Spring is a time for things to become new again. So, in the spirit of spring, I am trying some new things and stretching out of my comfort zone a little with the Minivan Adventures blog. I’m experimenting with some segmentation and a few new marketing strategies. I’m setting monthly goals (and publicizing those goals). And, I’m sharing my blog’s progress on a regular basis.
This is the first progress report. I hope to continue to share progress reports on either a monthly or quarterly basis. Each report will include a couple of recent accomplishments, goals for the upcoming month, a review of the blog’s recent growth, and any general updates.
And in the spirit of spring, I have even incorporated a spring-like gardening theme to this report. Enjoy!
Seeds Planted Last Month
Email Subscription Lists
I FINALLY created an email subscriber list! Hooray! (BONUS: You can be one of my first subscribers!!)
The Minivan Adventures blog has a few different focuses – Travel, Family Fun, Books and Life. Each of these areas tend to interest a different audience. By creating different newsletters, I can provide niche-focused content to those most interesting in reading it (without boring them with all the other stuff).
If you would like to receive any of the Minivan Adventures monthly newsletters, you can subscribe to the specific areas that you are interested in below.
New Logo
I took the leap this past month and shelled out a few dollars in order to hire a designer to create a logo and a couple of graphics for the Minivan Adventures blog. (No more amateurish clipart creation!) Check out the new logo and let me know what you think in the comments section at the end of this post.
Advertisements
You may have noticed a few advertisements on the Minivan Adventures blog over the last couple of weeks. Or, maybe you haven’t noticed. (I hate visiting websites with tons of ads all over the place so I have been very sparing with the advertisement placing on this site.)
Blogging is purely a hobby for me – it’s a creative outlet, it teaches me new skills, and it challenges me. While I don’t currently intend to make any real income from this website, I am hoping that ads will help offset some of the costs of blogging a little and maybe even make enough money to cover an upgrade to a premium (fancier and more functional) website theme.
My Biggest Blog Post Yet
One of the accomplishments that I am most proud of is the creation of the Minivan Adventures’ State-By-State Guide to U.S. Roadside Attractions.
It was a monster of a post that included contributions from 25 different travel bloggers. It challenged me to figure out the best way to format the post to make it easy to navigate for readers. I taught myself new skills (thanks to Google searches) in order to create page jumps, blocks of color, and pagination. Like a reward for all of my hard work (several days!), it has been my most immediately popular post ever. I think it stands to become my most popular post yet. (My current most popular post is Spring Break Destinations not in Florida.)
Goals to Spring the Blog Forward
Here are a few of my goals for this upcoming month.
Goal 1 – Monthly Newsletters
Create and send one monthly newsletter for each of the following areas: Travel, Reading and Blogging. (Please subscribe if you are interested in receiving any of these monthly newsletters.)
Goal 2 – New Content
Publish at least three new posts each month – one travel-related post, one bookish post, and one blog progress update. Any more than that will be considered a bonus. (Currently, I average 2 new blog posts per month so this will be a slight increase from before.)
Goal 3 – Connect
In order to form a more authentic connection with readers, I intend to engage more with social media followers. I will also reach out with monthly newsletters by email.
Goal 4 – More Book Talk
I love to talk books with other readers! When I added books to my blog several months ago, I was hoping to start conversations about books. However, that area of the Minivan Adventures blog has not really taken off yet. Thus, I am brainstorming what changes need to be made to create the engagement in this niche that I am looking for.
Watch These Numbers Grow
Bloggers tend to be secretive about sharing their numbers. There will always be bloggers that are more “successful” than I am, and that’s okay.
But like I’ve said before, I am a hobby blogger so I don’t need to be massively successful. I have decided that the only blog numbers that I need to compare mine against is the Minivan Adventures numbers from last month (or last year).
I am sharing my numbers here to create a sense of accountability. If I publicly share how much this blog has grown (or not grown) on a regular basis, then I know I will be more determined to challenge myself and to grow them more. So THANK YOU for reading this and encouraging/supporting me in growing these numbers.
SIDE NOTE: If there are numbers that you want to see included on this report in the future, let me know in the comments.
April 2018 Blog Numbers
Monthly Pageviews – 1,749
Newsletter Subscribers – NEW! (You could be one of my first subscribers! Subscribe to the newsletters of your choice at the end of this post!)
New Blog Posts Published – 2
- Eight Easy Ways to Save Money on Family Vacations
- A State-By-State Guide to U.S. Roadside Attractions
Social Media Followers
Twitter – 1,199 Followers
Facebook – 417 Likes
Instagram – 1,097 Followers
Pinterest – 678 Followers
Google Plus – 67 Followers
Top Posts For The Month
Most Successful Blog Post – United States Roadside Attractions
Most Popular Pinterest Pin – 8 Easy Ways to Save Money on Family Vacations (Psst! I would love it if you would re-pin this to your own Pinterest boards.)
Most Popular Instagram Picture – Superman of Metropolis, Illinois
Thanks Again!
Again, thank you for reading! Your encouragement and support are very much appreciated. Be sure to check back next month to see how much the blog has grown. Or, even better, you could subscribe to our monthly Blogging Newsletter.
Happy spring, everyone!
Are you following our minivan on social media yet? If not, please visit us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Google Plus.
Great job!!! I’m totally impressed😊😊
Thank you, Julie! That means a lot coming from you.
Love the new design of your blog. Since we have connected, I have been extremely impressed by your content and commitment! I just subscribed…excited to be one of the first😊.
That’s a huge compliment coming from you! Thank you, Susan! I have been super impressed with your content as well.
I love the minivan logo! It’s adorable!!! I also love that you are sharing real numbers & real growth. Can’t wait to see where your blog goes from here!
Thanks, Tara! I’m so glad you appreciate the real numbers I am sharing. I would read the blog reports of others and be blown away by their numbers (tens/hundreds of thousands monthly pageviews!!!). It left me feeling a little ashamed of my own fledgling numbers. After a lot of though, I decided to come out of hiding with my own numbers. This is my truth… and from now on, I am going to completely own it.
It looks great! It’s awesome that you are putting your goals and progress out there. I’m looking forward to what’s coming next!
Thanks, Stacey! I’m excited to see what is ahead for your blog as well… especially now that you are dabbling into some book reviews. So exciting!
I’m so impressed with your commitment and your ambition to try new things with your blog! I always enjoy reading it and am cheering you on!
Thank you, Monica! I always enjoy reading your posts, too. I swear you can write anything that you put your mind to. Poetry, inspirational pieces, travel reviews… and it is all so good! I’m looking forward to hearing more about your recent trips.
Loving the new logo! Glad to have you as a blog friend ❤️
Thank you, friend! 🙂
I really like how you group the newsletter subscription. This is the first time I saw it around. Great job, April!
Thank you!