Welcome to Part V of Sweet Blogging for Girls…a bit of a round-up and the one where some of your questions get answered…by me…I hope!
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OK so it seems that a lot of you girls need motivation and to beat the blogging blah’s, I hope I can encourage you to keep it up…even if now you only have a few readers, it’s fun and it is great to have time for you and what you love in your life, even if it is just for you and logging the photos that you love of where you live, what your kiddos are doing, that perfect new coffee shop you just found, that beautiful house of your dreams you just drove past…
So what came up a lot was how to get your blog featured… I was surprised by this and I have had a good think about it, shared a few things that I have learnt from both ends (as the blogger with the feature and the blogger opening emails)
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How To Get Your Blog Featured by the Super-Bloggers
This question was sent to me by Loribeth of Small Moments said My eyes roll to the back of my head too when I read those dull sites that talk about SEOs and such, but I still follow them hoping to find some nugget that will help me get my blog off the ground…I keep hearing that you need to send your blog to other bigger blogs and get featured, but I don’t have a clue how to do that. Could you go into more detail about that?
could you address the issue on how to go about getting a blog featured on another blog? i’ve had no luck with this with my wedding blog: http://viweddingphotos.blogspot.com/
Beach Cottage Ten Ways to Getting Featured
1. The First Impression – Content & Design.
First of all you are gonna need pretty rocking content to get anyone to feature you and your blog and it must be looking pretty good too to even put you in the same playground as the big girls (we looked at Sweet Blogging Top Ten Tips to Blog Design here if you missed it)…if one of the super-bloggers does happen to click your link, you are lucky…so you need to be prepared…I’d say that’s the most important thing…
…it’s not just about that super-duper chest of drawers you just made-over…from a pine 80′s leftover to a sleek black chic thing, styled to perfection with just the right amount of vintage pizzazz…oh no baby, anyone that clicks on your blog is gonna want to see that kinda thing going on left right and centre…so if you don’t have quality posts and good content, be it dresser makeovers or vintage clothes you found you’ve blown the first impression and I can assure you they won’t be coming back again for a second look.
2. The Story
What’s the story here? Why would they even consider featuring you on their blog? …make sure you have a story behind you..a little bit about you and what you are doing and what your blog is about…Narcissistic? …possibly but I’ll tell you right now, if you want a big blog you will have to get over it…one of the things I cringe at here is the photos of me…but for the first 18 months or so there was not a single photo of me anywhere on this blog…I had to get over this, people were asking me daily what I looked like…so add a picture of you and make sure your About Page (and I’ll be covering that in a later session) is smokin’
So write your interesting story….so you moved from the depths on the inner-city to a beautiful farm in the middle of nowhere and are logging your huge lifechange? write that in your about me page…and then do another one with a bit more info…people are info-hungry and if a big blog is gonna feature you they will want your story too…they’ll want something that their readers will oooh and aaaah at and thank the super-blogger from on high for notifying them about…take it from me, Super Bloggers and the Press would rather chop off their right arm than link to a mediocre blog without a good story and content…it reflects on their brand and ultimately their business…
3. Research
You will need to research and think about what kind of blog you want to be featured on…find the blogs in your niche and carefully think about how to pitch your story at them…think too, very carefully about whether the content you are promoting is new and your own ideas…nothing worse in my experience than opening yet another email from someone who wants me to feature them and their ideas that are oh-so-very-similar to the content on my blog…errr yeah, been there experienced that
…so make a shortlist of bloggers you like…keep it short, and get to know what they post…if they don’t ever post other people’s blogs then the chances of them taking you on, unless you are exceptional and will offer them something is probably minimal….the more you approach the more that will maybe take you up, on the other hand picking a few strategic ones to move in on will keep you much more focused and it will be more personal…
I seriously do not recommend blasting lots of bloggers…I get lots of this now in my inbox…impersonal emails from people offering to blog on my blog for free about their latest washing machine design book! What you mean the blog that I’ve worked on for the last two years…that is quite popular now…you mean you want me to use up one of my posts and my traffic for your Washing Machine Design book…who are you again? … and you mean you think a book on Washing Machine design is appropriate to my baby, oops I mean my blog…duh let’s block this spammer dude
4. Write It Up!
the post/picture/feature you are trying to promote…make sure this is really good and think about how you are presenting it…from my experience with the press and the big blogs, all of them are extremely busy and only after you for one thing…to fill up their own content…that fills up their feeds…that bumps up their traffic….that pays their wages…so think about that….you’ll want a quick, precise email detailing exactly what you do, what you want and much more importantly what you can offer…if you are offering to write a piece for them, and I get this *all the time…write it, attach it, include it…there’s much more liklihood that they’ll pick yours when on Thurday arvo they suddenly realise they have nothing to post tomorrow…and at that moment ding! your post all ready to go, including your story and your blog is there, all proofread, with pictures, all looking hot and swishy and ready to go…
5. Link it up Baby
Links…include a few different links in your email to things you are proud of, things that will give a feeling of you…make sure these are good and relevant…and ensure that these links work…a lot of times I have been interested in something that someone sends me only to find that the link doesn’t go anywhere…check that before you send the email…the quickest way for your email to go in the bin is for you to waste their time…
6. Put it to the Test
…and test…send your blog post/feature/article to a couple of people and get them to read it so that it is purrrrrfect…yep I know I don’t do purrrrfect on here, and I know there are usually errors in my stuff, but I’m not the one trying to get my stuff featured by Miss Super Blogger from above…if I did, I’d be making sure and double checking that all was tickety-boo.
7. Don’t Send Spam.
’nuff said
8. Get Friendly with the Blogger…Chat ‘em up Baby
OK, bottom line here, all bloggers want comments…it doesn’t matter if you have 7,000 people visiting your blog a day or 7, everyone loves a comment…it let’s them know someone is out there and reading and what they are doing is being noticed….so you’ve found your niche blogger who you’d just about die if they featured your lil’ old blog
…well how about you chat up that blogger?…yeah…you leave them a comment on posts…you let them know about you…every day when 7,000 people are visiting but perhaps oh about 30 or so are commenting and your name, Sarah from Vintage Dresser keeps popping up regularly, that blogger will notice you…sure her stats will say that lots and lots are visiting but Sarah from Vintage Dresser is actually interacting here…hmmm…and then a few months later guess who pops up in her inbox, a nice little friendly email from Sarah from Vintage Dresser…oh yeah, I know that girl, I’ll open this email and see what it’s all about, might be of interest….
However, be very careful here….DO NOT try to use their blogs as your personal advertising space, their Facebook page to promote yourself repeatedly, or blast them on Twitter with you and your blog….it is very transparent, and you can spot it a mile off! I know the ones that I have got who do that to me all the time….mostly I leave it and don’t block them, but other bloggers I have heard hit the block button pretty quickly….yeah your key blogger may well have thousands of friends or likes on Facebook and you think hmmm that’s a pretty good place to advertise my business, I’ll just keep leaving loads of comments on there…nah, not good..every now and then a new one pops up on mine leaving me a heap of comments with their brand or blog overly promoted in the name tag or in the comment…or someone, totally unknown to me will tag me in their photo of their business products…yeah..don’t do that….not cool
9. Persistance is Golden
Persist with your own blog, don’t get too fixated on others….continue with promoting yourself through networking and commenting and keep working on CONTENT…be friendly, follow-up and don’t get dis-heartened if you hear nothing…you never know who is looking at your blog…I know that for sure…had some interesting emails from the press on this one…they are out there watching blogland like a hawk…so if it’s good it will get noticed…it might just take a while longer than you want it to…
10. Keep Up Your Blogging Chin
and lastly, keep up your blogging chin….and keep in mind quite why you were you doing this again?
I hope that gave you something to think about…I must say I am totally enjoying this…I never knew I had so much to say on blogging…I am thinking about doing an ecourse on it…and yes it will be stuffed full of content and no it won’t cost the earth 
In future Sweet Blogging topics there will be a Session on photography, how I do and don’t do it and what I’ve learnt…it seems loads of you are stuck on this, but the basic tip for now is TAKE A HEAP LOAD of pictures every single day, of your coffee cup of your shoes, of your dog, of a chair, of a saucepan…and you’ll start learning what ya like and what ya don’t…
If you liked this post, you might like to see my One Thing You Can Do to Improve your Blog post right here
OK I am outta here, it’s 6pm and guess what? There’s no dinner in the crock…the perils of bloggin’
See ya around lovelies
find the Beach Cottage Real Girls blogging ecourse right here only $29!
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another great post very informative. have enjoyed reading these blogging tips.
Sarah, this is such an interesting post! Thank you for taking the time to write the Sweet Blogging series, I’ve been enjoying reading them all – they’re frank and refreshing and also it’s really kind of you to go to the trouble! I’m still very much finding my feet and my voice but these are some really helpful points for the future once I’ve somehow created a den of awesome and need to tell the world, haha! I’d looked at eCourses and thought some looked a little suspect and reading this has confirmed to me they’re not for everyone!
Jem xXx
Sarah, that was very interesting. I still do struggle with the notion that I’m talking to an audience…albeit a small one. I started my blog as a way of journalling my adventures in U.K. with the idea that my Aussie friends and family could see what I’m up to. But instead I’ve found that they don’t respond so much…mainly because they don’t have blogs of their own, so instead I find myself talking to strangers. Now I’ve never been good at public speaking and I’m not a ‘look at me’ sort of person, so sometimes I feel like this promotion of myself (or putting myself out there) via the blog doesn’t quite sit right. However, I do love reading any comments that come my way and love interacting with many of the warm, wonderful women out there…and it has filled a void at the moment (being an expat can be lonely at times, and I’m often feeling homesick…usually when the hormones kick in). Sorry I didn’t mean to rattle on….I look forward with anticipation to your ecourse, I know you would make it a lot of fun! Robx
Hi Rob
I hear you for sure..one of the reasons my blog came about too…not because I was homesick but being in a new country making friends is not super easy…especially ones that like vintage haha..the blog was a way to fill that for me…to be honest I didn’t even tell anyone in my life about my blog…it was just a place for me…
the ‘look at me’ thing is a tricky one..I am much more confident about it now, this is mainly due to another blog that I read where the blogger celebrates her life, her, what she looks like etc…I began to see that hiding was not so good…nope I don’t like things about me…and I could give you a very long list, but these days I think hey I have my health and this is what I’m stuck with…there’s not much point hiding it…
self-promotion will never sit right for certain people, especially in certain situations…I know I kept my blog very very quiet, even when it was a bit bigger…however, I have seen for sure how self-promotion in blogland works…and I guess really I should too have done a bit of it….STILL very much learning this bit…
sarahx
Thanks for the super tips!!! People like you are very appreciated!
Thanks Sarah, I have been enjoying these posts. You know girl, you are up there with the biggies. I would describe you as an approachable biggie.
really…approachable…haha you don’t know what I’m really like…cross me and I’ll breathe fire on ya roflmao
Some great thoughts and ideas here, I like your take on things, I redid my blog design after your post on that, don’t know if it’s perfect yet but I am really digging its vintage feel.
Great tips! Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge. It really is appreciated x
Hi Sarah, so much in this post, I’ll have to return again to take it all in. I’m looking forward to the photography post. My camera is rubbish in certain conditions, and I’m looking forward to upgrading. Thanks for keeping it real.
x
Hey, you used me….Fame is mine at last hehe. Another great post honey, keep the knowledge coming please. Have a wonderful day. ax
thank you so much sarah for all this fantastic info! it’s really great of you to write so detailed posts on this subject, it’s a major help to us bloggers. a super blogger had the nerve to offer an e-book on blogging for $8 (which is not much i guess) that was pretty much common sense, and about 1 page long! i would have rather spent my $8 at the thrift store on a few items instead!! it seems she just wanted to make a little money, but not really tell any tricks of the trade so to speak. kudos to you for being so candid and literally so FREE with your knowledge!
Hi Sarah
Great post! Thanks for the suggestions. “It’s a marathon, not a sprint.” Of course, my son came home yesterday and said he showed his classmates my blog in his computer class! I kept thinking, “oh my gosh I hope I didn’t swear.” And, then I thought, “how were the kids allowed to access an outside site?” I told him he was now my underpaid publicist. laura@imnotatrophywife.com
Have a great day (or is it yesterday or tomorrow in Australia). :0)
Hi Sarah! These are great tips! I always enjoy reading your blog, and continue to learn so much from you! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Sarah for writing these posts which are just what I want to read. They actually make perfect sense, not like those problogger sites! I’ve been reading your blog since its green/red(?) shoes days and so have really seen how your style has evolved through experience. One blogging issue I’d been interested in hearing your view on (and your readers) is letting family and friends know of your blog. I’ve abandoned a blog that I’d (very happily) been creating for about eighteen months after getting a snippy comment from a friend. She reads loads of blogs and ‘gets’ why people do it. I’d admitted to her I had one and after much pressing, I gave her the name. From that point on I felt inhibited as I knew she was reading and occasionally commenting. It took the shine off the delight in composing the posts somehow and then when I got this silly comment, I really retreated into my shell. I tried to rise above it but in the end couldn’t, stopped posting and have now started afresh (without telling my friend!). I can see that your blog benefits by putting a face to it but it’s not something I would be bold enough to do any time soon! I had found that writing a post, tweaking it, being proud of it was so satisfying. I’m a SAHM to a three year old so you can guess how my days run and the level of conversation in this house! Writing, being creative, was/is a good way to stretch the brain in days of tedium. Anyway, right now I am keeping my blog to myself but would welcome tips on how to be less self-conscious! Best wishes, Anita
Sarah, I think this is one of THE best posts on blogging that I have ever seen! You rock!!
I am fairly new at blogging just over a year. Thanks for the tips. I still haven’t learned how to link when I mention someone on my blog. I’ve noticed on a lot of blogs, this is a great feature so people know who your talking about. It is usually underlined in red and you will be magically transported to their site??? I’m with Blogger. I can’t figure it out yet????? I know it’s probably something easy, but I think this will really help me get out there. Sorry this was a mouth full. Warm Regards Chrisy
sarah- again i can’t thank you enough for putting it ALL in perspective…
i love these posts…and can’t wait for your e-cource…i truly feel like we are sitting around your kitchen table chatting over tea after a beach walk…THAT approach in itself is rare in many blogs of your size…you seem to include everyone!
thanks for the inspiration AGAIN….melissa
Another tip – giveaway a bag that an awesome blogger might like, and maybe she’ll mention you and link to you on Facebook, and your traffic will go through the roof that day!
Seriously! – if you don’t win, I think I need to send you an Orla Kiely bag anyway
Thanks, mwah!
I’ve spent some time this evening reading up on missed posts (things have been a little too busy to hop but all has settled). I’ve really enjoyed this series of posts. Very helpful. Now I’m wondering if the video I posted a few nights ago was the wrong move. Hmm. I just wanted to put a face & a voice with the name. I sure hope it was perceived as fun and light-hearted, not ‘unprofessional’? or bad content. I was being me, so I guess that counts for something. Anyhow, I’m going to share this on facebook as so many want to know how to be better bloggers. Thanks for pulling this series together, Sarah!
Hugs,
Jami
Great series – now the post on how to make sure a blogger can also do all the above to their baby, um blog and still remember to leave time to feed the kids! Now what’s for dinner?
Hi Sarah,
This was fabulous and so helpful!! So glad Jami from Freckled Laundry posted about it on Facebook so I could find you!! Your blog is lovely and I can’t wait to read back over your past posts! I am definitely looking forward to a how-to on photos for the blog. This would help me greatly!
Have a fabulous day.
Sincerely,
Melinda
some really great ideas here! thanks for sharing! I have been working on some of these issues; and my photography, especially.
Hi Sarah,
Thanks so much for this post. I have been wondering how people go about getting featured on the “Big Blogs” it amazes me when I go on someone’s blog that is in the same line of work as me and they have thousands of followers. It has been frustrating and I have been looking for ways to improve my blog, get noticed and gain more readers. Thanks so much for all the blogging tips. Some people can be very tight lipped about their success.
Have a great day!
Thank you for your advice on promoting your blog. I think you’ve hit the nail on the head by emphasizing that you need to focus first on your content and site design. I personally didn’t even release the link to my blog (not even to friends and family) until I felt the content was up to par. I didn’t want someone sending out my link if there were only two posts for readers. First impressions are everything!
I’m now eight months into the blogging scene, and I’m still learning as I go…but as a newbee, I try to find as many posts like this one as possible. The more tips I can get from the pros, the better!
Thank you so much for your honest opinions and experiences!
I really have to say THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
I will for sure follow your suggestions!
hey thanks for taking the time to stop by & comment worldwidemom
Sarah
Hey there, You’ve done a fantastic job. I’ll certainly digg it and personally suggest to my friends. I am confident they’ll be benefited from this site.
Wow. I’m late to the party but I’m glad I’ve come. I’m going to read back through all of your posts. I have found that other sites dealing with “how to blog” just left me disheartened and lacking in confidence. There are certain things I have decided I don’t want to do in relation to blogging, but they left me feeling like that was the “only” way to do things. I find it hard to promote myself as I never want to seem pushy and I want someone to genuinely like my blog in order to promote it. I was just speaking with a fellow blogger the other day about how we want to be noticed by those other bloggers whom we genuinely admire and yet we feel like we’re whispering in a very full room of people.
yes, I think it’s very hard, especially as blogging has grown hugely over the last year, and the last six months even more so…
the only way is to listen to yourself and find a way that suits you and makes you happy…that’s what I have figured out, I think!
thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment here
sarahx