Alt Summit was amazing. I can say with 100% honesty, it is so, SO worth the investment if you are interested in monetizing your blog or if you just want to be inspired to be a better blogger. Really – for the job opportunities alone. There was major networking happening all over.
Plus! It was SO fun to finally meet almost all of my blogging friends in real life. If you’re on the fence about going next January, shoot me an email and I’ll do my best to pressure you further!
Lots of you asked for a recap on my presentation. I know not all of you readers are bloggers, and as I learned from my survey, only 2% of you have blogs that make you money. So, I apologize if the following is not very interesting. Come back tomorrow for a great post about using sheets as curtains! You’re in for a treat.
I spoke about building a blogging community on a panel with Meg from A Practical Wedding, Danielle from The Jealous Curator and Sarah from Babble. It was such a fun group of ladies. We all have very different blog communities and goals, so it was cool to learn from each other and to be able to speak from unique vantage points.
Sarah, Meg, me, and Danielle
It would take forever to write out everything I talked about in my presentation, but here’s an outline (still very long) of what I discussed for building traffic or developing a deeper more meaningful community on your blog. Kindly note that I do not consider myself an expert on building a blogging community. I developed the following ideas from talking with other bloggers, reading your survey responses and also a bit from my own adventures in blogging, which started in late 2007.
1. Preliminary idea: Set goals and maintain the right prospective. What is the end goal for writing a blog? The most traffic possible? A book deal? New friendships? New clients? Build your blog and develop your posts with your end goal in mind. Reevaluate often. “Am I getting closer to or further away from my goal?”
2. Part 1: Capture new readers
a) Most of you found my blog through a blog roll! So great! Let’s all share the blog love and keep up blog rolls of our own. If you are intimidated by the sheer number of people who want to be on your blog roll, consider having two – a favorites and a rotating (monthly or quarterly) list of new to you blogs.
b) Make your content buzzworthy so that other bloggers will want to share. What do I mean by buzzworthy?
i) Truly original content (try to post something completely yours at least once a week). Or at least put a really unique spin on the same photos that get recycled on blogs.
ii) Think about common problems (something someone would google to find out) and find solutions to those problems through your blog. “How to paint vintage furniture” or “How to sew pinch pleat drapes” or “How to shop at a flea market” etc.
iii) Start a conversation that other bloggers will want to continue. The two examples I used were Lauren’s Design Price Points post and Chelsea’s idea to stop complaining.
c) Get posted on a bigger blog. It’s hard to get a more golden ticket than that. A HUGE stream of traffic is your big chance. Submit never-before-seen projects to Design*Sponge or Apartment Therapy and see what happens. If they don’t bite, choose a big blog with your same aesthetic. Chances are, their readers will love your blog, too. Some words of wisdom though, from a gal who gets dozens of emails about this very thing every day:
i) If you’re using comments/tweets to get a blogger’s attention, make sure you have an interesting and unique sign-in name. And make your comments funny and sweet. Just be thoughtful.
ii) Try to network offline. Go to blogger parties or conventions. Be friendly and pass out your business card!
iii) Speaking for myself, I would skip the urge to send an email to your favorite blogger just introducing yourself and your blog. Try to only email if you have something specific to share (like a post idea) or a question to ask. Use the blogger’s actual name, spelled correctly, and make the email as personal as possible. Don’t say:
“To whom it may concern,
Please post about my crocheted baby diaper covers available for sale in my etsy shop. I read your blog from start to finish so you owe me one. I can offer a give away for free shipping to one lucky shopper?
Let me know by noon. Thanks.”
Flattery (as long as it is sincere) gets you everywhere. I asked Joanna for a quote on this subject and she said the exact same thing! We also agreed that submissions should be more subtle. Don’t ask a blogger outright to post something.
Do say:
“Dear Jenny,
I love your blog. I open up LGN first thing in the morning every day. And I cried when I read the post about Evie’s birth! What a touching story.
I just wanted to share a project with you that I recently finished. I thought it would be right up your alley since I know how much you love ikat. Here’s a link to my Flickr stream.
Thanks for all the inspiration!
Love,
Kate.”
Nice, right? That would probably be my favorite email of the day! Remember that you catch more flies with honey…
d) Consider guest posting on a complimentary blog (like, maybe I would post a flower arranging tutorial on a wedding blog). You’re capturing like-minded readers.
e) Keep the new readers on your site for a long first stay. Try to link back to old posts often. Put up your most successful posts in your side bar. Add a Link Within widget to the bottom of your posts. Expose the new readers to as much of your blog that first visit as possible so they can get a real vibe for your voice and your style.
f) Other things to consider: Don’t get too personal, but also don’t be too private. Readers want to know about your life within the context of your blog, no more, no less. Also, post as consistently as possible. I try my best to post Monday through Friday, with posts going live at 5:30 am EST. Also, try hard to avoid spelling and grammatical errors. None of us are perfect, but a little effort goes a long way here.
3. Part 2: Make those readers want to come back!
a) Understand your readers:
i) Who are your readers? What kind of content do they especially love? Or hate? When do they read your blog (morning? night? at the office?)? How did they find your blog? How many posts do they want to read per day?
Do a survey to answer these questions! Thousands of you filled out my survey and it was SO helpful and informative! If you’re just wanting basics though, you can find out the demographics of your readership on Alexa. My readers, not surprisingly, are mostly women, between the ages of 28 and 34, with children and with college educations.
b) Read other design blogs with your aesthetic to make sure you’re not overlapping on post ideas. There are so so many design blogs these days, I’m finding it’s easy to post about the same things, even if you’re trying to be original.
c) My husband and I talk about the idea of Blogger Capital a lot. If you think about your blog posting schedule as a bank account, and your posts as deposits and withdrawals, try your hardest to keep a positive balance on the account. For example, a post with 100% original content would be a major deposit. A post about a new sponsor could be a pretty big withdrawal if it wasn’t presented right, with no new take away information for your readers.
4. Finally, remember that blogging can sometimes get a little old. Life gets in the way. Or you’re simply feeling uninspired. Things that help me more forward:
a) My mantra is ‘I can’t do it all, but I can do a lot.’ I know I say this all of the time, but it makes me feel better every time I get overwhelmed with commitments (which, sadly, is a lot of the time. Don’t judge.). And actually, I’m most productive on the days I remind myself of my motto!
b) Focus back on those goals we already talked about. Want to know one of my big goals? I would love to write a big ol’ FAT book about decorating a house, from start to finish, top to bottom. Scrapbook style.
c) Celebrate what you’ve built! Remember when your blog readership consisted of you, your husband and your mom and dad? I sure do. It’s amazing how technology is providing a way for us to communicate with so many people every single day.
d) Remember what inspired you originally. I love interiors!! I always will. I still get all giddy when I flip through a new Elle Decor or when I walk in to a thrift store I haven’t visited in a while. Get back to basics and post about that common passion you share with your readers.
This is great! Thanks for sharing your point of view, and some very thoughtful advice.
That is such an interesting question, Jennifer (Rambling Renovators). Hmm.
I don't think I really censor myself. I think it just goes with the territory that not everyone will relate with my tastes and my style. And I'm okay with that – I post my favorite things anyway. I think that's the whole idea of a blog. It's someone's personal take on interiors, or fashion or whatever.
Case in point: one survey respondent answered that they were going to be sick if I posted even one more time about floral fabric! I thought that was hilarious. Do I post that much about florals? I guess I do love them though!
All that said, I do feel the need to censor myself by not posting on unrelated topics, like religion or politics or even musings on silly parts about blogging and the design world. I want to keep it light here on LGN. I think sometimes bc of that people assume that I am overly positive, even naive about life. (see above frustrating comment) It's a tricky line to walk and I'm learning to grow a thick skin.
Sorry this is so long, but I think what I want to say is, give your readers what they want, but at the end of the day, be true to your own voice and opinions within the context of the topic of your blog. Hope that answers your question!
xx
Love this! Thanks for the mention. I have to say that the no complaining challenge had no strategy about it. That was an off the cuff remark I made for something I was trying to do for myself. I think everything on a person's blog has to be heartfelt and real.
I really need to pick up that challenge again. 2011 has so far been a real drag so I probably need to do it more than ever.
It was wonderful to meet you at Alt.
xo
Chelsea – thanks for stopping by! I didn't mean to imply that your post about not complaining was contrived! I hope my mentioning it here didn't convey that! My point was just that those types of ideas are the posts that generate buzz – the ideas that are exciting and can be applied to reader's/other bloggers' lives. I truly appreciate the clarification though. You are as genuine as they come! It was so lovely to meet you last week and I hope we can get together again soon!!
xx
Hi, Jenny! Thanks so much for posting this…I plan to read through it a few more times, since this is right up my alley. I am a new blogger and these tips are so helpful!
Love when successful bloggers like you share information like this! This is one of the many reasons why you're one of my favorites!
Pam! I just realized I missed your sweet question about child care and balancing a blog with family life. It's a big one, too, that I am trying to figure out still.
You're right – my oldest, Grace, is in kindergarten. She's gone from 8:30 to almost 3:00. Claire is in preschool two mornings a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays. In the recent past, we were using a nanny on Tues/Thurs and those were my work days (for errands and client meetings). Things sort of fell apart during the holidays though, sadly, and my wonderful babysitter's schedule changed. I'm hoping to have her come one day a week now.
Also, we sold our car, which is proving to be tricky for running errands! I have plans to rent a car twice a month though and just be gone all day. I sort of like to work that way – one or two insanely crazy days every so often, and then the rest of the time I just make it work with my kids in tow.
Here's the real secret to suppressing my mommy guilt: I don't sleep. I work until the wee hours and I get up early to pack in some more work. Then I try to shut down the computer for a big block during the middle of the day. That's when I play with the kids and give them focused time. I might be cleaning or painting or whatever, but I'm trying to really be with them and be present until at least after dinner. Hopefully until after bedtime on a good day.
It's rough. There are bad days, where I'm stressed and I put the kids in front of the tv for a few hours in the middle of the day while I pound out a deadline. They don't seem to mind too much, but I feel really guilty when this happens.
I guess I just take it one day at a time and try harder to be more organized so that I can keep my primary focus on my family.
xx
Thank you so much for this post. I am a "new" blogger and just beginning to discover what work blogging can be. Posts like these are very inspiring!
Jenny- How exciting to receive such invaluable advice from one of my biggest role models. Thank you, thank you, thank you! And you definitely sold me on Alt for next year! See you there :)
Heidi
http://athousandlaughingstarfish.blogspot.com/
Thanks for the insightful information. I have just started a blog of my own but I am not very committed. I found this post to be very helpful – clearly I should have some blogging goals. Anyway, it sounds like a great conference – interesting for bloggers and devoted blog readers alike.
So many helpful ideas, thank you for sharing your knowledge and passion! Now i'm off to put your ideas to work!
Jenny – What an inspiring post! Thanks for sharing all of your insights :D No matter how big or small there's always room for improvements, I def learned a few things! xoxo
Thanks for all of the great info. This post came at just the right time for me as I just had a banner day for my new blog and hit 1,000 views due to a unique Valentine art project I posted. I'm interested in trying to spread the word about my little post and you gave some great tips – thanks!!
Fabulous post, great tips!! Janell
Jenny, I love the details you shared in this! Really good things to think about…thanks for taking the time :)
jenny – that is a whole lot of fabulous information. from someone considering starting up my own blog, THANK YOU for sharing your experience and insights! your blog is clearly a success, and one to model after.
thanks again!
Hello. I wanted to go to alt even though I don't really consider myself a blogger. I would love to get started, but I can be a little OCD and the idea of planning ahead is holding me back.
I was wondering, how do you keep the back end of the blog organized? How do you plan for posts or keep the photos/links/information organized? I want to blog and do so consistently, but I am afraid of getting overwhelmed. I have a tumblr where I post inspiration and random thoughts, but it's really haphazard in terms of structure. Any thought or ideas or advice would be much appreciated. Thanks!
Stefanie
Hi Stefanie!
Thanks for your great question about getting organized.
At any given time, there are twenty or more post drafts started in my posting queue. As soon as a post idea pops into my mind, I start a draft. I'll make little notes in my draft about who to email for posting permission, or what I want to talk about in the post or what pictures to use from my image archives. I have a pretty good memory for visual stuff and can usually remember details about photos of rooms I've saved, of which there are MANY. I think the last count was like 400,000 or something insane.
Maybe this is a good time to talk about how I save my images. I have folders on my desktop – Accessories, bathrooms, bedrooms, dining rooms, entry/foyers, etc, etc,. As I go through my week, reading blogs and magazine sites, I just save my favorite images on my desktop. I try to rename the file with the images source and the photographer (if that info is available). Then at the end of the week I file away all those images in the folders. It's really handy to be able to look in my bathroom folder when I'm doing a post about penny tiles (or whatever), and I can just quickly flip through the images looking for the right ones. One goal I have for my new (TBD) intern is for him or her to add tags to my images, so that the image including penny tiles will actually have a penny tile tag, along with other stand outs from the image, like gray, ikat, clawfoot tub, stripe, orange, that sort of thing.
I choose ideas from my drafts list based on what I feel like posting about, what other blogs are posting about, what type of post I feel like I'm missing on LGN, or (most often) how much time I have to get that post together for the next day.
Also, I write my posts at night (usually late – so if there are errors, blame it on the lack of sleep I get!), and I schedule them to go live every morning at 5:30 am EST. Though I'm thinking of changing that to 4:30 to capture some more of my Australian readers before they leave the office at the end of their day. Meg from A Practical Wedding suggested that and I think it's a great idea. I love my readers in AUS!!
Hope that helps a little!
xx
I was beginning to suffer from blog depression not knowing how to continue or even where to begin my next post. Thanks for all the pointers!! Very inspiring! <3
I'm getting very inspired by all these atl quotes and "rules" so to speak.
I hope my blog can be as great as others one day!
First of all, I was sooooo disappointed that I could't go to ALT this year (considering I live 40 minutes down the road!) You're so right, what an investment! Next year. I've already got the hubby on board too so no worries there. :)
Second, This post is absolute dynamite. THANK YOU! I am really interested in the whole marketing aspect of blogging, but it is definitely a slow and difficult process. It was nice to read this post and realize that I AM doing a few things right but there are so many areas in which I can improve. Can I just spend one hour with you picking at all of your knowledge!?! :)
Third, I appreciate that you're willing to share your "secrets" to the major success that you've had in the blogging world. Your blog is definitely one of my "daily reads" and will stay there for a long time.
Thanks again!
Thank you for all this info! I started a blog and post regularly just for fun but I am curious how much money you can make? I would have to put in quite a bit of time to make my blog competitive with all the other amazing design blogs out there…wondering if it would be worth the time. Also, it seems like the way people make money is just through sponsors…and honestly I am turned off when bloggers are all sponsors all the time, I feel like I am being used. Do you have to post about sponsors at all, to they expect you to? thanks again!
Hi Lindsay Marie!
I think there is money to be made in blogging if you make it your full time job. I feel like there is definitely a curve/graph that I could make about the profitability in relation to the length of time spent on growing your blog. There is a huge stretch of time where you spend A LOT of hours blogging and make very little money. Then once your readership gets higher – say between 250,000 and 400,000 page views a month – I think that is the point when your blog can be profitable and more worth your time. Then, I'd say once you can get to about 500k pageviews per month, you're making okay money and more opportunities can be available to you (like getting signed to a good ad network, etc).
The way in which blogs are monetized is changing. I know I have changed my sponsorship policies.
You will notice more bloggers using the phrase "this post is underwritten by XYZ Corp." (plus a link to XYZ) Often, the content won't even be about XYZ, it's sort of like a tv show and commercials. XYZ is just paying for you to link once or twice in the body of a post. I love this, because I wouldn't feel like a sell out at all. It would be content that I'd normally post (like a DIY project unrelated to XYZ), and I'd be compensated for my time and effort, or at the very least would help cover some of the costs of the project.
Some really really big bloggers make super amounts of money off blogging. But I still think if you add up all the money they've made to date and distribute that over all the time they spent blogging and maintaining to date, they probably are making like minimum wage. I probably would make like $0.50 an hour or something! ;)
It's a labor of love, blogging. That's why I loved Alt. I feel like I am building something with my blog and sometimes I need inspiration to keep me churning out the best work I can!
xx
Yeah! I was hoping you would post what y'all discussed! Thank you for all the information! Great ideas!
Great post and lots of great advice. I've been following your blog for a long time now (when a lot of your posts were inspiration images and fun product finds) and it is so amazing to see how you have transformed not only your blog but your work and designs – such an inspiration – and now you speak at big time conferences!
Thank you Jenny!! This is such good, genuine advice. Since I read this post I've made a few changes on my blog that I would have never thought of. I think you make a great point about original content. One reason I'm drawn to your blog is because of its originality so thank you for your helpful advice!!
a great recap! i loved your panel and it was so great to finally meet you in person! i think you had some great tips and i definitely need to incorporate them myself. you're a gem!
Jenny, thanks for taking the time to answer my questions!
i love this post! I LOVE the i can't do it all but I can do a lot! This is going to be my mantra!
loved that! very helpful. and love your blog as always :) keep it up!
What an amazing and extremely helpful alt recap! Thank you so so much for writing this all out! I so wish I had been able to go, but reading so many recaps from all of the lovely bloggers that were able to attend makes it almost all better. Thank you!!
What great info. Thank you so much for sharing all of this great info and advise for blogging. I started my blog a few months ago and this post really will help me get more out of blogging. Thank you, thank you! You are a great inspiration!!!
Thanks for such a helpful post! I enjoy blogging for myself and I keep going back and forth on whether I am blogging to gain a readership or just blogging for my own pleasure. There seems to be *so* much that goes into developing and keeping an audience!
That was such an insightful post Jenny! Lately I've been feeling overwhelmed lately with work, my blog, and life commitments.. and you've really encouraged me to move forward and grow!
Thanks for always being so enlightening :)
This is incredible and just what I needed. I have been blogging since 2006 and have been wanting to amp it up a bit. Have you ever attended the BlogHer conference? Wondering if you may be able to post about some of the other conferences around.
Cheers!
Katie
http://maltesekat.blogspot.com
This is awesome! I am so grateful that you posted this. My blog activity has been on my mind a lot recently and this hit the spot like an ice cream sunday on a hot summer day. Thank you!
Elise Nicole
http://www.elisenicolek.blogspot.com
http://www.OceanGirlArt.com
These are very helpful for a relatively new blogger like me. Thanks for your inspiration and generosity! :)
I just discovered your blog and I'm wondering what rock I've been hiding under all this time!?!
Thank you for your insights! Such great information. I appreciate your time taken in posting it!!
You've got a new reader and new fan!
best,
melis
p.s. I just saw your daughter's rooms and I'm dying. They are darling. I'm redoing my little girl's room and your images give me so much inspiration. You have so much TALENT!
Thanks for posting this. I just started a blog and my main goal is to inspire others with decorating ideas, the same way that many blogs do for me. I feel a little silly right now because I know that no one is reading my blog, so basically I'm posting for myself! I am encouraged by your post and definitely learned a lot of useful info.
Jenny, thank you for putting together such a thoughtful & informative post. I didn't have a chance to read through the whole thing until now & just started a blog myself so appreciate your sharing a lot! I was wondering what you think when bloggers post an honest/frank opinion about a product/room/vendor which may or may not be taken negatively? How do you recommend balancing honesty & still being attractive to sponsors? Thanks!
this has helped a lot. i often think of this post when generating content for my blog so thank you for the advice and good questions.
I'm moving to nyc in the very near future. maybe we can collaborate!
Thank you so much, what a great bit of info & I didn't even have to change out of my flannel pj pants!
Seriously though, I've had a hard time lately with "what's next" with the ol' blog & I think this will really help to focus myself & get out of the funk. Thank you Jenny!
Natasha
"Samster Mommy"
Thanks, Jenny! I hope in 3 years I can look back say i've been half as successful as you.
My blog suffered this last year and I'm sad about that especially when I had some good things going for it. I'm ready to set some goals for Real Southern Living and take it to another level. Thank you so much for getting me started on the process of what I need to do to get it back on track! I would love to go to a blogger conference…hmmm going to have to find one in the southeast!
You are so awesome and this was very informative and wonderful to read. I feel I am at a road block with my blog right now. So any great tips from successful bloggers is great to read. Thank you. winks-jen
Thank you for this great information. I'll be putting it to good use!
i've been reading your blog for a couple of months and recently decided to start my own. thanks for writing this. it's good info.
Yes! Please DO write a scrapbooky-type book on decorating!
Super inspiring Jenny. Thank you, as always for the great ideas, and for being an approchable internet personality :)
Jenny- I know this is a post from last year, but linking back, I really found all of this information so extremely helpful! Many thanks to you and Victoria over at vmac+cheese for taking the time to pass along these invaluable lessons to those of us new to blogging and/or unable to attend Alt this year!