I’m amazed at how quickly the year went by. If you did not meet your goals last year in blogging, then we are going to make it happen this year. I’m sharing my top tips to ensure that you exceed your blogging goals.
Blogging is not for the faint of heart. I’ve said it before and I will say it again, blogging is a marathon, not a sprint. With the right planning and execution, you can turn your blog into a vehicle that can give you the life that you desire. If you want to turn your blog into a bonified business and earn a sustainable income from blogging, then read my simple guide to goal setting for bloggers in 2023. It’s time to dream bigger than ever, and achieve all that you desire!
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1. Get Organized
Before we get into the nitty-gritty of your blogging goals for 2023, you have to get organized and declutter your workspace | office. I know firsthand that I am more productive when I am organized and my desk is free of clutter. There is something that distracts you from the task at hand when you look down and there is a ton of misc papers on your desk. It’s time to get organized.
Organizing your blog strategy will keep you on track and help you to stay accountable for your goals. Having SMART Blogging Goals will ensure that you stay focused and accomplish your blogging goals in 2023.
- Clean up your work area and declutter
- Create a content schedule and stick to your content schedule
- Do a Digital De-Clutter. I discuss it in-depth in
- Create a strategic blogging plan
2. Self- Host Your Blog
As a blogger, self-hosting your website is an important consideration. Self-hosting refers to hosting your website on your own domain, rather than using a free hosting service like WordPress.com or Blogger. There are several benefits to self-hosting your website as a blogger.
First, self-hosting gives you complete control over your website. This includes the ability to install custom plugins, themes, and integrations and access your website’s files and data.
Second, self-hosting allows you to fully monetize your website. Free hosting services often have strict guidelines on what types of advertisements and monetization strategies you can use, which can limit your earning potential.
Finally, self-hosting can give your website a more professional appearance, as it shows that you are committed to your blog and willing to invest in its success. This can be particularly important if you are looking to work with brands or sponsors in the future.
3. Use A Premium Theme For WordPress
I am not going to argue with anyone about the value of having a premium theme if you plan to take your blog to another level. Here is the reality! If your website looks “blah, blah.” I will not share a single article or even bother to leave a comment. I’m not pinning a single pin to a blog site that doesn’t have any appeal. You may be an award-winning writer, but you still need to have a theme that is visually appealing to your reader.
Most free themes don’t make updates and typically provide no support. Hence if WordPress makes an update, your entire blog site may not work. In addition, you want a theme that you can customize with your brand style which includes your fonts and colors. Make sure that your theme flows well and is easy to navigate.
The goal at the end of the day is to keep the reader on your blog site as long as possible. Having the right theme will ensure that visitors stay longer.
Feel Free To Shop One Of My Favorite Theme Designers – 17 Avenue Designs
4. Update Old Content
As a blogger, it’s important to regularly update and refresh your content to keep it relevant and engaging for your readers. This includes revisiting and updating old posts on your blog.
There are several reasons why updating old content is important. First, it helps improve the overall quality and accuracy of your blog. As time passes, information and best practices can change, and it’s important to ensure that your content reflects these updates.
Second, updating old content can help improve your search engine rankings. Search engines like Google place a high value on fresh, relevant content, and regularly updating your blog can help improve your website’s visibility in search results.
Finally, updating old content can help keep your readers engaged. By providing new and updated information, you are giving your readers a reason to come back to your blog and stay engaged with your content.
Overall, updating old content is a crucial aspect of maintaining a successful blog. It helps improve the quality and accuracy of your content, improves your search engine rankings, and keeps your readers engaged.
5. Stock Photos | Images
I get so many compliments on the images that I use on my blog sites. It’s important to try and use images that everyone else is not using. You want your site to have a branded cohesive look and feel to it. I happen to be an amateur photographer and will oftentimes go out and take my own photos (trust me, my sony camera does the real work).
Using high-quality, professional stock photography is an important consideration for any blogger. While it may be tempting to use free images found online, there are several reasons why using premium stock photography is a better option.
First and foremost, using free images can often result in copyright infringement. Many images found online are protected by copyright laws, and using them without permission can result in legal consequences.
On the other hand, premium stock photography is licensed for commercial use, which means that you can use it on your blog without worrying about copyright issues. This can save you time and hassle in the long run, as you won’t have to worry about tracking down the original source or dealing with any legal issues.
Additionally, premium stock photography is generally of higher quality and more professional than free images. This can help improve the overall look and feel of your blog, as well as give your readers a better impression of your brand.
Overall, using premium stock photography is a worthwhile investment for any blogger. It not only protects you from potential legal issues, but it also helps improve the appearance and professionalism of your blog.
Here Is My List Of Top Spots To Purchase Stock Photography From
- Deposit Photos
- Adobe Stock
- Ivory Mix
- Creative Market
- Fabrica
- HauteStock
6. Implement A Content Marketing Strategy
Not having a content marketing strategy in place is one of the most overlooked aspects of blogging. We all wish that Simon could just hit the golden buzzer in blogging and put us at the top and thousands of readers would see our blog articles and Google would simply fall in love with us. In reality, you have to plan every aspect of your blog and that includes having a strategy.
What exactly is a Content Marketing Strategy? Glad that you asked. In a nutshell, it is simply what are you going to do once you hit the post button and your blog post goes live. What’s next? How do you get people to know that you have a new blog article?
My #1 way is to immediately send out a quick newsletter blast to my readers that are subscribed to my newsletter. These folks have opted-in to engage with you, hence they want to hear from you. Don’t overthink it. Just send out a quick email and let them know that you have a new article that has been posted.
My favorite way that will get eyes on your blog article is through Pinterest Marketing. I use the Tailwind App to schedule my Pinterest Pins. With every blog article that I write, I create from the start a minimum of 10 Pinterest Pins that I will post over the next 7 days to get an influx of traffic. I highly suggest that you consider using Tailwinds to put your pinning on autopilot. It is a lifesaver and timesaver.
Learning Pinterest should be a top priority in 2023!
7. Consistency In Blogging
As a blogger, it’s important to remain consistent in order to build and maintain a strong following. Here are a few reasons why consistency is crucial:
- It helps establish your credibility: By consistently posting high-quality content and meeting your own publishing deadlines, you can establish yourself as a credible and reliable source of information. This can help build trust with your readers and establish your blog as a go-to resource in your niche.
- It helps grow your audience: Consistently posting new content gives your readers a reason to come back to your blog and helps attract new readers. By establishing a regular posting schedule, you can keep your readers engaged and help grow your audience.
- It helps with search engine rankings: Search engines like Google favor websites that regularly publish fresh, relevant content. By consistently posting new content, you can improve your website’s visibility in search results and drive more traffic to your blog.
- It helps with planning and organization: By maintaining a consistent posting schedule, you can better plan and organize your content creation and promotion efforts. This can help save time and ensure that you are consistently providing value to your readers.
Overall, consistency is a crucial element of successful blogging. It helps establish your credibility, grow your audience, improve your search engine rankings, and streamline your content creation efforts.
8. Grow Your Email List
You absolutely have to make growing your email list a top priority this year. I can not stress the importance of creating and growing your email list! Unless you had your head buried in the sand, then you should be aware that big platforms like Instagram and FB went offline several times and individuals appeared to have lost their minds. If you had a mailing list, then you were able to still connect with your audience.
If you don’t remember anything, please remember this: We do not own these social media platforms. I’ve seen influencers get their accounts suspended and they had zero ways to connect with any of their followers. If they had a robust mailing list that they own, then there would be no worries.
I use ConvertKit and it does what I need it to do. I love the simplicity and the templates. You can customize the templates and really give them your brand or you can keep it basic. It’s up to you.
I have several different newsletters because I run several different blog sites. I suggest that you do a weekly newsletter to keep subscribers from unfollowing you (don’t get into a tizzy when someone unfollows you!) I highly suggest that automate your newsletter and make it evergreen content- this way you have a newsletter that automatically goes out on a weekly basis in a sequence. You do have to put in some work on the front end to get the sequence started, but it will save you time on the backend because you can do it and let it do what it do!
The goal is to get your audience to exchange their email address for something that you give them that is of value. You want them to subscribe to your blog. Offering a freebie is a simple easy way to say thanks! I appreciate you!
As you continue to grow your list don’t forget to purge folks that aren’t engaging with you. Most email list platforms are based on the number of subscribers. Thus you don’t want folks that aren’t engaging with you, taking up valuable space on your list. It’s ok to say “Hit the road Jack!”
Offer Any Of The Following:
- Canva Templates
- Stock Photography
- E-book
- Course
- E-guide
- How-to-guide
There are done for you PLR Services that you can use to create your opt-in. Do not let this overwhelm you.
9. Grow Your Social Media
We love it, we hate it, and some days it really is overwhelming, however, you absolutely must engage with social media on a daily basis. The key is to plan it out and put it on autopilot when possible. If you really haven’t mastered social media, now is the perfect time to start. The beginning of the year is always a good place to hit the reset button and focus on growing your blog traffic as a result of social media engagement.
Think of your social media as an extension of your blog site. Using this very article as an example. Once I hit the post button. I will post to Instagram a snippet of the highlights of this article. I may create an IG story on blogging goals as well.
Social Solution Content Calendar For Social Media.
Take advantage of done-for-you services. I had to create a Social Content Calendar for myself, hence I turned it into a full-blown product. The discount Code is FLASH50 for the first 100 purchases.
A hidden gem for social media is using Twitter. I always tweet my blog posts via Twitter, not only do my followers see my tweet, but I oftentimes get 100+ extra eyes that view my article. More exposure more engagement.
Incorporate YouTube Videos into your Blog and vice versa, If you post content to YouTube, you should be mentioning your blog site in the video as well as make sure that you provide links back to your blog site from your YouTube Channel. Take advantage of all of these free marketing tools!
14 Additional Blogging Goal Tips
I’ve given you a ton of ideas to assist you in creating and implementing your blogging goals. The most important thing is to get started. Take two steps forward and start!
- Define your target audience: Understanding who you are writing for is essential for crafting content that resonates with your readers. Identify the demographics, interests, and needs of your target audience and tailor your content accordingly.
- Set clear and specific goals: Determine what you want to achieve with your blog. Do you want to increase traffic, monetize your blog, or simply share your thoughts and ideas? Setting clear goals will help you stay focused and motivated.
- Create a content calendar: Plan out the topics you want to cover in advance and create a schedule for publishing your content. This will help you stay organized and ensure that you are consistently providing value to your readers.
- Improve your writing skills: As a blogger, your writing skills are crucial. Invest in learning how to write effectively and engage your audience. This can include taking writing courses or simply practicing and seeking feedback from others.
- Learn about SEO and keyword research: SEO (search engine optimization) is the process of optimizing your website to rank higher in search engines like Google. Keyword research involves identifying the words and phrases that your target audience is searching for. Understanding SEO and keyword research can help you create content that is more easily discoverable by your target audience.
- Use social media to promote your blog: Social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram can be a great way to promote your blog and reach a wider audience. Regularly sharing your blog posts on social media and engaging with your followers can help drive traffic to your website.
- Collaborate with other bloggers: Building relationships with other bloggers in your niche can help expose your blog to a new audience. Consider guest posting on other blogs or collaborating on projects together.
- Monetize your blog: If you are looking to monetize your blog, there are several options to consider, such as sponsored content, affiliate marketing, and advertising. Determine which methods are the most appropriate for your blog and create a plan for implementing them.
- Invest in professional design and branding: A professional and visually appealing website can go a long way in establishing your credibility and attracting readers. Consider investing in a premium theme or hiring a designer to create a custom design for your blog.
- Improve your website’s loading speed: A slow-loading website can be a major turnoff for readers. Optimize your website’s loading speed by compressing images, minifying code, and using a content delivery network.
- Create a newsletter: A newsletter is a great way to keep in touch with your readers and provide them with exclusive content. Consider creating a newsletter and offering it as a free resource to your readers.
- Engage with your readers: Building a community of loyal readers is crucial for the success of your blog. Take the time to respond to comments and engage with your readers on social media. This can help foster a sense of community and keep readers coming back for more.
- Experiment with different types of content: Mixing things up with different types of content can help keep your readers engaged. This can include creating infographics, and videos, or hosting webinars.
- Stay up to date with industry trends: The world of blogging is constantly evolving, so it’s important to stay up
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