Social media pro: Tumblr
SHOW THE WORLD HOW YOU THINK AND FEEL WITH YOUR VERY OWN BLOG.
WHAT DO FOOD lovers, fitness fanatics and Kmart-obsessors all have in common? These people represent just a few of the groups now blogging freely on the world wide web. In fact, almost anyone can call themselves a blogger, with the rise of social media making it ridiculously easy to express an opinion on anything and everything. Tumblr is a popular platform that lets you create and manage a blog dealing with a particular topic or interest. However, it’s important to note that this isn’t your typical blogging platform. On the contrary, Tumblr is more of what could be described as a microblog — a service that emphasises short and succinct blog posts. A large proportion of the content posted to Tumblr is photos and videos, making it a largely visual social network. Think of it like a digital scrapbook — a place to curate the visual things you find both on and off the web. If you’re ready to step up to the digital soapbox, follow us as we take you through the steps to setting up and managing your own Tumblr blog.
THE BASICS SIGNING UP:
To create an account, you’ll first be required to provide your age, before choosing five or more topics that interest you — such as music, architecture or gaming. Once done, tap next and the app will request permission to send push notifications before finally taking you to the app’s dashboard. To actually create your blog, tap the person icon in the bottom right of the app — you’ll then be asked to provide an email address, password and username for your account.
CUSTOMISATION:
Once you’re all set up, tap the person icon to be taken to your blog’s homepage. While Tumblr provides new users with a default design and layout, you can make adjustments by tapping the colour palette at the top of the page. For example, change the colour of your blog’s background by pressing the (very intuitively named) background button, while tapping the header allows you to upload a cover image. It’s also wise to give your blog a creative title and description to help others understand what your Tumblr is all about. Note that while the mobile app has a limited set of design controls, more refined changes can be made via the desktop site.
POSTING:
Your blog won’t have many viewers until you actually post something. In fact, if you’re looking to become a Tumblr star, then it’s important to post regularly. To make your first entry, simply tap the pencil icon. Tumblr allows you to post a variety of content types including photos, videos, GIFs, audio, text, quotes and photos. Remember that on Tumblr, users thrive off visuals, so if you want to be reblogged, it’s best to include an image, video or GIF. For each post, you can also add tags and a caption.
DASHBOARD:
This is where you’ll be spending the majority of your time on Tumblr. Similar to Facebook’s newsfeed, the dashboard provides a running stream of posts and reposts coming from the users that you follow, along with occasional suggestions from other blogs based on your previously selected interests. Tap on an image or video while browsing to see it in fullscreen; press on the title of an individual post to be taken to its corresponding blog’s homepage. Tapping a post’s notes allows you to see the number of comments and shares it has received.
STEP IT UP A LEVEL FOLLOWERS:
As you become more involved in the Tumblr community, you’ll soon discover a number of blogs that you enjoy viewing on a regular basis. Rather than
continuously visit each blog one by one, Tumblr makes it easy to keep up to date with your favourite authors by tapping the follow button in the top right corner of a blog. This will ensure any future posts appear in your dashboard.
TAGS:
Before hitting publish, you might want to think about adding some tags. Similar to Twitter and Instagram, tags help to organise the vast amount of content added to Tumblr each day, making it easy for both you and others to find posts about specific topics. Some examples of popular tags include art, food and LOL (for humorous posts). Try not to be too specific — few people are likely to search for posts with the tag #skimcappucinowithonesugar.
MESSAGING:
Tumblr allows you to get in contact with other users by sending them a message. Simply visit a blog and tap the chat icon (the one with a plus sign) in the top right corner of the page. From the message screen, you can send text, photos, videos and GIFs.
ENGAGEMENT:
Like other social networks, Tumblr encourages users to engage with one another. In addition to the humble ‘like’, you can also tap the double arrow icon below a post to reblog it to your own page. You can also comment, recommend posts and submit questions to other blog owners.
SEARCH:
The easiest way to find new and interesting content is via the search tool. Start by typing a few keywords and then press the search button. You’ll then be taken to a page where results can be refined to only tags, GIFs or entire blogs. Tap the follow button next to a search term and any future results will then appear in your dashboard.
DRAFTS:
Not ready for a new post to go public to the Tumblr masses? You can save posts as drafts for review and refinement at a later date. Simply tap the ‘X’ icon on the new post screen and the app will ask whether you’d like to save it as a draft. All drafts are saved in settings.
GOING PRO SCHEDULE:
If you’re planning to go AFK (away from keyboard) for a while, why not schedule things to go live in your absence? Just create a post like normal, but instead of publishing, press the settings cog and tap ‘Schedule’. You can then choose a particular date and time you’d like your post to be published.
QUEUE:
As previously mentioned, if you want your blog to get noticed, it’s important to post regularly. In addition to scheduling, Tumblr also allows you to queue posts to be published gradually over time. You’ll find this option in
the same menu as the scheduling feature, with adjustments to your queue able to be made from settings.
PRIVATE POSTS:
For many users, Tumblr is somewhere to express thoughts, feelings and funny cat GIFs, but for others, it’s a place for their journal. While the majority of posts on Tumblr are public for the world to see, you can also create posts only visible to you. Just tap the settings cog on a new post and choose the option to post privately.
USERNAME:
If you’re no longer happy with your blog’s username, it’s very easy to change. From the settings screen, tap ‘Change username’ and type in what you’d like your new nickname to be. If your chosen name is available, the change will happen instantly.
ADDITIONAL BLOGS:
Don’t let one blog limit your creativity — Tumblr allows you to create and manage multiple sites within a single account. Simply visit your existing blog and tap your username at the top of the screen. It’s here you’ll find the option to create an additional site — use this screen in the future to switch between them.
FILTERS:
One of the newer features introduced to Tumblr is the ability to exclude posts with certain tags from your dashboard. This is particular useful if you’re trying to avoid spoilers for the latest Game of Thrones episode. You can access filters from the general settings screen — just add each tag one at a time.