Mollie Makes Blogging – A Review

We interrupt your football watching for some Mollie Makes news!

Mollie Makes Blogging is pitched as the magazine to help create the blog you’ve always dreamed of. It’s a 180-page special edition priced at £9.99 and available in most major stores – WH Smith (where I found my copy), Tesco, Asda, etc or coming soon as a e-zine for tablets.

Would you like to hear a bit more about what you will get for your money before you go out and buy this hefty tome?

I’ve always found the design and style of Mollie Makes impressive; it’s an inspirational and beautiful magazine that speaks to my aesthetic. But I rarely buy a copy as I’ve never truly felt I would leave with something tangible from reading (this is what stops me buying most magazines if I’m honest, but perhaps I’m just a book girl at heart).

I have to say, I do love the website (probably as it’s so accessible and just as stylish), and now I am also a fan of this special edition.

This one-off ‘zine (don’t you die a little bit inside when you use that abbreviation?) still has a little bit of the fluffy filler material all magazines are guilty of. But it also has a lot of clever, well-pitched and valuable material in here to.

Content is divided up into easy to use sections –

• “Inspiration” – Themes, Typography and Logos, Favourite Blogs, etc.
• “Advice” – Tips from A Beautiful Mess, Photo editing, Building Links, etc.
• “Know-How” – Hosting, Customising, Analytics, Plug-ins, Glossary, etc.

Plus a large variety of “Meet the Blogger” interviews (Brittany Watson Jepson, Elsie Larson, Pip Lincolne, Will Taylor and many more) and a number of intense guides in the “Blogging Must-Reads” section (cheat sheets to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest).

It’s nice to read about the people who run some of the most successful lifestyle blogs – their schedules, most popular posts, and what they do outside of the blog to earn money, as well as learn a bit more about their personality and back stories. I also really enjoyed the piece on Blogtacular and think I might attend next year!

There are a small number of pages dedicated to inspiration for starting a blog, but much more focused on improving your content, post strategy, presentation and marketing. I especially enjoyed the tips on social media marketing and focus on widgets and apps I wasn’t aware of such as buffer and linkwithin.

For instance, Pinterest; I could be using this so much more as a blogger and not just as a pinner to interact with other users, promote my sewing projects and drive traffic to my blog. Similarly I’m letting my lifestyle dictate my posting schedule; I share content on Instagram or Twitter when I grab five minutes right before bed or on a Wed lunchtime when I frantically finish a post, aka times where my posts can be easily overlooked.

There’s no shame in admitting you want your blog to be successful and there for no shame in buying a magazine to help you on your way. And if a few small tweaks helps increase your stats that’s surely worth the cost of the mag, right?

This magazine won’t help you learn much about building a community, teach you about using seo effectively (seriously, I don’t understand how this isn’t featured more) or help you learn css to code your own web design (which I don’t blame it for not tackling). Don’t buy if you’re after any of those things.

Now I’m not currently focused on making my blog profitable but I’ll keep this mag on my shelf in case that day comes as there are helpful articles about affiliate advertisement, sponsored posts and tips for diversifying enough to make a career out of your blog.

Plus I noticed an ad for a special Mollie Makes Photography which, after reading this well produced special, I will probably go out and get.

Now I just need to see if I talk myself into buying the Blog Love 2.0 course. Or talk someone into buying it for me as a Birthday present.