So, You Want To Be A Pet Blogger? 10 Tips To Help You Decide

Guest post by Blog Manager Robbi Hess

You love reading pet blogs. You read books, blogs, social media posts and love all of them. You love your pet. It stands to reason then that you would love pet blogging, right? Well, maybe. But, then again, maybe not.

Do you have a service or product to sell and you’re looking at blogging as a way to market that? Do you just have a love of your pet and believe that her quirks will be laughed at and enjoyed by others? Do you have a particular area of expertise that you can impart to the masses? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then a blog just might be the platform for you.

Here, though, is a quick are 10 questions to ask yourself before jumping into the pet blogging fray:

1. Do you enjoy writing? If words are not a love in your life, then starting a blog and being faced with having to come up with new content on a regular basis might not be for you.
2. Do you have a message to share? What is your message? Who will want to hear it? While a blog should be a fun endeavor, you will still want to have something to say so that the readers will come. No one wants to be writing if no one is going to be reading, right?
3.  Do you have a grasp of grammar and punctuation? If you don’t, do you have a friend or family member who is willing to edit your posts before you go live? While a reader may not shy away from your posts because of an error or two, he or she subconsciously mistrust your information if your spelling is atrocious.
4. Do you have the discipline to keep up with blogging? To be a successful pet blogger you will want to make a commitment both to yourself and your readers of posting on a regular schedule. Do you have the time to keep up with a blog?
5. Are you prepared for criticism and critique from nameless, faceless strangers? The internet offers individuals a way to voice their (sometimes negative) comments with impunity and anonymity – you need to be prepared for this.
6. How social are you? If you’re a blogger, you and your pet, will be in the public eye. Also, if you’re a blogger and you want people to read your blog, you will need to get involved in social media such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, not to mention Pinterest or even Google+ as a way to spread the word about your writing. Are you ready for the commitment?
7. How creative are you? You may not need to be REALLY creative to be a blogger but it certainly helps. You need to let your own voice show through in your posts, whether that voice is humor, informational, sarcastic, etc. Be your creative self when you’re blogging.
8. What’s your level of commitment and consistency? Readers of blogs expect to see new content. If they come to your blog and don’t see new content, they will move onto the next blogger that is offering them current content.
9. How hard are you willing to work? It’s all right to blog from your pet’s point of view, but there still may be times when you need to do some research. You will want to follow up with comments you receive on your posts, because remember blogging is a conversation and a virtual social event.
10. Do you understand what you want to blog about? Will you be a general pet blogger or a specialized pet blogger? Will you be interviewing pet experts or writing from your pet’s point of view? Will you be chronicling a specific aspect of your pet’s life and if so, will your blog have staying power once that aspect is complete?

Pet bloggers and the readers of pet blogs are generally a very happy group of people – of course they are, they’re pet lovers first and foremost! Just as with any other group, though, they want content that informs, amuses or entertains – make certain your blog does just that!