Bloglovin’ It

What is it?

First, if you are a Blogger then you can break this up into three parts to make it less work for you at a time, although it’s not that much work. For some of us it just takes time away from blogging itself. And it LOOKS like a lot of work.

Let’s look at two basic purposes:

#1

Just to Follow blogs

For a lot of people that either don’t want to sign up for accounts with a lot of different blog providers just to follow a blog, or don’t want to subscribe by email, Bloglovin’ can be a great alternative. Simply go to Bloglovin.com, sign up and follow any blog that’s on the site or add a blog to the site. These blogs are from every imaginable blog provider, from blogspot to WordPress. I don’t mention those to promote those but one is toward the beginning of the alphabet and the other is toward the end.

#2

As a Blogger

For bloggers this is a great way to have people follow your blog without  having to do blog accounts or email subscriptions. Even I am hesitant to do the email and I am a blogger. I do follow a handful that way but I receive enough email driven from my own blog to keep me busy as it is. Okay so I don’t get that much from my own blog but it’s still email to go through. And the more email you have the more of it that turns into junk for you, my blog included.

Once you register your blog with Bloglovin’ then your posts will show up on Bloglovin’. Yes, you read correctly. You don’t have to share or do anything special after you have registered your site itself, not just registered as a member. I repeat after you become a member and then register/claim your site, that’s it.

How do you do it?

#1

Just to follow blogs:

Simply sign up by going to bloglovin.com. When you first register you’ll be asked if you want to use facebook or your email to register. If you use facebook then you will have any friends that are on Bloglovin’ already with blogs perhaps automatically in your list. Kind of cool. I did the email option simply because I like to keep my Blog world and my everyday world separate and manageable as I like it.

Then you search the categories for something you like or search for that favorite blog you like, perhaps ronovanwrites. Several of my friends are there but too many to mention and I don’t want to slight anyone here. Once you find a blog you like, such as ronovanwrites  follow it. Then every time you log in you will see posts available to click and check out and even on the right side of the screen see a list of your friends and how many posts they have going on at the time. Did I mention ronovanwrites is on Bloglovin’? Well if not, ronovanwrites is on Bloglovin’. Hey, if I don’t promote myself who will, right?

#2

For a Blogger you need to sign up just as above. Then: (Updated-12/09/14)

• Look at the top and to the right and you will see the Heart icon.   Click and you will see ‘Settings’ in the drop down list. Click it.
• Next you will need to scroll down until you see, Blogs by Me  and a button next to it that says Add Blog. It’s located under the Profile section. Click ‘Add Blog’.
• Now a screen called Blog analytics comes up with the ‘claim blog’ button.
• Type in your blog address and search for it. It should come up. Click your blog. If it’s not there you need to register it and Bloglovin’ does well showing you how.
• Crazy as it sounds, my blog actually had a couple of entries already and I had never been to Bloglovin. I just picked the one that had the most followers and claimed it. It was my address. People can put in a blog they want to follow so don’t be surprised if you see your site there.
• Whoa! What do I do with that box with the script in it and says ‘Claim blog’?
• To actually register you need to copy that text into a new post on your blog in the TEXT tab, not the VISUAL tab. You know, just like when you share a video.
• Once you publish the post and go back to Bloglovin’ you are now registered. Difficult, huh?

How do you add the Bloglovin’ Widget?

No need for numbers now, this is all Blog World business. And it’s simpler than it at first seemed as I tried to follow some directions.

• First thing, it’s a Widget that will be in your sidebar.
• I would go ahead and have a Text Widget open and read so you can copy a simple code from Bloglovin’.
• The image is in the code so no worries there. The Bloglovin’ Widget site has different widgets you can choose from.  Click ‘Get this icon’ under the one you like and copy the code into your text widget. Save it and guess what, you’re done.
• You can always change your widget when you like, just choose the one that best fits you, your blog and your theme.
• And also it’s not a bad idea to change up that widget at times just to make things look different and draw your readers eye.

“But wait, Ronovan, some people don’t look at those thingies on the side. What other way can I let a visitor know how to follow me on Bloglovin’?”

• Copy a Follow me on Bloglovin’ image you like and add it to your media in your blog.
• When you create a post, add the image and then click the image in your post editor and add the address to your actual Bloglovin’ site. Make sure to check the box for open in different window if you like. What, you didn’t know you could add a ‘link’ to your images? Yep, you do it the exact same way you do any other link. Click the image and then the add a link option in your post editor.
  
• Sounds tedious that you need to do it each time. Nope. It’s just like adding any image but this time you have one that should be called Bloglovin’ and one link in your list called Bloglovin to add to your image.  It’s that simple.

We all freak out a little when we start using these new to us features/options, but the truth is, once you actually sit down and walk through it yourself to explain it, it’s easier than a lot of people think and make it sound. I’ve found some sites that just totally confuzzled me. I probably confuzzled you. Have questions, ask me, or I am sure any of my Blog friends who do Bloglovin’ can help as well.

Much Respect

Ronovan

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