3 Re-branding Changes I've Made In 2016

If this blog looks different than you're used to, don't worry! Keep reading, you're in the right place!

Hopefully you caught my last blog post, 7 Re-branding Changes I Made For 2016, a week ago. If you're new to my blog - Welcome! - and know you caught me right in the middle of "graduating". You can check out Roots Journey on social media for the full scoop, but basically since I'm graduating from Iowa State next semester, it's time for my blog to grow up and join the real world.

Anyway, last week I shared seven ways I'd worked towards this re-branding goal. Today is an update with three more things I've done in the new year to make progress.

Here's my new Roots Journey logo! I can't wait to make it part of my designs and social media posts!

1. To kick of 2016, I began using my new logo. Before this year, my posts were lacking a logo of any sort. Occasionally I'd use my head shot or "@Roots" in the corner of an image to identify it as mine, but nothing was consistent. After researching all the things I needed to do to take my blog to the next level, it was clear this was something that needed to be fixed right away. I'll save the process of designing and deciding for another day, but special thanks to all my Snapchat friends that tolerated hours of "This? Or this?" snaps as I worked trough it all!

2. Like I said at the beginning of this post, if you're a regular reader here, you may notice the page looks different. I updated my template. My page used to look like this:

Out with the old and in with the new! This is what Roots Journey used to look like in 2015!

While I liked the wood texture and green accents, it is awfully dark and distracting from the content. In my new look, I kept the country feel by adding the wood to my header image (that includes my new logo), but went for a simpler design for the rest of the page. Now, my page looks more modern and adult. This change scared me for a long time, but after checking out a few YouTube tutorials I was able to pull it off pretty easily. I'm discovering there is so much you can customize on Blogger if you take the time to learn!

3. Finally, I reworded my greeting on the right hand side of my blog. I'm not positive it's in its final form, but at least I have some key words that describe who I am and why I blog. (Like I said last week, I'm all about baby steps around here!)

"Hey there, it's Natalina Sents! I'm a Millennial blogger writing about agriculture and entrepreneurship. I love to travel, thrift and cheer on the Iowa State Cyclones."

I look forward to documenting my re-branding journey on the blog as I make progress. As always, feel free to share your thoughts or suggestions in the comments below. Thanks for reading!

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7 Re-branding Changes I Made For 2016

If you've been following Roots on Facebook or Twitter lately, you've probably seen this post pinned to the top of my social media pages and wondered what it means. 

"Last week I applied to graduate from Iowa State. It hardly seems possible that 4 years have flown by. I decided if I have to graduate, my blog should too. In the next month, there will be lots of changes around here. Thanks for your patience with Roots' growing pains!"

More details are coming soon, but for now there are some exciting things you should know about my re-branding progress...






1. I've stopped using my personal Twitter handle. If you've been following me at @AnySense035 and wondering why I dropped off the face of the earth, make sure you go follow me at @Roots_Journey instead. Now that Roots has many readers I haven't met in real life, it's much less confusing if I just use one account. 

2. Number one has really helped me accomplish change number two: Share more focused Tweets. Even though you may not be able to tell by looking at my timeline, there is a method to my madness. All my tweets are somehow related to my travel, agriculture, thrifting or entrepreneurial goals. This has helped me gain a more "adult" following and keeps me from getting too distracted on social media.

3. With that, I also want to be a more engaged community member with people who care about the same topics as me. To do this, I'm being more intentional about scheduling time to participate in Twitter discussions like #FoodieChats on Mondays and #AgChat on Tuesdays. These conversations have been the starting place for some great relationships and awesome projects I'm excited to tell you about later. Attending #AgChat conference in Nashville last month was just the beginning of travels to meet my online friends. 

This is my current profile picture everywhere.

4. I also switched all my social media accounts to use one consistent profile picture. Along the lines of number one, I haven't had the privilege of meeting all my online followers. I'm easier to keep track of across the different social media platforms if people are familiar with a certain picture. (My current picture is almost 4 years old and due for an update, but I'm all about baby steps around here!)

5. While I was making sure each of my social media accounts looked consistent, I went ahead and made as many of them @Roots_Journey as possible. Now, I'm @Roots_Journey on Instagram and Twitter, plus a few other channels I plan to use more in 2016 like Pinterest and YouTube.

6. I bought my domain! Domains are pretty cheap, but to me this was a really big deal, meaning I'm serious about developing Roots as I grow personally and professionally. Now you can find my blog by just typing in www.therootsjourney.com to your address bar!

7. If you're a regular Roots reader you may notice a few tweaks to the layout of my website. Nothing has changed too dramatically, but I've added some social buttons to the sidebar so I'm easier to connect with. Also, there are new tabs across the top so my most popular posts about travel and Ag Jobs A to Z are easy to find.

I hope these re-branding changes make Roots more fun for you to follow. As always, feel free to comment or email with any feedback about the new look! Thanks for reading!

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