A Blogging Schedule For Success

Last Updated on June 23, 2020 by ellduclos

For the longest time people have asked me what my daily blogging schedule was like as a full time blogger. I am finally going to share (hopefully) some helpful tips on how I manage my time daily, what I focus on, and how I accomplish my blogging goals.

Since my daily blogging schedule is always changing, I figured it would be helpful to share what I do monthly and weekly as well!

---

Disclaimer: Affiliate links are used. If you purchase a product via my link I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I love and use. You can read my full disclosure here.

---

---

Monthly Blogging Schedule For Success

A quick disclaimer, life happens and sometimes my blogging schedule isn’t perfect. I’ll admit that! However, I try my absolute best to stick to these tasks. The biggest tip I can share is to not burn yourself out. Blogging is a lot of work and we wear a lot of hats. Sticking to a schedule is helpful but, if you start to feel overwhelmed it’s okay to take a step back. Be kind to yourself. 

First, I want to share the blogging tasks I try to do monthly.

Create a blog vision

I actually did an entire blog post on this. Essentially every month I like to map out my “blog vision”. I do this by using my planner to map out what blog posts I to publish and by which day. This is a rough vision, but I try my best to follow through. Something they don’t usually tell you about blogging full time is how self disciplined you need to be. Setting deadlines for yourself and sticking to them is tough but it makes a huge difference.

E-mail List Clean Up

Not everyone is the same way I am about their email list BUT, for me I’d rather have a smaller more engaged email list than a large email list who never opens any of my emails.  Part of my monthly blogging schedule, I like to go through and clean up my email list once a month. If someone hasn’t opened up my emails in a month or two, then I consider them to be uninterested. You can also see how many have opened but never clicked through. Getting rid of subscribers who aren’t actively opening and reading your emails can help you build a more engaged email list.

---

Take The Instagram Crash Course!

---

Google analytic in depth overview

I also try to do an in-depth overview of my google analytics at the end of every month as part of my monthly blogging schedule. I look to see which content performed the best and which platforms were my top referrers. If you don’t study your analytics you could potentially be missing out on increasing your blog traffic. Knowing which content is most popular can help create your content in the future. You need to know what your audience likes if you want to keep them coming back for more.

---

*** note: Traffic goes up and down daily for MANY reasons. Checking your stats daily can cause a lot of stress and unnecessary freak outs. Don’t panic. Instead, check your stats monthly and compare it to previous months to see how you can improve.

---

I also like to keep a notebook or google doc with details on what I did each month to drive traffic so I can compare previous months to current months. This helps me to see what strategies are working and what strategies might be a total flop.

Monthly social media goals

Just like my google analytics, I like to create monthly social media goals for myself. At the end of the month I check my growth. I also check my Instagram and Twitter analytics to see which content performed the best. Then I create new social media goals for the following month. If you want extra tips on growing an engaged social media following then check out this article. 

Pinterest analytics review

If you have been following me for a while then you know I swear by Pinterest to grow my blog traffic! Pinterest brings me anywhere from 50,000 – 90,000 blog views a month especially on my lifestyle blog. At the end of each month I like to see how my pins performed on Pinterest. This helps me decide what content I should focus on the following month.

I look to see what pins performed well and which boards were the most engaged and make adjustments to my Pinterest strategies when needed. Pinterest views go up and down all the time so if you find that you have a big decrease in Pinterest views don’t panic. Instead look into your analytics and see which pin went viral and tapered off and try to recreate pins that go viral. I have an affordable e-course that goes over my Pinterest strategies in detail. If you feel lost when it comes to growing your blog traffic with Pinterest then you need this course.

Figure out brand sponsorships

Another blogging task I do once a month is look through my blog vision and figure out what brands I want to pitch to for potential sponsorships. I have a month worth of content in front of me so I would think of which brands I love and could incorporate into some of my blog posts. Then I start pitching to them about a possible sponsorships which you will see in my weekly blogging tasks list. I like to keep a list of brands I want to pitch to in my notes as well as their emails.

If you need tips to help with pitching to brands then you will love this article.

 

---

Weekly Blogging Schedule For Success

Now let’s talk about the blogging tasks that I try to do weekly.

Pin Creation + Scheduling

Part of my Pinterest strategy is creating and scheduling new pins weekly. I will usually create 12-16 new pins once a week and schedule them to Tailwind. Pinterest LOVES fresh pins which is why I try to do this weekly.

---

** note: I have been testing out a new strategy where I schedule my blog pins to Tailwind for the week but I also create 2-5 new pins daily. Seems to be doing pretty well so far. Will keep you posted.

---

Again you can learn all about how to use Pinterest to grow your blog traffic in this affordable course.

Bulk photography

My weekly blogging schedule also includes bulk photography. This is a task I am trying to get better by looking at my blog vision and seeing what images I might need that week for new content. Then I try to pick a day once a week to take all the photos I need. This helps content creation run smoothly throughout the week.

Pitch to brands

Usually once a week I will pitch to brands for potential sponsorships and/or PR. 

Create a new blog post

Ideally I try to write 1-2 new blog posts a week. Sometimes if I’m felling inspired I’ll write more than that! That usually allows me to have a head start on the following week. OR if I get a random burst of inspiration I’ll write a 3,000+ word blog post in 3 hours like I did my last blog post. The best content is created when you are feeling inspired.

---

***note: I try my best to stick to a schedule with my blog content but life does get in the way. If you have a solid content marketing strategy and you are consistently showing up across your social media platform, your audience won’t go anywhere. But you NEED a solid content marketing strategy.

---

Instagram Giveaways

I know Instagram giveaways are very controversial in the blogging/influencer community. I get it. If you know me I have a love/hate relationship with Instagram. When I first started my Instagram I was growing pretty regularly and then my account was at a stand still.

I couldn’t reach 10,000 and I tried REALLY damn hard. It was a huge goal of mine and I really wanted to hit it. I tried EVERYTHING the “experts” suggested. I switched up my hashtags, I looked at my posting times, I made engaging captions, tried a curated Instagram feed, played on my Instagram stories, and nothing worked.

I got followers everyday but everyone unfollowed a day or two later. It was impossible to reach an audience who wasn’t bloggers/business owners.

So what did I do? I CAVED and researched how bloggers were really growing on Instagram and targeting an audience that wasn’t bloggers/business owners. I figured out that most of them were participating in Instagram giveaways.

I also researched different kinds of giveaways and then tried them out.

My Experience: 

I don’t work with the giveaway companies who want to charge an arm and leg ($100+ $400+ per buy in) that promise thousands of followers and here’s why:

• I like to moderate my growth. Those kinds of giveaways gain too quickly which makes it hard to weed out the bots, fake accounts, spam etc.
• The niche is too broad and makes it harder to gain a targeted audience which is something that matters to me.

I have participated in giveaways that are more affordable ($15-$40) and bring a more manageable targeted audience. These giveaways are a smaller gain but it makes it easier for me to make sure the audience I am gaining isn’t bots, spam, etc.

I have put together my own giveaway with other bloggers and here’s my thoughts: 

• It’s a lot of work to rally up other bloggers who are willing to trust you and want to collab on an IG giveaway
• It’s stressful because if the giveaway doesn’t perform well it feels like that’s all on you (even when it’s not your fault) 

When participating in giveaways try to choose one that is related to your niche so you are attracting a targeted audience. You should also manage the followers you do get because sometimes spam accounts will end up following you. It’s easy to click into your following and remove any spam accounts from following you.

Participating in too many giveaways might annoy your audience so keep that in mind too. I probably have made a few bloggers roll their eyes with my giveaways before. Even though it helps me grow it also allows a follower to win which I think is really great!

Not all the followers you receive from the giveaways will stick around. There is a drop off and that’s pretty much impossible to avoid. Keep creating engaging content and connecting with your followers via IG stories! (something I need to really get better at) 

Organically growing on Instagram feels almost impossible these days and this has just worked for me. If it’s not for you that’s okay. If you are interested here are some giveaway accounts I have used before.

@luvlyseasonsgiving

@thegivingfriends

@gotta_have_it_giveaways

---

Daily Blogging Schedule For Success

This is tough for me because everyday is different. What I usually do is create a daily task list for things I need to get done. I prioritize my list from most important to least important.

I then take my first task and set a reasonable timer for how long I have to complete that task. Once the timer goes off I move onto my next task. If the task isn’t completed by the time the timer goes off, then I move it to the bottom and go back to it after.

I find this to be the best strategy because it allows me to work on each task without focusing too long on one task over the other.

It’s really easy for me to get caught up on one task when I don’t set a timer.

Some of my daily MUST blogging tasks include:

1. Client work – I am a Pinterest manager and I am constantly working on my clients’ accounts.
2. Engaging in my Facebook group
3. Engaging on Instagram
4. Engaging on twitter
5. Creating new pins
6. Brainstorming sessions – I love to brainstorm blog post ideas daily, it keeps me inspired.
7. Answering emails
8. Editing and updating old blog content

It truly depends on the day and what needs to get done. Not everyday is the same. Prioritize and set timers to get what you need to do DONE.

---

I hope you found this helpful! Would love to hear any tips you might have to prioritize your time as a blogger.