I know this isn’t the usual fare here at Raising Arrows, but I get a lot of off-blog questions about blogging itself.  While I won’t take the time to go through in detail what all the business side of blogging entails, I would like to offer those of you who are interested a few ideas for growing your blog and resources I have found helpful in this journey.

{First of all, I’m no expert.  I’m just a mom who has been blogging for 5 years under the name Raising Arrows, first on Homeschoolblogger, then on Blogger, and now on WordPress – self-hosted with my own domain.}

Everyone who blogs hopes others will read what they write. Even if you only write for Grandma and Grandpa back in Connecticut, you still are hoping someone (namely Grandma and Grandpa) will read your blog.  In fact, I’d venture to guess most everyone hopes to grow the reach of their blog so that it is read by MORE than just Grandma and Grandpa.

Our reasons for wanting to grow our blogs will be as different and unique as we are, but when you boil it all down, you will find the HOW of growing a blog requires all the same stuff, no matter if you are looking to make money or looking to make a ministry or both!

So, here are a few basics you will need:
A blog
A design
A focus

A blog -

This probably sounds like a no-brainer, but it isn’t.  In fact, I spent many months agonizing over my move to WordPress.  You can grow your blog on any platform (Blogger, WordPress or otherwise), but I chose to move to WordPress because it was the easiest for my readers to navigate.  A side benefit of the move was that search engine traffic grew exponentially!  That is the one event I can almost 100% attribute to WordPress.

Having a domain - For years I did without a domain.  I always wanted one, but frugal gal that I am, I didn’t want to pay the $10 to have one!  When we decided to work a little harder on the blog, we also decided it was time to buy a domain.  A domain makes the name of your blog the only thing in the address bar.  It frees you from the messy .blogspot and .wordpress you are required to have if you do not have your own corner of the internet.  I cannot tell you how nice it has been to be Raising Arrows Dot Net and that is all!

A design -

I did a redesign in the summer of 2009 (have you noticed by the dates on the posts I am linking to that I did ALL of this BACKWARDS?!  had a design done…bought a domain…moved to a self-hosted platform…  Ideally, you would do these in the OPPOSITE order of what I did!)  A good design makes all the difference!  It needs to speak to who you are, what your blog is about, and be inviting to readers.

You’ll also notice my header is not the only thing you see when you open my page.  You also see my navigation bar, a bit of my first post, and off to the right my bio photo, a link to read more about Raising Arrows, and an easy way to subscribe to my blog.  That last one is VERY important!  Think about it–you want more readers, but they don’t have a clue how to stay up to date with all your posts.  It’s hard to retain readers who have to search for you every time. Make it easy on them!

A focus -

I’m not necessarily talking a full-blown niche (think couponing, or baby stuff, or gardening), although, those are great and can really do well if that is something that interests you.  I’m more of a “focus” blog, rather than a “niche” blog.  My menu bar pretty much speaks to what you’ll find here: The Homeschooling Mother,The Grieving Mother, and Large Family Living.  Those topics give me  A LOT of leeway in what I write, but most everything can be related back to those 3 topics somehow.  Focus is good because it keeps you on track and lets your readers know your passions.

Now for some resources to help you out:

Consulting:
If you just don’t know where to start or you need some help figuring out what to do next, then I would suggest you consider hiring a consultant. I know it may seem expensive, but I have found that you often experience much better results when you talk to someone who really knows their stuff.

Two consultants I know of are:

and

{click on the buttons to go to their sites}

Networking:
Networking as a blogger is HIGHLY IMPORTANT!  What is a network?  It’s a group of bloggers who get together and collaborate and bounce ideas off each other.  Until recently, this has been a hard thing to find, but my friend Angie from Tiny Owl has started a Blogger Networking Database with a forum soon to follow.  If you are looking to start working with other bloggers who also wanting to grow their blogs, then sign up today! (also see this post on How to Start a Blogging Network)

Learn from other bloggers:
There are tons of bloggers out there who have been more than generous to share their secrets to blogging success.  Here are just a few I have found to be very informative:

Blogging with Amy (wealth of information!)

See Jamie Blog – Make Your Readers Happy

Far Above Rubies – How To Increase Traffic to Your Blog

Like a Bubbling Brook – How to Create a Basic Button and Code Box

Blogging Resource Directory

Problogger.net (again, wealth of information)

Follow #savvyblogging on Twitter

I know this post doesn’t answer all your questions and you might even be left with more questions than you had when you started, but I hope I have given you a place to begin, some ideas to work with, and a treasure trove of resources to grow your own blog!

With that said, I will let you in on my biggest secret to growing my own blog…

PRAYER.

Yes, I spend a lot of time in prayer over this little project of mine.  As a blogger AND a mother AND a homeschooler AND a Christian, I HAVE to stay balanced.  To do this, I regularly consult my husband, my children, and my God.

I love all my readers.  I personally think I have the best readers in the whole wide world web, but at the end of the day, it’s the people I live with and the God I serve who matter most.  I will always be about the business of growing those things first.