Spring Cleaning: My Blog

Spring Cleaning My Blog

If you’re reading this blog post, congratulations! You have made it to the end of my spring-cleaning series and I couldn’t be happier that you came on this journey with me. Today’s blog is more geared towards my readers that either have websites/blogs of their own or if you are reading this and thinking you may want to give blogging a try this will help you too. I will go over five things you can do regularly to keep your blog looking fresh and I will also share with you what I have been using and finding helpful in creating a website. It’s a little bit longer than the rest of the posts in the series but make sure to read all the way to the end for a special announcement!

It’s always nice to give your website an update and keep things looking fresh. I’m not saying you have to completely start over from scratch but here are five things you can do routinely to keep your site fresh:

1. Check comments for ideas – Now I realize that not everyone is going to comment on your posts and tell you “Oh I want you to write about XYZ”. However, if people do and the topic interests you, write about it! Blogging is harder than it looks and sometimes I’m thinking about what to write and my mind is just silent. So when readers interact with me I try to interact back.  Besides, who wouldn’t love seeing a blogger they like write a post based on a suggestion they gave you? To make it even better, give them a shoutout in your post. “One of my readers commented asking if I could write a blog about blogging (Hi Terria! * waves * ) So here we are.” The reader will definitely appreciate the selflessness of such a small act.
2. Edit old posts and then re-share – Sometimes if I can’t think about new content it’s easier to just go back to what I already know my readers liked and improve upon it. If you have an old post that got a lot of views when you originally posted it try updating it. If it was a “30 before 30” list, look over it and see if those 30 things are still what you want to accomplish or do you have revisions? Did you get a lot of views on a recipe that you posted? Think about how you can revamp that recipe and then write about that.
3. Start a series – Did you have a post that got a lot of likes that you can expand upon? Can you think of ideas to turn that blog post into a part 2 or even a mini series? Series are nice because they give people something to look forward to for a short period of time and it allows you to focus on just the one theme.
4. Change yourside bar – This is something small you can do to keep your site fresh without doing any major changes to the look or feel of the site. For instance, you can add in your Instagram feed or you can put in categories. You can have new ads put into your side bar, you can change the order of the things you have in the sidebar, and you can also change your headshot (assuming you keep that in your sidebar also). Sometimes subtle changes are the way to go.
5. Completely redo your look – This one may require a little bit more analytical knowledge but don’t worry. There are plenty of sites online that can help you. Some good times to change your entire look may be when the season changes, as your blogiversary approaches, or if you want to take your site into a new direction.

I know that for me when I first thought about doing some of these things I was completely lost. I’m not the most tech savvy gal in the world. Thankfully, I have found three wonderful, wonderful sites that have really helped me learn more about website design and blogging as a whole. I will have everything hyperlinked so you can click on it and check these things out for yourself.

1. A Beautiful Mess eCourses – I love this site. It is colorful, it is fun, they always have new content, and their eCourses are amazing. I purchased the ABM Blog Life 2.0 class and their Blog Design Love class and I feel like I went from beginner to Boss status in a matter of months. (Okay, Boss status may be taking it a bit far).  Their courses are priced cheaper than most places I have found, they have a great tone to them, and they are self-paced and they work for blogger, wordpress, and typepad users.
2. SavvySexySocial – I tune into this YouTube channel and while the founder, Amy, films videos on how to be a youtuber she also films about how to be a great blogger, how to come up with content, how to promote yourself on social media, everything. Just yesterday she posted a video on 15 blog topics for summer. On her YouTube I can get blog ideas, social media help, and business advice. The best part is that her videos are all usually under 4 minutes so it’s quick and easy knowledge.
3. ByRegina – If you follow me on Instagram you may have seen me post pictures of my Epic Blog planner. I think I first shared a picture of it around 4 months ago and then again two weeks ago. If you don’t have it yet…what are you waiting for?! Regina’s Epic Blog planner is everything a blogger can ask for. It is your editorial calendar, your business plan, your blog ideas, all in one place. If you already have a planner you love, still check out her site because she shares a ton of great information and printables on there as well.

That’s all for this post and the series. Thank you so much to everyone that followed along with me on it. Earlier I mentioned that I had an announcement to make at the end so…

I’M RELAUNCHING!!!

That’s right. As much as I love what whatstheteatime has grown into I will be relaunching my blog with a completely new layout on Monday June 8th. Stay tuned for the official announcement of when it's live so you can see what happens when I put to use all of the things I’ve covered in this post :)

~Tea