I think the biggest mistake I made when I first started blogging was assuming that my blog would be read if I consistently posted quality things on it. I knew nothing about networking, how search engines work, or the benefits of social media (other than the social gains from a high-res snapchat story). For some unidentifiable reason I got a couple of followers and consistent views on my first two or three posts, and I thought it would continue from there. Most other bloggers said their views had continually increased from the time they began writing. However, they were doing a lot of things that I wasn’t.

7 Habits of Highly Successful Bloggers:

1. They post phenomenal content.
2. They have a niche subject and audience.
3. They’re present and active on social media.
4. They post consistently.
5. They’re either relatable or untouchably cool.
6. They are knowledgeable or passionate about what they write. 
7. They’re good writers.

First of all, I started this blog when I was fourteen. I tried to make this a fashion/beauty blog, but I was certainly not a fashion icon and I didn’t have the money to buy enough trendy makeup products to keep my views consistent. My most viewed posts were detailed descriptions of high-end makeup products. Here’s the stats on my most viewed posts:

My first discovery was that commenting on other’s people’s blogs and being interactive in the blogging community made a huge impact on my traffic. I’m proud to say I never left a “great post. please follow me xx” comment anywhere, but I worked really hard to be encouraging and active, and that helped people to at least see my name.
Since then, I’ve learned a ton about marketing myself. Here’s what I’ve done to increase my views:

1. Filled in my blog with several posts I was proud of and I thought represented me well. 
2. Posted links to my blog on all my social media, and started letting people I know irl read it and share it.
3. Created an instagram account and a facebook page to keep “followers” updated and to remind them to read when I posted new things. Some people don’t subscribe to RSS feeds or read blogs at all, so I force it down their throats. Really, really nicely.  
4. Continued posting and filling up the instagram account/ facebook page with followers and content.
5. Prayed to the holy trinity that no one I know reads past my five carefully crafted posts and sees what I wrote in 2012.

Yes, June 2015 is catastrophically low, but that’s because it’s early in the month.