Blogging for Beginners

Hey there! How are you all? One question I get asked the most is advice on starting and running a successful blog. I am no way a professional blogger but these are some tips and ideas which help me run my blogs. I think this guide will be useful for first time bloggers or even ones who are struggle to keep on top because of other commitments like school and a social life! Click the read more and  I will try to briefly outline how to start the blog and run it successfully below!

Starting a blog:

My first tip is find a topic you're interested in! This is pretty self explanatory but it really helps kick-start your blog. If you write about what you love and have a passion for you'll find it easier to think of post ideas, express your opinion and give advice. If you end up blogging about something you lack interest in you'll end up running out of content and things to write about. Your blog is your choice so pick a theme you enjoy!

Another thing to consider when you're starting up your blog is to consider which platform you'll use. In my personal opinion and experience either Tumblr or Blogger are the easiest platforms to work with. There are so many to choose from such as WordPress, Blogger (Blogspot), SquareSpace and Weebly - just to name a few. It is really about choosing which one is right for you and your posts. I suggest looking around each site to see which one you prefer. You can always move your blogs from one platform to another later on.

Finding a name for your blog is also super important. You want something which can suggest what you're blogging about and something timeless. Having a name which has nothing to do with your post type will confuse your readers, so it isn't the best choice. Choose a name which suits you, your post and maybe something which you can personalise. Figuring out the right name for your blog may take a months and a couple of changes but you should eventually find one which you can stick with!

A key element in blog starting and running is layout. Find a design/theme which is easy to navigate through and appealing! Aim to use a clean, simple and personalised layout. Picking and designing a layout you're happy with can be tricky, so I suggest looking at your favourite bloggers and incorporating what you like about theirs into something similar for yours. HTML coding can be tricky to work with and can be confusing, it took me a good year or so before I totally understood what I was changing and moving around! If you are having trouble, you can find tutorials on Youtube or purchase ready-made designs from places like Etsy (http://www.etsy.com/search/search?q=blogger%20layouts&order=most_relevant&view_type=gallery).

Running a blog:

When you have set up your blog and finalised your platform, name and layout you can start using more social media/networks. You want your readers to be able to connect with you how ever they please. I suggest having a look into creating a Tumblr, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and anything you believe will help connect you and your readers! Each one gives you a different way to share your posts and life with people which can be great for promoting your blog.

This can fit within both starting and running a blog but make friends! When you're starting out following, liking and commenting can help get you those initial followers and help build friendships with other. Even though readers and followers aren't everything, it is nice to have people looking forward to your updates and it helps motivate you to continue blogging!

Organisation of your posts is also key to running a successful blog. While you shouldn't place your blog over things like school, it is important to spend time working on it. For me, I tend to publish a post every few days to keep my blogspot active and interesting for my lovely readers! If I think of an interesting post or good topic to post about I will usually write it down or upload a draft post so I can go back and work on it. You have to try to be consistent with your posting, if you're going to post every 3 days or every week let your followers know, so they can check you blog and expect to have something new and exciting to read! If you're going away for a holiday or within wi-fi, tell your followers so they won't be disappointed when you've not posted. I also suggest having a few spare posts drafted or scheduled for days when you're unable to post.

Hopefully this lengthy post has helped answer your questions and while either inspire you to start and continue blogging!

Do you have your own blog? If so, when did you start your blog? Are you enjoying blogging? Let me know in a comment! xxx

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