How Blogging Gave Me A Hungry Perspective, Changed These Two School Teachers Forever….
Wow, I never thought that I would be writing this topic any time soon. Well, in 2016 I decided to start this little old blog of mines. This was actually born out of thought, and the need for creativity. Honestly, I knew very little about this hobby, passion, and floating buisness you called “blogging”!! I made it my business to find out more, it made me creatively hungry, and passionate for what was ahead. If blogging is something that you would like to begin or start, it has to come from a passionate place. It has to live inside of you to freely share amazing content, and give the world pieces of you.
I have learned so much about dedication, creativity, passion, and projects. Don’t forget that there was so much to learn about the in’s and out’s of how to even begin this journey. My end goal was to eventually allow this space to be monetized, and supplement extra income for my family one day. As, this blog neared it’s 3rd year, I started putting in the the most grueling work ever! I set goals, and put my eyes on those goals often, to achieve within a time frame. Jerral became my blog editor when the work load became more fierce, and we added in videos to our tiers of work.
The work is there, and it is very decent money that these brands are paying out to you to complete the work. When I felt secure in what I could put in place, that is when Vault 28 was born out of this passion too. Let’s not forget I am a full time 2nd grade teacher. Having that on my plate, along with blogging, and other layers makes it even more challenging to complete at times. I knew though that if I wanted to see this come to fruition, my mindset, and workset needed to change.
6 Steps To Change The Narrative To Our Financial Story……
Let’s get into the ACTIONABLE steps I took to find my niche in the BLOGGING world, and land 11 campaigns so far this year!!!!! I just signed a contract for a campaign this week, and I love the campaign idea that it generates. We set a monetary goal for our savings at the beginning of the year. Remember to write down your goals, set them up for success, and revisit them as often as you can. We are now 1/4 of the way away from reaching our savings goal.
Equipment Essentials…….
Step 1- If you are starting this business you will need to understand that you will spend a little bit of money to get started. I knew that I wanted to take a ton of photos, but didn’t really have money for a professional photographer. We invested in a more quality camera, and utilized our down time, in practicing taking photos. Believe me I did not want to buy an expensive camera, but if I wanted to see a shift, it had to be done. You will spend money to make money. This camera still serves us well today. If you can’t afford a camera, use those camera phones they are just as great! This camera has been paid for many times over at this point, and it was so worth the dime to spend. Remember this is what a RISK looks like take one, and reap the benefits later!!!!
Blog Home (DOMAIN)-
Step 2- When I leaped, I really leaped! I knew that right off the bat I wanted to own my own domain, so I purchased my domain through Host Gator. Delightfully Styled had to talk on its own, and be it’s own entity. I knew that it wouldn’t just encompass fashion, but a host of other things as well. This blog has now branched out into recipes, fashion, home decor, DIY’s and a beauty to say the least. Remember when you own your domain, it is yours. If we ever get in the age of Instagram, or Facebook going away this belongs to me, and you know where to find me these days. Find a place to name yours, and make it be you!!! Let your light shine in a space that you can call your creative outlet.
Sell Something, Share A Product……
Step 3- This is how Vault 28 was born. I knew that this was my passion project to start. Starting your own business is no easy task, but one my hubby and I took on to further monetize and strengthen our content. Jerral has always been a face behind Delightfully Styled, but his role intensified as the business grew even through blog monetization. Jerral had to learn how to get around this blog, and quickly too. It is non stop when it comes to the amount of content you produce, and put out there.
Content is key, and how you present it to your audience makes the world of difference. Vault 28 opened more pathways, that were our blessing to begin with. Find something that you like, and or would like people to be apart of. Speaking of selling I just purchased this book on a recommendation, and I can’t wait to increase my abilities. The one thing to take away from this is to just start, stop making exscuses and START!!!!!
Content Is Key…….
Step-4 I will be honest when I first began yes, I thought the market was oversaturatd with bloggers. Well, I finally came to the finale of thinking there wasn’t me in the world. I had to bring my own spin, and sauce to the table. Find your sweet spot in the blogging world, and grab hold. Jerral and I knew we had a unique story to tell, and our story grew this brand into what it is today. If you have never read our story catch it here.
A great piece of blogging is about story telling, and I have always been a strong writer from what I have been told. When you can weave a great story into those pieces of this blog, it will always bring a faithful subsriber back to your space. People say that blogs should focus on one thing, but I have gotten great response from several topics. I mostly will try to stay within family stuff. The biggest motivators on my blog are beauty, fashion, recipes, home decor, and family.
Blogging Courses and Paid Kits…….
Step-5 This truly may be something that you want to look into. I have looked into these kinds of products myself. Blogging takes a ton of work, and there are a ton of pieces to the puzzle. Honestly, I didn’t have it figured out overnight, and it has been years of growth. My blogging journey will be 4 years total in May of next year. There are some women who are doing this full time, and others who are doing this with a full time job.
Hard Work…..
It takes a lof of work and dedication to pull some of these tasks off. Personally, if you listen to some of the tips other bloggers give about pitching, doing the work, putting a price on your value, etc. You will soon begin to understand the language and how they ARE putting these pieces together. Personally, I haven’t paid for any courses, or master classes, and some people don’t have the money to spend on that stuff. You can do the research. I just purchased this book here, arriving today.
I belong to a few influencer agencies that I have worked with for atleast a strong year and a half now. Here is a list I will give you a list of the agencies I have worked with before in the past, and now currently! With these agencies I have made a little over 8K so far this year.
- So Fab
- Clever Influencer
- Activate
- Acorn
- Influencer Central
- Octoly
- TapInfluence
- Aspire IQ
Take A Risk On You, And Win……
Step 6- When we decided to invest more in what were going to do to build our business, it started to pay off tremendously. I put myself out there more, and networked with more people. I love doing this blogging thing especially for the creativity part. We invested in the things that would grow us, and sow alot for us. I love working this business with my husband, and being energized for this. I am normally kind of shy, but quickly buried that with going to Youtube more. Youtube forced me out my comfort zone. Here is my very first video I shot on Youtube, and I still go back and look at my work. I go back to look, so I can see where I came from, and how much better it is now.
I did doubt that it would get better, it got worse before better. I believe that you can make these goals happen, and if I didn’t you wouldn’t be reading this right now. When you need help always reach out and ask for any help. We are always willing to give a hand, or advice when asked. Jerral and I understand that people aren’t always willing to share how they arrived. I want this informtion to be free. When I help I know that God sees my heart up close, and he is pleased.
Our next adventure moving forward is aerial drone video footage, it’s coming in 2020. We are rising and “AINT NO STOPPING US NOW”!!!!! We have been talking about it, and see great family content and footage with this particular content move. There is alot of content out there, but we are trying to single our brand out!
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