9 Things Nobody Tells You When You Start Blogging

Something a little bit different for you all today. But I found myself very reflective recently, which isn't entirely unusual for me. But in recent weeks my attention has been around my blog. I've been blogging here for over a year and a half now and during that time I have had a lot of shocks and surprises! So here we are - the things nobody tells you when you first start out in the blogging industry:

1. If you go to a blog event, everyone is awkward. It's just the way it is. You aren't the only one that feels all nervous and shy! But you can literally talk about anything. Instagram, cats, food, blogging, makeup, shoes - ANYTHING! And don't worry, none of the bloggers I've met (well the ones I've met anyway) turned out to be axe murders or catfish. 
2. You will never be completely happy with your blog. Whether its the amount of reads your latest posts get, your blog design or simply the number of followers you have. There will always be something you don't like or wish you could improve. In many cases there are things you can do to help. For example, if your blog isn't getting readership - share your posts on social media more. Plug yourself like crazy. It takes a lot of time and effort, but the results are worth it! 
3. You will get some strange PR requests. And I mean strange. Oh you want me to talk about mens underwear on a blog targeted at women? You want me to share an outfit idea for a stripper in Las Vegas? OK. I'll definitely reply to your email straight away. (NOT!) These are genuine requests I have been sent too! 
4. Coding is incredibly hard and you will probably end up paying someone to design your blog for you and maybe even install it for you. Even if you try googling how to do something, chances are you won't understand ANY of the results that come up. 
5. Every single time another blog with a similar amount of followers gets asked to go to an exclusive event or gets their hands on the latest beauty releases. You will get incredibly jealous. Like is my blog not good enough for you?
6. Some free blogger samples are not worth the amount of effort it takes to get them. You've taken two months to send me the products but you want me to write a post about them and mention them on my social media 272678976 times in 24 hours? Goodbye. 
7. When you finally get to meet a blogger in real life who you have been talking to on pretty much a daily basis, you will be shocked when words come out of their mouths. And their voice sounds completely different from how you imagined.
8. Buy a domain name from the start if you are wanting to buy one. Otherwise old followers or readers won't be able to find you if you spontaneously decide to purchase one at 4am on a Thursday morning. 
9. You'll run out of mobile data on a regular basis. Refreshing the Bloglovin' Popular page to see if you've 'made it', tweeting every blogger in the world, and uploading that Instagram of your latest buys or your delicious lunch will lead you to run out of data and will take away those precious pennies that could be better spent on something else. 

And that's the end of my list! Anything I've missed? Share it below!

Thanks for reading!

Love Charlotte x

Follow
Facebook |  Twitter |  Instagram | Pinterest

The Bloggers Blog Awards 2015

(Photo: C/O HelloApril)

Hello my lovely readers! After what seemed like a lifetime of waiting, last Saturday was (finally) the day of the Bloggers Blog Awards ceremony - organised by the lovely Hayley of Tea Party Beauty. I don't think I ever actually mentioned it here on my blog, but I was actually nominated in the Best Up and Coming Beauty Blogger category! Of course I couldn't pass up the opportunity to be in a room full of some of my favourite human beings, so I immediately RSPVd to the invite! 

(Photo: C/O HelloApril)

The event was held at Lamberts Yard in Leeds, and I've only recently found that this place existed! I really wanted to come and see the Humans Of Leeds exhibition when it was on earlier in the year - but I never got the chance! So I was delighted to hear that it was the venue! I met up with Lucy in the train station and together we managed to find it without much trouble, and when we arrived I was amazed by how beautiful the industrial decor was! We were offered Prosecco, but unfortunately for me I was driving (DAMN UK WITH THEIR NO DRINK DRIVING RULES LOL)  or as Joe called me 'A bad student', and were given a quick tour round their clothes shop (they have some gorgeous pieces in if you're ever in the area!). Although I've been to a few blogger related events, this was my biggest yet and the first one I've gone to alone (without dragging a mate along as a plus one haha) so I was incredibly anxious! Within in moments of arriving, bloggers starting pouring into the room in groups and conversation was soon flowing! 

One of the only photos I actually took myself AHAHAHAHA #badblogger

All being bloggers, everybody had something in common and so you could start a conversation with literally anyone in the room and it was absolutely brilliant! We mingled for about an hour and then we took or seats ready for the winners to be announced! I sat with three of the loveliest bloggers (Ana, Sam and Amy) that I have ever had the pleasure of meeting (see next photo) and we spent ages chatting (mainly about shoes but that's what bloggers do best!). When flicking through the event programme, we discovered that myself, Ana and Sam were all nominees in the same category! Which was lovely as we were rooting for each other! Ana was awarded Highly Commended and the winner of our category was Lily of Pint Sized Beauty. 

Sam, Ana and Amy! (Photo: Ana of Ravishing Roses)

Once all the awards had been dished out, it was time for the raffle in aid of Alzheimer's Research UK. And OHMYGOD it was the best raffle I have ever seen in my life! There were prizes from the likes of Pandora, Magnitone, TheBalm and Jurlique - amongst many others! As always, I didn't win anything! Although Sam was getting really excited whenever the colour of my tickets were called out hahaha! A few of us joked(!!!) that it was rigged as Jemma seemed to win almost everything ;)

Afterwards, most of us headed over to The Black Swan on Call Lane for some dinner! The staff were absolutely brilliant and seated over 40 of us and served us with no complaints or issues. We filled over half the restaurant, and the food was absolutely delicious! I got one of their sourdough pizzas and it was  soooo tasty! I had to dash off for the train towards the end, but I had a massive grin plastered across my face the whole way home. I met lots of lovely bloggers and I can't wait to see some of them again soon!

Group selfie! (Photo: @lovedbylaurac on Twitter)

I would just like to thank Hayley for organising such a brilliant event and I think she really did herself proud! I'd also like to thank all the bloggers for being so lovely and to you guys reading as I'd never have got there if it wasn't for you!

Thanks for reading!

Love Charlotte x

Follow
Facebook |  Twitter |  Instagram | Pinterest | Youtube

How To Gain Blog Followers and Page Views

Hi Friends! First things first, I'd like to apologise for the irrelevant photo (I like flowers ok?), and the slightly misleading title - I'm not going to reel off a list of things that will be a given way to drive up followers. But I am going to give a few suggestions on how you may be able to say hello to a few new (and hopefully returning) faces. 

Get yourself out there
This is a phrase I like to use an awful lot on my blog, and it seems only fitting to include it here. How are you supposed to attract new readers when you don't put yourself out there! Try sending emails to other bloggers asking if you could guest post on their blog. If they agree, it will put your content out to a whole other audience and some of them may really like your style!

Followers are real people too
They want engaging content, fresh ideas and something that makes your blog worth reading. So before you worry about building up the follower count, start focusing on putting out some kick-ass content. Usually, bringing in fresh new content attracts new readers! I recently read somewhere, that blog posts should be at least 300 words long in order to stimulate readers and optimise results on search engines such as Google. 

Create a brand for yourself
Try and make your social media handles the same as your blog title so readers can easily find follow you across multiple platforms. For example my Instagram handle is @charlottesophiaroberts which is clearly the same as the title of my blog. Totally not a plug ;) If only Twitter allowed a couple for characters so my Twitter handle could be the same!!

Be social
If you haven't already, go create yourself an account on pretty much every social media platform you can think of. Every time you publish a new blog post, share a link with an interesting caption instead of the cliché "NEW POST…". Give other bloggers feedback on their posts and interact with your followers. It gives a more personal touch, which a lot of people like! If you really want to make an effort, take part in the various Twitter chats (such as #bbloggers or #bdib) throughout the week. You meet so many likeminded people, and sometimes they even become readers!

Analyse
Something I have been really trying to work on recently, is using Google Analytics to keep an eye on the interests of my readers. As far as I know it only works on the Blogger platform; but it is able to tell you exactly who reads your blog, what their interests are and how many return regularly. I must stress that occasionally looking at your stats isn't enough, you need to take into account what they tell you! If the majority of your readers want beauty, post more beauty related content! 

Read
Why would people read your blog if you aren't willing to read blogs yourself? Read others' posts and take inspiration! You never know where an idea for a post could come from! As well as simply reading posts, you can show further support for others' blogs by leaving nice comments. As well as making someone's day, you may even get a few page views from other commenters!

Links
Leave your links everywhere! Within reason of course! Don't go around Twitter sending random people your link, but DO make sure you have a link in all of your description boxes. When it comes to your actual blog, make sure to include links at the bottom of each post (I've had a big increase in Bloglovin' followers since I started to do this!) - as well as being dotted around all over your site.

Thats all from me for now, but if you have any tips of your own - make sure you leave them below!

Thanks for reading!

Love Charlotte x

Follow
Facebook |  Twitter |  Instagram | Pinterest

VIP Press Launch: Leeds Food And Drink Festival

Hello lovelies! Last night, I was lucky enough to be invited to attend the VIP press launch of the 10th annual Leeds Food and Drink Festival hosted by Epernay Champagne Bar and Almost Famous Burgers.  I was so excited to go that I was actually there an hour and a half early (haha) so my friend and I decided to pop into Browns Bar and Brasserie for a pre-cocktails cocktail. I opted for the Lime Daiquiri and oh my goodness it was like heaven in a glass. My friend Fern chose the British Royal, which I also tasted and it was equally as good! We had planned on getting a coffee, but who could turn down the opportunity for cocktails?

As the Leeds Food and Drink Festival celebrates its 10th anniversary, it promises to be the biggest and best the city has ever seen. This year, the festival is part of 'Leeds Food Month', a celebration of Leeds' vibrant, ever-evolving food and drink scene and the first event of its kind. The festival spans over four weeks and there are countless events taking place all over the city between 22nd May - 7th June. There really is something for everyone - from the World Feast on Briggate (24th May) inspired by street food from all over the world, to the Thai Cooking Class being held at Chaophraya (30th May). 

The launch night for the festival took place at Epernay in The Electric Press on Great George Street in the city centre. As soon as I arrived with Fern, we were greeted by quite a bustling environment, with cocktails being handed to you from all directions! From the door I spotted Bridie (Upon My Sleeve) and headed over to say hello! Soon we were joined by Rhianna (Robowecop) and we spent a moment chatting whilst people started arriving. Within minutes of arriving, we were handed some sort of prosecco based cocktail (pictured above in the tall stemmed glasses). Almost as soon as we sat down, waiters and waitresses began bringing round trays of drinks and before we knew it, we had about 4 on the go at once. 

Half way through the event, Almost Famous popped over the street with trays of miniature burgers for everyone to sample! I tried this one and OH MY GOD IT WAS AH-MAZINGGGGGG! It had pulled pork and coleslaw in it, as well as the burger patty! I may go as far to say it was the best burger I have EVER had!! So good I'm planning on taking a trip there very soon!

 As you can see I was really making the most of the complimentary cocktails - I had three on the go at this point! The one pictured is the Bramley Apple cocktail and this one had to be my favourite of the ones I tried. I think the waitress mentioned it had creme de menthe in it, which is something I'd never tried before until last night. As I was heading out to head back to the train station, I spotted Kayleigh (Very Berry Cosmo) and Alex (Clouds In The Violet Haze) sat around a table and we sat talking for a moment before I had to dash off. 

I had a lovely evening spending the night catching up with my friend and chatting to a few fellow bloggers from the Leeds area. If you are interested in going to any of the events running over the next month, you can take a look at the Leeds Food Month website for a schedule. There are quite a few that I'm interested in, especially the world feast on Briggate!

I hope you are able to check out some part of the festival, it sounds like it is going to go down a storm this year!
Thanks for reading!

Love Charlotte x