I’ve seen a lot of posts lately from bloggers I’ve followed for a long time talking about how much blogging has changed in the last 5 years.  And it’s completely true.  When I first started blogging it was an entirely different world.  It was more personal.  It was more sharing.  It wasn’t as “professional” if you will.  And while I’m not sure whether it’s good or bad about all the changes in the blogging world, I think it’s a little bit of both at the end of the day.  And while the whole blogging atmosphere has changed a ton, maybe people are still just getting into the industry and blogging community as a whole.  So if you’re one of those people that are just starting out and you’re not sure what to do in this crazy, “make your own rules” part of the internet, here’s my best advice for new bloggers just starting out!

1. Your design matters.

This is something that matters a lot more now than it used to, but nonetheless the look and design of your blog really matters.  Even if you do it yourself and keep it super simple, just make sure the design of your site feels modern and up to date.  I’ve looked a ton of blogs over the years that I don’t return to because no matter how great your content, the site design and layout sometimes matters even more.  No one wants to spend hours trying to figure out how to get around your site or looking at a horrible amateur design… that’s just the way of the world.

2. Don’t worry about the numbers.

While this might go against everything else out there, at the beginning, don’t worry about the numbers.  And unless your going for the blog to be your whole income and profession, I would suggest not worrying about the numbers at all.  Readers will come and go, but the most important thing about blogging is the community you grow around your site.  Whether that’s 12 readers a day or 12,000, who cares?  As long as you enjoy it, that’s all that matters.

3. Write for you.

This is perhaps the most important of all the advice I could give you. Write for you, and only you.  A lot of of bloggers start to fade over time and you can tell that their heart just isn’t in it anymore.  It’s easy to tell that and it’s such a hard thing to overcome as a reader.  Every post I write, all these years later, I still love to write every word here on Land of Marvels.

4. Give it time.

In this era of the internet, truthfully some blogs explode overnight and some take years and years to gain a following.  In the end, you just have to give it time and be patient.

5. Don’t drive people crazy.

One thing that’s a huge turn off for me is getting five million emails a day from blog newsletters or tweets about old posts from 10 years ago… we all have so much going on that for me, I’ll unfollow blogs that drive me crazy!  Keep it simple and don’t bog everyone down with a ton of blog related spam.

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