2015 was a year for growth- in a lot of ways, in both my personal and blogging life. More so in my blogging life as I made the decision to monetize in 2014 and really saw the effects of that in 2015. I had my first sponsored post in 2014, but 2015 brought so much more. Granted, I didn’t break the 10k threshold but I think I’m well on my way to earning at least a part time income next year.
2015 was my year for learning, or at least somewhat. I started Elite Blog Academy, something that had been on my to-do list for months. And I also took an SEO course with Kelli from 3 Boys and a Dog and Crystal from Crystal and Co. It was something else that had been on my to-do list for months. I purchased and rented eBooks on Kindle for SEO and content marketing. I’ve attended numerous webinars.
And I’m still not done yet.
I’m currently enrolled in Sticky Blogging with Kelly Holmes and at the end of December, I’ll be starting The Blog Hive.
I also have plans to start courses at SkillCrush so I can learn more about Web Design and Development.
I’ve also discovered the worlds of Creative Market, The Hungry Jpeg, and Design Cuts- which has lead to me rediscovering Adobe Photoshop and learning how to use InDesign and Illustrator.
2015 was also my year for really starting with sponsored posts as a way of bringing in income. I had made some through BlogHer on my social media and had a few campaigns with Linqia in the past. But, after having one of my posts really boost my pageviews, I applied to Collective Bias. That had been on my blogging to-do/goals list for quite some time. I also joined Clever Girls this year and started applying to more campaigns with Sverve.
And even though sponsored posts has done well for me, it’s also made me realize how much I would love to work directly with companies. Not that I wouldn’t do posts through a network; I still would. Just that I feel by working with a company directly, I might have more control. Or I could potentially make more money.
In 2015, I also had my first brand ambassadorships. While this wasn’t something that was on my to-do list as a blogger, I still found that it was an incredibly important milestone to reach.
2015 was also the year that I started to grow my network. This has been incredibly huge, and quite honestly, in the long term will pay off more than sponsored posts. By building good working relationships with other bloggers and/or by utilizing the resources that are out there; I’ve been able to grow my blog steadily.
So what’s to come in 2016?
More growth, of course. Both as a person and as a blogger. I hope that with the skills that I can learn through SkillCrush, and possibly elsewhere, I can add on a new aspect of my home business. Yes, the blog is the heart and soul of that but I want to add more. I feel the need to diversify my income streams.
Some of the things that I intend to make happen in 2016:
- Publish an eBook
- Start a weekly or daily Periscope
- Publish more YouTube videos
- Have at least one free webinar by June
- Have at least one paid eCourse by September
- Set up a member’s area
And by 2017, I hope to start in the realm of design and development. I’ve also looked into becoming a certified coach but we’ll see what we see. I want to focus first on growing my blog and honing my skills as a designer and developer before I open another can of worms. In my head though, this is sounding like a great idea and something to consider adding into my 5 Year Plan.
I also plan for less in 2016. Less posts per week. I would love to have a more consistent posting schedule.
And the biggest thing to come in 2016?
A rebrand and a re-niche of sorts.
I will still be blogging next year, but it will no longer be at Just Another Mom. Instead, I will see you from my new home on the web: www.koriathome.com
My content will mostly stay the same, in fact I don’t see that changing much if at all. I’ve never been a fashion or beauty blogger and I don’t intend on adding that in anytime soon. I will start posting more work at home related posts and have intentions of starting a series of posts that deal with MLM or Network Marketing.
Next year, I want to focus less on my numbers or at least not be quite so obsessive with them. I realize that they matter, of course, but I don’t want to make them my be all, end all goal with blogging. If I get hung up with my numbers, I’m only doing myself a disservice. Instead of moping about plateauing or declining, I want to figure out where it happened or why. I want to work on ways to improve.
So those are just a few things that happened in 2015 and what’s coming in 2016.
What about you?
Kori
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Wow you’ve accomplished a great deal! Your 2016 goals are impressive and I wish you much success toward your goals in the new year.
I don’t have any specific goals for my website but I should make them.
Taking courses are so beneficial to expanding your understanding of how to make the changes you want with a blog, website, etc. There has been a Social Media course that I’ve wanted to take. It is being given by my old college and it’s online. You get a fancy certificate at the end, but I would like to learn more about this on a collegiate level.