As it is the start if a new year it can be a great to refresh your blog. A new year is always a clean slate and it is the opportunity to take your blog to the next level.
If you have been blogging for a while it can become a little stagnant, if you have the same blog graphics or media kit. As you go along your blogging journey you will develop and grow, so you you will want your blog to follow suit. Your blog is an extension of you and so you want it to reflect your development.
Do you want to take your blog to the next level? By making some changes in 2023 you can grow your blog audience, look more professional and even be more appealing to brands and PR contacts. I have been making some changes to my blog and media kit to give my blog a little face lift.
Here are 7 ways you can refresh your blog in 2023:
Photo by Uby Yanes on Unsplash
1. Clear all broken links
This is one action I do not enjoy doing but, it is a must. Broken links cannot only be super irritating for your audience but, it can impact your DA score. Your DA score can then impact what brands or opportunities you have access to and how much money your blog can make you.
2. Clear all your spam comments
If you don’t do this action regularly, spam comments can really build up. It not only makes you feel cluttered but, it can slow your site or cause your website to have a high spam score.
This is a regular practise for me and it always makes me good when I have done these type of blogging admin.
3. Update your media kit
Firstly if you don’t know what a media kit is, it’s a CV for bloggers that can be sent to brands and PR contacts. It gives you the opportunity to showcase what you are about and what you offer.
I hadn’t updated my media kit in so long, so I took the time to redesign the whole kit and colour scheme. If you are looking to work with brands and send some pitches, you should have a kick-ass media kit. Here’s what you should include in your media kit.
4. Change up your theme or colour scheme
Changing the whole theme or colours of your blog can give your blog a fresh new look and revamp. If you feel your blog is a bit plain or dull, just simply changing the colours or adding colours can be really powerful. Doing this can change the experience your readers have.
I have actually changed some font colour and links to make them stand out and be more clear to my audience. This alone changes how a gift guide post would look for example.
This doesn’t mean you have to buy a theme, there are so many free themes that you can customize to make it your own.
Photo by Paige Cody on Unsplash
5. Update your blog graphics
Another simple way to refresh your blog is to update your logo, blog banner or even add better quality blog images within your blog posts. Just this simple action can brighten up your blog. I have updated my advertising packages for 2023 and so that meant a new blog graphic. As I have been blogging for a long time there are a fair few of very old blog posts that I still need to update and use better graphics for. This will be a task I continue this year.
6. Clear and answer your emails
My emails can sometimes can get cluttered with notifications and ‘spam’ opportunities as well as real opportunities. It is always a productive way to start a new year and even a new month with a clear and organized mailbox. So I have filed away emails I need to keep and deleted all other emails (Remember to clear your deleted folder too, to help reduce your carbon footprint). It is so beneficial to practise as you will limit the chances of missing important emails. Start with a clean slate.
I decided to create a new email for my blog this year that is just more cohesive to my entire brand.
7. Update older content
Like your blog graphics, updating older content can help revamp your blog. When you update your content you can then repurpose it throughout the year. This can bring you new readers to your blog.
As I have been blogging since 2017, my writing style has completely changed. It can be quite cringey reading back some of the posts I put out years ago, but positive also as it shows growth and development.
These are just some of the ways you can give your blog a mini makeover for a brand new year. This can be a great move to make if you have become unmotivated or want to relaunch your blog. Other things you could do to revamp your blog including: changing your niche, change your blog name or subtitle, do more keyword research or creating eye-catching titles.
Are you looking to revamp your blog? Is there something you want to change with your blog this year? I’d love to hear in the comments.
Some GREAT tips, especially the media kit. Mine is way lacking. Thanks so much for sharing! ✌️
Thank you for reading and commenting.
These are all such great ideas. We updated our theme earlier this month. We don’t have a media kit, so thanks for sharing what to include in one.
I am glad you found this post helpful! Thank you for reading and commenting.
The first thing that comes to mind for me is changing up your theme! I love this post. I am going to stay on top of spam and broken links this year x
Thank you for reading and commenting.
These are awesome ideas! We need to clear out spam comments this week and we should start working on a media kit!
I am glad this has been a helpful post. Thank you for reading and commenting.
Thanks for sharing this.💛
Thank you for sharing this, Lauren! The media kit and updating older content were timely reminds for me 🙂
Thank you for reading and commenting. Can you link your blog? So I can have a read x
Great things to do and love the ideas. I agree clearing the broken links is very important. thank you for these suggestions!
Thank you for reading and commenting.
This is a great to-do list, if you like, of all the ways to refresh your blog in 2023! I think I’m the only blogger who finds it satisfying doing a broken link check! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
What do you use for your broken links? I find it satisfying when it’s done too x
Great suggestions. You reminded me that I need to find out how to fix broken links.
I use a free one from Google. X
It has been almost four years since I launched my blog so I’m now going back and reviewing all my old posts from 2020 (I did 2019 last year). I’m deleting any posts that aren’t evergreen, and refreshing the others with current information and images. I know what you mean about how much your writing style changes over time. I cringe when I look at some of my old posts now.
I have a few of my older posts also to do, it really does help. I also am surprised what I put out in 2017 ha ha! Thank you for reading and commenting.
I know what you mean. But, it’s great to look back and see the growth.
Definitely. It is good to see how far you have come!
This is the perfect time of year for a blog revamp. I’ve been meaning to update my media kit for I don’t know how long. I’m not usually asked for it these days so it’s quite outdated, it’s good to look on though. I’ve got a broken link plugin which is an absolute godsend. I check every couple of weeks to try keep on top of it. Something I should also do is updating old posts. I’ve got quite a few which aren’t SEO friendly at all. Fab post my love.
Claire.X
http://www.clairemac.co.uk
What plug-in do you use? As the one for WordPress doesn’t work for me. Yeah I have updating posts this year as a task. Thank you for reading and commenting.
These are great ideas to revamp your blog! I just fixed a bunch of broken links yesterday as it has been a while since I did that last. Also, I made it a habit to check and delete spam comments once a day so it doesn’t get overwhelming. I’ve been slowly going through and updating older posts so I would like to continue that this year.
What do you use for your broken links? I delete my spam regularly also. Good luck with updating your older posts. Thank you for reading and commenting.
When I get my laptop I will do it. It was nice but I need a change. Cause i have changed
These are all wonderful tips! I am definitely going through a revamping stage. I have a clear path with my blog now, and have plenty of things on my to-do list. But Roam is not built in a day.
I am not sure I’d recommend the changing of the color scheme because I know I get used to seeing color schemes in regards to my favorite bloggers. I know when I changed my color scheme it did throw a kink in my reach for a bit because my regulars didn’t think it was me still. But I can get why the desire to do it would be there!!
#bloggersconnecting
I definitely would recommend if you do a complete change to share it on your social media platforms to remind your followers. Good luck with your blogging to-do list. Blogging is definitely a never ending list! Ha ha! Thank you for reading and commenting.
I just went through my posts a few weeks ago and deleted all broken links! One thing I like to do is change my blog heading every once in a while as well. I have made my media kit already, but something inside is telling me I’m not big enough to have one. Definitely holding off on changing my blog’s theme until later.
I’ve also made it a habit to check spam comments once a week. I went through them yesterday and discovered a comment that wasn’t spam. This is such a great post for any blogger 🙂
You are never to small to have a media kit. If anything it can show you are professional even if you feel you aren’t big enough. It is always something you should send with you pitches to brands! Yes spam comments are a great thing to go through regularly. Thank you for reading and commenting. X
I definitely needed to read these tips; I will have to look at updating older content as I know I have been a bit too relaxed about that!
It definitely helps with keywords, being in date and your DA score. Thank you for reading and commenting.
Great tips Lauren! I clear out spam comments and broken links constantly. I’m looking forward to going back and updating older posts and improving SEO. Thank you for the reminder and sharing your tips!
What do you use for your broken link checker? Thank you for reading and commenting.
Hi, thanks for sharing with us these important reminders as pertains to blog maintenance. With a lot happening we may fail to keep track of some what you have mentioned in this article, especially broken links.
This was really useful, thank you! Best of luck for the new year!
Thank you!
Thank you for reading and commenting.
These are great suggestions. I’m currently in the process of updating and revamping old content. Whilst it’s time consuming, I’m already seeing the benefits.
Fantastic suggestions! I’m currently working on updating all my ED related content. I covered all my spam comments/broken links over the last month and now tackle them as they come in. Emails are my next to tackle, along side other blog posts. Whew!
What do you use for your broken links? I have re organised and cleared my email inboxes and it feels great!
This is all really good advice – blog maintenance is certainly an unending task! I’ve got a few of these to do now I’m back – sadly one of them is broken links (and I agree with you that this is not fun at all, but so important for DA)
It is always an every-growing list. Thank you for reading and commenting.
Great tips! I’ve recently changed the colours on my blog and am slowly updating old posts. I didn’t know about clearing spam comments so that’s now on my monthly to do list.
Definitely a thing to do as sometimes they can build up!
I think clearing broken links is one of the most high maintenance tasks, but it really helps your site.
Definitely. Thank you for reading and commenting.
Appreciate the blog maintenance tips!
I spend so much time each month cleaning spam comments I find it really therapeutic! This is some great advice for giving your blog a refresh x
Thank you for reading and commenting x
These are some great tips and perfect for me as I’ve been wanting to up my blogging game in 2023! Thank you for sharing 🥰
Jessica | http://www.overdressedblogger.com
I hope they help! Thank you for reading and commenting.
Great post! I just launched my blog this month, but will bookmark this page for next year.
Welcome to the blogging community! Thank you for reading and commenting. I hope this post helps you.
These are some great tips!
Great reminders!
Thank you for these amazing tips!
Thank you!
This is something I neglect, so this post is giving me the push to get some of the refresh done!
Thanks for sharing 🙂
Aimsy xoxo
Aimsy’s Antics
I am glad you found this post helpful. Thank you for reading and commenting.
What a fabulous guide Lauren. The cool thing is literally, I’ve done some of this over the prior week. I deleted a heavy volume of underperforming posts, broken blog comment links and some comments from way back, published by bloggers no longer in the game or, unfortunately, who’ve passed on. Letting go feels really good.
Ryan
That’s awesome. I have to work more in my broken links. What do you use? Thank you for reading and commenting.
Checking in months mater ;)…..but I did it manually, post by post. However, since I was updating all posts anyway it was not time-consuming but a necessary step to spiffy up my old blog posts.
Yeah I am working on it all x
I’ve had to reset my WordPress about 3x times now in the past week because of stupid plug-ins. But it’s my fault. I get all excited when I find new ones and then download a whole bunch and then delete a whole bunch hahah. Its so addicting!
Hey, that was really great. Thanks alot for the tip. I might also need some help in redesigning my site
Thank you for reading and commenting. Can you link your blog?
Thank you for sharing. I am new to blogging.
You money habits post is great but no option to comment. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you. I’m getting the hang of it. I know how to allow comments now lol.
I tried to comment but there was no option!
Thank you for this, I started my blog some weeks back, and I don’t have any knowledge on how to keep it ‘tidy’. I would as appreciate suggestions and tips.
Thank you for reading and commenting. I couldn’t comment on your blog as you have no option to
Yes. I feel like the platform or is currently on not as conducive to a blog like some of the others.
Republishing posts helps too. While you republishing update! But, great idea for new theme!
Thank you for reading and commenting.
You are most welcome 🙂