This post may contain affiliate links. Click here for my affiliate disclosure. If you purchase items through my affiliate links, I receive a small commission but your price doesn't change.
To all those of you who follow my blog for the recipes…well, today’s your day off. To those of you who are interested in blogging, whether because you have a blog, want to start a blog, or are just curious about how it works…today’s your lucky day! I’m starting a blogging success series covering different aspects of blogging, and you’ll be able to find all the updates to this series on this page (which can be accessed through my blogging resources page).
To read about how I started blogging, check out this post.
So, what is “Briana’s Number One Key to Blogging”? Well, I actually have two, the first being rather obvious.
START
Don’t be afraid to start. Just dive in. It’ll be a huge learning curve at first, but there are so many tutorials out there these days that you’ll be able to figure it out and it’ll be old hat to you in no time. Google is your friend.
So once you’ve started and you’re ready to actually start blogging, what is your number one key to success?
CONSISTENCY
There are blogs out there (like Pinch of Yum – hey Bjork and Lindsey!) that are generating sizable incomes for their owners. How did that happen? Well, it didn’t happen overnight, that’s for sure. And most people don’t even get “big breaks” that suddenly catapult them into stardom. No, the key to their success is their consistency. Traffic and SEO aren’t built in a day. Don’t get discouraged when your blog doesn’t go viral within the first year or two. Don’t be discouraged when your pageviews vary from month to month. Keep plugging away, keep making improvements, and most importantly: keep posting and sharing. Consistency is the biggest key to success.
I realize that you might have an extremely busy schedule. I do too. I’m currently working a 45-50 hour/week day job plus blogging in the evenings. Thankfully this is just for the summer, and I had stocked up enough recipes ahead of time that I don’t actually have to do any cooking/baking for the blog while I’m gone for the summer. I do have a lot of correspondence, photo editing, post writing/editing/posting, and networking to do, though. You have to find out what you are capable of, set a schedule, and stick to that schedule. Do you have to always post on certain days? Certainly not. It can definitely be helpful, both for you and your readers, but it’s not absolutely necessary. I’m currently posting recipes on Tuesdays and Fridays, a spiritual post of some sort on Saturdays, and maybe an extra miscellaneous post or two during the week if I feel led, but if I need to bend that schedule, I will. I definitely advocate setting a goal of posting a certain number of times per week to give yourself something to work toward. We’re all familiar with that blogger we follow and enjoy reading who posts very sporadically and haphazardly. It doesn’t leave you with a very professional taste in your mouth, and you’re not that likely to check out her blog if there’s no expectation to find something new. Even if you can only post once a week (or once every two weeks, or what have you), try to consistently post once a week. This will help you stay in the swing of things as well as give your readers something to anticipate.
While you’re posting consistently, don’t just wait patiently for more traffic. That’s like sitting around waiting for Prince Charming. Make sure you are actively improving the quality of your posts and overall blog appearance. Need tips on how to do that? Well, that’s what this blogging success series is for. The consistency is up to you. You take care of that, and maybe I can help you improve the overall quality of your consistency.
Cheryl Smith says
Very interesting post, Briana. I guess I am one of those haphazard, sporadic ones! LOL! I don’t have a set schedule, due to not ever wanting to come under bondage to my blog. It is a long story, but my husband often cautions me not to let it become something that will become a drudgery to me or bind me. I just write as God lays something on my heart…and if He doesn’t lay it there, it just doesn’t get written. I’m not too concerned about SEO and traffic…it is just very liberating to not care so much about the numbers and just write. I think I probably break or go against every blogging “rule” in the book, and I definitely march to a different drumbeat, but I guess we are all in different seasons of life, and we all have unique motivations for keeping our blogs going. I think we just have to follow the Lord and what He leads us to do on a personal basis. We all have different missions, and God is faithful to show each of us what He is requiring of us! Have a blessed day, Briana! 🙂
Briana Thomas says
That is definitely true, Cheryl – it’s different for everyone. I’m glad you’ve found what works for you, and I always love reading your posts. 🙂 You put lots of thought and love into them, and that is obvious.
Sophia @ Pray. Work. Eat. says
Thanks Briana! 🙂 I needed this! I’ve been struggling with consistency the last couple of months.