Originally published as a year-end blogging checklist and substantially updated in September 2026. The 25 original community comments remain below because they show bloggers using this list to plan, organize and set goals together.
A new year is a useful excuse to review your blog, but these tasks work just as well at the beginning of any new season, quarter or business cycle. You do not need a total redesign or an enormous list of resolutions. A focused reset can reveal what is working, what is broken and what deserves your attention next.
1. Reassess Your Goals
Start by asking what you actually want your blog to do for you this year. Traffic can matter, but it is not the only useful goal.
You might want to increase email subscribers, publish a specific body of evergreen content, earn more affiliate income, land recurring brand work, sell a product, improve search traffic or reduce the number of hours you spend maintaining the site.
Make goals measurable enough to evaluate, but do not choose a number simply because it sounds impressive. A goal should connect to a reason.
Instead of "get more traffic," you might choose "increase search visits to my five strongest evergreen articles" or "grow the email list by creating and promoting one genuinely useful free resource."
Also review last year's goals. What worked? What stalled? What no longer matters? You are allowed to stop pursuing a goal that no longer serves the business or your life.
2. Give the Site a Basic Health Check
A blog accumulates small problems while you are busy creating content. Periodically check the pieces visitors and business partners rely on most.
- Update WordPress, themes and plugins after making sure you have a reliable backup.
- Remove plugins you no longer need rather than keeping software indefinitely "just in case."
- Test your contact page and important forms.
- Check social-profile links and key navigation links.
- Review your About, media kit, disclosure and other important pages for outdated information.
- Look for broken links on high-traffic and high-value pages.
- Check the site on a phone instead of assuming the desktop version tells the whole story.
- Review site speed and obvious layout problems.
For more technical housekeeping, see WordPress Blog Security and How to Speed Up Your Blog.
3. Review What Is Actually Making Money
This is one of the most important additions to the old checklist. A blogger can enter a new year with bigger traffic goals while overlooking the content and relationships already producing revenue.
Review your major income streams. Which articles generate affiliate clicks or sales? Which products sell? Which brand relationships are worth continuing? Which traffic sources bring readers who subscribe, buy or return? Which activities take substantial time but produce very little?
Do not evaluate everything by gross revenue alone. Consider expenses and time as well.
Use Tracking What's Working and Making Money and How to Track Your Blog's Income, Expenses and Profit to make this review more concrete.
4. Clean Up the Reader Experience
You do not necessarily need a new theme. Look at the site as though you have never visited it before.
Can a new reader quickly understand what the site is about? Is the navigation manageable? Is the email signup clear? Are there expired promotions, old event buttons or clutter competing for attention? Are ads or popups interfering with the content?
Check several important articles too. Old content may need clearer headings, updated links, better internal links, current disclosures or a more useful next step.
A cleaner site can often do more for you than a cosmetic redesign.
5. Choose a Sustainable System for the Year
Organization should reduce work, not become another project you have to maintain.
Choose a system simple enough that you will actually use it. That might include an editorial calendar, spreadsheet, task manager, paper planner or combination of tools.
Decide where you will keep:
- content ideas;
- publishing plans;
- brand deadlines;
- affiliate and campaign information;
- income and expenses;
- articles that need updating; and
- future projects you do not need to work on yet.
Then decide what a realistic working rhythm looks like. Your schedule should fit your actual life rather than an imaginary version of it.
For more help, see How to Increase Blog Productivity Without Letting Blogging Take Over Your Life.
Bonus: Reconnect With Other Bloggers
The original article made community one of the five main tasks, and the comments below show why. Bloggers compared goals, planning systems and the challenges they were trying to solve.
Reconnect with people and communities that make your work better. Look for places where people answer questions, share useful experience, collaborate and celebrate progress-not groups built entirely around forced engagement or dropping links.
The Biannual Blogathon Bash continues that idea through twice-yearly opportunities to work on our sites together.
Do Not Turn the Reset Into Another Source of Pressure
You do not need to finish every task before January 1. Choose the items that will make the biggest difference and work through them.
A useful annual reset should leave you with more clarity, fewer distractions and a better idea of what deserves your time-not a fifty-item list that makes you feel behind before the year begins.
Bobbie says
Hi! I just wanted to say thank you for this!
Cheryl says
Great tips. I've already started on a lot of these - I just need to find time to finish them!
Kathleen Garber says
My problem isn't the time, it's that I'm enjoying doing nothing too much. I guess I needed a holiday more than I thought.
Insane Mamacita says
Such a great list of reminders. Thank you for writing and sharing these awesome tips.
Mother of 2 says
Amazing Article! Website needs an update I just can't figure out how to effectively change the layout and keep my tool bars the way I want them on my dashboard. I love the broken link checker tool... thanks for the plugin link!
Kathleen Garber says
Glad you found it helpful.
@JadeLDesigns says
These are great tasks to take into account and think over. Especially the goals. I always say, "I want more unique visitors". but I never knew how to get them. I think I finally figured out how to get more for my site specifically and so this new year, my goal is to edit all my old posts to correct flaw I have found, and ensure that the new articles I write are free of those same flaws. 🙂
Kathleen Garber says
Great idea. Fixing old posts is something I've been meaning to do. I do it whenever I happen to go back to an old post for a reason but there are years worth of posts there, I just can't sit down and do them all.
Susan Bewley says
Awesome tips! These tips are awesome for new and seasoned blogger!
meaganpaullin says
Really good tips here - A few that I hadn't thought of! I'm working on reassessing things for the new year too, so this had great ideas 🙂
Kathleen Garber says
Glad you found it useful. Here's to an amazing 2013.
Jody @Mommy Moment says
Great reminders for going into the new year. Thanks for sharing.
Sarah says
I like to set goals and then make a 90 plan that lists the steps I'm going to take to achieve them. At the end of the 90 days, I assess my progress and make changes as appropriate. If I didn't do this, I would never stay on track.
Kathleen Garber says
That's a good idea because you give your goals a due date. This really inspires you into action.
buffisan0227 says
This post is full of great information and it is organized fabulously. I really like the citing at the end too. All ideas mentioned here are relevant and useful; well appreciated.
Kathleen Garber says
Thank you. Glad you liked the post. I'm hoping it could be used as a checklist if someone wanted to.
Amanda says
Great list!! I reI really need to work on number 1 and 4!!
BusyMomofTwins says
Thank you SO much for this! Great tips and really useful information. I am still struggling to plan my blogging time. This needs to be a priority in the New Year!
Kathleen Garber says
Look for more posts in the New Year about organizing.
LisaLisa says
Thanks for sharing this!
Pos.Pam.Patty says
Great Post Kathleen, now I know exactly what I need to do for my blog in the new year. I will be using you list every year! 🙂
Kathleen Garber says
Thanks I'm glad you found it helpful! I was hoping it would be useful year after year.
Monique says
SUCH helpful tips! I've only completed one of those, eep. Have to get on the ball while I still have time. 🙂
Kathleen Garber says
Absolutely! I certainly haven't completed the list either even with one blog, let alone my multiple ones. All of January can be a focus for getting organized and ready.
Tanya @ Mom's Small Victories says
I love getting organized and setting goals and have been working on that this week for my blog. In fact, I couldn't quite find an electronic blog planner so I created one myself and am offering it for free on my blog. I can't wait for the Pinning Perfect class I won from the Blogathon Games and for Bloggiesta and the BBB to start so I can tackle some of these goals!
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