What I've Learned From 1 Year of Blogging!
Happy New Year! And Happy 1 year blog-a-versary to me!
Cheers to 1 full year of blogging. My denim jacket was custom made and oh-so-cute! Get yours here at Morgan Powers USA
Techhhhnically my 1 year blog-a-versary is January 14th. That is the date of my very first blog post. But we all know blogs don’t just pop into thin air (wait, you do know that right?) There is a whole lot of nonsense that goes on behind the scenes to start a blog and keep it running, and my new year’s resolution for 2019 was to start and maintain this blog! So what started out as a tiny thought in my head blossomed into this blog becoming 1 year old!
Pssst- if you’re looking for all my BEST blogging tips and resources, check out my Blogging Tips section!
My first ever Instagram post— I’ve come a long way
This blog has become so much more to me than just a blog. It had helped me realize that I have more power over my life and I am capable of more than I think. It is possible to follow your passions and make a living out of it, and to be quite honest, that is my end goal by the end of this year. Life is way too short to not try to turn your career into your dream job!
I’d say this year was the practice round, and 2020 is the year I go full steam ahead and monetize this thing, create a life I love, and my big fat goal of 2020? MATCH MY CURRENT SALARY. (Bold, I know— but hear me out).
I am currently not making enough money through this blog to do that. Let’s be real. 2,000 page views per month, 4K Instagram followers, 200K monthly viewers on Pinterest, and a whopping 27 followers on Tik Tok (oh yes, I caved, I have one) is not exactly making the big bucks. Grand total, I believe I have made under $1,000 this year. That’s it! (I mean I’m not counting the monetary value of all the gifted items I have received from brands. Even if I never make any money from this whole thing— free clothes is a pretty nice perk I can live with)
Why am I being so transparent, and quite frankly a little absurd with my end goal for 2020? Because even if I don’t reach it, at least it will keep me motivated to continue to reach for it. And I hope my transparency serves as motivation for anyone interested in starting blog or who is already blogging that has the same goal. I am not posting my numbers so you can compare them to your own or someone else’s, because quite honestly it doesn’t matter. We all have peaks and valleys. We all have lives outside of the internet. Just because some girl blew up “over night” after blogging for 2 months, doesn’t mean you’re a failure because you haven’t yet.
Success is relative, and it certainly isn’t linear. Keep your blinders on and focus on your content, fostering your connections (with your followers/readers, other bloggers, and brands), and your goals. Comparison does you no good, because all it is doing is making you feel some type of way. It’s not beneficial to your progress whatsoever, so don’t waste time on it.
I am posting my stats here because I want to compare it against MYSELF at the end of the year, not anybody else. And again, to serve as inspiration. And honestly now I am feeling that I have held myself super accountable by making this all public. Sooo I better get to it!
Upon my reflecting on the past year, I realized I now have the tools and the confidence to increase my “numbers” AKA the stats needed to get PAID in this crazy influencer marketing world.
SO I wanted to share what absolutely has worked for me for driving traffic to this blog, coming up with content, and sticking with it even when it feels like nobody is watching or reading or paying attention (because girl, they are!)
WHAT DOESN’T WORK:
Getting discouraged. This is the number one thing that does you NO good. And I have been guilty of it MANY times throughout this year. When you get discouraged, you trap yourself into the narrative that nothing you have done matters, and so it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. You post less, you engage less on social media, and you straight up lose your way. Don’t do this. Keep going, stay consistent knowing that there are ebbs and flows in EVERY business. Don’t take it personally.
Comparing yourself to others: see above. Let me just leave you with this quote: “comparison is the thief of joy”. If we learned nothing in 2019 it’s that Marie Kondo is a genius and we should be finding things that SPARK JOY.
Engagement groups. (speaking for Instagram specifically) I honestly think they are great for when you are getting started. (because hi, hello, guilty as charged I was in a few when I started my instagram account) It’s like going on a crash diet to jumpstart your lifestyle change- it can work, but it also isn’t sustainable long term. Once you stop, the weight will creep back up. Same with engagement groups— once you stop, your engagement is going to see a drop (naturally). Quit while you’re ahead with these engagement groups— if you stop while you’re still small/growing/newer, the drop in engagement isn’t actually so bad or noticeable, and it will force you to put more effort into REAL engagement with your followers/community in order to get your numbers back up. No harm, no foul. But if you lean on them long term? Your TRUE engagement rate will continue to plummet (especially if you continue to grow your following). Now you NEED them (which is a problem). If you consistently have posts that get over 1,000 likes and then drop your engagement groups or forget to put your post in the group one day— you may find your posts get closer to 48 likes in actuality. Now you look SHADY AF. I literally have seen this. (I know I know, “blinders on” but you see things in passing sometimes!) Also girl, you’re doing this to help others and share your passion! Vanity metrics should not matter to you. Use the like count as a way to serve your audience and gage what they do like and don’t like. You can’t really tell that if a bunch of people you don’t even know are forced to like your photo and mess up your true numbers.
Paying for followers. OK this one I have not done, but please don’t fall for this. Influencer marketing is new, but it’s also getting a lot smarter. Brands do not want to pay you if you’re not reaching real people. And they have ways now to tell if your followers are real or not. So just steer clear of those shady DMs asking if you’d like to buy followers or join some crazy giveaway that is $300 to enter but you’re guaranteed 6,000 new followers! No that is not a typo— people will DM you things like this. Don’t waste your money.
Taking on too many brand collaborations at once— OK I did this and I DROWNED. I literally was in one of those modes where I was like let me pitch myself to 10 brands a week! , and say yes to anything that comes my way!, and the next thing I knew I was DROWNING in brand collaborations, spread myself way too thin, and looked like a walking commercial because every damn post was a collab. Focus on a few at a time that you feel passionate about and you’ll be able to do them right!
Overthinking- just post it. If it doesn’t work or isn’t your best stuff, it’s OKAY. You put the work in, and you can learn from it. Don’t get inconsistent because you “feel uninspired” or you thought a picture was going to look cooler than it actually turned out. Consistency is the name of the game.
Me and my blogger besties I’ve made this year!
WHAT DOES WORK:
PLANNING. You cannot stay on top of all of this without a plan. If you like super detailed plans down to the hour of the day, then by all means— go for it. But you need some sort of outline or guide to go by in order to stay on track and keep yourself accountable and yes my favorite word— consistent!
Holding yourself 100% accountable. You get out what you put in. Hate to break it to you, but algorithm changes aren’t the reason you aren’t growing— YOU ARE. Don’t blame outside forces because once again, you’re playing into the narrative that all your work is for nothing and it’s out of your control. Instead of getting angry that there is less organic reach on Instagram now (because you’re right, it’s super saturated now), find things that work that will give you more reach. Responding to all your comments and DMs, reaching out and finding people who may be interested in your content and engaging with their content. Or diversify! Instagram isn’t the only way to drive traffic to your blog BTW. Which leads me to #3…
PINTEREST. Pinterest is my #1 traffic driver to my blog (you know, the whole purpose of being a blogger). Get out of your instagram bubble and realize you gotta get on Pinterest! Oh and you 100% need Tailwind if you want your pins to go viral and drive traffic to your blog (pssst this is an affiliate link so I will get commission if you sign up— yes I went to the trouble of becoming an affiliate for them because they are THAT GOOD). It is totally worth the investment!! (Future blog post on my Pinterest strategy coming soon!) It’s another one of those things that I noticed the more work I put into it, the more results I will see. The results are super satisfying on Pinterest because they’re far more dramatic than Instagram. let me tell you.
Pitching yourself! Yes some brands will discover you themselves, but why wait for your favorite brands to come to you?? Reach out to who you truly want to work with! What’s the worst that could happen? They say no and now you’re on their radar for a potential to work together in the future? They ignore you? In which case you can just… try again… (the horror!) Seriously though, I worked with Pink Lily who I thought I would never get the chance to work with at this level by just pitching myself and why I loved them and why we would be a good fit and BAM! We collaborated. (Also if you want to see my pitch to them to use as a template, click here)
Have no shame. People are going to judge you for taking pictures of yourself in public and posting them on the internet. It’s just a fact. You can either let the judgement get to you and stunt your growth and creativity OR just realize that you know yourself and they don’t, so their opinions don’t matter! Even people that do know you may not understand it— so sometimes you have to explain it to them. But if they see it’s something you love, and they don’t support it, well then… maybe they’re not really your friend after all! (BTW all of my friends and family have been awesome and supportive (huge shoutout to my amazing husband Steve who takes 99% of my photos), but I definitely was worried that wouldn’t be the case). At the end of the day as long as you’re not writing like hate speech in your captions and not harming anyone— why should they care??
Make friends!! Probably the best thing I did this whole year! You need someone or a few someones in your life that are going through what you’re going through! I know you have a family and real non-internet friends, but it really helps to have friends that are also bloggers who reeeaalllyyy get it! Make connections with and try to meet up with (if you can) other bloggers who are similar to you! I have made some truly amazing friends out of this and I love that we can vent to each other, share tips and advice, and also celebrate our wins together!
OK and last but not least CONSISTENCY. Surprise, surprise. But it is a lot more work than it appears. Planning, creating, maintaining, and analyzing content on multiple platforms is actually a real job that companies hire for. It takes a lot of work, and again you get out what you put in. I came to the realization that if I wanted to become a full-time blogger I would have to (gasp) blog full time… Along with my current full-time job! So if that’s not something you’re willing to do, then you need to adjust your expectations. (ooh sorry what a harsh note to end on)
Seriously, check out Morgan Powers USA for customized denim jackets! The pearl details, my handle, the champagne glasses decal?? SO CUTE and totally personalized to me! Would make a great gift and also a great idea for brides/bridal parties!
SO YEAH that was a mouthful, but that is what I have learned from one year of blogging! I hope this next year I can take what I have learned and grow from it. And who knows, maybe I will be writing my 2 year blogging anniversary post from a comped 4-star hotel room! (A girl’s gotta dream!)
If you are looking for more blogging resources, definitely check out my Blogging Tips section which has all my best blog posts, tips, and resources to grow and monetize your blog!
Happy New Year!!
