I was going to post monthly about any traffic progress I make here at Julie’s Jazz. I wanted to do this because other blogs that have shared their experiences and numbers have helped me tremendously.
I got as far as two posts for two months. I then became wrapped up in moving and redesigning my blog.
In the wake of my blog redesign and move I have decided that monthly updates for my traffic status might prove to be super boring for my readers at this stage of the game. Plus, there are probably a lot of people who visit my blog who could care less about this stuff. My new thought is to have a page to share how I got to where I am now (blog wise) and to share any new developments that come up in the future. Hopefully this will be helpful to you on your blog journey.
How Julie’s Jazz began:
In August of 2010 I started a blog to showcase my kids. A couple of weeks later I thought I would start a food blog as well. I had been taking (hard copy) photos of food for years. I literally have two photo albums (not digital!) full of crappy food photos. I refuse to get rid of them because I feel like I will be able to use them for inspiration later. I started my blog using Blogger. I was http://www.juliesjazz.blogspot.com up until about a year ago when I purchased my own domain name from GoDaddy. Since then I have been https://www.juliesjazz.com. I didn’t get really serious about my blog until 2013.
In April of 2013 I decided to move my blog to WordPress. I also had it redesigned in the process. I paid an independent company to move my blog from Blogger to WordPress, to redesign my blog (using the Thesis Theme), and to design a new header for my blog. Unfortunately the header they designed got lost somehow when I was messing around with my blog settings, I couldn’t find it anywhere, so I had to design my own in a pinch. The web hosting service I am using is bluehost.
When I think about all of the technical stuff behind my blog it makes my head swim. I would love to be able to throw $5,000 to $10,000 at it to really make it standout and make it super easy to navigate but I don’t have that kind of cash to invest in it right now. For now I have to keep my focus on my content and aesthetic adjustments.
I am going to devote the rest of this page to the products and blogs that have helped me on my blog journey so far. I will introduce the product or blog, explain how it helps me, and provide a link to it.
Useful Products:
After my introduction to Food Blogger Pro if you don’t want to read any more you don’t have to. Food Blogger Pro is all you really need. Just sign up for Food Blogger Pro and it will explain everything I’m about to explain plus 1000 times more. I joined Food Blogger Pro in October 2013 and wish I would have joined it a year before that. It is food blogging 101. If you want to start a food blog start with Food Blogger Pro. Or if you already have an established blog, like me, it is loaded with tips and tricks to help you build your blog and audience. Food Blogger Pro includes a ton of videos that cover topics including: starting a food blog, building traffic, food photography, social media, generating income, and even creating an eBook. The videos are step-by-step user friendly tutorials detailing each subject. Food Blogger Pro also includes a community forum where members can ask questions and get answers. There is also a blog, of course! The couple who developed Food Blogger Pro already have a wildly successful food blog called Pinch of Yum. They share tons of useful information on their blog and Food Blogger Pro is an extension of the information they offer there. Everything taught in Food Blogger Pro can be seen in action at Pinch of Yum. Lindsay and Bjork do an incredible job! Their blog feels super friendly and unobtrusive. Lindsay’s food and food photography is beyond gorgeous.
Helpful Blogs:
This page, like my entire blog, is a work in progress. I will continue to add to it as time goes by. If you have any questions about it or anything else on by blog please don’t hesitate to ask. I’ve contacted many bloggers and asked them a lot of questions. Most of them have been extremely receptive and open. I hope that I can pay their kindness forward by helping out someone else.
Posts Dedicated to The Business of Blogging:
