Last Updated on May 3, 2020 by ellduclos

2019 Blogging Goals – Getting your blogging sh*t together!

2019 is right around the corner, can you believe it?! You know what that means…. GOALS. Listen, I am all for creating goals for 2019, but here’s the thing… It is so easy to create goals and fail to follow through with them! What’s the point of having goals if you aren’t going to follow through? You also don’t NEED to wait for a new year or a Monday to set and achieve goals! For those of you who follow my blog, THANK YOU, but I am assuming you have read my latest post on “How to actually achieve your goals.” If not, go check it out! It helps create a goal getting mindset so that you can do more than just write your goals down. It’s a 5 step process that I use to accomplish my goals! It’ll come in handy for accomplishing your 2019 blogging goals!

Today I want to talk about how you can get your blogging sh*t together in 2019 so that you can achieve  blogging success! I started my blog back in April of 2017 and within 6 months I was able to turn it into full time income! I would have never been able to do this if I didn’t act on all of my goals! It’s so easy to set and forget your goals. But when you take actionable steps to achieve your goals, you CAN make things happen!

It’s time to turn your blog into your full time career! I am going to help you do so! I’ll be sharing my favorite blogging goals with you that helped me achieve a full time career. So let’s get to it!!!

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Disclaimer: Affiliate links are used, if you purchase via my link I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. You can read my full disclosure here.

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2019 Blogging Goals

Blogging Goals #1 – Believe you can

This sounds like a silly goal to have but it makes a hell of a difference when you actually BELIEVE in yourself. I always say our mind is a powerful thing. It really is!!! If you constantly say to yourself “There’s no way I can turn my blog into a career.” then you are right, you probably won’t. BUT… if you start believing that YOU CAN turn your blog into a career, you manifest that sh*t into your life. I am a huge believer in the law of attraction. You can attract anything you want into your life. Positivity attracts positivity. Start believing in yourself and your mind will attract success.

Before you take on these goals, read my 5 step process to accomplishing goals!

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Blogging Goals #2 – Go Self Hosted

When I first started my blog I wasn’t self hosted. I used wordpress .com which was a free platform. Yes, free is great! Who wouldn’t want free?! BUT … free is limited! You don’t have all of the customization and niffty plug in options. I also wasn’t able to grow an e-mail list on wordpress .com.

I heard about self hosting and instantly made the transfer. Being self hosted is great for many reasons.

1. Faster server speed – which means my site load time was faster than when it was on a free platform.
2. Limitless customization – I could upload my own themes, customize my site however I wanted, add HTML, have access to hundreds of plug ins, create an e-mail list and so much more.
3. No restrictions – Sometimes on free hosted platforms your monetization is restricted to their set terms. When you are self hosted you don’t have to worry about those limitations.
4. Complete ownership of your website – Being self hosted means YOU own your site, no one else! If you are on wordpress .com , wix, squarespace, blogger etc. they have ownership over your blog too. If their sites go down, you go down with them! You don’t want to risk losing your content. (in my opinion)
5. You’ll get a custom domain which looks a lot more professional than www.yoursite.blogger.com

There are so many benefits to having a self hosted website! Many are skeptical because they fear they will be alone in the process, BUT YOU AREN’T. If you use a good self host, you will have access to a support team that helps you through ANY difficulties! Also note that you don’t need to know HTML if you are self hosted. So don’t fear!

So which self host should you use?

Many bloggers will recommend blue host but I am not a fan of them! Their support team isn’t as helpful and their servers go down more often than others. I have heard too many horror stories. I personally LOVE and use Siteground! I have been using Siteground since 2017 and my site has NEVER been down. I also love that Siteground has a live 24/7 chat who helped me with any issue or confusion I have ever had!

Tips for purchasing a plan:

I recommend the “Grow Big” plan because it allows you room for growth, AND if you are transferring from one platform to self hosting, they offer FREE site transfers! This will save you a lot of headaches.

Another tip is to sign up for at least a year in advance because you will get a discount price! The price will rise after your year is up so you might as well get the best discount you can! Even purchasing 3 years up front is smart and will save you money in the long run.

You can use my link to sign up to get a discounted price!

Once you sign up you can install wordpress onto your Siteground account and get to blogging!

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Blogging Goals #3 – Start using Pinterest!!!

I can’t stress this blogging goal enough. I often see bloggers stressing about their blog views. They are constantly wondering why they can’t get blog traffic. Don’t worry, I know the struggle. I was once wondering the same thing. Finally I cracked the code! PINTEREST.

I am sure you have heard it before BUT it really is worth learning. I don’t mean using Pinterest in general to pin your favorite recipes. That’s not going to get you much traffic at all…. I mean learning Pinterest strategies that will actually grow your blog traffic and even affiliate sales! YES. It’s Possible!

& if you haven’t invested in Tailwind yet to help you grow your Pinterest and blog traffic … DO IT! It’s a pin scheduling tool and it makes a hell of a difference! I get almost 2 million monthly Pinterest views because of Tailwind and my Pinning strategies.

Now you might be wondering, okay Ell, what are your pinning strategies? *Self promo alert!*

I created an affordable e-course that goes over ALL of my pinning strategies. It tells you exactly how I receive 1,000+ blog views a day from Pinterest! Plus I can easily make $2,000 a month through Pinterest too! I know how frustrating it can be to want to take an e-course but have it be insanely expensive! That’s why I wanted to keep my course as affordable as possible!

I have taught over 2,000 students how to master Pinterest to grow their blog and sales.

My e-course teaches you:

• Keyword strategies to rank high in searches
• How to properly set up your Pinterest to benefit your blog (yes there is a specific way)
• How, where, and when to pin
• How to create pin graphics that convert to blog traffic
• A step by step tailwind tutorial and how I use it to grow
• How to promote affiliate links on Pinterest to make sales
• How often to pin

& so much more! This course is only $32 and it can make a SERIOUS impact on your Pinning game.

If you purchase the course before Dec 25th 2018 and use coupon code: “TisTheSeason” you can get this course for just $10 !! It’s a steal!

& If you want a few free Pinterest tips – check out this post! 

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Blogging Goals #4 – Start getting serious with affiliate marketing

Let 2019 be the year that you learn how to master affiliate marketing! Affiliate marketing is one of the most popular ways that bloggers make an income! You would promote “affiliate” links for products/services you use and love, which then brings you a small commission for each sale you make through your affiliate link!

Affiliate marketing brings me $4,000 sometimes MORE a month! Depends on the season and how much content marketing I do that month. Nothing comes without hard work! But Pinterest definitely helps to take the load off.

Some of my favorite affiliate programs are:

• ShareASale
• Amazon
• Creative Market
• Awin
• FlexOffers
• ShopStyleCollective
• Target
• Siteground

I also go over 10 ways to UP your affiliate sales HERE.

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Blogging Goals #5 – Stop being busy & become productive

When it comes to blogging goals, I struggle with this one the most! As bloggers it’s so easy to get lost in social media and busy tasks rather than doing things that are actually PRODUCTIVE! Think about it, you may think you are working on your blog when in reality you are just scrolling through your twitter or Instagram feed being completely unproductive! I am guilty of this too.

This is how I started to become more productive.

• Step one: Make a list of tasks. This is a list of things you want to accomplish for the day. As you write your tasks down, ask yourself, is this going to help me accomplish my long term goal? If the answer is YES, then it’s productive. If the answer is no, it belongs at the bottom of your list!
• Step two: Cut out distractions. If you want to actually get things done, you need to cut out your distractions. Social media is a huge part of blogging but it also can be a huge distraction! There is no need to be engaging on social media 24/7. (I keep telling myself this…*eyeroll*) If you need to write a blog post, HIDE YOUR PHONE. You can pick it back up after you finish your work. If you can’t concentrate with the TV on, TURN IT OFF. Limiting distractions will help you get more sh*t done!
• Step three: Start with your first task and set a timer. After the timer is up, if you didn’t complete the task, put it at the bottom of your list. Now you can move onto the next task and repeat the process. I love setting timers for accomplishing tasks because it helps me to touch base on each task! If I don’t do this I tend to focus on one task for too long! You don’t want to focus on just one task all day. That’s not very productive.

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Blogging Goals #6 – Create a branded look for your blog

There is really nothing better than having a “branded” appeal to your blog! This means having a color scheme you use on your blog, a font, and making sure your blog looks appealing to the eyes and is organized.

It can be a huge turn off if a blog is all over the place. I promise, the more put together your blog looks, the more attention your blog will get! I use canva to create my blog graphics and it’s seriously the best!

Each of my blog posts contains a “pinterest graphic” that is put together the same way to give off a “branded” vibe. I am no brand pro by any means….but it doesn’t hurt to do this! In fact, writing this has inspired me to want to reorganize and rebrand my website! (LOL)

If you are in need of a new theme for your blog here are some of my favorites!

1. Creative Market 
2. Hello You Designs

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Blogging Goals #7 – Make sure you have privacy & disclosure policies

This is SOOOO important, especially if you are using affiliate links, ads, collecting info like credit cards or emails etc! You want to save your butt from any legal harm. I spoke with Amira recently who is a lawyer and she opened my eyes on the importance of having a solid privacy and disclosure policy in place. Before talking with her I was using a free privacy policy generator which is a big NO. These free privacy policies don’t protect you enough! You can read why here.

BUT… if you have yet to properly secure your blog from any legal harm, I definitely recommend checking out Amira’s legal templates. She is a lawyer and blogger who has drafted these legal templates to make sure your blog is protected. I use her templates myself and absolutely love them! It puts my mind at ease knowing that my blog is protected properly.

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Blogging Goals #8 – Go back and update old content

This blogging goal sounds tedious but it makes a hell of a difference! Let’s face it… our older content may not be our BEST content. Throughout the years and months, we grow and learn as bloggers.

What can you do to update old content?

• Fix SEO – (add headings, add alt txt to images, add keywords, interlink your content)
• Add opt in forms to grow your e-mail list (add freebies)
• Add affiliate links where possible
• Add content upgrades (if you have a product you sell, advertise it on old posts)
• Update old images to higher quality images

If you would like to read a more detailed post on this, you can check that out here.

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Blogging Goals #9 – Network!

I can’t stress this enough! (wow, I say that a lot.) Get social with other bloggers! Not only will it motivate you as a blogger to talk with like minded individuals, BUT, it can also help you grow!

*Tip: Your domain authority and SEO grows the more you are linked on other’s websites, ESPECIALLY if they have a high DA too! It essentially helps grow trust with search engines so you rank higher!

So? How do you get your website link on other websites?

Guest posting is the best way! This is when you write a blog post for another blogger who writes similar content. In return for writing a post for them, they link back to your website to get their audience to check you out!

You can also team up with other bloggers and collab on a post! For example, a holiday gift guide collab! Maybe you could write 10 gifts under $10 and the next person you link to shares 10 gifts under $20 and so on!

Another way to network is to join Blogging communities that bring bloggers together! I actually have one that I created – Boss Girl Bloggers! It’s filled with over 30,000 like minded women who are trying to pursue their passion in blogging as a full time career! Everyone is so kind and helpful and there is a weekly collab thread as well! Would love to have you!

Besides networking virtually with other bloggers, go out of your comfort zone and attend Meet-ups and events this year! Check out local blogging groups on Facebook for meet-ups!

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Blogging Goals #10 – Plan out your content in advance & be consistent!

This is something I am learning is a GAME CHANGER. Nothing is worse than struggling to come up with content on the spot! So rather than playing the – what the hell should I blog about today? game, plan out your blog posts in advance so you know what to write about!

What I typically do is compile blog post ideas that come to me throughout the month in my notes. THEN, at the end of the month I look through the ideas and plan them out in my Vision Planner… (which by the way, this planner is freaking amazing!) 

Now I can see exactly what I want to write and when I want to have each post up by! I know many say that you don’t need to be consistent to become a successful blogger… which I guess can be true, BUT it does help to build a trusting & buying audience when you are being consistent! If you struggle with consistency, you aren’t alone! Here are some of my favorite tips!

If you want to know exactly how I use my Vision Planner and create a monthly blog vision, you can read all about that here!

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Related: The Reality of Being a Full Time Blogger

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Blogging as a career is A LOT OF WORK. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise! I won’t sugar coat a thing, I spend my days and nights creating, engaging, and trying not to loose my damn mind… BUT I LOVE EVERY SECOND OF IT. Especially since most work days can be spent in comfy clothes with a glass of wine.

If you get your blogging sh*t together, the hard work will pay off. I PROMISE!!!!! If you are ready to get your blogging sh*t together, drop a “HELL YES” in the comments!