Top Tips for Turning Your Blog from Hobby to Career!

One of the main differences between blogging as a hobby vs blogging as a business is strategy. If you’re just starting your blog (or are a content creator) with the aim to monetise it or as part of your business or your moving from a hobby blogger to a small business owner I have some of my best tips for strategically growing your blog as a business.

A Little Background About Me

I was intending to carry on to a PhD after completing my MA in Art History but I fell pregnant, which was a bit of a surprise! So while my PhD dreams are currently on hold I blogged as a way to fill my time. Blogging was very different several years ago; most people only did it as a hobby, a way of connecting with fellow enthusiasts. Blogging for me made me feel connected even when I couldn’t leave the house very much due to pain and other health problems. Blogging is also very addictive and it’s been fascinating seeing the proliferation of social media platforms and the rise of influencers. Blogging is now a profitable full time career option. Due to my health I’ve never fully been able to make it a career. But after years of different medications, chronic pain management, physio, operations etc etc I am now in a position (hopefully!) to turn this wonderful hobby into a career.

Over the years I have gleaned a wealth of information that I want to share with you. I have appeared in a Garnier Olia advert, appeared in Blogosphere magazine twice, and my photography has been featured in Noctis Magazine to name just a few things. People like Jen Carrington have really helped me to think about how I can shape a business that fits me and my health. So with that in mind one of the first things I am offering is Pinterest 1-to-1 Coaching which you can read all about here and sign up for early access. Let’s get stuck in to those top tips that will help you in your career as a blogger/content creator!

Tips for Blogging as a Career

Good, Valuable Content

Valuable content is the foundation of a successful blog. Valuable and useful content varies greatly depending on audience, so get to know yours. Do you have it clear in your mind what your blog is about and who it is for? Create an ‘ideal audience avatar’ if needed (this is part of my Pinterest coaching too! I think it’s key in starting pretty much anything online). If you already have an audience find out their needs and if you can help them in anyway. It doesn’t have to be revolutionary. One of my most successful posts as a beauty blogger is My Most Repurchased Beauty Products. It’s one of my most trafficked pages from Pinterest. This piece of content works because people love to know what people are actually buying (and not being sent by brands) and also buying over and over again. It answers peoples questions about some of the best beauty products they should try.

Valuable content is the foundation of a successful blog

Promote that Content!

When you create content you also need to promote it and optimise it. That seems unbelievably obvious but a surprising number just don’t do this – or don’t do it right. Google is a brilliant source of traffic so knowing some SEO is vital for your blog (or small business- all these tips can be adapted for your small business too). My friend Sophie is an SEO whizz! I’ve previously taken her SEO course which you can read about here. If you are a creative and unsure where to start I think Sophie’s course would be perfect for you. She teaches in a way that makes it both accessible and clear. Sophie is currently offering 20% off her self-paced SEO course. I am an affiliate but I stand behind this course 100%, in fact I’m also in it giving you an overview of Pinterest SEO! Here’s the link for the brilliant Intuitive SEO: The Creative’s Guide to Growing Search Traffic (aff link). In fact, it was through Google that I appeared in the Garnier Olia advert. My Garnier Olia blog post appeared in search and it all developed from there!

I’ve seen a lot of confusion around how Pinterest can be of benefit to your business (almost any business can benefit from Pinterest, there will just be varying results). For bloggers, Pinterest can be an amazing source of traffic, and not just any traffic the right traffic. There’s a whole new audience to tap into that will engage with your blog, sign up to your email list and potentially provide new customers (if you’re selling something). If you want to learn more about how to use Pinterest for your business I have a monthly newsletter plus a Pinterest Guide which you can sign up to below!

Share your content on your social channels too. I recommend either sticking to the social media platforms you enjoy or the one’s that give you most return. I know Facebook isn’t people’s first love but if you get a lot of traffic and engagement from it it makes good business sense to keep with it. Remember, be strategic! And if you really hate a platform but it brings you an engaged audience you can always outsource it (if you have the funds to do so).

My Pinterest Traffic Stats on Google Analytics

For bloggers, Pinterest can be an amazing source of traffic, and not just any traffic the right traffic.

Community

This naturally links into sharing your content above. Let me be very clear about this: there is no point in having a large audience if they do not act on your content! So things like following/unfollowing, buying followers or any other way of inorganically growing your audience does not work. The only thing that works in the long term is a real, engaged audience. That takes time and work. I have always loved the social side of the Internet. I find social media both fascinating and addictive. That probably goes a long way in explaining why I’ve been online since 1997 and even found my husband online, in a music chatroom. So, yeah I quite like the Internet. Over the years I’ve noticed that the best ways to build an authentic community is to be authentic yourself, be consistent and be of value. Now that value is totally dependent on your audience that’s why it’s so important to know who you’re speaking to. I’m planning to write a separate post all about increasing engagement on Instagram soon, so look out for that!

There is no point in having a large audience if they do not act on your content!

Use Stats Strategically

Google Analytics and other platforms’ analytics can provide you with a wealth of information. That information can be used to guide content ideas, what promotions are working and what people are searching for and where they are coming from, to name just a few things. But do not obsess over page views! Compare statistics from year to year not month to month. There are too many variables to truly track stats monthly. Seasonality has a huge impact on statistics. Typically the summer months can be lower than the run up to Christmas so bear that in mind if you are just starting out. Google Analytics is the industry standard so that’s what you should use for your site. Have clearly defined goals so you’re not aimlessly looking at stats. You have access to an amazing selection of data so use it strategically. Which leads me nicely on to…

Don’t Compare Yourself to Others

Just don’t do it! Other people might be getting more traffic than you or more followers or more work or they might not. It is so easy to fake followings and engagement, and well everything. Use that time and energy to get better at what you do and…

Keep Going!

Overnight success take years. It takes time for good SEO implementation, to build traffic and an audience. Use stats to see what is working and keep doing that. Place calls to action on your blog- do you want email sign ups? Are you selling something? Make everything actionable. You’ve got this 💪🏻

If you want to learn about Pinterest from the very basics to more in depth knowledge plus how to use it to drive traffic sign up for my newsletter! I send it once a month at it’s jam packed with actionable tips.

Or if you would like to find out more about the Pinterest coaching service I’ll be offering please either have a look at my Pinterest Coaching for Creatives Page here or contact me! I’m also open to other ways of working on Pinterest so drop me a line and we can chat.