Have you ever wanted to start your own link party but didn’t know where to start? Or if you’d even have the time? Want to find out how to do it?
The pros of starting a link party are obvious:
1. You get lots of traffic to your blog
2. You get to connect with a lot of great people and see blogs you didn’t know were out there
3. Freedom to make your own party choices
I would say there is only one con:
1. Time – generally it is more time consuming but once you’re in the swing of things, it’s not that bad!
Where to begin? Consider these points.
Will you do it on your own or have co-hosts?
First, you have to decide if you want to start one on your own or invite others to join you. There is more freedom, of course, with doing your own party but more time involved. Perhaps you have a little known blog and would like more traffic. If you invite others to join you on this venture then you get traffic from their blog as well and your party will grow much faster. With a group comes less freedom of choice but more help with handling the tasks.
Name & Theme of Your Party
You might consider having a theme for your party or it could just be a general link-up where anything goes. The more general it is, the more people will participate so think about it carefully before you choose one. Also, will the party be weekly or monthly?
Once you choose your theme, you’ll have to make a party button and a featured button so party-goers can add them to their blogs. The logo and the buttons can be made through Picmonkey. Upload a blank piece of paper by scanning it through your printer at home and the possibilities are endless!!
Link Up Manager
Once you’ve established these necessary things, you’ll need to sign yourself up with a host for the link party. Inlinkz and Linky Tools are the most popular. There is usually a small monthly charge for this. Decide on who has access to this account and take turns splitting the cost.
Jobs
If you have co-hosts, decide who will do what tasks. Will you take turns doing the weekly post? Will you have a separate features post? Who will be thanking all the guests for linking up?
Rules
Some rules to consider adding to your party:
- visit other links to spread the love {everyone loves comments!}
- decide on the number of posts a party-goer can add
- if you don’t want people adding their Etsy shops or giveaways etc., then add it as a rule
It’s good to have a few rules but you don’t want too many to distract from people coming to your party.
Link parties are definitely fun and add a lot of traffic to your blog. Just remember you’ll need to keep that commitment you made {whether you decided a weekly or monthly party was right for you} as everyone will be depending on you to host a great party. The more consistent you are, the more party-goers you’ll have.
Jamie Sander, author of Better With Age, is a busy mommy to an active boy and a beautiful girl. She blogs about DIYs, organization, crafts, baking, parties, and fashion. She loves all things french and vintage and transforming every inch of her 80s home until it is unrecognizable from that era. She lives in Vancouver, BC Canada. Keep up with her on Facebook, Pinterest, Bloglovin’, Google+, and Instagram.
Thanks for being our guest, Jamie! What a fun AND informative post!