Published: 3/30/2015
How I Started Blogging: Part One
I find writing this article necessary not only because I receive a slew of messages asking me about blogging and how it's done, but also because I want to help others who may decide to try their hand at it. First of all, let me say, that I never intended to become a blogger when I started about 2 and half years ago. In fact, I really didn't have a clue what blogging is or what it was all about. I started signing up for free samples and joining product testing sites back about 4 years ago and realized there was a lot of good stuff out there and a lot of ways to save money as well. So of course, I wanted to share this information with family and friends. The problem is, not all family and friends had an interest in it. A few were tired of seeing all my posts about freebies and deals on my personal Facebook page. So my first unknowing step into becoming a blogger was CREATING A FACEBOOK FAN PAGE. Initially, I created the page for a small group of family and friends that were interested. Please note: I do not know how other bloggers started out and I am not sure if my way is or was the best way to get started, but it is the only way that I know, basing it on my personal experience. If you find other ways to do it, I say more power to you. I went into this with no help, no knowledge, and no experience and had to figure out each and every excruciating step on my own.
What to blog about is up to each individual. I obviously blog about saving money, couponing, freebies, etc. because I feel it has very practical uses for everyday people. It has saved me a bunch of money. Not only has it saved me money with coupons and deals, but getting the free samples help you determine whether or not something is worth buying in the future, thus saving you even more. Other people blog about all different topics. Some blogs are strictly focused on product reviews, some are food and recipe blogs, some are mommy blogs, and the list goes on and on. The best thing to do is pick something you know a lot about and stick with it. When starting a Facebook Fan Page think of a creative name for it. In my case, I selected a name specifically focusing on what my page is about. Looking back, I wish I had selected a bit more generalized type of name like Rebecca's Corner or something of that nature. Having the word "freebies" in my name can scare some people off immediately. There are so many freebie sites that are scams, some people assume all freebie sites are bad. Knowing what I know now, having a blog on one topic makes it more appealing to companies who may ask you to do a PAID PRODUCT REVIEW AND BLOG POST. Yes! You can get paid to be a blogger. Blogging as some view it, is only a hobby. And for certain people, that is all it is, just a hobby. But for others including myself, it is a career, and a real job. But I will discuss more on that later. Back to selecting what type of blog interests you. Companies seem to like blogs that focus on a specialty subject. I did not do that with my blog. I have a mix of things on my blog, which sometimes can be a strike against me. Overall, it hasn't been a problem though.
So you have decided what to blog about, selected a good name, and created a cover photo(this takes some time to figure out, I suggest using a photo editor site like PicMonkey.) Once everything is in place, the next huge step is PROMOTING YOUR NEW PAGE. Depending on what you blog about, getting the fans/followers is one of the toughest parts of starting a blog in my opinion. If you plan on writing articles or lengthy posts, you will have to get an actual blog to do that on and then share the link to your Facebook fan page. There are several FREE blogger sites available, like Blogger. They are great for the early stages of blogging but I wouldn't recommend them for long term use. And until you see that you are getting interest with Facebook and blog posts, I would not invest your time and effort into other necessary steps to having a bigger blog.(like adding all the other social media outlets, getting a paid website, applying for blogger jobs, etc.) It took me months and months to get my fans built up to the mere 8,500 that I have currently. So keep in mind THIS IS HARD WORK and it doesn't happen overnight. If you are under the false misconception that blogging is easy, all I can say is that you will find out otherwise if you give it a try. If you are serious about blogging, be prepared to be very patient. Also realize that if you are blogging in hopes to make it a career, you have a long road ahead of you. Blogging is filled with ups and downs. There is a lot to it. And a high percentage of blogs simply don't make it. BUT I do not want that to be a discouragement. YOU CAN DO IT. But you must have time and determination. This article is meant to be a way to inform you on how to get started. I plan on continuing with more details in part two at some point soon. Again, I stress, this is based solely my experience. Others may have better, faster results. And also others may have had money to invest on their blog and on advertising it. I did not. I did this out of nothing and without spending anything until much later on in my blogging.
One last point for getting started. Gaining fans is so important. When you are first starting, I suggest commenting on other pages from your own page to draw attention to it. Also there are groups you can search for on Facebook that you can advertise your page to gain some new fans. And do use hashtags. Hashtags help connect you with pages that used that same hashtag. It is another good way to get fans. Get as many friends and family as you can on board with promoting your page as well. To anyone who gives blogging a try, I hope you have the best of luck. I wish someone had been there to guide me through it, making it much easier for me. I am hoping this article will help someone out who wants to pursue their own dream and their own blog.
See Article: How I Started Blogging Part Two
What to blog about is up to each individual. I obviously blog about saving money, couponing, freebies, etc. because I feel it has very practical uses for everyday people. It has saved me a bunch of money. Not only has it saved me money with coupons and deals, but getting the free samples help you determine whether or not something is worth buying in the future, thus saving you even more. Other people blog about all different topics. Some blogs are strictly focused on product reviews, some are food and recipe blogs, some are mommy blogs, and the list goes on and on. The best thing to do is pick something you know a lot about and stick with it. When starting a Facebook Fan Page think of a creative name for it. In my case, I selected a name specifically focusing on what my page is about. Looking back, I wish I had selected a bit more generalized type of name like Rebecca's Corner or something of that nature. Having the word "freebies" in my name can scare some people off immediately. There are so many freebie sites that are scams, some people assume all freebie sites are bad. Knowing what I know now, having a blog on one topic makes it more appealing to companies who may ask you to do a PAID PRODUCT REVIEW AND BLOG POST. Yes! You can get paid to be a blogger. Blogging as some view it, is only a hobby. And for certain people, that is all it is, just a hobby. But for others including myself, it is a career, and a real job. But I will discuss more on that later. Back to selecting what type of blog interests you. Companies seem to like blogs that focus on a specialty subject. I did not do that with my blog. I have a mix of things on my blog, which sometimes can be a strike against me. Overall, it hasn't been a problem though.
So you have decided what to blog about, selected a good name, and created a cover photo(this takes some time to figure out, I suggest using a photo editor site like PicMonkey.) Once everything is in place, the next huge step is PROMOTING YOUR NEW PAGE. Depending on what you blog about, getting the fans/followers is one of the toughest parts of starting a blog in my opinion. If you plan on writing articles or lengthy posts, you will have to get an actual blog to do that on and then share the link to your Facebook fan page. There are several FREE blogger sites available, like Blogger. They are great for the early stages of blogging but I wouldn't recommend them for long term use. And until you see that you are getting interest with Facebook and blog posts, I would not invest your time and effort into other necessary steps to having a bigger blog.(like adding all the other social media outlets, getting a paid website, applying for blogger jobs, etc.) It took me months and months to get my fans built up to the mere 8,500 that I have currently. So keep in mind THIS IS HARD WORK and it doesn't happen overnight. If you are under the false misconception that blogging is easy, all I can say is that you will find out otherwise if you give it a try. If you are serious about blogging, be prepared to be very patient. Also realize that if you are blogging in hopes to make it a career, you have a long road ahead of you. Blogging is filled with ups and downs. There is a lot to it. And a high percentage of blogs simply don't make it. BUT I do not want that to be a discouragement. YOU CAN DO IT. But you must have time and determination. This article is meant to be a way to inform you on how to get started. I plan on continuing with more details in part two at some point soon. Again, I stress, this is based solely my experience. Others may have better, faster results. And also others may have had money to invest on their blog and on advertising it. I did not. I did this out of nothing and without spending anything until much later on in my blogging.
One last point for getting started. Gaining fans is so important. When you are first starting, I suggest commenting on other pages from your own page to draw attention to it. Also there are groups you can search for on Facebook that you can advertise your page to gain some new fans. And do use hashtags. Hashtags help connect you with pages that used that same hashtag. It is another good way to get fans. Get as many friends and family as you can on board with promoting your page as well. To anyone who gives blogging a try, I hope you have the best of luck. I wish someone had been there to guide me through it, making it much easier for me. I am hoping this article will help someone out who wants to pursue their own dream and their own blog.
See Article: How I Started Blogging Part Two
