For my birthday I was given a
great book Blogging for Creatives by Robin Houghton.
I had started my
blog when I read the book but it was still relevant and really useful to a
newbie like myself. So I decided I would let you know what I thought of it….
I will say straight off, for those who are new to blogging or are thinking of starting one this is ideal, so read it! It will help you decide your niche, explain widgets, pages and posts and the general blogosphere
One of the things I was agonising over when I decided to start a blog was which platform to use to host my blog. After lots of googling and research on the web I decided to use Blogger and I am happy with it. So I didn't read the chapter about the pros and cons of different platforms as I didn't want to question my decision! However, if you haven't made a decision this is a good chapter to find out more about Blogger, Wordpress and Tumblr plus how to set up your blog.
What I found very helpful was how to create great content, this has given me ideas for different posts (watch this space) and if you have a blog and sometimes lose your mojo this is a great reference.
The book includes useful marketing and search tips to get your blog seen amongst the 169 million that were out there when the book was published and new blogs are being created all the time, at a crazy rate of 5,000 a day, really! I am so intimidated now, is anyone out there reading my wee blog?!
You may not feel the need for metrics and analysis if you are blogging for fun or have no intention of making money from it, (if you want to earn money from your blog there is a chapter that discusses the options). However I still want to know if what I am doing is successful.
This book has made me think about the reason for my blog and how I will measure its success. I started this blog to build a community (there is also a chapter on growing a community) whilst documenting my journey of turning hobby into business. Through this I hope to encourage other creatives to be able make money from what they love. It also lets my readers see who fizzi~jayne really is.
So how will I know if my blog is successful? I have set goals, I hope to have increased my followers to a number with 4 digits and be on Bloglovin's popular list for DIY/ Crafts over the next 3 years. These are the measurable results but most importantly I want to have fun with it.
On every page there are also lots of examples of established blogs to check out, there are so many I haven’t had a chance to have a look at them all! I have had a peak at a couple of the resources for aspiring bloggers and have signed up for newsletters from Chris Brogan, he seems to have down to earth blogging advice. I also signed up to newsletters from Lemon and Raspberry, I can’t remember how I came across this site but they email advice on building a blog which is a good read with a cuppa.
In summary this book covers a lot and there are resources for further reading and a great starting point for a newbie. If you are a pro blogger there are probably better books or resources out there for you.
The layout isn’t to my liking in places, it can be too busy but at the same time it is visual which us creatives like!
These are just my opinions and I hope you have found it useful. If I stuck to the advice of the book I would have kept to 250 words or less but it was impossible to do the book justice. So if you are still reading this post, thanks and *high five*!
What creative/ blogging/ small business books have you read and would recommend?
I will say straight off, for those who are new to blogging or are thinking of starting one this is ideal, so read it! It will help you decide your niche, explain widgets, pages and posts and the general blogosphere
One of the things I was agonising over when I decided to start a blog was which platform to use to host my blog. After lots of googling and research on the web I decided to use Blogger and I am happy with it. So I didn't read the chapter about the pros and cons of different platforms as I didn't want to question my decision! However, if you haven't made a decision this is a good chapter to find out more about Blogger, Wordpress and Tumblr plus how to set up your blog.
What I found very helpful was how to create great content, this has given me ideas for different posts (watch this space) and if you have a blog and sometimes lose your mojo this is a great reference.
The book includes useful marketing and search tips to get your blog seen amongst the 169 million that were out there when the book was published and new blogs are being created all the time, at a crazy rate of 5,000 a day, really! I am so intimidated now, is anyone out there reading my wee blog?!
You may not feel the need for metrics and analysis if you are blogging for fun or have no intention of making money from it, (if you want to earn money from your blog there is a chapter that discusses the options). However I still want to know if what I am doing is successful.
This book has made me think about the reason for my blog and how I will measure its success. I started this blog to build a community (there is also a chapter on growing a community) whilst documenting my journey of turning hobby into business. Through this I hope to encourage other creatives to be able make money from what they love. It also lets my readers see who fizzi~jayne really is.
So how will I know if my blog is successful? I have set goals, I hope to have increased my followers to a number with 4 digits and be on Bloglovin's popular list for DIY/ Crafts over the next 3 years. These are the measurable results but most importantly I want to have fun with it.
On every page there are also lots of examples of established blogs to check out, there are so many I haven’t had a chance to have a look at them all! I have had a peak at a couple of the resources for aspiring bloggers and have signed up for newsletters from Chris Brogan, he seems to have down to earth blogging advice. I also signed up to newsletters from Lemon and Raspberry, I can’t remember how I came across this site but they email advice on building a blog which is a good read with a cuppa.
In summary this book covers a lot and there are resources for further reading and a great starting point for a newbie. If you are a pro blogger there are probably better books or resources out there for you.
The layout isn’t to my liking in places, it can be too busy but at the same time it is visual which us creatives like!
These are just my opinions and I hope you have found it useful. If I stuck to the advice of the book I would have kept to 250 words or less but it was impossible to do the book justice. So if you are still reading this post, thanks and *high five*!
What creative/ blogging/ small business books have you read and would recommend?
fizzi~jayne x
Disclaimer: The Amazon links are affiliate links
Thank you for the review! I've always been a bit leery of books like these, but I'll look out for this one.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you have found it useful and I hope you enjoy the book. In a few weeks I will have another book review, this time by Emma Jones, Turn Your Talent into a Business.
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