Ashley on Blogging Part 1

I've had several people ask me about blogging. Is blogger better than Wordpress or weebly? How do you get pageviews? How do you get an original blog title?

I really like blogging. If you're wondering, I did have two blogs before this. The first was a private blog about five years ago, where I just documented the silly things that were going on. The next was two years ago, when I started a blog for my uncle who was serving a mission for our church. After several months, it fell through. Starting at about age 6 or 7 I figured out how to operate word and began typing out my stories, so I have always been familiar with computers. This blog idea began in March when I logged into my email and there was a blogger notice. My dad and I began brainstorming name ideas. If you're curious, I had terrible names....like The idiosyncraticess. :) I get it. There are dozens of blogs for clean teen reads. But from what I found, they were mostly by moms and not by middle schoolers. I thought people might like that. 

1. Names

My friend from pinkcupcakesblog.wordpress.com, asked for name ideas.  One of the suggestions I gave her was to pick something that people will remember. I don't think people will remember the idiosyn-whatever. The Book Shelph, with a ph, though is easier. 

Anything straightforward  will already be taken. Be creative, google blog name creators. There are dozens. The Book Shelph was my own idea :) if you're curious. Alliterations are fun, pick something catchy. Dont choose a title that has nothing to do with your content. Pink Cupcakes in Pink Heels is the perfect example of what you SHOULD do. It's a fashion/food blog, it's catchy, creative, and not cliche. The Fashionista, The Daily Post, Handmade, are all way overly used. Be creative and be unique!



2. Publicity/Pageviews 

I have just seen that this blog has reached over 1000 pageviews! Thanks so much! One of the major aspects that plays into getting views is being unique. If I come across another craft blog that just has the typical t shirt scarf and macaroni necklace, I won't be bookmarking it. Now if I see a blog that has DIY wax vases and ten ways to reuse old markers-- that's pretty unique. Also, creating multiple accounts for your blog increases the number of ways to get publicity. For example, The Book Shelph has Pinterest and Google Plus. Hopefully in the next year, Facebook. Many of my views come from Google Plus, Pinterest, and other blogs. If you are starting a blog and know of somebody who also has one, ask for them to recommend you! If you are starting one, I would be more than happy to write about you :). Another way to get pageviews is to write about interesting things. If your craft blog wants to post tie-dye t shirts or sequined hats-nobody will be interested. Both are way out of the DIY world. Posts like Daily Prompts, Poetry Contest, and Movies, T.V shows, All Clean! Oh my, get the most views. Email your family and friends to post about you, and stay active on your blog, and get creative!

Over the next week I will cover which blog website to use, customizing, writing on your blog, do's and dont's, links, and more. Please comment if you have a blogging topic you would like me cover.

Ashley