How To Start A Blog On Bloglovin

how to claim your blog on bloglovin

With the demise of Google Reader this week, lots of bloggers are looking for an alternative way to read their favourite blogs.

One of the most popular options is BlogLovin – although you can see other options on our post about alternatives to Google Reader.

Like Google Reader, BlogLovin allows you to subscribe to your favourite blogs and read all their new posts in one place – rather than trawling from one website to another.

You can also find new blogs by searching the BlogLovin' directory by topic. If you're quick, BlogLovin' can import your list of favourite blogs from Google Reader, but

So, how do you get YOUR blog onto BlogLovin?

Step 1: Join Bloglovin

First of all, head to the Bloglovin website and click on "join"

If you're REALLY quick you'll be given the option to import your favourite blogs from Google Reader, but if you've missed that chance, don't panic – it's easy to find your favourite blogs in BlogLovin. If you have a Google Reader account, just choose the import option and click 'accept' when you see this screen – the process only takes around 30 seconds.

bloglovina

You can register using your email address or Facebook. If you use Facebook, you'll see friends are automatically added to your account, and you can follow them on BlogLovin very simply.

Step 2: Find your blog on BlogLovin'

Once you're logged in to your account, click on the heart icon in the top right corner and select "My Blog" from the drop down menu. On the next screen, click the blue 'claim blog' button.

bloglovinclaim

Type your blog address into the search bar that pops up. Providing you have a working RSS feed (which you'll have by default) BlogLovin' will find your blog. If not, you'll need to contact them for more support. But you should see a screen that looks a bit like this one:

bloglovin43

Sometimes your blog will automatically publish feeds in two or three formats for different devices, so don't worry if your search returns multiple feeds – just choose the one that has the most followers by clicking on it, and you'll see a box like the one below, with some custom HTML code.

bloglovincode

Step 3: Add code to your blog to verify your claim

You need to copy all of this code, and then paste it into a new post on your blog.

For best results, we suggest creating a new post, switching your blog compose window from regular to HTML view – this means switching from visual to text in WordPress, and pasting the code into the top of your post.

addcode

Publish your post, head back to BlogLovin' and hit the 'claim' button. BlogLovin' will see the code on your site, and recognise the blog as yours.

Step 4: You're Done!

That's it – your blog is now registered with BlogLovin. If you've imported your favourite blogs from Google Reader, you'll find a list of all new posts on your account home screen – or you can browse for blogs by category, or add friends by connecting BlogLovin' to Facebook and then checking out which blogs your friends follow!

You can also click on the heart icon and choose 'BlogLovin' button' to get a nice button to put on your blog to allow your readers to follow you there. If you're not sure how to add button code to your blog, check out this quick video tutorial on adding a Tots100 button – the process is exactly the same.

Do you use BlogLovin'? We'd love to hear your tips on how to make the most of it in the comments!