I started my blog because I had spent 2 days listening to webinars for designers on-line. One of them was about blogging. The speaker said every designer should have a blog. It’s the live version of your website and gives people a sense of your personality at the same time. It happened to be Halloween when I wrote my first post and 2 years ago it landed on a Friday night. I wrote 7 posts that weekend and couldn’t sleep I was so full of ideas on what to write next.
Here are the biggest lessons I have learned in the past two years and exactly 450 posts later:
1. Pick a Name that resonates with your Brand
As a design blogger, I learned that technically your blog should be the same as your name (if that’s what your business name is). Better for branding, etc. And I wouldn’t have it any other way now. Colour me Happy is me (which is why I chose it) and the right colours make every one happy, so it fits with my ‘brand’. When choosing your blog name a good test on whether it’s the right name for you is if you still like it when you say “Hi it’s [your name]from [your blog name] calling”.
2. DIY, Luxury Designer or Somewhere in Between
If you look closely, many of the number one blogs are Do-it-Yourself, why? Because unless you have unlimited discretionary income to decorate, even high end, million dollar homes have many empty rooms to fill without the high-end budgets to go with it. Martha Stewart got rich teaching us all how to do it ourselves. So depending on which clients you want to attract, you may decide to either increase or limit the amount of DIY you present on your blog.
3. Write Consistently
I have averaged one post every second day for the past two years (approximately 16 per month). Usually I’m in bed by 9:30 pm (hey I’m a morning person) and there are many nights around 8:00 pm where I would love nothing more than to relax in front of a movie but if my post is more than 2 days old I go up to my office where I might be until midnight writing the next post. The reason everyone says you need to post 3-4 times a week is that eventually when people start searching for information in your area of expertise, they are bound to hit a post you’ve written and find you! That’s hard to do if you only post once a week.
4. Write like you talk
Before I started blogging I was absolutely convinced that I was not a writer. If I had to send out a professional letter it would take me forever and I would usually get it proofread by someone else. And it was probably better that I didn't have any preconceived notions about being a writer because I just started writing like I talk and along the way I discovered that it’s the way you’re supposed to do it anyway.
5. Find an Editor
I also have an editor (my best friend). When I write posts that I think are more reactive or controversial I read them to her. Many times she has said “That’s not colour me happy, nope don’t post that, or say it this way instead.” She makes sure my writing voice stays consistent with who I am and what I stand for on my blog.
6. Tell Stories
I have always been a good storyteller. The people closest to me might have called me a drama queen in my younger days because I always had a new drama to share. My mom still says “Oh good, you’re here, tell us the latest, now we’ll be entertained”. It’s the stories you share from your life and your business that help your readers relate to you as another human being instead of words on a computer screen.
If you think you’re boring then read this post; “If you’re boring, it’s because you’re scared and you’re hiding your best stuff. Getting un-scared is the hardest thing you’ll ever do, but since you need to do it anyway in order to have a great life, you might as well get started now.” Sonia Simone
7. Teach us Something
You are either entertaining your readers or teaching them something. If your blog is just a serious of posts promoting your business no one will read it. Some bloggers worry that if they give away all their ideas then no one will hire them. Angie from You Look Fab gives it ALL away. Yet I still hired her to shop with me because I was clear, reading her blog that she knows fashion and I knew I would still make mistakes shopping on my own. When people read your blog, what do they learn? Are they clear about your area of expertise?
8. Be Happy
Unless you’re blogging for the sheer fun of it (not for your business) be positive and upbeat. No one will hire you otherwise. Enough said :)
9. Be Authentic
I learned the most about being authentic from reading Penelope Trunk’s blog. She has the most brilliant way of taking ordinary farm life and turning it into a lesson in communicating, risk taking or time management. And it’s interesting because she’s just talking about her life. But the real stuff that most of us would be scared to death to ever post on a blog--whenever she posts it--I love her just a little bit more and wish she lived closer so that we could be friends. And she has almost 60,000 subscribers. When I read this post on Marketing Lessons from Esther Williams on her blog, it inspired a similar post that I wrote called Design Lessons from Elizabeth Stevenson. So take half a day and read her blog, trust me you’ll learn something.
I’m just amazed that it’s been two years already! My life is so much richer now because of my blog and the community that comes with it! What are the best lessons you’ve learned about blogging?
If you would like your home to fill you with happiness every time you walk in, contact me for on-line or in-person decorating and colour.
Related posts:
10 things Every Blogger should Know
10 Tips that will take your Home/Design Blog to the next Level
6 Ways I’ve Grown through Writing a Blog
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