5 Things You Should Know About Blogging

Blogging is a term most of us are familiar with, but for those not familiar with blogging, or want to learn more, here are the basics. Plus, read on down towards the bottom because I have a fabulous Christmas giveaway going on with great prizes…

5 Things You Should Know About Blogging

What is a Blog?

A blog is like a post about news, or something to provide you with information. It’s usually written informally, as it’s more for approaching the audience in a friendly way. Blog posts are generally written for practical purposes, and delivered in a collection of quick and simple tips for specific topics.

There are usually specific rules when it comes to blogging, like making sure you’re not breaking any copyright laws with images and making sure that if you use anyone else’s text, it’s quoted and referenced. It’s just like being an article writer, except you’re not writing formally, and you’re more than likely giving tips or ideas, rather than reporting.

What Type of Blog Do You Want?

Most blog sites will stick to a theme, or niche. For example, some blog sites are mostly centered on fashion and beauty, where others might be focused on business and finance or food and recipes.

If you’re looking to cover a single topic, it’s likely that you can find a vast amount of information from the various blogs on one site. This is known as a niche blog.

However, not all blogs cover one topic. There are blog sites out there that include a whole array of different topics, which can be very helpful if you like the format of the site and find it easy to navigate.

My blog, for example, is a lifestyle blog. I couldn’t narrow a topic down. I have an eclectic taste and like to talk about various topics, like recipes, saving money, getting healthy, the newest tech gadget, and my family, to name a few… see, I just couldn’t narrow down to a niche.

And that’s okay, too.

Rules of Blogging

Now, blogs aren’t these fancy, polished pieces of work that you can expect to turn in for evaluation. However, there are some rules that you have to be strict with when following. Having photos on your blog (like the one below) just helps to portray the point of your writing, and just give some kind of visual representation.

Although, you need to make sure you’re following the rules when it comes to using that photo. If you didn’t take the picture yourself or do not own the rights to it, then it needs to be credited and referenced, but above all else, you need to have permission to use it.

It’s best to err on the side of caution and only use your own photographs…

But if you’re not a great photographer or have the rights to use a photograph, then you can use Creative Commons images which you can find on royalty free image sites. These free stock photos are okay to use, and you can give photo attribution if you choose and anyone is allowed to use them. Pik Wizard is another excellent source for free stock photos. I also use Pixabay and Pexels when I can’t get my own image to fit my articles.

Another rule of blogging is making sure you’re not copying anyone else’s writing. It’s easy to look at something someone else has said and taken that on as your own form of words, but you shouldn’t do that. Whether you’re blogging or not, make sure what you write is your personal intellectual property, unless you’re going to credit otherwise, with the permission of the owner.

Blogging IS For Everyone

What I mean is that if you can write, have access to a computer/laptop/tablet, and internet connection, you can create a blog.

When it comes to topics to write about on your blog, they’re endless. If you’re going to write a blog about, for example; what pencils are best to draw with, you can.

It’s sure to help someone if that’s what you find interesting, and if you keep it simple and appealing, you might attract more people than you expected. Blogging isn’t generally about how many people you’ll help out there, it’s kind of like a form of social media. A lot of the time blogging comes down to a personality, and that’s what attracts people; as they want to find out about your opinion, and how you do things.

If you can manage to be a stay at home mom, you can quickly become a work at home mom.

It’s quite freeing to share your experiences and knowledge with others, especially if you can get positive feedback from it. You just need to find your audience out there.

You Don’t Have to Quit Your Day Job

At least at first. It doesn’t take up much time (at first), so you don’t need to give up anything to get involved. The posts you write don’t have to be based on tips for certain things, some bloggers even start doing reviews and just sharing their opinions on specific experiences, which is helpful in its own way.

The bottom line is, you don’t need any unique qualifications to start blogging, you just need a keyboard and approximate knowledge and personal experiences. Even as stated before, you don’t even need to use your own pictures, you can borrow from others.

Now, with all this said, blogging is NOT easy. If you are serious about it and even want to make an income from blogging, it will be time-consuming. It takes dedication and consistency. But it can pay off in more ways than one.

Now that you have the blog basics or the blogging 101 down, you are ready to start your own blog. You can even make money blogging from home.

11 Comments

  1. I try to do most of it before Thanksgiving, but there are always a couple of the harder-to-buy-for people that I don’t find something for until December

  2. This year I am doing most of it before xmas.

  3. I usually start shopping after Thanksgiving.

  4. The majority of our Christmas shopping is done after Thanksgiving. We like to wait for deep discounts and online sales.

  5. i am lucky i do my christmas shopping before christmas… or new years. i;m so awful!

  6. I do most of my shopping after Thanksgiving.

  7. I do most of my Christmas shopping after Thanksgiving.

  8. I pick up little things here and there throughout the year but I do most of it beginning at Thanksgiving.

  9. Most of my shopping is done after Thanksgiving.

  10. I tend to do a little shopping all year long,whenever I find a great deal.There is still lots of last minute shopping though.

  11. I usually start shopping after Thanksgiving, that’s when the ads come out.

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