Are you a brand new blogger?! I started my blog three years ago and was able to quit my job after 2 1/2 years of blogging part-time. My results are average; you could very well be making thousands per month after one year, or it could take you five years to see results. Keep at it. Hard work pays off and results will come. For those just getting started, here are my best tips for brand new bloggers.
Tips for Brand New Bloggers
Know that it’s going to take a while to get up and running
Blogging does NOT require technical skills as far as coding goes, but there IS a learning curve associated with getting your blog up and running and understanding WordPress.
If you haven’t started a blog yet, I recommend Bluehost. They are affordable, offer 24/7 customer support, and have a one-step installation process for WordPress.
Here is my tutorial on how to start a profitable blog >>
With Bluehost, you get a free domain name and pay just $2.95 per month if you sign up through my link!! This discount is special for my readers only!
If you do purchase your blog using my link, send me an email and I’ll send you my book – The Beginner’s Guide to Blogging – for free. My book will help you get your blog set up, give you post ideas, show you how to make money, and more!
Have a blog name idea?! See if it’s available below:
Don’t worry about making every post perfect
When you’re first starting out, there is seriously so much to learn and it can be overwhelming. If you try right off the bat to make your posts and your blog look perfect, you will fail. Instead, just have fun and enjoy the ride. One thing for me that’s improved significantly is my images. If you go through some of my older posts, you will probably laugh at my images. I had no idea what I was doing and remember being so excited when I figured out how to add text on top of an image in PicMonkey. Now, my images are MUCH better, but even now they are still a work in progress! I’ve never stressed about those little things and they have just naturally gotten better over time.
If you want to improve your images and grow your blog, I highly recommend Pinterest Presence! This course is incredible and is perfect for both beginning bloggers and advanced bloggers who want more traffic!
One day, things will “click”
Blogging takes tiimmmeeee. I am constantly stressing that to new bloggers. But, one day (most likely after a year or two!), things will “click” and you’ll all of a sudden know what you’re readers want, you’ll know how to make money, you’ll know how to make that money consistent, and more! This is when it really gets fun! But, you have to put in all that work beforehand to get to that point.
Still haven’t started that blog yet?! Do so here!
Use Tailwind!
This was a game-changer for me. Tailwind is a scheduling tool for Pinterest. Instead of having to manually pin your pins, Tailwind does it for you! I spend about 15 minutes a week scheduling out my pins for the following week. I currently pin 100 times per day! There is just no way I could do all that manually.
And, in order to pin so much, you have to join a bunch of group boards. Sign up below for 25 group boards that you can join right now and start pinning to!
Start an email list
I didn’t start focusing on my email list until I had been blogging about two years. That was a HUGE mistake!! I recommend all new bloggers get their email lists up and running as soon as possible. MailerLite is awesome – it allows you to create sign-up forms really easily and it’s FREE for up to 1,000 subscribers!
Don’t stress about actually emailing your list right now. Just get subscribers and you can figure out what to email them once you’ve been blogging a bit longer and have a better understanding of what your readers want!
Save up and invest in courses
Now is such a good time to start a blog and one of the main reasons is because there are so many courses and eBooks available to help you. You do NOT have to figure out this blogging thing all by yourself.
My favorite courses for those starting out are:
Blog by Number: Written by Suzi Whitford of Start a Mom Blog, Blog by Number will teach you EVERYTHING you need to know about starting and running a profitable blog! Suzi shows you how to get traffic, how to make money, how to grow, how to create images and so much more!
Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing: My favorite way to make money blogging is affiliate marketing. If I recommend a product and someone purchases it, I make a commission at no extra charge to the buyer. My favorite thing about this is the income is passive. Once my posts are updated with affiliate links, I make money! I’ve made $100 in my sleep and $300 on vacation! Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing will show you EXACTLY how you, too, can make money as an affiliate. The course author, Michelle Schroeder-Gardner, makes $50,000/month from affiliate sales! Her course is THE BEST and I highly recommend it for both new and intermediate bloggers!
Strategies Worth Sharing: This book is all about growing your Facebook page! Strategies Worth Sharing is just $20 and will help you grow your blog immensely with Facebook! Everyone is on Facebook nowadays, you and your blog should be, too!
Pinterest Presence: I mentioned Pinterest Presence above but it deserves to be mentioned again. As a new blogger, the BEST way to get traffic to your blog is Pinterest. Pinterest Presence will show you exactly what to do to make Pinterest work for you. I continually refer to this course each quarter because it’s constantly being updated and has been so helpful on my blogging journey.
What would you add? What is your BEST tip for brand new bloggers?!
Shirria @ GDTH says
atOMG thank you so much for this post. Lately you have been very helpful! I really appreciate and I’m so anxious to see how it goes reaching the $10k/month goal!
I’m also struggling with the my menu being on the left. Any helpful tips for that?
Sarah Brooks says
atHi Shirria!! I just checked your blog and you’re doing awesome!! I do see that the menu is on the left, and I’m guessing you want it on the top? Try going into Appearance, Menus, and make sure the “Primary Navigation Menu” is selected. On mine that was done automatically. If that doesn’t work, try contacting your theme provider!!
Cat@BudgetBlonde says
atGreat tips! I’m definitely still learning all the time and I’ve been blogging for a few years now. It can be difficult to have a plan or direction when you start out. I think it takes a little time to find your voice and style, plus your direction might change over time.
Sarah Brooks says
atI TOTALLY agree! My tone has changed and my direction has changed in just the one year I’ve been at this…and I expect it to change at least a few more times throughout this journey!
Christina @ Embracing Simple says
atThese tips are all spot-on Sarah! This one especially speaks to me –>”Don’t worry about making every post perfect”.
I so struggle with perfectionism and realizing that if I try to make every single sentence of paragraph perfect, I’m never going to be able to actually finish a whole post. Lol! I have gotten so much better since I first started blogging in January though.
Sarah Brooks says
atHaha that’s awesome! Yeah I usually cruise through the first time and then go back and edit and re-organize. It helps if I can get my thoughts on the post as quickly as possible!
Tina says
atWhat a great article! It is so overwhelming when you start a new blog because there is so much to learn at first on just setting everything up before you even add content. I just started my blog in September so this is a whole new world. I spend hours trying to figure out something as simple as putting ads on my page. Your article was reassuring that it gets easier. Thanks for that!
Sarah Brooks says
atOh my gosh that was so me!! Even still I will spend hours trying to figure something out LOL. I’m actually writing a book to help newbie bloggers! Set to be released on Jan 12!
Elan says
atThanks for the read. I am struggling trying to find out HOW to blog. There is so much trash out there with people trying to sell you this, that, and the other. It’s helpful to have genuine people like yourself who just want to see everyone succeed. I can honestly say I appreciate that and will drfinitely use your blogging strategies and suggestions to get started. I’ve decided that I will be a full time blogger and this is my new career goal. Whether I make 1 dime or none, I just want to express myself.
Sarah Brooks says
atThat’s fantastic!!! Because your heart is in it, I am sure you will do great! There are SO many ways you can monetize your blog, but for the first year I would focus on creating awesome content AND spending a good amount of time promoting that content. That’s how your blog will grow 🙂 If you’re having trouble setting up your blog and getting started, I’m launching a book on Tuesday called The Beginner’s Guide to Blogging. If you purchase your hosting/domain through my Bluehost link, you’ll get it for free! (And yes! That’s one of the ways I make a little money through blogging is by selling hostings!) Best of luck and let me know if you have questions! Can’t wait to see your blog!!
kate says
atLadies! I need HELP! I am scared sense-less. Im starting a blog from ‘DAY ZERO’ from being a stay at home mom. Its more for me, but who wouldnt want to make a little money with it too??
London Blogger says
atVery nice tips. I will try to follow them.
Andy fawcett says
atLovely post. I like that your recommendations go against the grain in with ‘niche’ comment. I’m a beginner blogger and agree that writing is the key, and learning to enjoy blogging and creating is much more important for me at this stage, and I don’t want to limit myself. I’ll find my niche or the niche will find me.
Catherine says
atThe perfection is what killed me when I first took the leap. I made the mistake of wanting to be like other blogs I saw, but it just wasn’t me! It’s definitely less stressful now that I have learned to just be myself. This post is great! Thanks for the information!
Johnkennedy Jatto says
atThis is an amazing tips for new bloggers which is taking them through every step of starting a new blog and becoming more independent for themselves. I’ve been a blogger for some years now and am really happy am in this line cause i love blogging and getting as much information and content i can that’s going to change and help someone out there. thanks for this article.
Alysha says
atI absolutely love this article it is so real, thank you for writing it!! I’m just starting out and this helps make me feel a bit more at ease!
Geneva says
atThank you for posting it I would love it if you could check out my blog and give me feedback!
Nikol says
atAmazing read, I’m really happy I found this post 🙂 It’s pretty helpful. Thank you!
Den says
atHi! Thank you for sharing! I’m a new blogger and your advice “take it day by day” opened up my eyes. I just realized that I am spending so much time with my blog and thinking of too many things. Thanks again!
Celia says
atThis is amazing. After a whole day of reading and listening to people explain the start up process, I nearly gave up hope. I’m back on full of enthusiasm, thanks to you. Excited to get started. Thank you!
Lexi says
atThanks for the tips! I just started my blog about 2 months ago and it’s been a slow process! Hoping to start implementing passive income links and such soon! Can’t wait to learn more and make this my fulltime job! Thanks again!!
Jenni says
atAwesome post! Thank you. I have been playing with my blog for a few years now and have decided to take it more seriously in the last 4 months, for the exact reason you have; to spend more time with my family. I think I have my voice down and now I am looking for ways to monetize.
Javier Gutierrez says
atThank you for the encouragement! A lot of useful knowledge here.