Now where do I go?

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Where to go next 1 2013

It’s been a year of blogging now and I’m am trying to figure out my next steps.  I was hoping I could ask my fellow bloggers for advice on what worked and what should be avoided.

Basically I would love to grow the blog where I could contribute income to our household.  What I don’t want to do is make it this crazy commercial enterprise.  I really enjoy the the community I find myself in.  I love getting to know people and hearing how they are doing.  I do not want to lose that.  I don’t like the blogs that lack warmth and personality.  I feel there isn’t any point when it gets like that.

So I feel like I’m at a crossroads on how to do this.  What have been your experiences with taking the next step.  What do you find really annoying and would turn away people?  What don’t you mind?  What would you like to see more of?

Any comments would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Virginia

33 thoughts on “Now where do I go?”

      • No goals as such. If anything I need a website. I’m loosing my patience with WP as less and less seems to load properly. Even reading others posts can be tough going. Don’t have the same prob with Blogger, hate to say it! I’ve never liked it. Especially if there are lots of ads – really puts me off.

      • I wonder why you have having so much difficulty. That would drive me nuts. I don’t mind ads at the bottom or the side. I don’t like sites that are overwhelmed with the ads. I want to be able to see the content. My biggest concern is I do a website or a custom domain, how do I keep my followers?

    • Thank you so much! I would like at some point to make the theme my own with my own pics and design. That will probably be the next step. I definitely want to stay down to earth with this though. That’s key.

  5. I know a couple of talented bloggers who turned pro (I don’t know the term) in less than a year with barely 70 recipes. They have to work so hard, many hours, lots and lots of giveaways, facebook, twiter, pintrest, tumblr and you name it… and a year later, they don’t even have a third of their previous readership. Their Alexa Ranking is nothing much to write home about. According to one of them, you need at least 2000~3000 views per day to make 2 dollars a day (after cost). Which means, you do not make money from the banner ads. Their goal is to be part of an ad network which opens doors to working with brands/companies. This is where you could potentially make some money. (Whatever that means.)
    Personally, I am not bothered by the flashing advertisements if the blog has quality material to offer. Drop by drop an ocean is made.
    My goal is to have at least 200 original published recipes and build more e-mail followers before taking the next step.
    My 2 cents worth!

    • I had to look up what Alexa Ranking is! You bring up a good point. I think some blogs are so focused on the bottom line they lose their message and people leave. I’d rather put most of the effort into keeping my blog high quality then the rest of the effort promoting and getting the word out. It boils down to if you don’t have a good product no one will buy, so to speak.

      Interesting info about how many views (I obviously need to work on that!) and whether the ads are worth it.

      I’m on a learning curve and I am trying not to do it all at once otherwise it will go all pear shaped. And I don’t want to lose my point of view that I have now.

      Thank you for the advice. 🙂

  7. I know that feeling, a lot of good bloggers face that dilemma one time or another. You do have a good blog and it can generate revenue. If you have heard about google adsense (and if haven’t used it), give it a try. You will have a lot of options and full control over the ads. There is also an affiliate program by amazon.com. Hope that helps 🙂

  8. It’s a very good question and although I can’t help you with the response Fae seems to have a lot of good info! I have to say I totally ignore all the ads on blogs, they don’t even register with me so I wouldn’t stop reading a blog because of them unless they made it difficult to read the content.

  9. My concern out here in the country is that blogs that have a lot of advertising content take FOREVER to load, and i simply don’t have that kind of time. Many people have told me to put in a donation button but the moment i start working for those tips, I lose my freshness. So far i have been able to get away with being who i am, short and sweet. If I was thinking about making money I would change. I do know what you mean aboout not contributing to the household finances. I say: I don’t make any money but I sure Save a lot! have a lovely day.. c

    • Good point on how long it would take to load. That drives me crazy! Again I would want to keep the same tone I have now so I’m searching for a balance. You could set your flash settings to not run unless you click on it. That will help you load pages faster. There are some sites absolutely loaded with video, flashing ads, etc. but they won’t load unless you click so you just get the main content you want on the page you visit.

  10. I wish I had advice to give but I’ve no experience whatsoever in this area. I’ve felt that the moment I go “pro”, blogging becomes a job and I don’t want that. I’ve read the comments, though, and people have offered some good suggestions. I’m sure more will follow. Whatever you decide, good luck!

    • Everyone has been really kind with their advice. 🙂 I suppose if this became a “job” I would still enjoy it because of all the fun people to interact with and it’s a creative outlet. Who knows where this will go? Right now I am enjoying the journey. 🙂

  11. I would like to offer my advice for what it’s worth. I have found a lot of really good advice on “Copyblogger.” I haven’t paid for any seminars yet, just read the articles that are for free. I have heard that the revenue you get for ads is really not all that exciting. And other friends with websites and blogs have confirmed this with me. They tell me many years ago you could in fact receive quite a bit of money from ads, but that is no more. I plan on writing e-books about various gardening things and because I love comedy and feel I have a talent for that, I plan on creating a comedy blog with books there also. I love Erma Bombeck, Dave Barry etc.
    I am glad you asked this question – I’ve wondered about this, too.

  12. An interesting dilemma, one that I’m not bothering with so can’t give much advice. I will just say that the blogs where the human is present, if you know what I mean, are the ones I’ve kept on reading. I don’t like ads either. I do love your blog and others where I’m beginning o get to know bloggers as friends. Good luck with the project, there does seem to be some good advice in the other comments. 🙂

    • A good way of putting it, keeping the human present. I don’t want to become a blog where I’m “talking at” others. I like the back and forth. There are blogs out there where you leave comments and you never hear anything back. I know if you have several thousand followers it would be hard to answer everything but the effort needs to be made. Because the conversation is as important as the blog!

  14. Just yesterday, a co-worker asked me the same thing, what will I do once I reach a certain number of followers, posts, etc. Shouldn’t I think about turning “pro”? I honestly haven’t thought about it and I’m pretty sure I don’t even know how to turn pro. But I could see myself in your position, weeks/months/years from now. So far, just like you, I’m loving the journey and the interaction with my readers. When those aspects wear off, I shall visit this post of yours again and read all the helpful comments again! So, thank you for wondering out loud! 🙂 Btw, I found you from the recommended section on my reader, and I’m so glad I did!

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