Note: this is a second post in a series about getting started with bargain blogging that I kicked off yesterday. Go back and read my first post here if you haven't already!
When I was planning my blog, everything I read said it was important to post "frequent, and often." And when it comes to running a bargain blog, frequent generally means multiple posts per day. Here are some of the questions I get about this topic, and what I've learned.
How often should I post?
Do what you can reasonably sustain. I believe readers like knowing what to expect. Meter your content out – don't post 18 things in one day and then nothing for 4 days. I think it would be better to start out posting 1-2 posts per day, but then doing that consistently than fluctuating wildly. You'll notice some of the bigger sites may have LOTS of posts each day. I average probably about a half dozen posts per day – and that is reasonably what I can sustain.
How do I find deals to post about?
I'm not going to lie. I'm not about to share everything I've done to make this blog work – I've worked too hard to give it all away (sorry!). But I will tell you this – consider other blogs, bigger deal sights, but whatever you do, try to find some deals yourself. Don't just be a blog that regurgitates everyone else's deals. Over time I've developed a few methods of finding deals and it doesn't take as much time to find good stuff as it used to. As you get going, you'll find what sources work for you, and which ones don't. And don't underestimate sharing local deals. When I started I thought I only wanted to share national deals, but more and more readers have told me they want to see deals for my local area, and I've worked to do that as I can.
What other content goes on my blog?
Think about what you can blog about besides just finding deals or your blog will soon feel like a catalog of information. You want to keep your personality front and center. In thinking of my own blog, I aim to have at least a few "meatier" posts per week where I share what I'm doing with my shopping, stockpiling, etc. It's important that my readers are connected to me as a blogger. That's what's going to build loyalty. I'm always challenging myself on how I might break the "blog-reader" barrier through my writing. You should, too.
Can I use stuff other bloggers have written?
This is a question I get a lot, and it was something I wondered about too. Here's what you CAN do and many, if not most bargain bloggers do. Say you see a deal on my site you wish to use on your blog. It is completely OK to do a separate post on your blog repeating the basic information about the deal. But there are two very important rules in doing so: 1) it is NOT OK to copy and paste the entire post on your site and 2) ALWAYS give credit to the blogger you found the deal from with a link back to their post or site. With those two caveats out of the way, let me say I personally (and I KNOW this goes for most bloggers) LOVE it when other bloggers feature their deals. Why? Traffic! By giving credit back to the original blogger and a link, you bring potential new readership to that blog. Make sense?
How much time does this take and when do you find time to do this?
Make no bones about it: this is HARD WORK. Like many people, I was eager to get started, hoping to earn some extra income for our family while staying home. Let me now be painfully honest with you. I did not receive my first check for about 8 months after I wrote my first post. And it was about $100. While other bloggers might achieve faster and better success, any way you slice it, you've got to be prepared to put in some SERIOUS time. Some bloggers work early in the AM, before their family rises. Others (such as myself) are up most nights well past 11 or 12 trying to find deals for the next day. I can't remember the last time I didn't have to work on a Saturday night. This is just the reality of it for me. I want my blog to be the very best I can make it. I want my readers to keep coming back for more. And that takes serious time and commitment. I estimate I spend anywhere from 2-4 hours per day on my blog, usually averaging closer to 2.
Now let me say this. I am also a stay-at-home mom of two and I also sometimes have work as a freelance writer. I think some people might suppose I'm a "mommy blogger" with nothing better to do. Au contraire! My life was already full before my blog. I chose to MAKE time for it because I was passionate about it. You MUST have passion about your blog to carry you through!!
Reflection time….
If you're just starting out, or if you're thinking about launching a blog, spend some time planning your posts. Find some great, consistent sources for finding deals – be they other bloggers, deal sites, stores in your area, etc. Consider what topics you naturally like to talk and share about and think about how they might be used in your blog. Be realistic with your time – if you only have an hour to spend a day on your blog, determine how you many posts you can reasonably write. And what about reader emails? Comments? These will take time to go through, too.
In the next couple days I'll be spending some time on how I've worked to build some traffic to my site.
Photo credit Jan Willien Geertsma
 |
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Thank you. Although I’m not planning to start a blog myself, it’s neat to read about what you do to make it work.
As a reader, I can say that I definitely appreciate a few consistent, condensed posts, rather than a lot of little posts. It’s easier for me to manage information that way, and I’m more likely to click over to the blog to read it there (which in turn makes me more likely to click on the widgets and whatnots on the website).
I’m just starting couponing, and right now I have 33 blogs in my google reader that deal with coupons & deals. That’s a lot! It takes me almost all day to go through them, and you’re right that there are a lot of repeat posts. The unique posts like this one, and recipes (from those who love to cook), and posts about life, and about learning from the kids are what keep me coming back to some of the blogs that aren’t as great for the deals. Every blog has something unique about it that makes me say “I can’t weed that one out – I might miss something!” (Obviously after a little more time, I will weed some of them out, but not yet.)
Would you believe that at least half of the bloggers are on swagbucks?
Thanks again.
Deb, this is very interesting to me and I would LOVE to hear more from readers about this…what sort of blogs are you drawn to and what turns you off? Do you enjoy blogs with a lot of posts, or few? Interesting.
Thank you so much, Angela, for sharing abut all your hard work and you have answered alot of questions for me.
I love the blogs with alot of posts in one day. Those are the ones I am most drawn to. In fact, the one I love the best is on the other side of the country and doesn’t even have our local grocery stores. I visit that site at least 20 times a day because she’s fun, she does giveaways, contests, and posts about coupon deals constantly throughout the day, plus her youtube videos are very catchy. I’m sure you know who I’m talking about
I enjoy yours because you’re local and cover the stores that I frequent. You’re the one who “turned me on” to couponing when my step-mom gave me your article to read in the FW paper. So I d0 owe you a huge THANKS!! I’d still be spending $120 a week in groceries if it wasn’t for you 
I know exactly who you’re talking about and yes, she’s a very successful blogger and an inspiration. She’s actually become a mentor to me and helped me answer some of my earliest questions about blogging, so lots of respect for her!
Let me make this clear though. I simply cannot compete with what she’s doing, so I don’t care to try. I don’t have the resources to do so and I’m at peace with that. My goal is to the very best with what I’ve got. I want to be authentically ME, and not a poor copy-cat of another blogger. You might notice she also doesn’t do much teaching or regular grocery store match-ups. She does lots of little posts per day, everyday. She’s a whiz at online deals – that’s what she does and you’d be hard pressed to find anyone who does it better than her. I am trying to be a whiz at what I do – teaching, more condensed posts, and helping folks see the “bigger picture.”
If you’re just starting out with a blog, don’t feel you have to “compete” with bigger bloggers. Do something entirely different! Sometimes it’s discouraging b/c I WISH I had more time or money to put into my blog, but I keep at it anyways…finding ways to be creative and frugal in building my business…just as I do with couponing and stockpiling.
Remember…be YOURSELF. Don’t try to replicate what someone else is doing. Be authentically YOU. No one likes a copy cat.
Hi! I luv that ur doing this. and i dont type w/correct grammar expect when blogging.
i just had to jump in here about the thousand-posts-a-day blog. i know who it is to and it annoys the heck out of me. i dont like bloggers who dont actually shop (they never post pics or write about the deals they do and thats how i spot them). it seems un-authentic. if i get 1 or 2 deals that dont work b/c the person writing them doesnt actually shop, i hardly ever (if never) go back to that blog. i want a real person like me who really is interested in SAVING money not just writing about it.
as for those who have blogs and want to change some things, go ahead and do it. i was watching a vid on building a site and it said tweeking later on is common.
its better to have a site u like that to live w/one u dont b/c u wont be motivated. my readers actually like when i change things — but most of them are my friends.
Damsel, I agree! It’s never too late to tweak if something you’re doing isn’t working for you. I recently put out a reader survey and got some very interesting feedback on my blog. Some of the adjustments you’ll see to the site starting next month will be a direct result of what readers have suggested. Listen to your readers – a blog isn’t a blog without them! See what they respond to, and what they don’t. There are certain deals/posts I just don’t feature anymore due to lack of response.
Angela,
Thank you so much for these posts. I am going through the gut wrenching process of starting an organic couponing blog in my area. What you expressed in the above comments about trying to not compete with other blogs is kind of what I am struggling with at this point. I see these other sites and feel waves of intimidation and anxiety. Trying to balance finances, time with kids (3) and hubby, and learning all the in’s and out’s of this can feel impossible at times. Your blog is really giving me some much needed encouragement. I would love to hear more about how you financed things until you were making money from the blog itself.
Thanks again!