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Beginner blogging is not easy.
We just finished our 3rd month of blogging. Each month I post what I have learned in the blogging world – websites that help, terms that are important and how we implented a plan to grow our numbers
It truly is slow going.
Not only am I spending any spare time on the blog, I am a mom, piano teacher, performance adjudicator, performance accompanist, and woodworker that is starting a new home decor business.
All of these are going on simultaneously.
There are not enough hours in the day.
My days are now seriously broken down into hours and minutes. How long will I practice my music? How many hours to spend listening to other performances? Is the weather good enough to spray paint outside? How many decor orders did we get this week? When am I going to write this week’s blog post – and promote it – and do all the blog things? What the hell am I making for dinner tonight? Why are they always hungry?!?!
So, to say that I am overwhelmed is an understatement. My level of exhaustion is mostly mental but it affects my whole body.
I wouldn’t give it up for the world.
I am learning. I am providing. I am not playing with a full deck. And that’s okay
So now, as a beginner blogger, I really have to stay focused on the end game.
If you are following anyone that tells you that you can make $10K in your first month of blogging, unfollow them immediately. You want 10K? You work your ass off for it and then you continue to work so you can maintain it.
I have made a total of $10
no K
just $10.00
And that’s okay. Because people saw my blog and happened to click on a few things. So cool.
In 3 months time, I think that’s pretty fantastic. It can only go up from here if I keep working.
Another fabulous month of learning. I actually haven’t written all that much the past few weeks because I have decided to focus on redesigning my blog a little and learning more and more about Pinterest.
I had a vision when I started the blog last year. In January, I revamped and restarted.
The groups that I have found and the bloggers that I have “met” have helped me refocus more and more. Niching down. Reorganizing what I thought was already organized. Realizing my potential.
It’s awesome. And overwhelming. Have I mentioned that I am overwhelmed?
The one thing that I have to keep reminding myself is that I am in competition with no one but myself.
Every blogger has their own story.
Every blogger started on different days in different years under different circumstances.
I AM DOING THE BEST THAT I CAN WITH THE TIME THAT I HAVE
I will get to my destination, I just have to make a few pit stops along the way.
When I am reminded of that, my mind calms only a little. I am excited about the possibilities that come with the blog and our business.
Excitement is way more fun than obsessive worry.
Alright, so now on to the important stuff. What I have learned this month as a beginner blogger
Resource page. This is new to my webpage.
With these posts that I continue to write, whether it’s about blogging, cooking, gift giving or product reviews, having a landing page of the products and services that I know and trust is important to have.
While I do add pingbacks in my posts to other posts (another important part of any article that you write) having a page where all the referrals are listed is important and looks more professional.
Niching down – still an issue but getting better
Considering I wrote a post 9 months ago about not needing no stinking niche, I feel like I can see now where all the advice is coming from.
As much as I enjoy cooking, writing about it is not as fun as I thought it would be. So I removed the Favorite Recipes part of my home menu and replaced it with the Resources page.
The occasional AH-MAZING recipe that I do share, will be a blog post only and that’s okay. I’ll share on the social media outlets and let it gain speed on it’s own.
As part of niching down, I have learned about Searching Trends.
Pinterest and Google both are the best resources for this. When you are struggling to see how your niche is relevant, do a Google or Pinterest search to see how you can find the right SEO for your article and make it work for what is searched for most.
Cate Rosales (sweetandsimplelife.com) and Sasha Lassey (Everydayshessparkling.com) are my blogging super heroes.
They have come together to start a new website and offer a free Masterclass in building your blog business, bring organic traffic and monetize it successfully.
I joined at the launch last month and have already learned so much MORE than I had already by doing my own research.
There is a private Facebook group for members. Cate and Sasha make themselves available to answer questions.
There are live Q&A sessions. It’s been a tremendous help thusfar since joining.
Take a look at their website and watch the free Masterclass. You’ll be happy you did.
Email Lists
The more and more I learn, having that email list is key. I believe the phrase is, “The Money Is In The List”
At this time, I don’t have a freebie to give away but I have decided to take a different route. Fortunately, I have a few friends that signed up so I can BETA test my ideas on them.
I like to get their questions and feedback if something doesn’t look or sound right.
It also allows them to see that I have been ridiculously busy and so that’s why I have missed a few happy hours – well, with them – not at home LOL!
Yeah yeah. I know.
But, if you delve deeper, there’s so much to learn!
I had no idea about making Pinterest Board Covers. I honestly never noticed before.
Then I started looking at pinners that have HUGE followings and saw that their pages had board covers. Everything is neat and organized, alphabetized and clean.
It looks so professional. So, I work on it a little bit each day.
I go to Canva and create a custom design.
Make it a square – 800 x 800
I made my first one using a background that I loved and then kept the same font for all.
As I finished each one, I was able to share it directly to Pinterest, to the Board that I wanted it in and then used my Pinterest home page as my URL.
Some people like to put their blog URL but I think the redirect to my main Pinterest page is where it’s at. Then the pinner has the option to follow me or not.
This is actually going to be a full tutorial in my next post.
For the sake of getting the learning curve of ALL THE THINGS out there, we’ll circle back.
Honestly, I have to take a step back and really focus. I know that I have ADHD and am scattered quite often.
List making helps. One day, one thing. I find ways to read or listen to videos during down time (which happens OCCASSIONALLY)
Patience truly does help. Referring back to myself a few paragraphs up, I am not in a race with anyone but myself. That’s not permission to lollygag or anything, but trying to do all the things all the time doesn’t help anyone or this blog.
Some days are definitely more productive than others and that’s OK! Rewrite the list, get some sleep, start fresh the next day.
March by the numbers
- Pinterest Feb = 1.9K followers March = 2.1K (YAY!)
- Facebook Feb = 123 followers March = 127 (meh)
- Instagram Feb = 167 followers March = 197 (okay)
So, do you have any advice for this beginner blogger? Are you a beginner blogger yourself? Share in the comments below! I love to give backlinks!!!
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