
It’s Friday 23rd May 2020 and the truth is, I’m bored. Bored of lockdown, bored of being home alone every day whilst my key worker husband does his bit for the NHS, and bored of not having a hobby to do alongside my day job of Primary School teaching.
I love to write. It relaxes me, allows me to concentrate on a subject I’m interested in and just fills my soul with cosy feels. So I decided there and then to reboot my little blog that I pathetically began in 2019 and, I’ll admit, gave up on. My job came first and I found myself spending evenings watching Netflix and scrolling aimlessly through social media, watching random animal videos (although the raccoon ones are super cute), rather than doing something productive that I was passionate about.
I totally get that gaining a following on any blog requires a huge amount of effort, commitment and time. Now I know that if I manage my free time well, I can give this blog all I’ve got. However, when it comes to understanding the dos and don’ts of blogging, well I’m a little clueless to be honest. There are so many blogging pages from experts on how to blog successfully, usually containing ’25 top tips’. However, I find this pretty overwhelming to read and they generally fill me with panic – WHAT?! WHAT DOES ALL THIS STUFF MEAN?! WHAT IS A DA?! WHAT IS A WEB HOST?! SEO?! IS THAT A BRAND?! It just gets a bit too much at this early stage of my blogging life. I just want to start off simple and try to learn something new each day.
So what I wanted to create was a blog post, written by a newbie blogger, FOR newbie bloggers, with helpful tidbits of advice from both new and established bloggers who know what they’re doing, and do it well. So that, my friends, is what I’ve done! I compiled the advice into categories which has enabled me to create a list of 5 Top Tips that can help us new bloggers on our way, and are certainly working well for me so far.
I would like to say a HUGE thank you to the amazing people who gave me their advice, I got so much information that I just couldn’t include it all (else this blog post would take a couple of days to get through), but I’ve chosen what I thought was a good selection! Please support those bloggers I’ve included via the links I’ve attached to this post. Whether they’ve been blogging for ages or not very long at all, they all deserve your support!
1. Networking

@LoraReedPalmer is a published Fantasy and Sci-Fi author who has recently decided to start her own blog. She told me this:
I think the advice of networking, consistency and creating value for others is fantastic.
@LoraReedPalmer
Networking is something that I’m trying to do more of. I wouldn’t have received all of the amazing support I have so far without networking loads with other bloggers! It’s not just about commenting back when others comment on your latest blog post, but sharing their links, promoting their Instagram accounts etc. We have to support each other to help us grow, too. I would like to get other bloggers involved on my blog page more, through hosting ‘guest blogger’ events, in which I can publish the work of other amazing writers on my website. I am also currently exploring getting my writing onto other blogger’s websites, which is great fun!
See Lora’s website here!
2. Be yourself

Two of my favourite pieces of advice I received were from Vignesh Bhatt (@thenomadguy) and A Bloke’s Eye View (@ablokeseyeview) and I think this is something that every single blogger should remember. I fall into the pit time and time again of, ‘Why would anyone read my posts when there are so many other great bloggers out there with thousands of followers?’ This is a horrible place to be in and it’s totally natural when you’re surrounded by social media feeds showcasing everyone else’s amazing achievements. But you just gotta remember,
BE YOU, just have belief in you and your words and keep writing consistently. Thatβs all one has to do.
@thenomadguy
…Number 1 is definitely let yourself shine through your blog. 100% let your personality into your writing/creating and always be yourself.
@ablokeseyeview
Never forget to be yourself, guys. This is what makes your writing unique. Don’t try to be exactly like another blogger, choose something you love, create something new and go for it!
See Vignesh’s Twitter page here and A Bloke’s Eye View’s website here!
3. Be committed and consistent

Something else that I know is key to running a successful blog is being committed and patient, not expecting to gain thousands of followers and subscribers overnight. It takes a lot of hard work and often years to create something successful. Don’t give up like I did at first! This piece of advice from @malkasian_david was really helpful,
With blogging, I think there needs to be dedication, genuineness, and patience.
@malkasian_david
See David’s Twitter page here!
Planning is also a massive part of being committed to your blog, especially if you have a full time job too and might find it difficult to post regularly. @racheljanefoy96 had some awesome advice regarding this!
I found that creating a blogging schedule was useful, so planning blog posts in advance ready to be published whenever you like!
@racheljanefoy96
What better excuse to order a cute planner, post-it notes, scented gel-pens and hi-lighters do you need?! I love the idea of having blog posts on the back-burner too, to have ready at your disposal to publish! Great advice. See more from Rachel here!
This then made me think, what about old posts? Do you post them once and then that’s it?! All that work just for one post and a few retweets and reads?! No! Lucy @LucysWorks said:
I think for making a successful blog, you need to post often and republish old posts to attract different readers…once I did, my blog grew.
@LucysWorks
This is such an important piece of advice. Keep sharing that older content that you worked so hard on! See more from Lucy here!
4. Know your niche

Post consistently and focus on attracting your niche.
@rachtalksbiz
So this posed the question in my head: What is my niche? I really struggled with this. When my husband and I went out on a walk yesterday, this was all we talked about. What we decided was that, whatever you enjoy writing about, make that your niche. “BUT WHAT IF I ENJOY WRITING ABOUT LOADS OF DIFFERENT THINGS?!” I hear you cry. Well this is me, to be honest, I love beauty, home decor, clothes, animals and teaching, but don’t want to purely focus on any of those things on their own! So then my husband and I came to the very simple conclusion, my niche is … lifestyle! All of the things that I enjoy spending MY time doing, writing about and wanting to share, they are my unique lifestyle. Sorted.
Take a look at Rachel’s website here!
5. Don’t give up
I had a lovely DM chat with @ohyayitsmarina, who offered some amazing advice. She has achieved so much since she started her blog in 2016 (now over 811,000 page views – find it here.) She gave me some great ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’ for blogging and these two ‘don’ts’ (gee, that’s a lot of apostrophes) stuck with me:
Don’t give up, first and foremost…Don’t let any hate or negative comments get to you.
@ohyayitsmarina
This is just SO important in the first few months (and more!) as a new blogger. I drifted away from blogging once and I don’t want it to happen again. Just keep going at it and don’t worry if some people aren’t a fan of your work – you can’t please everyone, just write what makes you happy!
So there we have it.
This is by no means the definitive list of what makes the best blog in the world, I’ve not covered things like self-hosting or how to improve your website – I’m no way near this stage yet, I’m still learning! However what I hope it has provided you with, as a new blogger, is a little clarity, reassurance and some important advice to keep in mind. We all need that sometimes!
As I continue on my blogging journey, I aim to share with you my next steps – my latest has been buying a domain name, that is, using elizakatewrites.com instead of elizakatewrites.wordpress.com, which seems more professional and I hope will help to increase my DA score in the long run, which is essentially how high your website ranks – the higher the score, the more blog traffic. These are my next 3 steps I aim to take in June, to help the quality and success of my blog:
- Improve my website: research WordPress and how to use it most effectively, purchase a new theme and design a cleaner layout to my website.
- Research into affiliate marketing to see if my blog can make a few pennies
- Network further and promote the work of others to help increase my social media and blog following
If you are reading this and are an experienced blogger, please drop any helpful tips you have in the comments below!

Take care,
Eliza Kate
I love it! What a great read! Such inspiration ππ
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Thank you so much! π
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These are such great tips. Especially for me too since I am a newer blogger. I am trying not to give up because it can be discouraging to continue when you arenβt seeing results you want fast enough. But I know it just takes time. Thanks for sharing all these tips!
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Ah thank you so much, I’m glad they were helpful! I completely understand, it can be frustrating on those days where you don’t feel like you’re getting many views. But all we can do is work hard and we will get there! Enjoy the journey π
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Love this!! It’s true, sometimes it can get overwhelming with everyone’s own tips and intense terminologies. I just started my blog 3 weeks ago and I’m still learning, but I think these tips are great and I’ll be taking them with me π
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Thank you so much! Yes it’s really difficult isn’t it. Everyone works at a different pace though, just got to enjoy the journey π good luck!
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As a blogger I can definitely say that you provide quality content for your readers. Keep up the good work.
Following you!
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Thank you so much, you’re so kind!
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This is a great guide for beginner bloggers. It’s so easy to get all caught up in the technicalities of blogging, which makes it so easy to forget to get back to basics: being yourself, enjoying the process and taking it easy.
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Totally agree!
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These are some really helpful tips for new bloggers! Thank you for sharing
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Thank you for reading! I hope they’re reassuringπ
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Such a great post thank you so much for sharing, I have only been blogging a month so I really appreciate your tips and will be jotting them down:)
Moll x
https://mollslifestyle.com
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I’m glad it was helpful! I can be daunting as a new blogger so was really lovely to get advice from other people π x
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These tips are awesome and I know when you say that you hace drifted away from blogging once! I have done it too! Because i didn’t really understood at that time that it’s about committing to it! Glad now I do β¨
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Thank you so much! I hope it’s all going well for you π
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That was really Amazing!
I like how you keep your reader glued.
Would definitely love to work with you.
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Thank you so much! I’m really pleased you enjoyed reading it π will be sure to message you when I’m at the stage of featuring other bloggers’ work!
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I agree that it all becomes very overwhelming. Just when I learn something I realize I’m doing two others things “wrong”. I think it sounds like you are doing it for all the right reasons. Hope to still have my mind when quarantine is over.
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You’ve just got to take it day by day and try not to do too much all at once! Yes it’s easy to go a bit stir crazy, can’t wait for some normality! Take care!
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Thank you so much. With things opening up I have gotten out of the house! My new goal is to join the gym. My legs feel atrophyed for real. I can hardly walk, and know I have a lot of work to do.
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I was the same way when trying to find my “niche” I didn’t want to be tied down to one thing. I love talking about a lot of things! Love your blog!
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Yes I’m just the same! Thank you so much! π
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I’ve started writing my blogs just 4 months back and this post helps me a lot. When I started writing, I had no idea about SEO, branding, marketing etc. Now, I have started getting a hold of these things. Thank you for sharing the information!
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That’s great! It’s such a big learning process isn’t it. Thank you for reading!
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Hi! Thanks for the tips. Iβm a new blogger who writes about minimal living π check out my page if you would like?
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Loved thisπ
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Thank you! π₯°
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Great remindersπ«π€
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ππ₯°
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