At The Corner of Happy And Harried

A slice of my commonly uncommon life

One Year Blogversary – A Few Thoughts

by 60 Comments

At The Corner Of Happy And Harried Turns One

It’s here! The first anniversary of this blog. I am beyond myself with excitement, as you can imagine!!

I was an avid blog reader for a while. I turned to blogs for recipes, crafts and prettiness, in general. I stalked quite a number of blogs regularly.

The sheer number of blogs out there surprised me at first, and later on, inspired me. I mulled over the idea of an online journal for a long time. Finally, on the evening of January 31st 2013, I created this blog and typed out my first blog entry. I was pretty stoked over how easy the whole process was. That first post is pretty un-spectacular, but I knew in my heart it was the start of something good.

I would like to make a few observations about blogging in general, stuff that I picked up over the past 12 months.

Here are some pointers from yours truly.

What I Learned In A Year

1). Content matters.

I’ve learned that if you have something good to share, be it a recipe, a cute craft or even a funny anecdote, people will keep coming back for more. That means, limiting yourself to quality content and refraining from posting many ‘filler’ posts. I am guilty of a few such posts in the first few months. After the initial rush wore off, I aimed for a consistent 10-12 well-drafted posts per month.

2). Be consistent.

Be consistent in both the subject matter and frequency of blog posts.

Limit yourself to subjects you know best and which your readers expect from you. For example, I am sure to raise a few eyebrows if I suddenly started talking about fashion or politics.

If you are super organized and your only responsibility is blogging, it makes sense to maintain a strict blogging calendar. It doesn’t really work out for me, but I aim to blog at least twice a week. Remember, “out of sight; out of mind”.

3). It helps to have good photographs.

We live in a very visual world. Photos are key, unless you blog poems, essays or short stories.

Photography is one area in which I have made a conscious effort to improve, and still have a long way to go. Feel free to re-visit my oldest blog posts. You will know what I am talking about. Over time, I got to know my camera better, picked up a few tricks, and got better at styling (at least, that is what I like to think). The Photography Styling Challenge has been a huge help in this regard.

4). Network, network and network some more.

I am pleasantly surprised at just how lovely people genuinely are. I have made some amazing blogger friends. They are the first to like and comment on my posts and it absolutely makes my day!

If time permits, it helps to use social media to promote your blog. Find me on Facebook, Pinterest or Bloglovin’!

Be sure to be active on all the platforms you advertise on your blog and do not take on more than you can handle. Just the reason why I currently do not have an active presence on Twitter, Instagram or such.

5). Be polite and considerate.

That means no foul language, no plagiarizing and giving credit where it is due. It also means responding and reaching out to your loyal readers by replying to their comments and appreciating their feedback.

6). Have fun.

If you are not having fun, it is just not worth it!

Now, here’s what I wish I’d done differently or need to do from now on.

1). Get my own domain.

I absolutely should have done that when I started my blog. At the time, I didn’t know I would stick with blogging, and now I am scared to switch as I fear losing my readers. But I am sure it can be done and it is one of my goals for the year. Now if only I could get myself to figure out the how-tos.

2). Invest in good, professional blog design.

I think it helps to have a well-done layout and of course, it is one of my long-term goals. But the WordPress themes themselves are not so bad for now.

3). Update old blog posts or not?

I am really split on this. I thought of just considering my blog as a huge learning experience and try to better myself with each post. But there are quite a few old ones that get searched for and visited regularly. Should I update them with better pictures or should I just let them be? I can’t seem to decide.

4). Keep learning and improving.

I must remember to not get complacent and keep improving constantly. Maybe I could start with setting up a dedicated photography nook and investing in some fabulous backdrop and props. As for ideas and creativity, I read somewhere that creativity is one thing that the more you use it, the more you end up having.

Keep Calm & Blog On

Wow! This post has taken on a very serious tone and you are probably bored with the long text. I should have just posted a recipe and call it done, right?!

I did make some pretty awesome dum biryani in honor of this baby turning one. It turned out really good and I will be posting the recipe as soon as all the boring, behind-the-scenes drafting/editing work is done.

Shrimp Or Prawns Dum Biryani

Till then, a very big shout-out to all my fabulous readers. You know who you are! Thank you!!

So, what do you think? What are your thoughts and experiences on blogging? Do you have anything to add?

I am sharing these tips at these awesome blogs.

Comments

  1. Congratulations on your blog birthday.

    I just celebrated 2 years of blogging and I know that my writing, photography and content have improved. Suzan from http://suzyq-vintagous.blogspot.com/ and I were chatting the other day about our photography in our first months of blogging. I took photos at night, tried to get everything in a shot, didn’t crop, etc. I teased Suzan that I was going to go back and read all of her early posts.

    I have owned my domain since before I began blogging because my son liked my title of Art and Sand and he told did the steps to buy it for me. I don’t want to switch, mostly out of fear of losing my loyal followers.

    Have a great second year of blogging.

    Reply

  2. Congrats on your blogiversary. I am visiting from Whimsy Wednesday.
    I think after about about a year I bought my own domain and it went smoothly, but that was a while ago. I think if you do decide to, I would just hold off on updating any posts. Then you can update and if you add new pictures, you can repin them on pinterest. Good luck!

    Reply

  4. Happy Blogversary Anjana! It’s a wonderful feeling to see your hard work getting appreciated. Each like and comment matters and cheer you up! Wishing you many more years of this!

    So glad to have met you! It’s always such a pleasure to visit you here 🙂

    Reply

  6. Just wanted to say that I was nervous about getting my own domain after a year of blogging, but it went just fine for me. I didn’t seem to lose anything, in fact, I think my views increased. Congratulations!

    Reply

  10. Congratulations Anjana! I am so glad to have met you through this medium, I enjoy your posts and writing immensely. You’re blessed with talent and diligence.. a perfect combo for success 🙂 Wishing you all the best, God Bless!

    Reply

  11. Happy blog-iversary!!! Your baby is one! Nice! I kind of fell off the wagon here. It’s been 2 months of little to no posts. Eeek! I keep telling myself its time to get back on the horse. I’m going to try to set some time aside to blog this sunday while everyone is watching the super-bowl. {I’m not a sports fan — but EVERYONE in Seattle is giddy! So its hard to not be excited too. Go Hawks!}

    Oh, and if you are looking to get your own domain, are you going to self-host on wp? You can pay like $10 / year to wordpress.com to have your blog forwarded. That way anyone who searches for your blog will get auto forwarded. Anyone who is following you via email or bloglovin’ will still get your updates. Anyone following you via facebook, twitter or pinterest will still be able to follow your new posts. The only hit you will take is your old pins on pinterest will have a pop up warning the user that it might be spam because pinterest detected a forward script. It sucks, but I think it is worth it to get off of wordpress.com. 🙂

    Hope this year sees you and your blog well! Cheers!

    ~ Bethany

    Reply

  13. I can understand how it feels to complete one year of blogging!! I completed a year a few months ago and the feeling is esctatic… like seeing your own baby complete a year….. Congratulations ANjana… and here’s to many more

    Reply

  14. Congratulations on your first year! Blogging is a wonderful learning experience…I have personally decided to not go back and change my old posts…but there is no right or wrong with that. If there is something that especially bothers you, go ahead and fix it!

    Reply

  15. Happy anniversary….congrats dear… maintaining a blog for a year and getting better at it with each passing day.. that’s definitely not something everyone can do… Hats off to your dedication and passion.. keep going.. wish you another even more successful year of blogging.. may you find more joy and make many more friends this year.. and I sure hope your goals will also be met.. looking forward to more posts…

    Reply

  22. Happy, happy anniversary, Anjana! I have thoroughly enjoyed the recipes you post and of course, interacting with you.

    I find blogging to be a wonderful journey of discovery. While I am happy about the new recipes I learn, I am also delighted to meet fellow foodies like you.

    Happy blogging! Happy anniversary again. 🙂

    Reply

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