How To Rebrand Your Blog

Sharing my thoughts on why you should rebrand your blog got me thinking that I should share how to actually do that. My rebranding process actually took around six months ... it took a lot of thinking and planning because I wanted to make sure that the final result would be perfect.

Rebranding is super easy, but it definitely shouldn't be an overnight thing; or a one-week thing, for that matter. It's a huge step up in the blogging game, but you want to make sure it's all done right!

o n e || come up with a name & check availability

Part of the reason why it took me so long to finally rebrand is I wanted to really love whatever new name I chose. I bounced back and forth between different names until I discovered that I really loved Lilly & Lemons. Make sure you choose a name that describes you and will continue to describe you as life goes on; I know I won't stop loving Lilly Pulitzer and lemons, so that's how I knew this name was right for me! I not only chose this name because I love it and it describes me but because it was available! I could use it for a domain name, and it was available to use as a handle on social media. Having the same name on social media instead of varied ones (I had psprepster on Twitter before and privateschoolprepster on Instagram) was something I really wanted, and I was happy that it could be lillyandlemons all around!

t w o || find a designer

At first I wanted to design my own layout to save money. I messed around on a sample blog for about six hours straight one day ... it was crazy. I liked how it came out for the most part, but there were a few features on the blog that I just couldn't seem to perfect/figure out no matter how hard I tried. More importantly, I didn't totally love my design. I didn't totally love my design for Private School Prepster either, which really made me realize that you should definitely love something before making it official. I decided that hiring a designer would be the best way to go. After searching through Etsy, I found Maru and could not have been happier! Having your blog professionally designed is the best way to go because it looks clean, professional, and impressive.

t h r e e || purchase the domain name

I've been blogging for almost three years, and I didn't get my first domain name until Private School Prepster made the switch to Lilly & Lemons. Buying a domain name at the same time that you start rebranding your blog is a good idea because then your readers can become familiar with both a new web address and a new name all at once. I don't know much about other web hosting, but I used Google Domains just because I love Google and use Blogger -- it's super easy to use!

f o u r || make a new email & social media

I never had a specific email for Private School Prepster; I just used my personal email that I had made years ago. I knew I wanted to get a separate blog email once I rebranded, and I'm so happy I did! It's much more organized and it looks so professional. (Want to know how to make your own email address using your domain name? Read how to do so HERE!) The good thing about social media is it usually lets you change your handle/username. Make sure to change your handle to your new blog name; it's always a good idea to keep things consistent!

f i v e || share the changes

I was really worried that when I rebranded, I would lose a lot of my followers and readers. I made sure to post it all over social media, and I made a post about it on Private School Prepster. And I was thrilled when I installed my domain name because I chose a setting so that when people typed in privateschoolprepster.blogspot.com, it redirected to www.lillyandlemons.com! How cool is that?! It guarantees that anyone who manually typed in my blog address would still be brought to my blog.

Still have questions about rebranding? Email me -- ashley@lillyandlemons.com