Green Philly Blog’s Julie Hancher has 9 secrets to bootstrapping a blog

Seven years ago, I was absolutely distraught when I learned a disturbing fact.

My employer’s recycling bins that were positioned in everyone’s cubicle? They went directly into the trash.
The ethics of recycling aside, all of my carefully placed papers and empty bottles were headed for the landfill. I never considered myself an environmentalist, but I knew I had to impact change. After chatting with a colleague during our commute back to Northern Liberties, we decided we could do something to make a change: start a blog.
We opened up WordPress, registered Green Philly Blog as a domain and set up shop.
Looking back now, I realize that we did one of the most passive things possible – sit behind a computer screen and try to persuade all 50 readers to make tiny changes. Now, our website reaches tens of thousands Philadelphians each month, sharing sustainability news, events, companies and easy ways to recycle those impossible items like your used CDs.
So how did I go from 50 readers to over 20,000, growing my passion into something bigger? Over my seven years running a blog, I’ve encountered many surprising lessons. Here are a few of our biggest secrets:

1. Start tracking data.

I didn’t start using Google Analytics until two years in. Although the data lost was trivial, WordPress Analytics wasn’t up to snuff and couldn’t be migrated into one, easy place. Every piece of data is crucial to move forward.

2. Don’t trust your gut… all of the time.

Posts that I thought that would go viral didn’t get more than a few shares. A few of the simplest posts I wrote still drive some of our biggest traffic. Instead, try to write a variety of content and measure what works.

3. Accept you’ll make mistakes. Lots of them.

Whether it was breaking my website or trying a new “revenue stream” that made 8 cents in a month, I had to try a lot in order to learn what didn’t work. And eventually, some stuff that did.

4. Invest in an Awesome Designer.

After a traumatic experience with a poorly-matched designer and stingy budget, I waited 2 years to give design another try. I vetted over 20 designers to find my amazing one. First impressions count towards credibility, and you need people to believe in your website in order to return. Understand your goals, talk to designers and invest. You won’t regret it.

5. Tap into your local resources.

Philly has endless (inexpensive and FREE) resources to help you. Trying to improve your skills on a budget? Whether you want to master photography, WordPress or business skills, take advantage of Philly’s resources to help you. Unconferences like BarCamp and WordCamp allowed me to network, discover new tricks and even give public speaking a whirl.
Other resources I’ve found? Girl Develop It will teach women tech skills for cheap. Fleisher Art Memorial provides adult art education. Entrepreneur Works is a nonprofit that teaches crucial business skills for next to nothing. Endless meetups. I’ve gotten my feet wet with all of these groups in the past 7 years. And I’m JUST touching the tip of the iceberg. Just look for it – there are endless resources (and people) to help you.

6. Don’t sell yourself short.

Throughout the years, people have always asked me about how I monetize. And to be brutally honest, I didn’t. I tried affiliate programs that brought in $5, and made a couple insignificant sponsorships here and there. When someone offered to buy my blog, I didn’t even discuss it. I knew my product was far more valuable and needed to improve quality and grow it further to its full potential.

7. Get out from behind the computer.

As an online platform, I didn’t attempt to have my own events. This past January, we sold out almost 400 tickets to a launch party, co-hosted with Sustainability Nexus/City CoHo. The event reached thousands of individuals online, generated social media likes and increased brand recognition exponentially.
But you don’t have to throw a party in order to gain offline exposure. One of the best parts of Green Philly has been attending events, working with interns, speaking to students and professionals.

8. Don’t settle for a traditional path.

‘Entrepreneur’ was never a word in my vocabulary. After college, I slowly got experience in recruiting, e-mail marketing, social media, supervising, content creation and strategy and a cohesive marketing plan. When people asked how I actually made money, it sparked an interest and I realized I could own my own digital marketing company, reaching consumers I reached every day – socially conscious Philadelphians. My uncertain dream began to fall into a tangible reality.

9. Find your passion.

This is so cliché, but without writing about something you love, you’ll give up. There were times when I wondered if I could ever make Green Philly into something bigger, but my passion never faded. If you’re going to write about something five days a week, you better love it. And that love will shine through.
Whether you’re starting a blog as an outlet for your passion or to grow your business, focusing on quality will help you find success. Maybe even materializing to that unreal feeling when you resign from your “day” job and wake up to your self-employed life, like I officially did a few weeks ago.
With a few clients on board and formalizing a few documents, the blog has turned into a business and my passion for sustainability has turned into a career. I’m excited to take on clients who want to create compelling content and social media to drive sales.
Unsure of how to get started? Green Philly Company offers a social media tune-up to evaluate your current efforts and provide actionable ways to modify your digital marketing game. Find out how to get started.