Lifestyle blogs are a popular way for people to share their daily lives with online readers. In a lifestyle blog, you can share your opinions and thoughts on food, fashion, relationships, home decor, your professional work, and your personal life goals. To write a lifestyle blog, start by brainstorming ideas for your blog. Then, set up the blog so you can share it with readers online. Create content for the blog and maintain it so it stays relevant to your readers.
Contents
Brainstorming Ideas
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1Determine your interests as a blogger. Consider what you are most interested in during your daily life. Maybe you have an interest that you can’t pursue in your career, but want to explore in your blog. Write down one to three main interests for the blog.[1]
- For example, you may have an interest in vegetarian food, eco-friendly makeup, and eco-friendly fashion.
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2Identify your area of expertise. Think about what types of skills and specialized knowledge you possess. Focus on what you know about the most and then share your knowledge with your readers in the blog.[2]
- For example, you may be knowledgeable about how to travel cheaply and safely as a single person. Or you may know how to make cheap and delicious meals at home for one.
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3Pick the main theme of the blog. A lifestyle blog should not attempt to cover every detail of your life. Instead, focus on the main theme or topic so your posts are detailed and specific.[3]
- For example, you may focus on beauty and fashion in the blog. Or maybe you focus on art and technology.
- You may also have a secondary focus, like eco-friendly fashion or Native American art.
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4Choose a name for the blog. Come up with a name that is memorable and particular to you. Short and simple is usually best. You may use your first name in the blog name and include words that tell the reader what the blog is going to focus on.[4]
- For example, if your lifestyle blog focuses on cooking, you may use a title like “In the Kitchen with Fiona” or “Fiona Cooks.”
- You can also choose words that you like or refer to often, such as “Glitter and Studs” or “Lemon and Salt.”
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5Read examples of a lifestyle blog. To gain a better understanding of lifestyle blogs, read examples of successful ones. Look up the blogs online and notice how they write their posts as well as how they lay out their blog. You may read the following blogs:
- “Cupcakes and Cashmere”
- “Joy the Baker”
- “The Boy Who Bakes”
- “Yummertime”
- “The Londoner”
Part2
Setting up the Blog
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1Select a blogging platform. There are many blogging platforms available, from WordPress to Squarespace to Blogger. The most popular blogging platform is WordPress, as it is good for beginners, costs very little, and is easy to customize even if you have little to no coding knowledge. Look at several blogging platforms and choose the one that suits your needs.[5]
- Be cautious when using free platforms like Blogger, as they will put their own ads on your blog and provide very little customer support. When you use a free platform, you do not own your own content, so your blog can be shut down at any time by the platform.
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2Register your blog’s domain name. The domain name for your blog should match your blog’s name. Keep the domain name short and easy to remember. Use an original domain name and avoid using brand names in the domain name.[6]
- For example, you may register the domain name: “lemonandsalt.com.”
- Make sure the domain name you want is available. Do not use a domain name that already exists or is owned by someone else.
- You will need to pay a monthly fee to a hosting service so you can own and maintain your domain name.
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3Choose a design theme. The design theme of your blog will determine the layout, the colors, and the overall style of the blog. Look for a theme that is easy to read and navigate for readers. Choose colors that represent your personal aesthetic or style. Decide if you’d like the theme to be advertiser-friendly, in the event you want to put ads on the blog.[7]
- Depending on your blogging platform, you may have access to a large variety of free themes that you can choose from.
- You can also buy a theme that you like on the blogging platform. Paid themes will often be more functional and easy to use for both you and your readers.
Part3
Creating Content for the Blog
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1Write in the first person. Use “I” to talk directly to your readers in an intimate, personal way. Express your thoughts, opinions, and emotions on the blog in the first person so your readers feel like they are getting to know you.[8]
- For example, you may start a post with, “Hi friends. Lately, I’ve been struggling to find a lipstick brand that is eco-friendly but won’t chap my lips.”
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2Maintain a friendly, approachable tone. Address your readers like they are your close friends. Use language that is open, honest, and accessible for readers. Do not try to imitate someone else or be someone you’re not. Readers will pick up on this right away and get turned off.
- For example, if you tend to swear a lot with your friends, you may swear on your blog.
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3Make your posts topical and timely. Staying on trend will keep your lifestyle blog relevant and interesting to readers. Put up blog posts that relate to the seasons or the time of year. Include a post about a recent trend or a current news event so you stay on topic.[9]
- For example, you should blog about non-alcoholic summer drinks in the summertime, or talk about fall outfits at the beginning of fall.
- You could also blog about a recent beauty trend, like lip kits, and write your own thoughts or ideas around the trend.
- You can use slang or shorthand in the blog so your readers can connect to you, such as: “Dear readers, I don’t get memes these days and I’m #nottryinganymore.”
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4Include high-quality photographs and visuals. Readers gravitate to blogs that have beautiful photographs and visuals to look at. Use a good digital camera to take photographs that relate to your postings.[10]
- For example, if you post about a recipe you made recently, include high-quality photographs of the final dish.
- You can also draw visuals to accompany your posts if you are a strong illustrator. However, blog readers tend to prefer photographs over illustrations.
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5Use detailed titles for your posts. Avoid generic or vague titles. Tell the reader exactly what you are offering them in the post.[11]
- For example, rather than title a post “Style Ideas,” use the title, “Top 5 Ways to Style Your Living Room.”
- Having detailed titles will also make it easier for readers to search your blog, and search engines, for your posts.
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6Create three to five posts before launching. Before your lifestyle blog goes live, have several strong posts ready to go. You may start with a short introductory post that covers who you are and what your blog is all about. You can then follow up the introductory post with two to five more posts that explore the theme or focus of your blog.[12]
- Make sure the writing and aesthetic are consistent across all three to five posts.
- Put the posts up on the blog one to two days apart so your readers know they can expect regular postings from you.
Part4
Maintaining the Blog
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1Respond to reader comments. Build your online community by reading and responding to as many reader comments as you can. Responding to comments will create a dialogue with your readers and make them feel like they are active participants in the creation of your blog.[13]
- You can keep your responses short and sweet. Use an upbeat voice when responding to comments. For example, you may write, “Thanks so much for reading!” or “Appreciate the tip, thanks!”
- Be gracious if a reader corrects an error in your post and amend your original post as needed.
- Avoid responding to negative comments unless you feel you want to start a constructive dialogue with the reader.
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2Post regularly. Stick to a regular posting schedule, where you post on the same day and time every week. Try to post at least three to four times a week to build a readership.
- Have specific postings for particular days, such as a “Friday Link Roundup,” a “Monday Style” post, or a “Sunday Random Recipe” post.
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3Use a consistent voice and style. This will give your blog a concise and distinct look for readers. It will also let readers know what to expect when they read your blog. Avoid changing up your voice or style in the blog, as this can be confusing or off-putting to readers.
- For example, once you choose a blog theme and a font style, stick to that theme and style.
- If you do decide to change up the theme or style, do so gradually or let your readers know of these changes in advance.
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4Consider monetizing your blog. If you’d like to make money off of your lifestyle blog, consider selling advertising space on your blog. You can also get paid by companies to market their products to your readers.
- Another way to make money is to offer your services for a fee to your readers.
- Growing your blog traffic with regular postings, giveaways, and contests can also increase your blog revenue.
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