One Year Blog Anniversary + Things I’ve Learned

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A year ago today I started Little Bit of Living and wow what a year it has been! This past year I moved to Houston, started my blog, got married to my best friend, went to Canada, Seattle, Atlanta, and Columbia, started a new career path, and picked up and moved to Georgia! There has been many hard times along the way, but having this creative outlet has been so fun for me! When I first started my blog, I truly had no idea what to expect. I set goals for the first year and have been so surprised that I met them all. I have met so many amazing people and created relationships that will last a lifetime. This past year I have learned so many things about the blogging world, so I decided to share some of them with you guys. When I started Little Bit of Living, I knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but no one knows how much effort goes into it until you do it!

Things I’ve Learned:

1. Purchase a domain and host: When I started, I was so lucky to have a couple friends who had already started blogging and got some major advice from them. Purchasing a host is so important because it’s the only thing you own. If Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest or any other social media site went down and disappeared tomorrow, you would still have all your information on your site! Social media sites are obviously HUGE and a great way to share your content but you definitely want to have a spot on the internet that you own that your followers can resort back to.
2. Don’t Buy Followers: This is SO important not to do. As the blogging world has grown, so many people want to have as many followers on their social media accounts as they can. Yes, having more followers helps you with getting brand collaborations, but, when you have a plethora of followers and only receive a few likes on your pictures, then it is so obvious to everyone that your followers are not real. It is so easy for someone to go look at your followers and tell if they are real or not. Having fake followers doesn’t help you. Fake followers are not going to purchase stuff from your links, or like and comment on your pictures so why have them? It is so easy to get carried away and want to do this but as always, quality is better than quantity. Having less followers that you are connected with is always better.
3. Connect With Your Followers: Following the last one, connecting with the followers you have is so important. I love when someone direct messages me or emails me with questions or just wanting to talk! Connecting with you followers and making real friends on social media was one of my main goals and is always something I try to do!
4. Consistency is Key: When I first started my blog and would ask others what advice they have, I was always told to be consistent. Post at the same time on social media and post new blogs on the same days during the week (still working on this one lol). This helps your readers and followers know when you are posting so they can be on the lookout for your post. With the Instagram algorithm, it has made it extremely hard for you to see who you want to see on Instagram. If you post at the same time, it makes it easy for your followers to know when something is coming.
5. Have Goals: When I started, my goal was to have 10K followers by the end of the first year. I am happy to say that I exceeded my goal! Your goals can be posting at the same time every day, having a certain number of blog posts up every week, growing your social media by a certain amount each month, or setting revenue goals. Whatever your goals are, it is important to set them so you continue to grow your blog.
6. Be Transparent: Online is such an easy place to only post and talk about the good things going on in your life. You can share as much or as little as you want to and can portray you life exactly how you want to. One of my biggest goals was to be open and honest about everything on my blog and I feel like so far I have done just that. Life is hard y’all, and everyone can get in a rut every so often. It is important to remember that no one is perfect and being transparent with people helps people understand that!
7. Find your Niche, whatever it may be, and go with it: When I started this blog, I wanted to share my gluten free life, fashion and beauty, and my pups! Those are the things in my life that I enjoyed talking about and sharing! Since then, I have gotten married and enjoy sharing more about married life, so it’s become more of a lifestyle blog! Share whatever you’re comfortable with and what makes you happy!
8. Don’t Wait to Start: Truthfully, there is never a perfect time to start your blog. If it is something you have been wanting to do, just take the jump and go for it! There are so many things that you will learn along the way! It is a lot of hard work, but definitely worth it!
9. Invest in a Photographer or a Good Camera: Having good pictures is so important to make your blog and social media channels aesthetically pleasing. I started out with a photographer and shot with him weekly or bi-weekly to have content. Since moving to Georgia, I have been looking for a new photographer! There are so many good presets out there now that you can purchase, so if you have a good camera, you can take pictures and edit them yourself!
10. Go Outside Your Comfort Zone and Make Friends: This has been something that I have been trying to get better at! I am such a extroverted introvert. I love talking to people, but am such a chicken when it comes to reaching out first! This is one of my main goals for the next year.
11. Don’t Compare: Y’all, there are SO many blogs out there and so many different ways to compare yourself. Everyones story is different, so you should focus on your own. The comparison game is honestly something that I’ve struggled with. It’s definitely easier said than done, but instead you should brainstorm how to make your blog and yourself better. Try to make something positive on something that can make you feel so negative.
12. Don’t Expect Success Overnight: Like I said in number 11, there are SO many blogs out there, and earning success will take time. Set your goals and take each day one at a time! There are blogs out there that will grow fasters than others, but that’s ok! Keep focused on your goals, stay engaged, and you’ll get where you want to be! My blog is definitely still a work in progress, but as long as I am enjoying it, that’s all that matters!

Future Plans:

As far as future plans for Little Bit of Living, I have a few goals in the near future! My plans are to rebrand the blog and redo my website to make it more user friendly. I designed everything in the beginning and have learned so much along the way that I want to incorporate into it!

Thank you!

This year has been nothing short of hectic, but has also caused me to step outside my comfort zone and do things that I never would have before! All of this would not be possible without you guys and for that I am grateful! I love connecting with you guys and love every DM, email, comment and like on social media! It all means so much to me and I can’t thank y’all enough! Please feel free to reach out to me or comment below if you have any more questions! Thanks for stopping by!