Before I came back to blogging in 2020 I had no idea I could build a brand from my blog. It wasn’t even something that I had considered. I always knew blogging to be something you could do as a hobby and a place to read recipes and other fun things like that. At the time I didn’t realise that so many people make really successful businesses from it. I know that being at the stage where you make money from blogging can take a while, but I didn’t even consider it to be an option for me.
It’s only fairly recently that I have really started to perfect my blog and my brand. In all honesty its taken me a while to settle on something I really like. I’m quite indecisive when it comes to design and themes etc. Which is funny because I create business logos and digital art for people. You’d think I would be a bit more decisive.
WHAT IS A BRAND?
If you’re here and thinking, Olivia what is a brand? Well, it took me a while to figure this one out so bare with me. To me, a brand is something that you personally create which represents you or your business. It includes certain fonts, logos, colours and statements that make you identifiable to everyone else. Whats the first thing you think of when you think of McDonald’s? The Golden Arches! Thats the first thing that comes into my mind. And thats because they have created a brand that represents them.
And now you’re probably thinking well what does this have to do with blogging? Thats exactly what this post is about!
WHY BRANDS ARE IMPORTANT
As I have already mentioned having a brand and a look for your site will make you identifiable amongst all of the other bloggers out there. Let’s take McDonald’s again as an example. We don’t find ourselves being confused between McDonald’s food and Burger Kings food because of their branding. And thats what’s important. We are able to identify between them. And the same works for just about anything.
You need to stand out from the crowd. And having a good and consistent brand will help to do this.
HOW TO BUILD ONE
STICK WITH A LOGO OR BRAND NAME
Once you settle with a blog name/domain try to stick with it. Obviously there are no rules or laws if you do find yourself wanting to change. I did it when I came back to blogging last year and honestly it was the best decision. Sometimes you know when it’s not working for you. There are many implications to changing your domain name including, broken links and confusion about who you are. It’s like Apple changing their name to Banana after so many people know them as Apple.
One thing I am an advocate for is changing up your blog theme or design as much as you want. I have changed mine three times now. And honestly I think it’s because when your blog grows, so does your direction. My blog has matured so much in the last 6 months that I had to keep changing things as it matured. The branding I had last year is not a good representation to what my blog is now.
COLOUR SCHEMES ARE IMPORTANT
Colour schemes in creating a brand are so important. Try to create a colour palette with 3-4 colours that really compliment one another. And then use those colours on your blog, social media channels and logo’s. I say logo’s [plural] because its okay to have more than one logo in various colours. Just make sure the branding is the same! Below is what my new branding looks like now. All similar but all different too.
HAVE A CLEAR MESSAGE
This may take a while and it’s okay if it does. But be sure to create a message behind your website. What is it you want to do here? Whatever it is, make that your main focus. Creating your very own niche is a great step in the process of making a brand from your blog. And it’s also a great way of creating a clear message behind your website too. I know I have said this already, but think back to all of those big brands that we know and love. We know their logo design, what they sell or what services they provide. We know their reasoning or message behind their business. And thats what we should strive for with our websites.
Have you started creating a brand for your blog? Do you even want to create a brand?
Is there anything you need help with or struggle to do to create your brand?
All of these steps really depend on you. And whether you want to be a blogger who has a brand behind your blog or not. If you don’t thats totally fine too. We all have different goals and aspirations behind running our blogs. If you are someone who does want one, I hope you found this post helpful.
Olivia x
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This are some awesome tips💟💟💟
Thanks so much!
Love the new branding! Really need to do this for my blog too
Thanks so much Shayla! If you need any help please let me know!
I have had a logo that I just refreshed and have used consistent fonts in my post image, pins, etc. I took a design course at the end of last year. What I learned there helped me to choose 4 colours that I am now using consistently in my posts. It’s a start.
Such a great tip there. Keeping those 4 colours consistent throughout your website and social media pages really helps to increase brand awareness!
This was really helpful..
I am so glad!
Great tips. Thanks Olivia 🙏
Thanks so much!
Very very helpful! I really enjoyed reading this. It’s one of the main things I wanna achieve this year. Thanks for enlightening me!❤
I wish you all the luck in doing that ♥︎
Thank you Olivia for this post.. As I am starting a brand.. And you have no idea that how much you have helped me from this post.. Please visit my blog for more details
https://swarnaz.com
Going to check it out now! Thanks for reading!
I definitely plan to build a brand from my website, but never thought about using the same colors from my logo. I am not the best when it comes to graphics and designs, so I’ve never really had a logo, other than my Hanging With Lady B graphic I created on an app. I chose a font and a color, and that was it. I will look into using those colors I use on IG graphics, to see how it will work on my site. Thanks for the great tips!
If you need any help please let me know. I’d be happy to help! It can be hard to decide on colours and logos etc. But once you do, you don’t have to worry about doing it ever again (or not for a long while anyway!)
Oh, I would greatly appreciate your help with this! Let me know what I need to do! I would love to upgrade and change everything to have a refresh for my one year blogaversary at the end of next month!
I have an idea of what I want but I’m still searching for that perfect fit. I know I’ll get there eventually, it’s just taking some trial and error.
It can take a while to find it cant it!
It does! But once I find it I should be good for two years at least 😂
Thanks Olivia.. you are my google for blogging.. having not known head and tail of it, U truly are knowledge treasure.. Finding and ur blog was just mystery but i will stick
on to your every advice.. keep them coming in bounds.. LOVE AND RESPECT💓
Thank you so so much. This means alot to me 💕
Apple and banana😂😂
You honestly explain things so well —bless your heart🧡
I am so indecisive as well —it can be frustrating, after all the work you still can’t decide what you like🙃
Thanks for sharing this, it’s all very helpful. I am trying to think of my blog with each day as a brand I want to create (I am still a long, long way from that, but one can dream) x
Hahaha I was waiting for someone to comment about my banana and apple comment🤣
DREAM BIG I say! You got this x
Loved this! Thank you for sharing this Olivia. 🥰😊
Thanks so much! x
My pleasure ❤️
☺️❤️
Wonderful tips! Something I’m currently working towards — thank you : )
This is golden! It took a while for me to settle into my own brand as well so I can confirm that it’s ok to take time to figure it out. Rushing this decision could be as disastrous as Banana! Lol that one had me in giggles but it is so true!
Hahahaha 🤣 I even laughed myself when I wrote out the Banana comment lol
I’m also trying to build my own brand
Great information in this post. I still need to decide on a definite logo for myself. Especially for my newsletter.
Settling on a logo can be so hard. I’ve changed mine 3 times!
These are great tips 🙂 One of the first things I did when I created my site was designing a logo – I’m hoping to get an appstore voucher for my birthday so that I can buy procreate and make it look a bit more professional <3
Caroline | https://envirolineblog.com/
Pro Create is amazing for logos and Canva too! I created my new one on Canva 🙂
These are useful tips, Olivia. I hope to be able to apply some of them someday, should I decide to build a business or brand around my current blog.
Great, useful tips!
Amazing post on amazing topic
Useful information
Info provided by This site Changed made me realize about branding how important it is and essential for today’s atmosphere to grow digitally thank you bro
Great advice thank you!
I’m actually thinking about and working towards building a brand. So this is really helpful! Thanksss
You’re so welcome. Good luck with it!
Thanks!
Thanks for this!
This is a great article! With regard to building brands, I was leaning towards using Fiverr for my logo, but then I realized I could design my own just fine; I’d definitely recommend the free software available to everyone here in the comments for that before going all-in.
These are great tips 🙂 This is really helpful! Thanksss
Thanks alot!