your sidebar but they don’t go anywhere. WHY IS THAT?! Am I the only person that this annoys?
8. Don’t use CAPTCHA.
This is just annoying. Does anyone actually like CAPTCHA? There are so many great plugins that help with spam. They also don’t require your readers to fill out an annoying quiz in order to leave a comment.
9. Don’t copy others.
This should be a given. You should be providing fresh content each time you hit publish.
Even if it’s a topic that has been covered before, you still should be putting your own spin on it and not copying someone else’s entire post.
What blogging tips do you have for a new blogger? What blogging mistakes have you made? Share your story below!
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Oh, I hate CAPTCHA!!! I think being realistic about how much time a blog takes was really hard for me to learn. I just thought, “oh cool, I’ll write something!”. But with tags, seo, images, spelling, grammar, research, metadata, commenting, sharing, etc it’s a lot of work! It’s more than just hitting the publish button! These are great tips though. It’s weird, I never really thought about blogging much and I really have entered a new world!
Yes, blogging takes so much more time than people actually think. So many times have people told me that it only takes 5 minutes to publish a post. I always have to laugh at that!
I started with Blogger but then I quickly moved to Wordpress… More convenient! For me it’s hard not to check my stats every day still… I’m slowly moving away from it, but sometimes I’m just curious and can’t help it! And it’s hard not to compare my blog with others’!
Glad to switched to WP! So much better.
Being 9 months into my blogging journey, I would say that patience is key. No-one (or very few people) get instant success with blogging. Build a network, engage with others and write killer content. The easy recipe for success (I hope)!! 🙂
Yes, patience is very important. I have received emails from bloggers who are one month into blogging and asking why they don’t have 1,000 followers yet. Just crazy!
Hi Michelle,
While all important, I think 3 is very important and something that a lot of people tend to overlook.
I’ve read a lot of blogs and while some are very in depth, informative and a good resource, the ones I find myself going back to again and again are the ones with personality.
It also promotes user engagement which makes a blog better overall, too.
Paul.
Yes, the ones with personality are the ones that I always go back to.
Great list of tips. I would also say, engage with other bloggers (oh hey Michelle!). Read other blogs and comment or even reach out via email!
Yes, reach out to other bloggers. I love Gchatting with others!
Nice tips! I used to blog on Blogger, but Wordpress is far superior. It’s been a learning curve, though. I’m still figuring out the basics! I would say don’t spend too much time trying to make your blog look perfect right away. It can be frustrating, and there’s so many options out there for themes and such. Start writing and connecting with others, then worry about the superficial stuff a little later.
Yes, WP is 1,000 times better.
Great tips! I’d also add blog about topics you’re passionate about. It’s helps to alleviate blogger burn-out!
Yes, blogging about topics you actually enjoy is important!
Yes, great tips! Thank you for sharing.
I think my biggest challenge is that I don’t have a niche. My Friday Confessions are popular, but I tend to write about life in general. A little this, a little that. I just don’t know where to pin down.
I don’t think there is anything wrong with that. I like your blog because of that!
I hate Captcha!
Not getting caught up in your stats is soooooo hard! I am way better now than I was at the beginning.
Yes, it is hard. I still check mine all the time just because I’m curious!
New bloggers might consider signing up for the Bloggers Helping Bloggers program! I may have been blogging for a year but there was still so much that was uncertain to me. BHB has been a great help!
Yes, that is a great tip!
Good tips, Michelle. My tip, build relationships. If you’re new at blogging I think it’s important to follow-up with those who took the time to comment. I’ve seen new bloggers come into the scene who just want you to “retweet” or “come visit my blog” but they don’t want to take the time to build that relationship.
Yes, building a relationship is very important! Thanks Raquel!
One tip I have is that you should realize that if you actually want to make money blogging it’s going to take a ton of time and sacrifice. If you don’t want to make money it’s much more casual and (possibly?) more fun. I would also say don’t feel like you have to stick with it. Blogging isn’t for everyone.
I agree! Blogging is definitely not for everyone. So many people quit after 6 months, and that is for a reason.
OMG – I have STATS? I am very new to blogging and there are so many areas of WP I have yet to explore.
Haha yes you do! Take a look at Google Analytics.
yes yes yes! i think that before anyone opens a blog this should be a mandatory list to read. not to say that there’s a right or wrong way to blog but so many of these things i did waaay too late and it would have been so much better if i knew this even before i started writing!
Thank you Chelsea!