One of the things I’ve noticed since becoming a parent is that you easily lose track of time. I’ve been so busy parenting and adulting that I’ve only just recently realised that it’s been a year since I launched my blog. A whole year. It doesn’t feel like that long ago!
To mark the occasion, I thought I’d write a post about some of the mistakes I made when I first started blogging.
Before I get into it, let me make one thing clear. I am NOT a blogging expert. I have no promises of six figure sums or surefire ways of making a mum blog a success.
All I can offer is honesty.
And with that, the first thing I’ll say is that blogging is one of the most enjoyable things I’ve ever done.
I wish I’d done it sooner.
When I first started, I had no knowledge of what blogging platforms to use.
I decided to look have a look online to see what other mums had to say about their experiences – and found myself drowning in a sea of mum blogs. This worried me.
With so many great blogs already out there, where would mine fit in?
So many parents have already written about their experiences:
The positives of being a parent – done.
The negatives of being a parent – done.
The humorous side of parenting (and the one I wanted to focus on) – done.
So why bother creating a blog when everything has been done before?
After giving it much thought I decided that, despite these types of blogs having been done before, there’s always room for more because everyone’s experiences will be different.
Despite many of those mum blogs covering similar topics, it’s still been interesting reading experiences from different people.
No blog has ever been written EXACTLY the same.
Everyone has their own writing style.
I’ve only been blogging for a year but I’ve learned so much.
And so, here are five things that you should avoid if you are planning to start a mum blog:
1. Choosing the wrong name
It took me AGES to decide on the right name for my mum blog. Several months and two domain names later, I finally settled on The Mum Cave.
When this blog first launched, it was called The Unadulty Adult. Adulthood is tough and so I wanted to create a blog that enabled me to be honest about parenthood, while also whingeing about adulthood.
So I thought that the Unadulty Adult would be a fitting name.
It REALLY wasn’t!
New to the blogging scene, I decided to promote The Unadulty Adult on Facebook. I ran an ad, hoping that people would flock to this new parenting and adulthood-hating blog.
I sat back and waited for parents and unadulting adults to notice this brand new, shiny blog that was being advertised…
…and ending up receiving a couple of messages from lonely men, asking what my services were.
Why?
Because, readers, it turns out that people who had seen the advert, which described the blog as “A brand new blog where parents and adults can laugh, cry and rant together” had mistaken it for some sort of business that provides adult company for lonely adults.
I should have suspected, when I was choosing the logo for The Unadulty Adult and a tiny icon of a silhouetted woman with her legs crossed in the air popped up, (along with a selection of 18+ icons) that the name might be perhaps mistaken for some sort of sex or chat service.
I didn’t choose that icon, obviously, but the fact that it popped up when I was browsing through the selection of icons should have been enough of a warning.
I’m not sure how any blog with the word “unadulty” preceding the word “adult” could be mistaken for that, but the few messages sitting in my inbox from a couple of men seeking adult company told me that it definitely had been.
So, when choosing a blog name, choose carefully!
And speaking of inappropriate icons, here’s the next mistake you should avoid:
2. Choosing the wrong logo
Don’t be like me. If tiny icons of silhouetted women are appearing in your search for the perfect icon for your blog logo, take a hint. Your lovely parenting blog could end up showing in search results next to chat or sex websites.
And you will receive messages from random people asking what “services” you provide. Which, quite frankly, when collapsing on the sofa after dealing with the demands of two children, is the last thing you want.
Choose a logo that reflects your blog content. It took me AGES to find the right one. In the end, I settled on the silhouette of a family of four throwing their hands up in the air.
Does it reflect my blog content?
After all, The Mum Cave is meant to be a sort of haven for parents and adults, where they can have a bit of a laugh.
It’s also about family life though, so I felt that it was the right choice.
And it’s also fitting because there’s really no escaping my loud but lovely family, no matter where in the house I set up a mum cave.
3. Choosing the wrong layout
I’ll be honest here – starting my blog was NOT an easy process for me. This wasn’t the fault of any of the platforms I use (Bluehost and WordPress) but rather because of the fact that I was so new to it all.
WordPress has a plethora of themes to choose from and I must have tried at least a dozen of them before I settled on the one I’m currently using.
It’s important to choose a theme that reflects the way you write. For example, if it’s a mum blog that mostly covers cooking and travel, then a theme that enables you to display photos of your food and holiday destinations is the best choice.
If you’re using WordPress (apologies if not, but it’s the only one I have experience with!), then you can easily browse through the themes and look at the descriptions to see which types of blogs a particular theme is best suited to.
Experiment with different themes and see which one you like best. WordPress and other web content management systems or web builders offer lots of great themes for free, so you can easily make your blog look stylish or professional without having to spend anything.
Not everything will be free though, which brings me onto the next mistake made:
4. Losing money
Choosing the wrong domain name and logo not only resulted in me having to spend a while trying to decide on another suitable name and logo, it also cost me money!
Lucikly, while I couldn’t avoid spending an extra £10 on a new domain name, I was able to avoid paying for another logo. I discovered several websites that enabled me to create a brand new logo for free. Premium features were offered at a cost, but luckily I didn’t need these.
Of course, you don’t actually have to have a domain name or logo at all. But if you really want to personalise your blog and give it a sort of brand (especially if you’re intending to promote products or non-sex services at some point) then it’s better to have your own domain name.
And onto the final mistake:
5. Choosing a name that’s hard to match on a social media accounts
I’m completely satisfied with my (hopefully) final choice of The Mum Cave as my blog name.
BUT…
It has been hard being able to match my name on different social media accounts. My blog name wasn’t available on Facebook or Instagram, so I had to choose the closest usernames possible.
This isn’t too much of a problem for me, but if you’re planning to set up a mum blog with the aim of building up a brand and selling products, such as cakes, gifts or merchandise, then it’s much better to have usernames that match across all of your social media accounts.
And so…
Whatever your reasons for starting a mum blog, whether it’s to eventually build up a brand or for somewhere to laugh and cry about parenthood like mine, avoiding these mistakes will help you to get off on the right foot!
Share your thoughts!