Happy June, friends! It is finally a summer month, even though summer doesn't technically start for a few more weeks. As I think I mentioned before, I am officially on summer break! Woohoo! It will still be a busy summer though since I will be working more, taking a four-week class, traveling a bit (hopefully!), looking for a new place to move to in August, and getting ready to start my first semester at my new school. Time is going to fly by!
I will, though, have more time to dedicate to blogging and am excited to grow this space! There are so many things I would like to do with it and am looking forward to pressing the reset button to get things going again. With that being said, I was inspired by recent posts from both Laura and Summer to organize my goals and things I need to do for this blog!
To-Do:
+ Give the blog a facelift
I have designed everything you see here on the blog currently. It took me a lot of time, Google searching, and trial/error. I am at a point, however, where I would really like a fresh, new look and am a little tired of trying to teach myself the HTML and coding things that I need to know to do what I would like haha. So, I think I'm going to purchase a template and customize it a bit. Hopefully a new look will hit the blog soon!
+ Create & order blog business cards
I am not really sure how often I will use these, but I figured it can't hurt to look ~official~ and have a few on hand when I am out. That way, when it comes up in conversation, I can give people a card so they can check things out.
+ Craft a photo backdrop system
I am determined to create a little station to photograph things inside. I have gotten by so far, but I would like to have a dedicated space for when I need to photograph things and for my photos to have a clean, consistent look. I already have something in mind and will be getting some help from my dad with it, so hopefully I will share it here if it turns out well!
+ Make a photography site
Photography is one of my biggest passions and even though I am by no means a professional at it (yet at least!), I would like to start photographing people more to get some practice. I know that there is so much I can do if I am just consistent with it and find opportunities to practice simply because I love it! So, I would like to set up a simple site that I can send people to in order to have something to show so that I can get more opportunities!
+ Create a reader survey & collect feedback
I have never distributed a reader survey, but I think it would be pretty interesting and fun to see the results of it and get to know a bit more about my readers! Hopefully, I will also be able to get some feedback that will help me improve this space!
Mid-Year Goals:
+ Be more consistent
Even though I love blogging, consistency has been something I have struggled with, especially these past few months. I get caught up in my day to day schedule and sometimes at the end of the day I haven't had a chance to spend any time working on blog things. I think it will be a lot easier during the summer to consistently blog (as past years have shown me), so I am hoping I can find my groove in the coming months so that I can enter the fall on a strong note! I know it will be more challenging to fit blogging into my life once I start my new school, so I need to start finding balance in it now.
+ Grow Bloglovin' following
My Bloglovin' following grew quite a bit last year, but it has been rather stagnant this year. I would love to grow those numbers and opportunities for readership. It may be a lofty goal, but I would love to reach about 450-500 Bloglovin' followers, double of what I have now. Now I will just have to figure out how to actually do that haha. Any tips?
+ Start offering real sponsorship options
I have been using Adproval for the past year or so even though I don't like it all that much. I would like to switch to Passionfruit soon, but have hesitated since you have to pay for it and Adproval has been free. I have been to set up a real sponsorship program, however, I figure that if I am paying the small fee for the Passionfruit service, it will motivate me to actually utilize it more and create consistent sponsorship options. It would be nice to make a little extra money from ad spaces, but really I would just like to meet new bloggers and help others out however I can!
+ Work more with brands
I have worked with brands like Voodoo Vixen and eShakti in the past and loved it! I would really like to work with brands more often and write about those that I really believe in. Opportunities like that are always great for a bit of extra money and exposure, plus it is fun!
+ Create a thriving community!
This is pretty closely linked to consistency and for me the ultimate reward from blogging is the community that comes out of it. I love seeing all the different people who comment on my posts and getting to know them through their insights. You never know when one random comment can turn into a friendship! That's how I met a few of my dearest blogging friends :) Lately, the community around here hasn't been as strong and I'd like to put effort into building it back up!
I hope to achieve all of these things by the end of the year and I think it is really do-able! Looks like I have my work cut out for me! ;)
Do you have any mid-year goals, blogging or otherwise? What's on your blogging to-do list?
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