Best Resources for Bloggers – Free Blogging Tools

 

The Best Resources for Bloggers You Have to Know Right Now

Hi, lovelies! Let’s admit it, blogging is no easy task. It’s overwhelming and time-consuming, well at least for a mom like me.

You’re not alone, dear ones. I also feel uninspired and cloudy at times that I couldn’t write anymore. But reading these blog posts below again and again always rekindles my passion somehow.

So, I compiled some of my blogging related articles from the beginning of this journey (just for me to always look back) and a few favorite posts from other bloggers. (You know I always love to read others’ posts – those that inspire and motivate me.)

I also included my Best Free Blogging Tools at the end of this post, so make sure to read the entire article, okay? (thanks!)

 

QUICK NAVIGATION:

 

 


 

 

INSPIRATION FOR BLOGGERS

 

1. The First 9 Months: My Blogging Journey + Realizations in a Nutshell

Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

via The Cheerful Spirit

Nothing’s more rewarding than being recognized for your hard work! I talked about it here and how I felt so elated from an unexpected award coming from a fellow blogger.
But I also shared my struggles – from being overwhelmed to my writer’s block (which happens all the time!)
In the end, you’ll get some more words of encouragement from my firsthand experience in this exciting yet roller-coaster blogging journey.

 

2. 3 Smart Strategies for Unproductive Bloggers

Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

via The Cheerful Spirit

Do you have a struggle with productivity? Most of us do, right? Check this article out to learn effective techniques to boost your productivity.
Bonus: Get a list of 10+ wonderful Facebook Group and a Weekly Planner so you can blog with ease!

 

3. It Started like this: My First Step to Blogging

Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

via The Cheerful Spirit

Why do you blog? Who do you blog for? Finding your unique niche and theme. Read my honest insights and some confessions around this topic.

 

So you want to blog? Click the image below to learn more!

Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.blogspot.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

 

 

MY TOP BLOGGING RELATED ARTICLES

 

1. How To Start a Blog in 10 Minutes: Step-by-Step Tutorial Using BlueHost

Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

via Love and Paper Flowers

An easy to follow complete guide by Nataly of Love and Paper Flowers. I always love how detailed she can go and write about the technical side of blogging.

 

2. 18 Places for FREE Girly and Styled Stock Photos

Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

via Twins Mommy

Elna Cain, the creator of Twins Mommy is my go-to person when it comes to blogging. Her website is packed with so much information. Just like this article, you don’t want to miss this if you’re looking for free-feminine stock photos. I’m sure you’re going to love this.

 

3. How To Write Consistently Everyday

Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

via Where Comes The Sun

Let me just borrow some lines from this article because I totally can relate to it.

 What really matters, in the end, is writing, so just do it. Even if it sucks. It’s gonna suck at some point, it has to. So accept this and go on! Remember that you can always edit it later, so why feeling this pressure?!

I couldn’t agree more.

 

4. 3 Reasons Why You Need to Take a Blogging Break Periodically

Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

via Chasing Dreams

Reading posts from Rhiza Oyos is always refreshing for me. Her words speak to my heart. And this article from her is one of my faves. Let me borrow some lines to share with you:

 Rest your weary heads, bloggers, if you’d like. Breaks are good and healthy and constructive, and a fresh perspective changes everything. And sure, when you return, you might have less of your readers. But you’ll have more of yourself.

~Erin Lochner, Design for Mankind

 

 

A LITTLE BACK STORY…

 

When I first set up this blog, I promised myself I wouldn’t spend on anything related to blogging (aside from my monthly internet subscription of course!).

I just wanted to be practical then. I mean, I still wanted to see for myself if there really is a potential income from it.

So, I didn’t follow what most bloggers say like investing in the domain name and hosting or enrolling in some costly blogger courses. Everything that I did was organic.

And you know what?

Even if I didn’t pay for anything and just used the free blogging platform – Blogger.com, I was still able to hit my goals:

 

1. Grew my social media following

FB, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest which means an increase in traffic. Coz you see:

 

more blog traffic = more money

 

2. Scored a paid Sponsored post from Nuffnang.

3. Be approved by Google Adsense.

Though I’m far from my target amount, I see that it’s increasing every day. So I’m very positive about it. =) 

4. I landed two of my articles on Google’s first page.

Alright, that’s SEO working here. You might ask, “What’s SEO?” It stands for Search Engine Optimization
Let me share a simple definition with you…

 SEO is helping the search engine find you. SEO is making your site more visible and transparent to the search engines. The primary goal of SEO should be connecting your site to the search engine. – SEO Hacker

To illustrate, please see the screenshots of my two posts:

Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

 

Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

 

Ok, they aren’t on Rank 1 yet but it’s still good to know that they’re on Page 1 in Google. Meaning, there are more chances that those kinds of articles will be clicked.

Again, that’s another increase in traffic.


HOW DID I DO IT?

I just followed one of SEO’s techniques to put the keyword/s in the title, in the first paragraph, in the middle, or at the end of the last paragraph.

I still need to improve more on this though.

Check out this very well written article for further details about SEO.

Therefore, I found out that it is possible to earn from blogging.

It just requires some techniques, hard work, passion, and dedication. Read this article on one blogger and see for yourself! It’s mind-blowing!

 

 

MY RECOMMENDED FREE BLOGGING TOOLS

 

1. Blogger. My fave blogging platform, very easy to use and navigate as compared to others. Best for newbies and those not so much into coding. I find it very user-friendly. Lots of beautiful designs are also available now.Blogger. Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

 

2. Sora Tasty. A smart and clean look Blogger theme perfect for personal bloggers. You can customize it to your taste to make your website more appealing.

It’s a responsive blogger theme optimized and displayed perfectly on any device.Sora Tasty. Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

3. Google Docs. Since I’m always on the go, this app has helped me a lot. It’s like a mini version of MS Word. You can type, edit, format, insert images, and more. Just do the work offline then copy-paste it to Blogger when everything’s set. You may download this app from Google Play Store or Apple App Store.Google Docs. Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

 

4. Canva. It’s very popular among bloggers so I gave it a try and it’s been my fave graphic designer since. It’s easy to use and there are thousands of beautiful templates to choose from.

Canva. Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

 


5. Free Stock Photos. Ever wonder where the other bloggers get their awesome photos? Most of those are free. Many websites are offering free photos but I love those stunning images from PixabayPicjumbo, and Unsplash.

Pixabay. Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners


6. TinypngI love uploading lots of pictures without knowing it affects my site’s load times. And we don’t want a slow website, right? That’s why I’m enjoying Tinypng’s service. It reduces the file size of PNG files, JPEG, and animated PNG too! Isn’t it cool?

Tiny png. Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

 

7. Pinterest. If you’re not yet familiar with Pinterest, it’s a visual search engine. (Think of Google where you can search about anything)

Here, you can discover recipes, home ideas, style inspiration, crafts, and a lot more using images. I love that it continuously brings me free traffic even if I don’t update my account there for a long time.

Pinterest. Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

8. Grammarly. English is not my native language so I need this app to check my grammar and spelling. So far, it’s doing a great job! Instead of spending more hours to proofread, it saves me a lot of time.

Grammarly. Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

 

And lastly… (this isn’t free but I don’t want you to miss this, guys!)

 

9. My VIVO V5s. Who says you can’t blog through your smartphone? I’m using it 80% of the time for writing drafts (via google docs), taking and editing pictures, publishing my posts then promoting to social media.

It’s like my mini-computer! I couldn’t afford to lose it! My brother was even surprised when I told him I initially set up this blog site through my phone (it’s a Cloudfone then).

Vivo V5s. Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

 

FINAL THOUGHTS

What I’m trying to say is, you don’t have to spend thousands and thousands of dollars if you want to start a blog.

 

Buuutttt, if you’re “REALLY SERIOUS” about blogging and want to take it to the “NEXT LEVEL – money-making blog, then I strongly recommend you go for a hosting company like Bluehost

I’m using it on my other lifestyle blog and I’ve no regrets signing up on this. In less than a year, I was able to monetize my second blog and make enough money from it every month! Owning a website is definitely one of my best decisions ever!

If you also want to up your blogging game, you may use my affiliate link to sign up and get a special offer at $3.95/month + FREE domain name registration (Only on this link, guys) Thank you!

 

 

So, that’s it, lovelies! I hope you find this article useful. Share these Best Resources for Bloggers with your friends!

 

PIN THIS FOR LATER!
Best Resources for bloggers. I'm glad I've found these free blogging resources via www.thecheerfulspirit.com. #blogging #bloggingtips #bloggingforbeginners

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