This post has been in the writing for months. Every time a new blogger sends me a message asking me for blogging tips, I come to this post and add a few points and then deem myself not worthy of writing this post. Am I qualified to give advice to new bloggers? Hell no! My blog is still active because I love writing and using this blog as a safe space for my thoughts and feelings. I do not write to gain followers, views, or earn money from this blog but those are added side benefits to me. The biggest thing I have gained from this blog is my blogging family – my friends who keep me hooked to this platform. So while I’m not a traditional blogger, I do have some experience in the area. Instead of droning on, I’m going to jump into my advice for all new bloggers.
GENERAL ADVICE:
- Have a solid reason for starting your blog. A lot of people started blogging in the lockdown but as soon as things started opening up, they ended up giving up on blogging. So if you are planning on starting your blog or have newly started your blog make sure you know why you’re starting off on this journey.
- Don’t focus on stats. I used to be obsessed with my stats and get disheartened every time they fell or there was no growth. Growth will happen if you are consistent. Focus on your writing and interactions with other bloggers.
- Interact with other bloggers that is the only way to find your blogging family i.e. people who will enrich your blogging journey even more.
- Picking a niche can be a challenge. If you are confused, start off by writing a little about the different topics you are interested in, gauge what interests your audience and then pick a niche for your blog.
IMPROVING YOUR STATS:
Your views come primarily from WP Reader, search engine traffic, and other blogs.
- WordPress Reader – To improve your views from WP Reader, primarily, you need to focus on interacting with other bloggers. The more you interact with them on their posts, the more they will interact with your content. You can also read on ways to get your post to feature on the ‘discover’ section of the WordPress Reader. I’m not sure what exactly works to get your post on to the ‘discover’ seaction and I’ve had only one post feature on there but that led to a lot of views and likes.
- Search Engine Traffic – I’m sure most of you have heard of SEO i.e. search engine optimization. The first step to get any search engine traffic is to have your own domain. I started off with the free plan and without a personal domain and only recently moved to my own domain. I regret doing that because the free WP domain leads to lower search engine hits and also, when you move domains you lose your entire domain authority and need to build it from scratch. So how to work on your SEO? The simplest way is to get the Yoast plugin (if you are on a paid plan on WP) which will guide you on how to optimize your posts. Domain Authority (of your website) is another way to improve your search engine hits – it is basically a search engine ranking score. The better your domain authority, the higher your blog will feature when someone searches online for something related to your subject area. You can find a lot of information on SEO and DA – by doing a simple google search.
- Other blogs – Guest blogging is a great way to get new traffic to your blog as well as improve your blog’s domain authority. Reach out to bloggers with a higher DA and with more followers and ask them if you can guest post for their blog.
- Social Media – Social media is a great way to promote your blog and generate views for your posts. Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest can help get in a lot of views. You can also join blogger groups on Facebook to interact with other bloggers. (Follow my new Instagram blog page HERE)
EARNING MONEY:
Are there opportunities to earn as a blogger? Hell yeah.
- Affiliate programs: If you don’t have your own domain, affiliate programs are a sure shot way to earn through your blog. Most big brands give bloggers an affiliate code that you can use while promoting their products and in turn, earn a commission if someone shops using that code. The easiest affiliate program to sign up for is by Amazon. But Amazon has a lot of caveats for pay outs including not giving a commission on some products and not mentioning that before hand.
- Brands: Actively reach out to brands that you want to partner with and they might just work with you (sometimes in exchange for their products). Have a ready made portfolio to share with them to pique their interest. There are also websites that work as marketplaces for brands to post opportunities where you can find blogging opportunities.
- Books: A lot of authors send their books for free to book bloggers in exchange for a review of the book.
MISCELLANEOUS:
This is just general advice but please be nice to one another on here. We all move forward by pulling each other up, so let’s create a positive space for all of us to thrive in. A lot of us have gotten negative comments and hate on our posts, which dampens the whole experience. I was recently disappointed to see my friend Bosssybabe’s recent post about her bad experience. So if you are joining the blogging community please be nice to your fellow bloggers! ❤
Like I mentioned before, I am not an expert on blogging. I still learn something new every week that I am here. But this post is some general advice for all new bloggers. If you need specific advice, drop me a mail and I will definitely help out. If any new blogger wants to guest post, again drop me a mail and I’ll be more than glad to feature your post. Hope this helps!
To all the more experienced bloggers reading this, drop your best advice down in the comments to help out our new blogger friends in their journey.
PS: I recently got featured in a major Indian daily for my blog, sharing the link.
If you haven’t already, check out my other recent posts –
Happy Panda 
Great share!
Best wishes 🙂
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Thank you!
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These are some pretty great tips for newbies. Hope this would help them out in their blogging journey in some way.
Also, congratulations on your feature! That’s a pretty huge deal to be featured in such a popular newspaper brand 🥳
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Thank you so much!
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Really good advice!
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Good advice! Congratulations on getting featured! That’s awesome!!
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Thank you so much ❤️
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My pleasure! Hope your day is wonderful!!
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You are qualified – you have a blog! Also, great tips, especially just being nice to others. Oh, I laughed at picking a niche. You could say until now we don’t have one. Hahaha.
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Hi5, I don’t either! I literally felt so funny writing it but I do think having a niche helps with keeping your readers hooked. They know what kind of content to expect. No?
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Probably, yes. I guess ours is just about our life and what we do. Maybe. Hahaha.
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Thanks for the tag, Moksha. Yes, my first experience with a not-so-nice person on the blogosphere was eye-opening. I guess it made me realize that not everyone sees my perspective the way I do and some of them are willing to be rude about expressing their own opinions on my space…
Great tips for the new blogger! Some of the biggest ones I learned from others or along the way (other than engaging with and genuine interactions with other bloggers as you mentioned already) is consistency (this really helps me be more consistent and hold myself accountable, consider the length of your posts and use more space than you typically would for regular written piece and use graphics! Make it as catchy and interesting as possible. For me, knowing people’s attention space is about the length of a sneeze these days, I try to catch people’s attention with the first two lines of my post!
Thanks for sharing your tips, Moksha!! 🙂
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Oooh, love that tip – first few lines are so important! I also think length of a post plays a role in keeping the reader’s attention. Using clickbait-y titles also work to catch attention.
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Thanks Moksha, you’re the best! To new bloggers, I’ll say that my followers grew very noticeably once I started posting consistently (once a week or twice a week, without fail). Also, like Moksha said, you gotta use Yoast, it’s the best! And if you have the time, Pinterest drives a lot of traffic to my blog and it’s not social media, instead, it’s basically a search engine!
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I finally started my blog’s IG ac- here’s hoping I get to starting a Pinterest ac soon too.
Yes, consistency is key!
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Your advise is simple straightforward and entirely true!
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Thank you!!
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Lots of wisdom here, Moksha. Your blog is a great landing spot, filled with interesting content. My blog turns three tomorrow, and I’m planning a similar post about what I look for in a blog.
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Loved the post! And again, happy Blog-versery! 😊
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Whoa, getting featured in HT is HUGE! Congratulations! I loved this post so much!
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Thank you so much! 😊
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Just followed you on IG and you gave great advice. I have been blogging for a year and these tips are spot on.
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You have made blogging bearable with your kind words and encouragements. These are the great pointers you mentioned. I’m still finding my place around SEO. It’s a still a challlenge but I learn everyday. You have also taught me to engage with other bloggers. This is one of the most effective pointers one can do if they want to grow engagements
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Thanks for sharing! I’ve had my blog for about six months and I’m working on growing my following. I just followed you on IG! Having my own domain has definitely helped though!
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Your post was really helpful I’m very new to blogging and I am trying to understand how to do the guest blogging! And I have had a few people share my post I am trying to find out how I can do that as well! If you get the time maybe you can explain how i too can do these things
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This is such a great post. I wanted to blog so that I could have a place to put all of my thoughts and maybe even share them. I have trouble ever picking a niche, so I’ll have to work on that, but the advice is unbelievably helpful!
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Thank you so much. You really motivated me as a beginner 🥺❤️
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Glad it helped! Good luck with your blog. ❤️
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