The Blog Lowdown – Redpeffer

We’re onto week two of my new series, The Blog Lowdown, a Q&A with fellow bloggers and asking them to share a few tips of their choice. Last week, I kicked it off by sharing some behind the scenes information about The Reading Residence, including my top tips on starting a linky, so if you missed that one, you can read it here. This week, it’s Redpeffer’s turn to share, so I’ll hand over to a lovely blogging friend of mine, the fabulous Iona…

Please introduce yourself:
I’m Iona and I blog at Redpeffer. I’m a mum of two children and a freelance writer.

When did you start blogging?
I started blogging around September 2012 but played around with it for a good while before realising that I really enjoyed it and could actually achieve things with it. So I didn’t focus on it properly until April last year.

Tell us a little about your blog
Like many the blog started as a way of recording my family experiences and moments and somewhere for me to express myself. These two things are still very much at the heart of the blog today. I enjoy talking about things that interest us and therefore I believe will be of interest to others, so I write about outdoor activities, family, parenting, arts and craft, gardening and photography mostly.

Who designed your blog?
Well, the ‘Redpeffer’ logo was my husband, the ‘bug’ logo was my daughter and the nuts and bolts were Annie over at Mammasaurus!

Which of your posts have been the most popular? Are there certain types that get more interest?
My posts about Quality Street sweet wrapper recycling are very popular, as are posts about family history and what I call my opinion pieces where I usually reflect on things that matter to me.

How do you promote your blog posts, and which methods do you find to be most successful?
I find Twitter, Stumbleupon and Google+ work best for me. I’m not a huge fan of Facebook.

Which linkys do you most enjoy joining in with/reading?
Ooh, where to start! I enjoy joining in with and reading What’s the Story, Word of the Week and Magic Moments the most I suppose but I’m always interested in new ideas coming up all the time. Can I plug our The Theme Game here?!

When are your busiest days on the blog, and why? (if you know why!)
Friday, Saturday and Sunday tend to be the busier. I’m guessing it’s when people catch up over the weekend?

Can you name 3 things that blogging has brought you?
Friends, ideas and opportunities.

5 tips on blogging and social mediaShare with us 5 tips on anything blogging/social media:
– It’s a cliche, but so true – be yourself on social media. It’s very hard to maintain a persona when you’re juggling plenty of other things.
– Build relationships – we’re all sociable to a greater or lesser extent and relationships of one form or another are what makes everything tick.
– Choose your platforms and get to know them. Try to avoid the scattergun approach. Go with what you prefer and work with them.
– Ask for help if you need advice-there are plenty of bloggers out there who are very generous with their time and knowledge.
– Be as generous as you can.

And you’ll find Iona at Redpeffer, on Twitter, on Instagram, G+ and Pinterest.

Thanks, Iona! Interesting that your Quality Street wrapper posts are your highest viewed – they are good fun, so I can see why! Those top 5 tips are so true, too, and always good to remember. I do think relationship-building is key, and being part of the community.

If you’ve any questions or comments for Iona, do feel free to ask and share, as she will pop by this week and endeavour to answer them. Hope you enjoyed reading, and be sure to pop back next week when we’ll be hearing from Caroline at Becoming A SAHM.

If you’d like to feature on The Blog Lowdown, get in touch with me at [email protected]. We’re booked until mid-May now, so you’ve plenty of time to get your post to me. Be lovely to have you!

If you enjoyed reading, these posts might be for you, too:
10 Tips to Getting Your Blogging Mojo Back
Blog Your Heart Out

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19 thoughts on “The Blog Lowdown – Redpeffer”

    1. Thank you, I’m really enjoying it, too. And it’s an absolute pleasure – lovely to have you here 🙂

  1. I love the fact your daughter designed the bug logo. I always think it is great to get the kids involved with blogging as we end up writing so much about them that its nice for them to have some input too. It is a great logo! x

  2. Great new series. Fun way to find out more about other bloggers. Love hearing how people got started. Looking forward to seeing who else is on your list.

    1. Thank you very much. I love it! Plenty more to come, and please just let me know if you’d like to be on it, too 🙂

  3. Love reading others blogging stories and tips. It’s great to learn a few things as well as reinforce some things I’m doing but maybe wasn’t sure about. Thank you x

  4. I love this new series, Jocelyn! It is great to have a peep behind the scenes. Great advice from Iona, especially about being yourself and social media (I definitely have to work on the latter!). Mel

    1. It took me a very long time to get engaged with social media. It was the support and encouragement of other bloggers that made me give it a try. I found it all a bit intimidating but I’m so glad I stuck with it.

  5. Pingback: The Blog Lowdown - Becoming A SAHM - The Reading Residence

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