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Now I want to share with you the useful blogging resources you need to up your game. I’ve been blogging for almost 3 years and I’m so guilty of not taking myself seriously enough. Often seeing myself as the new kid (old lady) on the block. Last summer though, I decided it was time to invest in my blog. Which in turn was investing in myself, believing in my ability as a blogger.
Useful blogging resources you need to up your game
Lyrical Host*
Now it has been just over a year since I took the plunge and went self hosted. Hands down, the best decision I ever made. Being self hosted offers so much freedom and more control of your blog.
The ability to build your DA score is really important if you plan to monetise your blog. But there are so many other benefits to being self-hosted. Plugins being another big factor for me. Being able to use plugins to support with SEO and creating better content has been invaluable. In fact the very first post I wrote on my self hosted site, still gets views daily thanks to organic searches.
Lyrical Host came highly recommended to me from other bloggers. I was not disappointed, far from it. They have been incredible. The customer service, the Facebook group and their resource library are brilliant. Even the most ridiculous of questions I asked the team are answered within minutes, almost 24 hours it feels.
If you’re thinking of going self hosted with Lyrical Host*, you can use code CLAIRE10 for a discount.
Stock Photographs
Like most bloggers, I use endless stock photo’s. Mainly because I am never happy with images I take myself! Stock photo’s are so useful for using in blog posts and especially for creating Pins.
I usually just use the free images available on Canva or unsplash which are great. But it does mean that others are probably using them a lot as well. That’s why I made the decision to purchase the premium version of Canva. At £10.99 a month, it is money well spent. There are so many more functions, fonts and of course images.
This year though, I have invested in stock photos from my hosting company, Lyrical host. 350 images are currently available £9.99 or £12.99 for non customers. The variety of images is incredible and I love making use of them.
You can buy your’s from Lyrical host, it is certainly money well spent.
Blogging Mindset mastery
This was a total game changer for me. It really was the moment where I felt like I’d really invested in my journey. Jenny’s Blogging mindset mastery course gave me a focus I didn’t know was missing. Not just for blogging though, I felt this course really pushed me to change my mindset in lots of ways.
It felt like a big move and a step towards taking myself seriously. The course is no longer available but I couldn’t leave something that was so helpful out.
The ultimate guide to blog Monetisation*
There was no better starting place for learning about how I was going to monetise my blog than this guide. Created by Kayleigh-Zara, this covers every area you need to work on to make money from your blog. It is a guide that I am constantly referring to, full of invaluable information for beginners and those who are looking to update their skills.
A beginners guide to affiliate sales*
Another amazing guide from Kayleigh-Zara. This time looking at affiliate sales. There is nothing this lady, the actual Queen of affiliate marketing, can’t teach you. This guide has it all in there for you. And if you had any doubt about her title, all you have to do is follow her and her success on Twitter. She is an inspiration to anyone looking to make their blog a full time job.
45 Pretty Pinterest starter Templates*
Amber created these amazing pin templates and they are a godsend to anyone keen on making pinterest work for them.
Having templates to work from makes the process much quicker, meaning batch creating pins will take a lot less time. You will always have something to work from and ready to go. Combine this with the stock photos above and the possibilities are endless.
The Ultimate Guide to a Successful Blogmas
Now if you are a fan of Christmas, this guide from Katie is the one! I had never taken part in Blogmas before but I knew I wanted to try, I just wasn’t sure where to start. Thanks to Katie and her Blogmas guide, I had my highest viewing month ever. Such a comprehensive guide that had me excited for Christmas in August. And that is NEVER a bad thing!
Useful blogging resources you need to up your game
So as you can see, there are some great resources out there that really can support you and your blog. Using the experience that the blogging community has to offer has been key to my recent success. I still have a lot to learn but I feel that investing in my blog has really helped me invest in myself and start to believe I can do it! That I do belong.
Have you bought any of these useful resources I’ve listed here? Or do you think they could be helpful for you and building your blog?
These are awesome resources. I’m hoping to go self hosted later this year. I’ll learn more about lyrical host since I’ve been seeing it more. Thanks for sharing the resources.
I bought Katie’s Blogmas guide and it was a big help to me as I prepared for my first Blogmas.
I also have Canva Pro and I love it.
I will definitely look into some of your other suggestions.
I agree with you on the stock photos, I have a subscription with shutterstock which has been great. Canva is the best thing ever too, so useful for pins and creating graphics.
Again really sorry about the mix up with the course! I’m so glad you were able to get it when it was available and get so much good use out of it though! And as always, thank you for the mention. It means the world <3 xxx
Sooo many great resources in this post which is really helpful. Thank you for sharing!
Rosie
I really need to take consideration of some of these resources these seem great.
Thank you for this helpful information it got me to wake up a bit on some ereas.
Thank you so much for sharing your expertise. I’m personally just a newbie in the blogging community and appreciate any advice given. I’ve found a love for writing but know I’ve still got a lot to try and a lot to learn. I look forward to growing my presence and blog with your advice.
I use a lot of pictures from pixabay and love that they are completely free – I always include a link to the pixabay picture to give credits
Lyrical Host’s content is so handy!
Katy | http://www.katystephenson.com
I am with Lyrical Host and agree, they are brilliant. I am looking at getting stock photos from them too after I get paid.
Thank you so much for sharing these resources! I am always trying to improve my blog, but it’s hard to know where to put my efforts. This post gives me a good starting point.
These are some useful blogging resources Claire, I’ll be looking into Lyrical Host when I migrate over to WordPress this year! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
This is such a helpful post. I’ve purchased a few of the resources you’ve mentioned and I agree they can completely change how you do things for the better.
There are some great tips here! I need to learn more about affiliate marketing, as don’t use it at all!!
Such an important and helpful post – I love a lot of the resources you have shared xx
Hi Claire. It can be a little daunting when you first start blogging, can’t it? So much to learn. Thank you for sharing these useful resources – it’s always helpful to see what other bloggers are successfully using in their blogs. Have you found much difference I using the paid-for photos? As Renata said in her comment if I don’t have a picture of my own to use I will use Pixabay for free pictures and give credit to the photographer in the post.
Thankyou so much for sharing my products on this Claire! You’ve said some really lovely things about my guides. I love Pinterest templates so I’ll check amber’s out x
I tried to go Self Hosted twice with two different platforms, and neither of them could get my blog across! But these are some great resources!
Katie | katieemmabeauty.com
Some fantastic tips here, especially on Lyrical host images and going Pro on Canva. I will also have to check out some of the courses you have mentioned here as well
I am hosted by Lyrical Host and have their stock photos and have bought one of Kayleigh’s courses before but hadn’t checked out the others yet. Will be sure to!
These are lovely resources Claire! I have heard a whole lot about lyrical hosting and canva is God-sent. I use free stock images from Unsplash and I credit them accordingly. The blogger’s listed here are amazing bloggers!
These are incredible resources that I shall be checking out for sure. Thanks for sharing.
These are great resources! I really love Canva for creating images etc.
Thanks for sharing, these tips on uping your blog game, mine has taken a back seat for a while so these are useful 🙂
Great resources! I’ve bought a few ebooks recently and they’ve been a huge help in making my blog better. Canva is such an amazing tool too 🙂 xx
This is such a helpful post! I switched to using stock images as I never liked my own photos and I think my blog looks so much better for it!
Tash – A Girl with a View
Great tips. I’m not into courses but I’m thinking about Canva Pro, since I use it so much to create Pinterest Pins and graphics for other brands. I really want to use the resize tool and brand kit for my own blog, so definitely something to look into. Especially as it’s £10.99, doesn’t seem too high!
Anika | chaptersofmay.com
Such a great list of resources! I already use some like Canva, but always need to find new ones! Thanks for sharing x
Fab resources! I definitely need to invest in something to up my blogging game this year
I’ve been thinking about going self-hosted for a while, but I never took the plunge. It’s great to hear you recommend Lyrical Host!
I also have a few of these resources like Kayleigh’s guide to affiliate sales & Amber’s Pinterest templates, but I’ll have to check out the others!
I saw many good resources here with the best creators! Thank you for sharing this 😀
Oooh there are some amazig resources here! I really can’t wait to change my provider to lyrical host!
Love, Amie ❤
The Curvaceous Vegan