What You Need To Know As A New Blogger

Starting a blog can be overwhelming and sometimes confusing.  There is so much information out there and everyone has an opinion to give.  I’ve put together a list of 7 things to focus on when you start a blog that will help you with a base to get started.

There are 7 Things To Focus On when you start a blog.

• Schedule time to work on it
• Your blog is fluid, it changes and grows
• Create the content that people are looking for
• Pick a social media platform and focus on mastering it.
• Create a routine
• Collect emails
• Invest in yourself and your blog

Starting out, it can be confusing and overwhelming as you begin.  These tips will help you avoid some of the new blogger troubles!

[the_ad_placement id=”google-ad-1″]

Schedule Time To Work On Your Blog

Knowing these things as a new blogger will help make the process a lot easier.  This is not to say that it doesn’t work when you “just start writing” and see where it takes you.  Sometimes, that is the only way to get the ball rolling.  Once it’s going through you have to start to think long term.  The best way to make sure that you stay consistent and work on your blog is to schedule out the time.  Otherwise, it may be weeks (or months) before you think to sit down and work on it again. Life gets crazy- fast.

Don’t forget to check out these Habits of Successful Bloggers.

Your blog is fluid, it changes and grows

Initially, your blog may go in one direction, and as you write you find that the direction changes.  That’s ok!  As you grow, so does your blog.  You’ll find avenues of change and new things to explore.

Create The Content People Are Looking For.  What Do They Need?

It is important to create topics that people are looking for.   You want your content to be helpful and something that people are looking for.  The answer to the problem they are trying to solve in essence. Whether it’s helping someone understand they aren’t alone in their struggles or explaining how to entertain your kids during summer break- think about what you’re trying to answer for people.

Social Media

Social media can get confusing fast.  It can also become difficult to keep up with.  Start off by picking one and master it.  Build your audience, figure out what type of post works best for you.  Once you’ve got that down, you can take on another and try and juggle the two.  Think about where your audience hangs out and what would be the best place for you to start.  It may be Facebook, then again it may be on Pinterest or Instagram- or somewhere else!

Create A Routine- And Stick To It

Creating a routine allows you to become consistent and train yourself to be able to better write.   A routine also helps readers know when to expect new content and can keep people coming back to your site.  Your routine doesn’t mean that you have to post 3 times a week, it may be once a week or 2 times a month.  The important part is the consistency that a routine will bring you.

Collect Emails

Collecting emails helps build an audience.  Building your mailing list helps keep you in contact with your audience.  Building trust with your audience helps you become an “authority” or someone that people go to for information. Your email list is here to help you…help them. You want to serve your audience with the best content to help them with their problems. Because remember, the people coming to your blog, typically have some problem.

Invest In You & In Your Blog

One of the most important but often overlooked parts of becoming a blogger is the need to invest in yourself and your blog.  It’s not different than a company investing in employee training, or for a person to invest in a maintenance plan for their car to keep it running efficiently.  You have to put something in to get something out.  Blogging is something that’s relatively cheap to start doing which is awesome.  To be able to have it become more than something for your entertainment you have to look at aspects such as marketing,  keeping your blog running efficiently and fast, improving your skills, to name a few.  Often we’ll think “I don’t have the money for that” but if we look at the few dollars we spend here and there and we adjust our budget some we can find a way to make it work.  I’m not saying to throw a couple thousand (or even a couple hundred) into your blog immediately.  You may invest $25 here or there for a premium plugin that will help with leads or an online class that will help sharpen your skills- just be open to investing in you and your blog.

Moving Forward

There you have it!  The 7 Things You Need To Know As A New Blogger.  Now start working on getting your plan together and move forward.  It can be a little scary and overwhelming at first- but knowing what you need to do can help you steady yourself.  You’ve got this.

Are there any tips that you would add to the list? Something you wish you had known when you first started?

[the_ad id=”361″]