This is about how to start a mommy blog and become a work at home mom. Learn my secrets to generating a full time income while working part time being a mommy blogger. I make $3,000-$7,500 every month as a lifestyle blogger – learn how you can too and get started blogging today with just a $12 investment to start your blog!

How to Start a Mommy Blog

Work Part Time as a Lifestyle Blogger

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I have a free video series that walks you through the tech of starting a blog.

Resources Mentioned:

GoDaddy – Get Your 1st Year for $12

Free Video Series How to Set Up WordPress

PicMonkey

Stencil

Okay, before anyone gets upset let me just address the BIG issue among “mommy bloggers”…it’s not a nice term to use….in fact 90% of “mommy bloggers” cringe when they hear the term “mommy blogger”. We prefer the term Lifestyle Blogger or Social Media Influencer. For those not in the blogging realm I know what you’re thinking “That’s why I’m here, I want to learn how to start a mommy blog and become a mommy blogger”. And, if this was 10 years ago, I would agree with you.

Unfortunately, the term “mommy blogger” has been used in ways that demean the women who write parenting and family blogs. So even though this post is called “How to Start a Mommy Blog” we’re not going to use that term….I’m using it solely because I know that’s the term you’re searching for and want to make sure you find the information you’re looking for on how to start a mommy blog and becoming a mommy blogger.

And, if this was 10 years ago, I would agree with you. Unfortunately, the term “mommy blogger” has been used in ways that demean and belittle the work that the women who write parenting and family blogs create. So even though this post is called “How to Start a Mommy Blog” we’re not going to use that term….I’m using it solely because I know that’s the term you’re searching for and want to make sure you find the information you’re looking for on how to start a mommy blog and becoming a mommy blogger.

Why is mommy blogger a hot button term?

Over the years blogging has evolved from a hobby for most people into a legitimate business that brings in a full time income. But, some people refer to mommy bloggers as simply bored housewives that have nothing better to do than write blogs and promote products for free. That misconception has tainted the title “Mommy Blogger”. Therefore, to be taken more seriously, the term has changed to Lifestyle Blogger and Social Media Influencer. If you want to work with brands then I highly suggest branding yourself as a Lifestyle Blogger instead of a Mommy Blogger.

What’s the difference between a Mommy Blogger and a Lifestyle Blogger?

Nothing. They both write about all sorts of subjects whether it be parenting, travel, recipes, crafts, DIY, gardening, decorating, etc.

Can you really make money as a blogger?

YES! You can make REALLY good money as a blogger….BUT it takes WORK. If you’re willing to stay dedicated and work hard then the possibilities are endless. There are thousands upon thousands of bloggers out there and they make anywhere from nothing to the HIGH 6 and 7 figures. I know several bloggers who make more than $10,000 a month. I, myself, make anywhere from $2500-$7000 a month…I haven’t hit the $10k in one month yet….but I plan to. And, I’m here to help you along the way as well.

How to Make Money as a Mommy Blogger (Lifestyle Blogger)

I’m at a point now where I feel like Serendipity and Spice officially qualifies as a successful blog. I’ve replaced my full time income as a retail manager and it keeps growing every month! Now this has taken several years of devotion and dedication….there were many times where I just felt like quitting because I wasn’t seeing the return I wanted but then as if a light switch was flipped….everything changed and Serendipity and Spice just exploded into a successful blog! Seriously, I felt like overnight it just took off….so just keep plugging away and one day it will happen!

Over the past few months I’ve been asked over and over again from friends, family, and readers “how do I start a mommy blog?”.

So, when I started this blog years ago I was pretty much flying blind and doing everything on a whim…..BIG mistake. I could have saved myself a LOT of frustration, do-overs, and headaches if I had just done some more research and set things up the right way the first time!

I have put together this post outlining the best way on how to start a mommy blog to give you the most success….now, I’m not an expert and I don’t guarantee that you will be successful if you follow these steps– you determine your success….but by following these best practices you’ll be set up the best possible way…..I wish you all the best in your blogging journey. Make sure you also check out my free video series on how to set up a WordPress blog— I walk you through each step through screen sharing.

1. Set it up right the first time!

There are free platforms out there for setting up a blog– I started out on Blogger…and it’s a great platform BUT if I knew then what I know now I would have started on a self-hosted WordPress site. Here’s the deal….I didn’t want to invest any money in my blog in case I failed BUT I didn’t fail…in fact, I really enjoyed blogging and once I decided that I wanted to make some real money blogging it cost me a heck of a lot more to fix my mistake and it was a nightmare! When you use a free platform, like Blogger, you don’t own your content– Blogger does– which means they can shut you down for no reason. Imagine putting in 3-4 months of hard work, lots of posts, building a following, and then you wake up one morning with all of your hard work GONE! It happens all the time!

Plus, if you plan on making money with your blog you will make more money on a self-hosted WordPress.org site than you will on Blogger– oh, and don’t use the free WordPress.com because you’re not allowed to make money with that site! Brands prefer to work with bloggers who are self-hosted…they pay more and you’ll get more jobs by being self hosted….not to mention higher ad revenues too. When I switched from Blogger to a self-hosted WordPress site I TRIPLED my income!

2. Self Hosting and a Domain Name

I promise it’s not nearly as scary as it sounds! Nowadays, you can set up your domain and hosting with just a few clicks…in fact, if this scares you, I walk you step by step through setting up your hosting and domain name in my free video series.

So, which hosting should you get?

I recommend going with an inexpensive hosting service when you’re starting out. In those first few months you’re not going to get enough traffic to make spending a ton of money worth it, and you can always upgrade if you get a few viral posts and need to. GoDaddy has an amazing deal right now where you get a full year of WordPress hosting and your custom domain name for just $12.

3. Make sure ALL of your social media names match!

You’ll notice that all of my social media names are MelissaLlado except for my Serendipity and Spice Facebook Page because it’s a fanpage for my blog and needs to be named for Serendipity and Spice.

When I first started my blog I had a slight variation of Serendipity and Spice all over the place. Twitter was SerendipitynSp, Pinterest was SerendipitySpic, Instagram was SandS….this is because either the name SerendipityandSpice was taken or I had too many characters in the name. No one could find me or tag me on any social platforms because every one was different and none was memorable.

It’s much easier if all of your social media names are consistent…it makes it easier for Brands and readers to find you across all platforms. If you have different names it’s difficult because if someone tags you in one place it doesn’t show up in other places…..for example, when I pin something on Pinterest I like to tag the person and tweet it too….but if your Pinterest name and Twitter names don’t match then you don’t get tagged in both places (which helps with your Klout score)…make sense? So try to get all of your social media names to match.

4. Have your profile picture match across all social platforms.

People want to see YOU…post a picture you love of yourself and use that one picture for all of your social media, on your blog, and in your emails. You want people to recognize you and having different pictures can cause confusion about whether they have the right person.

Plus, you’ll be building your brand with that image…the brand of YOU.

5. Don’t overdo it…use your scheduler!

If you start off trying to post 5-7 times a week you WILL burn out! I try to post at least 2-3 times a week (especially in the beginning)….but I schedule them out.

I may write like 6 recipes in one sitting but I don’t schedule them all to post right away or in the same week. I schedule one a week for 6 weeks….now I know that I have at least one post publishing a week for 6 weeks. I know you’re eager to pin them and get traffic on your posts but trust me….you’ll be happy you have posts prescheduled when life hits….and consistency is key to growing your readers and Google score.

6. Write good content!

Content is King…you’ll hear this over and over again…because it’s the truth. You’re not going to make it very far in the blogging world if you don’t have good content that adds value to a reader. If your goal is to make money with your blog then you want to write useful content that random people want to know. Unfortunately no one cares that Aunt Jenny has a cold this week and the dog ran away. But random people would be interested in How to Fight a Cold Naturally or How to Explain to Children that the Dog Ran Away. So think about what you’re wanting to write about and ask yourself if it helps solve a problem. If not, then figure out how to solve a problem in your post or move on to another idea.

7. BIG Pictures are worth 1000 words!

DON’T use small pictures! People respond to BIG beautiful pictures….try to make sure they are the width of your blog posts….the standard is between 600px and 700px wide. You can check out 3 steps for how to improve your blog photos and if there’s no photo for what you’re writing then at least make a text picture….a quote from your post or the title.

I love using PicMonkey and Stencil for designing blog photos. Stencil is my new favorite because it’s so user friendly and really inexpensive! You can use the free version if you just make a couple of images a month but the Pro plan is only $9 a month and is amazing! Check out how easy they make it to design gorgeous social media images:

8. Ask yourself…. “Would I Read This Blog?”

Well, would you? If you were reading blogs or scrolling through Pinterest would you stop and check out your blog? Does it stand out among the ocean of blogs out there? Make sure that you’re producing content that you would read if you didn’t know you….know what I mean?

9. Stay diligent.

Blogging is a marathon not a sprint!

If you stay diligent and consistent in your writing then you will grow and you will begin making money- if that is your goal. My first year of being a mommy blogger I made just enough money to take a Disney vacation…that was my monetization goal. I wanted to make enough money to take my husband and our son to Disney World for one week. The cost was $2800 and I did it in about 6 months. The next year I worked hard and made enough to replace my income as a retail manager. Now I make a full time income working part time hours.

There have been times where I just wanted to quit, there have been many times that I’ve gotten burnt out, but I just keep pushing forward. Over the last 2 years I have honed my blogging skills by reading, researching, and learning more and more…but you can’t improve if you never start!