Another year is coming to an end and we are all set to welcome the new year with our best foot forward. This is also the time when we make resolutions only to break it in the first week of January itself. And this fear prevents most of us from even getting started. Let’s not slack off for these last few days of the year and promise not to repeat the mistakes of the past. As bloggers who strive to inspire others, let’s make a promise to ourselves to take some time so as to plan and deliver content that is beneficial to our readers. So here are 7 New Year resolutions that every blogger should make.
7 New Year Resolutions That Every Blogger Should Make for 2019
#1 Set
Set Realistic Goals. We tend to over plan and come up with resolutions like ‘I am going to write five blog posts a week, I want to start something new or I want to double my followers or traffic’. Whereas, in reality, you’d be posting only once a month. Hardly.
Realistic Goals. We tend to over plan and come up with resolutions like ‘I am going to write five blog posts a week, I want to start something new or I want to double my followers or traffic’. Whereas, in reality, you’d be posting only once a month. Hardly.
Goals can differ from person to person. Set achievable targets. If you haven’t been blogging regularly, focus on writing one post a week. Once a routine is set, you can even increase the numbers.
That said, always have a supreme goal and work towards it.
#2 Plan
I can’t emphasize any more on the importance of planning your content. For a start, take a notebook and jot down your ideas. Draw a monthly calendar layout and try to place your ideas on different days. The hard part just got over. You now have a content plan. Start writing and there you have a blogging schedule. You can also use a Google spreadsheet or Excel or even invest in a planner or journal. You can also use the WP Editorial Plugin.
Read: Create an Editorial Calendar for your Blog
#3 Engage
We love it when our readers engage in our blog posts. Let’s make a promise to ourselves to try and reply to the comments we receive on our blog posts. Let us also read others and leave meaningful comments on theirs. Believe me when I say that I have received comments from an X blogger who took the pain to browse on the topic I had written, and then, copy and pasted the first paragraph of the Google search as a comment. Alas, it is worse than ‘Nice post’ comments.
#4 Declutter
It’s time to spend some time to improve your blog design and layout. You may or may not opt for going self-hosted (You must if you ask me!). But first, declutter your sidebar and remove those that don’t add any value to your website. Remove the deadlinks using tools like Broken Link Checker. Remove unwanted plugins from your self-hosted site.
#5 Focus
Anything in moderation is good. Social Media can be a boon if you know how to utilize each platform. Doing so many things at a time – Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat, YouTube, is definitely a daunting task. Each medium calls for different strategies and it is imperative to focus on one social media a month while giving minimum attention to others.
#6 Research
Do a thorough research on your niche. Make a note of the important holidays, festivals and events in your calendar which will be your cue to publishing themed content. For eg, a month before Christmas you can start publishing Christmas recipes if you are a food blogger, or home décor ideas, if that’s your niche.
Also, do a keyword research to know what people search online. Jot these down to come up with 10-15 keywords based on your niche. This is a great way to boost your SEO as well.
Research on how to create graphics on your own. Once you start creating both blog and social media graphics, you’d know it is a cakewalk.
Read: Image Editing Tools for Social Media
#7 Quality over Quantity
As I mentioned earlier, do not think about churning posts everyday of the week. Always remember that churning quality posts is a way to boost your blog – be it traffic, the no: of followers, page rank, DA and what not!
Read: Clear and Simple Writing
Last tip: Have Fun
What? Seriously? Yes. Do things because of the sheer joy of it. Be it blogging, writing, painting, cooking or traveling. Take that blogging break once in a while to unwind and relax. Sometimes, social media can be overwhelming. So, go out. Take a walk. Smell the flowers. Let nature inspire you. Read. Travel. Cook. Play with your furball. Because, after all, you deserve that break!
Read: How Nature Inspires Creative Writing
We hope you get the year off to a good start and accomplish everything you wish for your blog in 2019!
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