Blogging for Creatives: How designers, artists, crafters and writers can blog to make contacts, win business and build success [Paperback]

Robin Houghton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 10, 2012

Of the billions of internet users worldwide, a massive 80% are visiting blogs. The blogosphere has become a huge platform for individuals and businesses alike.&break;As well as being essential for creative trades of all kinds--carpenters, photographers, caterers, gardeners and graphic designers to name but a few--blogs can be inspirational and beautiful; becoming hubs for people with similar tastes and interests. Blogging for Creatives is the first approachable, non-techie guide to the blogosphere, complete with hundreds of tips, tricks and motivational stories from artistic bloggers who have started from scratch. It covers everything creatives need to know about how to design a beautiful, interesting blog that people will want to return to again and again--such as how to design, publish and host a blog, as well as keeping it fresh, staying motivated and forging connections with others in the field. Professional advice is highly illustrated with examples of successful blogs, broken down into succinct types that work, helping the reader to identify and develop the style of blog they want.

• Includes box-out tips, tricks and anecdotes from successful bloggers
• Non-techie approach that reflects the creative scope of the modern blog
• Highly illustrated with examples of blog types that work, with proven advice from the creators

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: HOW Books (July 10, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1440320136
• ISBN-13: 978-1440320132
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 7.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #57,903 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #21 in Books > Arts & Photography > Business of Art
  • #43 in Books > Computers & Technology > Internet & Web Culture > Blogging & Blogs

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Robin Houghton is a professional online marketer. She has taught her clients how to strategically use blogs and social media to be the cornerstone of their business for nearly a decade. Houghton completed an MA in digital media with Distinction from the University of Sussex.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: HOW Books (July 10, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1440320136
• ISBN-13: 978-1440320132
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 7.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #57,903 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #21 in Books > Arts & Photography > Business of Art
  • #43 in Books > Computers & Technology > Internet & Web Culture > Blogging & Blogs

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Extremely helpful book July 4, 2012

By A. Mann

Format:Paperback

Although experienced in running multiple blogs on many different platforms, I still picked up this book because it looked so dang good. This book is simply beautiful!

So, what about the content?

It's refreshingly broad enough for pros to learn new things, yet simple enough for a newbie to jump right in (and leads your hand through setting up a Tumblr blog, for example). It's current as of summer 2012, because many new tools and sites are mentioned that lots of bloggers don't know about. This book offers a ton of great blogging examples on the web. It talks about everything from Google Analytics to using Aweber for sign-ups for your email newsletter. It has a "Top 10 blog widgets" section, which was very useful and spot-on.

It covers all the major blog platforms, with an emphasis on Tumblr, Wordpress, Typepad, and Google's Blogger.

A few web sites offered up that I was clueless about:

chartbeat.com
tastespotting.com
design-milk.com
soundcloud.com
feedly.com

Just too much to list, but here's another site I found helpful in getting inspiration for calls-to-action: marismith.com.

Perhaps the most useful part of the book for me was the two-page list called, "12 blog posts that work." One listing was, "create a top ten list or 'seven things you never know about...".

Overall the best book on getting started on your own blog, and an excellent resource for those of us who already have one. I read the entire book in one 3-hour sitting...

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great beginners guide for blogging October 13, 2012

By Parka TOP 50 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

Length: 1:15 Mins

Blogging for Creatives is a helpful starting guide to blogging for those into art, crafting and design. Actually, the book is written in a manner that's applicable to general bloggers as well, just that most examples featured are of art and design, and sometimes cooking.

This book has many helpful tips on blogging and getting up to speed. It assumes no prior knowledge and the instructions are always clear and concise. So the book is great for beginners.

Here's the list of chapters:

+ Get Started
+ Blogging Tools and Technology
+ Step-by-Step Setup
+ Creating an Eye-catching Blog
+ Creating Great Content
+ Blogging on the Move
+ Promoting Your Blog
+ Being Social
+ How to turn Blog Visitors into Cash
+ PR and Your Blog
+ Monitoring Your Blog's Performance
+ Troubleshooting
+ Let's Blog

The book covers the basic setting up of the three main blogging platforms, namely Google's Blogger, Wordpress and Tumblr. There's a good comparison between the Wordpress blogging software and the Wordpress blog hosting platform that explains the difference well. It's quite important to know the differences because there are certain peculiar limitations to the Wordpress blog hosting.

After setting up, it talks about ideas generating content, marketing and measuring your blog's performance. Those are all essential skills. I've been blogging for several years and have learned from experience much of what's taught in the book. The book does a good job of covering the basics.

I like the many examples of blogs showcased. They are beautiful, inspiring and really shows the potential of blogging.

Highly recommended to beginner bloggers....

If you want more inspiration, I would also recommend the books Blogging Heroes and Clear Blogging. These two books are on case studies of successful blogs and provide more in depth blogging philosophy. Read more ›

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great source of inspiration and ideas for newly started bloggers September 4, 2012

By Stig Bratvold

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I recently started a blog for my creative business and this book was of great help for ideas and inspiration about what kind of posts works. I would highly recommend it for anyone starting out a new blog...

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Visually Enticing & Inspirational March 20, 2013

By B. Hart

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I'm a visual kind of person, and need a lot of examples to pump my inner creativity. This book is simply the best at giving hundreds of color visual examples of great blog sites, as well as listing wonderful, creative blogs. Written for the creative person (you know who you are), so the images are "artsy", but the message is pure pleasure.

If you are a creative person, and want to extend your right-brain skills, this little book is the one to get. In addition to gorgeous examples, the author explains the different blogging platforms, and gives examples and reasons why one might choose one over another. Great info!

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Doesn't deliver in my opinion, more of a picture book than a how to February 8, 2013

By The Happy Artist

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I don't think this book delivered on it's title. I found it more of an overview with lots of screen shots (very very small screenshots by the way,) of creatives who were blogging, and very little information on how to actually make contacts, win business and build success.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Choice for 1st Time Bloggers June 5, 2013

By Kristi Jurgensen

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Just started a blog this past February and this book was recommended by Kari Chapin who wrote "The Handmade Marketplace" and is one of my favorite indie business authors. This book is helpful, easy to understand and shares lots of information. It also shows great examples of creative blogs that are very inspiring. I would highly recommend it for anyone who is interested in starting a blog, especially those of us creatives who don't like all the technical jargon you find in other books.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book May 29, 2013

By Brainstorm

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Great book!
nice organization!
Great flow of the information!
Many images, some thing i like in books.
Great tips..
Excellent for all the beginners in blogging!

3.0 out of 5 stars Okay.. May 24, 2013

By klc

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Blogging is a new idea for me and I wanted to see what was advised for someone with a creative side. The book is very easy to read, not bogged down with computer jargon.