It’s DAY 6 of my first blog event: the 7 Day Mini Blog Challenge Party! Today’s topic for bloggers participating is “What’s the 1 Thing You Wish You Had Known before Publishing Your Blog (Optional Tutorial) or Your Favorite Social Network and Why/Tips”. I chose the first topic.
In case you’ve been off in la la land all week, then let’s recap!
First & foremost…
ENTER My GIVEAWAY for $100 by reading Dear Readers of Rx Fitness Lady
The Attain & Maintain – Healthy Weight Loss Principles for Life Campaign will be kicking off in June
I ranted about why Responsible Pharmacists Recycle
I made my first video with a June Promo for PFL
Yesterday, I finally had my SITS Feature DAY! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR COMING BY AND SHOWING LOVE!!!
This subject was hard to choose for me. I thought about talking about Facebook, attending link parties, the value of a blog mentor, and blog sponsor programs.
However, when I was planning away for Rx Fitness Lady I never came across any post on time management in blogging. If anyone out there in PFL is reading this and wants to start a blog here’s one piece of advice for you!
NOBODY TOLD ME
How much time it would take to form relationships with other bloggers. Building these relationships are important primarily because you can count on your blog friends to respond to your posts. Even though, we know people are viewing our blogs, we rely on feedback for motivation to keep going. It’s also a discussion board, so we love having people to talk to. Now, that is the selfish reason! Undoubtedly, you will begin to have real feelings of friendship for your blog friends as you read their blogs and chat with them on social networks. It’s a beautiful thing, I tell you….ok, off that mushy box 🙂 !
How to get these people over to your blog is a whole other post. I touched a little bit on it in 24 Reasons You Don’t Have Comments on Your Blog. Today, my sole focus is on time management. If you don’t have time to engage other blogs, you probably shouldn’t publish a personal blog with hopes of getting responses from the blog community.
THE ONE THING I WOULD HAVE DONE DIFFERENTLY
Is to make the friends before I hit publish!
I would have set up my nice little pretty gravatar, made a list of bloggers I wanted to be friends with, commented my butt off on their blogs & engaged them across social media platforms while I didn’t have to worry about my own blog, and made them love me, lol 🙂 !
OTHER TIPS
- Wake up 30 minutes earlier and/or stay up 30 minutes later to read and comment on blogs, chat on social media, & schedule post for the day
- Set everything up to post automatic to social networks from the beginning (Yes Facebook buries third party post) but at least it’s out there. You can remember to share it again later
- Before you ever publish your first post, draft like 30 post completely that ARE NOT time sensitive for when you are in a tough spot and don’t have time to write a post (I did like 10 and they are LONG GONE, lol)
Examples of types of posts that aren’t time sensitive, just to make sure that was clear…
Tips for Group Fitness Instructors
20 Things to do for Girl’s Night Out
What You Should Know About Rx Fitness Lady
Beat Insomnia with 15 Lifestyle Changes
Got that! Not My Mother Took My BODYCOMBAT Class, ya know…cause that just happened.
That’s all I have for a Saturday!
Oh did you peep how I just gave you stuff to read in case you’re bored today or a new reader 🙂 !!!
Cheers to blogging!
Rx Fitness Lady wants to know…
- How do you manage your time blogging?
- If you are interested in starting a blog, what questions do you have?
***BLOGGERS PARTICIPATING IN THIS MINI BLOG CHALLENGE PARTY – Leave your links in the link up below, choose a pretty picture for your thumbnail, and please remember to HOP AROUND THIS WEEK (at least 1 new connection a day) to show some love to other bloggers & make new friends!***
Don’t forget to hashtag #MBC when you leave a comment so the blogger knows you are participating in this Mini Blog Challenge & they will visit you back!
Rx Fitness Lady
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100% agree!!! I had no idea how much time I was going to end up spending on not only my blog but the whole blogging thing when I started last fall!!! And, like you, I wish I would have done more before I started my own blog. I used to read blogs but I never commented – I didn’t realize how important comments were when I wasn’t blogging (duh!!)!!
The time issue is part of why I still haven’t done many link-ups – hopefully next time!!!! I’ve enjoyed your week of link-up blogs!!!
Kim recently posted…Happy Anniversary to the Love of my Life!!!!
YES!!! I would read to and didn’t really get the commenting thing. Thanks so much for participating by reading and commenting. It was fun.
Man! You hit the nail on it’s head. It takes A LOT of time. I can’t imagine if I were to delve completely IN. I think I would have to make money doing it. I totally agree with connecting before starting a blog. I read quite a few, but like Kim, I never commented. There so much that I want to do both in and out of blogging. Prioritizing and time management seems to be the only way to have at it. Great post Joi.
Hope recently posted…Tweet -Tweet. So sweet.
Me too Hope! There’s a lot of stuff on my blog to do list. I’m hoping to do some of them for my birthday. Only so much time in a day though, so we just have to do what we do. Blogging everyday last week showed me that you can easily get behind and backed up. I won’t diss the huge bloggers anymore 🙂
Joi, You are so right blogging takes a lot of time, this week has been a reminder 🙂 I really enjoy it but I haven’t quite nailed the time management side of things. What I’d love to have is a day of writing so that I have a stash of posts ready, rather than that feeling of oh my gosh I need to get this post out 🙁 Connecting is key and I’m up and down depending on time but I’m trying. Thanks for some more valuable insight.
Fitnessbuster supporting you in improving your fitness and nutrition.
Gillian recently posted…My Favourite Social Media App – Fitness & Nutrition
OKAY, last week was no joke!!! I have a new appreciation for bloggers who blog everyday.
Joi you are sooo right. How ironic that we would love to add blogging to our already busy lives.
Veronica @My Finessed Life recently posted…WHAT I WISHED I KNEW BEFORE I STARTED BLOGGING
Amen Veronica! What were we thinking, lol. I love it though!
Blogging is a full time job. If I had one I would not be blogging but it keeps me busy as soon as I find a real job blogging will be no more. I schedule everything and I am on a strict time schedule with the way I blog if I get off my schedule I am doomed.
Yes, I was doomed last week scheduling my own party during my work week. Not sure how I mixed the weeks up, lol. I am working on scheduling more, especially on FB.
Yes, it is work. Full-time. But I really enjoy it. I can appreciate bloggers like you with busy lives that post a few times a week and hold true to that. Not everyone can post 5 to 7 days a week and be effective at it. I think that leads to poor content and a frustrated blogger.
And while I’m on my soapbox, I just want to put it out there…I understand a blogger who can not reply to every comment. I wear many hats too. But what makes me see red is bloggers with several hundred readers a day that do not reply to comments at all! Or reply to 2 or 3 when there are 50 or more on the post. I followed two blogs that were hugely popular but got so turned off by what I consider to be disrespect in that regard. I may even be able to stretch my mind into thinking they e-mail their commenters. However, I never received an e-mail and I commented on several of their posts.
Your tips are fantastic regarding planning posts. I need to start scheduling and creating timeless posts.
Kimberly H. Smith recently posted…We’re All In This Together
Thanks Kim! I tried to set up a schedule that I could hold true to. I am with you on the large bloggers. My blog is set up that first time commenters have to be moderated so I will always respond to a first time commenter. I don’t get why at least they don’t do that.
Time blogging is one of the hardest! Especially keeping up with other blogs and social media. I use my lunch time at work to get as much social media in as I can (when I have time to take a lunch), use HootSuite every morning to schedule all my tweets (make sure they aren’t just tweets of your posts), and do as much of my blogging for the week as possible on Sunday. Depending on how inspired I am I might get through the entire week or I might just get a few days in.
Carli recently posted…Your Blog Is A Valuable Resource #MBC
I love hoot suite but cant figure how to get my links to post on there. I need to sit down and just do it. It takes so much time, but I am using the FB scheduler better now.
Are you using an app on your I-phone (I think that’s what you use) or on your computer?
I love hoot suite on my phone (Droid Razr) so much better because it makes it so much easier.
Carli recently posted…Carb is Not a Four Letter Word
I actually got it to work yesterday finally. I’m not sure what I was doing before Carli. Thank you for replying.
Blogging is so time consuming if you want to do it right. My pet peeve is that people feel some kind of way if you don’t respond to comments. For someone with children, a husband and a home I find it so difficult at times to do this. I end up making time that could be spent with my family or doing other things because that is some sort of standard. I know who reads and I try to connect on some level of SM but it gets really hard. I always try to respond to new readers but geesh!!
Blogging is like a never ending cycle, but I love it and will continue until I can’t balance both!
Mimi recently posted…I’m Vlogging– It’s Mimi’s World. A Day in the Life
I think new readers is key. People just want to be acknowledged. I don’t have a husband and family to attend to so I can’t comment on that. I would imagine my priorities would align up with yours when that time comes. One thing I will say. I read your post where you flat out stated that your time was limited and that you couldn’t be hopping all over the blogosphere like that right now. I respect that and continue to tune in. Some people are just rude and I delete them with the quickness because I don’t have time to keep up with a million blogs…we all want a visitor (blog friend) that shows love by commenting and sharing.
SN – looks like we were visiting each other at the same time Sunday morning 🙂
I am so with you on this one. I spent years lurking on so many blogs that when I got here I was truly surprised by the intensity of how much time is involved! its crazy! But its fun too. If I had to choose one thing that someone didn’t tell me would be that comments don’t mean everything–I LOVE comments but I didn’t realize that some blogs without comments get killer pageviews! I gotta figure out the balance!
Nellie recently posted…Friday Fitness Check In: When Life Conflicts with Workouts
I’m jumping in on your comment Nellie 🙂 I just realized that too. Some of the biggest, most popular blogs with a million readers have no comments. I guess they’re in a different stratosphere…
Hope recently posted…7 Blogs to follow
Yes girl and I think they are EXTREMELY niche. Whenever I drop a link in my pharmacists specific blogs that I follow (they are totally hilarious btw) I get like a couple of hundred page views from their readers. Most of them only post like once every 2 weeks, a month, and the top dog hasn’t posted since like September I think. It’s crazy!
That was a lot of info! I am going to have to read it again and take notes. I definitely need to work on drafting posts and shelving them for later. I find myself scrambling at times to put posts up.
Karen recently posted…Style Profile::Jessica Herrin, CEO of Stella & Dot
Me too, I want to take a few days away from blogging just to draft a handful. They are lifesavers in crunch time. I really like keeping my schedule and I don’t want to post just any old thing.
I’m with you…Where was this advice when I started blogging? I had no idea. Commenting/building relationships really does time time, as we must nurture these friendships. Sometimes I have to pull back and make sure my priorities are straight; I can’t be in front of the computer all the time and, meanwhile, my children are vying for my attention. They are my first priority. For me, I have to walk a line of giving myself some “Meredith Time” and being mentally present for the kiddos…After all, they are only young for so long. I think every blogger struggles with the time crunch, though.
XOXO,
Meredith
Meredith recently posted…An Update From Oklahoma
Yes of course Meredith, the kiddos would be my top priority as well if I had any. Your posting schedule seems to be more manageable than what the rest of us are doing. I’d try to work my way to twice a week once I was married and started having children.
Hey Joi! I agree with everyone! Blogging.can.be.very.time.consuming! But I guess you get out of it what you put in! When I started blogging…I knew absolutely NO blogs or bloggers…IKR! But, I visited, developed a rapport and showed support for other bloggers and it didn’t hurt to join communities like the SITs Girls! 🙂 So true…I too love the connections I’ve made with my blogging friends…and I have real feelings of friendship with you too Joi! Lol 😀 One day I hope to meet each and every one of you guys in person! Thanks for your great tips lady! Hope you had a wonderful holiday my friend!
Michell recently posted…Michell’s Weekly Pearl
Yes, you get out of it what you put in it if you do the right things. I hate seeing people wasting time blogging everyday with zero comments. I want to scream at them….GET OFF YOUR BLOG and go make some friends. It takes additional time after putting the work together. You have to promote. I can’t wait to meet!
So true..my husband jokes that when I tell him I need about 30 minutes to blog, he’ll set his watch for two hours of not letting the kids jump on me. And it’s longer than that! Man I went years without goals and plans and a community. I just talked to myself a lot, and my mom. It takes a lot of time to engage with other bloggers, but at least it’s enjoyable time. I often do wake up a half hour earlier than everyone else to start right in on SITS!
Tamara recently posted…A Bliss of Another Kind.
LOL, I’m dying at the husband setting the clock for 2 hours. 30 minute…yeah right, lol!
I gave a lot of thought to blogging prior to diving in. Problem is I was asking the wrong friggin’ questions. And you are a lucky one because it takes me forever to plan a post – 30 minutes won’t get me anywhere. Distractions kill time management.
Andrea recently posted…Life Is Like Stand-Up Improv – Can Someone Yell Scene Already?!?
Yes, people will try to distract but I think you just have to have a balance.
You are doing great. I didn’t have a blog friend in the world (well one) when I first started. So I went a whole year with only one person commenting. But I also didn’t visit blogs because I didn’t know where to find them. LOL. It’s a learning process isn’t it.
Kenya G. Johnson recently posted…What is Zip Lining?
It is a learning curve, I tell you there are constant thrills and disappointments and you have to learn how to deal with and check all of it. Thanks Kenya!
Absolutely agree on all counts here!!
I started so small and it was easy to stay connected and keep up with all my “blends” and their blogs. But then I started following a zillion people on Twitter and it seems so hard to keep up!
I make sure to stay engaged with my closest buddies and try to keep things interesting for the newcomers, but yes, absolutely a lot of time needs to be invested to stay successful!
jennifer recently posted…Race Recap: Go Dirty Girl Mud Run – Detroit
I try my best to keep my blogs to a minimum, but I’m always discovering awesome people!