The Blogger’s Guide to Success

When I began blogging, I didn’t know where to start. I did everything through trial and error. There’s a few things that make my life as a blogger incredibly easy, so I decided to put together the Ultimate Blogging Starter Kit so you don’t have to go through all the dirty work. Blogging is hard as it is so I will do anything to make my life simpler. These tips and tricks literally changed the game for me and gave me the head start I needed for creating what I want.  

Website

Building a website is the first step to creating the Ultimate Blogging Starter Kit! I got my hosting through BlueHost and I pay less than $50 a year for my website. My husband helped me design it on WordPress where I decided to buy a theme instead of using the free templates they already have. This is the best option, in my opinion, because I get to make it how I want to look and have it fit my needs/wants for my personal brand.

Photography

I thank the heavens everyday that I married a photographer! I know paying for photography can get pricey. If I didn’t have Taz, I would not use anything except my iPhone, because expensive cameras are useless if the pictures are not edited correctly. Of course there are many benefits to professional photography, but I think there are tons of incredible editing apps that can make your pictures go from ordinary to extraordinary right at your fingertips! I’ve used Color Story, VSCO, and even the editing section in Instagram. I love how user-friendly all of these are and it still maintains the high quality image I want.

Another key to photography is lighting. I’m not a photographer so I’m not an expert, but I can definitely tell  when something is lit terribly. Taz and I invested in a ring light this past week and I LOVE it! It works well for photos, videos and even Instagram stories! We have ours permanently set up in our living room for whenever we need it, but it’s also pretty easy to take up and down for storage. Ours came with both white and orange covers to change depending on the lighting. There’s also a stand connected to it for a phone so you can easily take pictures on your own without relying on someone else to snap photos.

Planning

This is the hardest part for me…If I don’t write it down in at least three places, it won’t get done. (I swear I have short term memory loss!) I started to bullet journal about a year ago and it totally helps me get organized! Writing down thoughts and ideas as I have them helps me to remember them later. I have lists of who I’m working with, ideas, plans and pictures. I use this method because I can customize it to my heart’s content! The Leuchtturm dotted notebook and Staedler pens are my go-to for planning since the dots make it easy to draw lines and the ink doesn’t bleed through. This is a total win for my OCD brain!

When I have all my ideas jotted down, I have files in my Google Drive where I write all my posts since I often leave my website without saving. Then, all my hard work is lost. My drive has my back and you can even create calendars for scheduling posts that make it easy to move around if things change (because most likely they will!)

This goes along with planning and photography, but I have an app called UNUM where i can upload the pictures before posting to see how it looks on my feed. High maintenence, much? Maybe, but it helps me visualize when to post certain things and takes away the fear of posting two identical pictures on top of one another. It’s the secret that I probably love the most!

Tools

Next in my Ultimate Blogging Starter Kit are all of my tools for leading an easier blogger life! A few of my favorite things are my PenBlade knives that are similar to the Exacto knife. They help me open boxes with ease without completely destroying the packaging which is what I was doing before. I also love my laptop case from MarleyLilly! Majority of the time, I like to go out and work because my house is super distracting. The case protects my laptop and has an adorable monogram with the cutest pinstripes. I have many other tools such as things for affiliate marketing, but that would be an entire blog post in itself! If you have any questions about that specifically, feel free to comment below or email me. 

These are my tips and tricks to making blogging so much easier. Getting these things from my Ultimate Blogging Starter Kit into your arsenal will simplify and ease your stress about beginning your own blog journey. Let me know what you decide to do and if you are a blogger yourself, tell me how you got started in the comments because I’m sure others would benefit from your suggestions as well. Good luck!

XOXO Kayla