5 Things You’re Doing Wrong As a Blogger

I have been blogging for almost 3 years now, and I’ve learned a few tips and tricks along the way that should be helpful for those of you who want to start a blog or Instagram account.

I know things can feel pretty overwhelming at first (especially at the beginning when you feel like you are basically talking to yourself), so I am hoping that this post will help you focus in on the things that you SHOULD be doing to grow your community!

1. You aren’t focusing on serving your current community

You have to serve the community you have now before you try to worry about growing! If you can’t serve your current audience, you definitely won’t be able to serve a larger one. Remember to reply to all of your comments, reply to all of your messages, and consistently interact with your community. Find out the kind of content they want to see from you, and make that! Check in often, and keep your community involved in your life (however much you want to share of course). And lastly, if you don’t have an email list, you need to create one ASAP!

2. You aren’t consistent with your content

When I started posting consistently, that is when I started to see a noticeable difference in my readership, my engagement, and my growth. If you have a blog, you should be posting AT LEAST once a week. On Instagram, you should be posting every day. I know that sounds like a lot, but I promise you can do it. The key to being consistent is planning and batching content (i.e. taking a few hours a week to decide what and when you’re going to post). This was a GAME-CHANGER for me. It has saved me so much time, and now I don’t have to stress or waste time trying to figure out what I am going to post in real time. At the end of the day, if you are trying to turn your blog into a business, you can’t expect someone else (a brand, a customer, etc.) to pay you for something you’re not already doing! If you can’t create good content for free, you definitely won’t be able to create good content for a check.

3. You are overthinking things and trying to be perfect

Nothing is ever going to feel perfect (and your audience doesn’t want perfect, they want authentic, they want real). Plus, YOU are what makes your brand unique. The key is to just START! You will learn along the way, and improve with time, trust me. Try not to get in your head and overthink everything. You have to remember that you are putting way more thought into your content than anyone else is. Of course you still need to provide value, but don’t strive for perfection, strive for your best in whatever season you’re in. To connect to the previous point, consistency > perfection. If you wait until you’re “ready”, you’ll never start.

4. You are expecting a “pretty” theme or preset to get you readers

Yes, the look and feel of your brand is important, but your actual content is more important. Focus on that first, and worry about the aesthetics later. You don’t need to spend $300 on a blog theme or $100 an Instagram preset to build an audience. Find something affordable that works for you personally, and go with it. I would much rather follow someone with substance, rather than someone that is just a pretty face.

5. You aren’t being intentional

Like I said above, you need to take the time to PLAN OUT your content. I hate to break it to you, but no one is growing or becoming successful by posting on the fly (yes you can do this sometimes, but you still need to have a plan). I take a few hours a week to plan out what I’m going to post on Instagram (including captions, the images, the hashtags, etc.), and what I am going to post on my blog (including actually writing the post). I would suggest keeping a running list of potential blog/Instagram post topics so that you always have ideas the choose from. Whenever you get an idea, WRITE IT DOWN for later!

I have really enjoyed sharing my tips and experience with blogging, so I am glad that y’all are enjoying this kind of content! Feel free to leave any questions or comments you have below!