With the 4th of July coming up tomorrow, I was struggling to come up with a post for the 4th of July. I considered writing about economic freedom, but it seemed too heavy of a topic. I also considered writing about fun things millennials could do on the 4th of July weekend, but it seemed like a post that should have been published earlier.
I decided for today I would write about what I’ve learned the past 3 years of blogging. Young Adult Money turned 3 on July 1st. I’ve been blogging for much longer than that as I explained in my post 5 of My Small Business and Website Failures.
3 years is a long time to be consistently writing, editing, and managing a single blog. It’s taken up a significant amount of my free time and has definitely been a sacrifice.
Here are 4 lessons I’ve learned from my 3 years of blogging.
Plan ahead, but get started sooner rather than later
Young Adult Money wasn’t my first blog, and none of my previous blogs are still active. While my previous blogs were failures, I learned a ton from working on those blogs. Young Adult Money would not be what it is today if it wasn’t for those learning experiences.
I spent a year planning and thinking about Young Adult Money before finally launching the site. Virtually any blogger who has a “successful” site will tell you that they wished they had started earlier. It’s hard to disagree with this advice. After all, the sooner you start the sooner your site gets established, the older your site becomes in the various online indexes, and the sooner you can make money.
I’ve gone through the same phase with a second website I plan on starting. I simply can’t allow myself to start the site, though, until I have Young Adult Money in a better spot. There are many things that can be improved on the site and I need to hire more writers (if you’re interested check this out for details). But at the same time the sooner I launch the second site the sooner it can start making money.
Be prepared to sacrifice your free time
Over the last three years I’ve sacrificed a significant amount of my free time to the site. After all, there is always something you can do to improve your site. The work of a blog or any content website is never done. There’s always one more post to write, one more interaction to make on social media, and so on.
Writing is hardly the only thing a blogger needs to worry about. Commenting on other blogs, connecting with other bloggers, negotiating and building relationships with advertisers, managing an editorial calendar, and researching and using affiliate programs are just a few things bloggers must do to be successful.
If you want to start a blog but are not prepared to sink a large portion of your free time into the site I would recommend not starting one. You also should be prepared to not make a dime off your blog for 6-12 months. If you stick with it, though, there will eventually be a payoff; there are many ways to make money blogging.
Realize you will need to prioritize
As a blogger there is nothing more important than being able to prioritize. As I said, there is always something “more” you can do to improve your blog. Some of these activities are less important than other activities, and you need to constantly prioritize what you should do first.
I strongly believe that writing and publishing good content should be the #1 priority of every blog. After all, content is the bedrock of a blog’s business plan. Even if every other area of your site needs improvement, you should only focus on improving those other aspects of your site if you have content written and scheduled.
I also think that commenting on other blogs is essential. With that being said, commenting on 100 blogs a day isn’t sustainable. About a year ago I switched to only commenting on blogs that comment on my site. Keep in mind I had 2 years under my belt of actively going to other blogs and commenting on their sites, so I had the luxury of choosing that option. Newer blogs won’t be able to take this approach.
Focusing on the big drivers of revenue is important, too. While I would love to focus on affiliate programs, I currently make paid content a priority. There is a lot of money in partnering with brands and integrating advertorial/paid content/mentions into your blog.
Priorities will vary by blog, but I think content will always be #1. Monetization will be a close second because without monetization a blog will likely not exist in the near future.
Be okay with “coasting” at times
While I personally believe Young Adult Money has consistently cranked out high quality content the past year, there definitely has been some “coasting” going on. It primarily comes down to my time and capacity. I’ve been busy with, among other things, a new job that has required more time/responsibility than my previous job, taking the GMAT and applying to grad school, planning and working on house projects, making time to work out, and exploring other side hustle and business opportunities.
Despite “coasting” or going into “maintenance mode,” the site has consistently provided me with income each month. In my opinion this is an accomplishment in itself considering the fact I have not implemented some much needed revenue-driving activities such as integrating affiliate links, built my email subscription list, or redesigned my theme.
I think every blogger struggles with the fact that “life happens” sometimes and there is a limited amount of time that you can contribute to your blog. With that being said, I think it’s also important to realize that keeping your blog active can be the difference between your blog becoming another fatality and potentially a large payday when you put your blog up for sale. The simple fact your blog is active puts you ahead of the hundreds of millions of sites that have gone silent
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Those are just a few of the lessons I’ve learned from 3 years of blogging. It’s been quite a journey and I’m excited for the next 3 years!
What have you learned from blogging? If you don’t blog, do you desire to blog? Why or why not?
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I’ve actually learned a lot about personal finance, just from starting my blog. Commenting on other blogs meant that I read about things like financial independence and freelancing. I’ve also been forced to learn about Twitter, Instagram, and Pintetest (which I didn’t have personal accounts on).
I agree completely with all three of your points. It is a bit ironic though that blogging requires being willing to sacrifice a huge chunk of your time as well as having a healthy balance of coasting. Committing the time and energy helps you keep your blog relevant, but the coasting definitely helps prevent burn out.
Happy anniversary. I tried to get a second site up and running, and it’s incredibly hard to juggle multiple sites at once and a F/T job.
Happy blogiversary! I’ve learned that blogging is a commitment you have to build into your schedule. It’s definitely a way to earn passive income.
Happy blogiversary!!!! I can’t believe it’s been 3 years!! Blogging is definitely more of a time commitment than I ever thought it would be, but the great thing about it is that the more time you put into it, the better your results.
This is one of my favorite posts you’ve ever written!
“If you want to start a blog but are not prepared to sink a large portion of your free time into the site I would recommend not starting one” That is so true. I am almost at 3 years as well, and I know I could be making lots more money if I had the time to devote to learning more blogging skills, but I am very happy with how the site has been consistently publishing content and bringing in some income for over 2 years now. I certainly don’t do as much commenting or guest posting as I did in the beginning just for lack of time. You do have to devote your efforts to what drives income and keeps you relevant. It’s always a work in progress. Congrats on 3 years!
Eyesonthedollar Wow, thanks Kim! That means a lot coming from you. I think you and I are in a similar spot where we are happy with where the sites are at but know that they could go much farther. Lack of time is typically the culprit for most bloggers, I think.
blonde_finance Thanks Shannon! I do like the fact that blogs are closely linked to how much time you commit to them. If you want your blog to go to the “next level” you need to put in the time and effort to do that. With that being said, there is a lot of value in simply keeping a blog active.
houseoftre Thanks! It definitely takes some sacrifice, and not just from you but from others in your life. If my wife wasn’t as supportive of the blog as she is it would make it much more difficult to justify the hours I put into it.
DebtDiscipline I’ve planned a second site for quite some time now (even have a huge spreadsheet with a bunch of tabs related to various plans for the site). I decided for now it’s more important for me to get Young Adult Money to a point where it’s bringing in enough money for me to outsource everything (if needed/desired). THEN I can start my next site.
moderatemuse If you don’t coast at times I think burnout is inevitable. Unless you are making tons of money from your blog, it’s impossible to outsource everything and still make a decent profit. That means coasting is the best option.
indebtedmom It’s interesting to me how many bloggers did not have social media accounts on certain sites prior to blogging. I have personal accounts on all the sites and especially Twitter I find it interesting how few have their own personal accounts and use their business account as a personal one.
Three years for a single blog is incredible! I’ve been blogging on and off for several years, but I’ve never sustained my interest in a single blog topic for very long (actual this personal finance blog is my second longest at a little over four months!).
If I end up sustaining this blog, monetization won’t be my second priority though. Design will be the next priority. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve opened the CSS, started messing around, and then said, “I would really rather write something instead.”
Hannah UnplannedFinance Yeah I have been blogging off and on for about 7 years now. I really went “all in” with Young Adult Money and it’s paid off. My priorities now are improving the “infrastructure” of the blog such as the design, newsletter, bringing on more writers, etc.
I remember having an idea for a website
that involves lots of complex, fancy tools, and spent about 2 years playing
around with the idea before I realised I’d never actually be able to make it
work. Eventually, I came across the idea of starting a blog instead, based on
some of the ideas for my original site. I still felt reluctant to take the leap
at the time and actually put something not completely ‘polished and perfect’
out into the world. But I still absolutely wish I had started sooner! In saying
that, I think that initial playing around with ideas for a while helped me
clarify what I wanted my site to be all about.
It’s incredible how much time it can
take, but I’ve found because I enjoy it so much, I find ways to make time that
I never would have otherwise – writing on the train on the way to work, getting
up early etc. Prioritising has definitely become more important too as I try
and add more resources and content to the site. Visiting and commenting on other
blogs is definitely something I try to do and also enjoy, but find it really
tricky to balance that when time is so limited!
Congrats on 3 years DC, and appreciate
you sharing your wisdom with us less-experienced bloggers!
Cheers,
Jason
Congratulations on 3 years of blogging! While I’ve kind of transitioned away from blogging and into freelancing more, blogging has taught me so many things. Prioritizing is definitely a must – blogging involves a never-ending to-do list. There are always going to be new things to implement with themes, plugins, and making the site more user-friendly, but content is the most valuable thing. Ultimately, you have to figure out whether you want your blog to be a business or a hobby. How you choose to run it is going to influence a lot of your decisions.
Congrats on three years of blogging, DC! That is an most excellent milestone. I’m at two and a half years and I’ve definitely made some of those mistakes you mentioned.
I like your tips on prioritizing as the amount of stuff to be done is staggering. I’ve been reading this book called the E myth Revisted: Why most small businesses fail and what you can do about it. It’s been really great with helping me understand how to implement systems with running my businesses. You should check it out!
Jason@Islands of Investing Thanks Jason! And thanks for sharing your story, Jason! I think playing around with ideas is a great way to approach blogging. It can help you avoid starting a blog that ends up not being much fun but that you feel you have to continue with simply because you already put so much time into it. I know I’ve been much more careful about taking on new projects these days out of fear of diving into something and not being able to get out.
I’m the same way with my time. I have found little pockets of time to blog over the past three years when most people wouldn’t even consider it. I’ve done early mornings before work, during lunch, at night, while I’m making dinner or some other task that has a few free minutes..virtually whenever I can.
Erin @ Journey to Saving Great point, Erin. I think a lot of people who blog as a hobby end up frustrated because they don’t make much money on it but think they should. I think there are a few “breaking points” where you are forced to decide “hobby vs. business.” Great point about content being the most important thing. I strongly believe this and have always prioritized content first above any other “to dos” for my blog.
Lindsey at Sense Thanks Lindsey! That sounds like a great book and I’ll have to add it to the list. There is so much that goes into and impacts small businesses that sometimes it can be difficult to decipher what causes them to thrive or fail.
Congrats on 3 years! I agree, the work required to maintain a blog is never done. When I know I’ve reached my capacity for the day, I try to just settle and continue the rest of my tasks another day. If I tried to do everything at once, I’d simply lose it so I set small goals to accomplish over time.
Chonce Yeah it’s pretty crazy how you could always do “a little more” to improve your site. I am a big fan of setting small, achievable goals. Of course it all starts with setting big goals and from there breaking them down into those smaller tasks.
My goal is to coast less. Between the kids and a job and whatever other excuses I like to use, prioritization is definitely key. I think it’s great what you’ve done. I’d love to pick your brain sometime.
Great tips for other bloggers out there, DC! Congratulations on reaching 3 years, what an awesome milestone :) I’m at 6 months today actually, hope I’ll be able to say 3 years down the road too!
Mark@BareBudgetGuy That’s great, Mark! Everyone is at a different point in life and has different priorities. My solution for getting past “coasting” is outsourcing. The rest of my July posts will be written by my staff writers so I can focus on other priorities.
And yes, it would be great to meetup sometime!
Christina@EmbracingSimple Thanks Christina! You seem to have a good thing going and I would be surprised if you DIDN’T reach 3 years!
DC @ Young Adult Money Thanks, that means a lot coming from you! I am loving the process of building my blog right now so I definitely hope it continues.
Congrats on 3 years of blogging! I agree with everything you said in this post. You have to prioritize with your blog. If not it could go by the waste side. I try to have a few articles in my drafts to help me out with coasting. So far that’s been working.
Jason @ The Butler Journal Thanks Jason! In my perfect world I have a few articles ready to go as well. It hasn’t quite been that way since studying and taking the GMAT, but I outsourced the rest of the posts for July. I hopefully can get back to it in August.
Christina@EmbracingSimple DC @ Young Adult Money No problem! It seems like you are committed and it obviously is a priority to you, so I don’t see why you would stop.
A life consists of failures and success. Is YAM your 3rd blog and 3rd business? Or did you have more attempts creating your own business?
I certainly agree with sacrificing your free time. I thought it’s nonsense when I was running my first business… and as you can imagine I failed – lesson has been learnt.
Now I divide my time between full-time job (1), the family (3), gym (4) and my blog (2)… I have even reduced my sleeping time to 7 hours – I tried 5h and 6h but it doesn’t work for longer distance.
It is a testament to your tenacity and work ethic to reach the 3 year milestone. You are spot on with your comments about spreading your effort across various blogging activities. Indeed, there is always more to be done. One more person to reach out to, one more comment to leave, one more thing to fix on the site.
The GMAT is one of the most difficult exams in my opinion. Keep in mind I’ve taken and passed the CPA Exam so I don’t say that lightly. But anyone who can blog consistently blog for 3 years and then monetize it successfully can surely nail the GMAT.