It isn’t uncommon for me to get emails from readers asking about how I got started blogging, and what advice they would give to folks who want to become bloggers, particularly in the niche of product reviews and giveaways. I’d love to share a few of the lessons I have learned and some changes I have made recently that are having a positive impact on my bottom line (my income).
So without further ado, allow me to impart some wisdom!
Blogging is easy
If you want to blog, it is SO ridiculously easy to get one set up. If you have something to say and you want to share it with your friends, your family, or even the whole darn world, then what are you waiting for? Jump right in and start banging on that keyboard! The beautiful thing about owning a blog is that YOU OWN IT. You don’t have to meet any particular deadlines or answer to anyone or write content that you don’t like. There is so much freedom in that!
Blogging for more than 3 months is hard
Ok, so it is true that blogging is super easy and that you can do whatever you want with your site. But if one of your primary goals is to earn money with your site, that’s a whole other can of worms. Today I want to share a few things that learned in my first 2 years as a blogger that have helped me have staying power and are a huge part of the reason that I’m still going, and that I’m still growing.
What I wish I had known on day 1
When I started my blog in September 2009, I really felt as though I had SO much to share with everyone. After all, I had been a parent for 7 1/2 WEEKS….so I was pretty much an expert by that point, right?! I kid at myself now, but at the time, I really felt that way. And that’s totally fine. It’s all the motivation I needed to get started. But I also wanted a piece of that pie….the STUFF pie. I didn’t know that bloggers actually earned money, but I knew that they got a whole lot of free stuff. Sign me up, baby!
Do you sometimes think the same thing? Its ok if you do. I’m being totally honest in sharing with you that I thought it. And I get asked all the time how I get so much “free stuff.” But here’s what I have learned: THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS FREE STUFF, at least not when it comes to blogging. Something is free if it is given to you and you have no obligation, either implicit or explicit, to do anything in return. I have never had a company send me something without a request to write about it. And blog posts DO NOT write themselves. They are hard work. When I write a post, I have to choose to not do something else, be it spend time with my kids, prepare a meal, have a meaningful conversation with my spouse, or even stare at the wall. I can’t do anything other than write. So I trade my time and my talents for the stuff. In many cases, the blogger is on the losing end of that trade. Several times early on, I traded away an hour or more of my time for a product that retailed for $6 or 7, and it may not have even been a product that I would have purchased on my own. I think this is why many product review and giveaway bloggers burn out…it seems like such a swag-tastic gig, but in reality, it is a whole lot of work for some stuff that you may or may not have wanted in the first place.
The other lesson I want to share with you today was one I learned at my first blogging conference. One of the keynote speakers said this to the audience:
Before I heard those words, I was so afraid of disappointing people who were reaching out to me to work together that I said yes to almost everything, even though in many cases, it would mean doing a lot of work for very little pay (and at that point, the pay was still only in products, not money). That is the single most important lesson I have learned as a blogger. I realized that I was headed down the road to blog burn out, and if I kept agreeing to arrangements that didn’t make any sense for me, I wouldn’t be a blogger much longer. Now I ask for what I need. And I often get it. I also often DON’T get it, and that is perfectly fine. I’m at peace letting those opportunities go to others, because I now realize that they were not good fits for me and that I would be frustrated as I performed the work agreed upon. That is SO liberating! And after learning this lesson, I also started to get brave about asking for money. And I’ll tell you more about how to do that in a future post! (And there’s a little bonus tip for you: leave your audience wanting more!).
I have a lot more to share with you about my journey as a product and review giveaway blogger, but for now, I want to share with you a tool I have been using for the past month and that has already resulted in some very positive changes in the way I run my business (and yes, my blog IS a business!). If you are a blogger or are thinking about starting a blog, you need The Blogging Planner.
I have tried for the past 3 years to fit my blog work into traditional planning calendars and it has never worked. What DOES work is having a calendar just for your blog! I am able to keep detailed to do lists, calendars of post dates, keep up with income generated (and invoices due…very important to know who still owes you money!). It also has dedicated space for brainstorming or ideas you might get while reading blogs are doing some professional development. There’s even a section for PR contacts to help you keep track of the folks you want to touch base with from time to time, just to make sure you are on their radars.
The Blogging Planner is the creation of two professional bloggers who created it after an exhaustive search for a planner that would work for a blog business. That search came up empty. Necessity is the mother of all inventions, and this is a fantastic one! I will absolutely FOR SURE 100% be purchasing another Blogging Planner when I have used mine up. It has given me a separate space for my work commitments, my goals and my dreams. It really is a mental game-changer for this stuff to not be on the same list as “fold the laundry.” Both are important. But one pays the bills, so in my book, it gets first dibs on my time. 🙂
The Blogging Planner can be started at any point in the year. It isn’t a January-December kind of thing. You fill in the calendar starting exactly when you want to start! So why not start right now??? I firmly believe this is a good investment for anyone who wants to monetize their blog or start out on the right foot as a new blogger and not give your your time away, as I did. You can purchase The Blogging Planner for $57.99. Yes, that’s a chunk of money, but a good planner is worth its weight in gold. And this is so much more than a good planner. Promise.
Next month I’ll let you take a peek inside my planner to see all the juicy details!
If you have any questions about The Blogging Planner, or about blogging in general, I’d love to hear them!
I received a complimentary planner for review purposes and am sharing my honest opinions here with you. The post contains affiliate links. I only sign up for affiliate programs when I’m NUTS about a product, so that should tell you something!
Joanne Gregory says
Thanks for the information. I have often thought of blogging and might just take the plunge one of these days.
Kristin says
I have to agree with Brandy’s comment. Over the past couple of years in particular, I’ve subscribed to a number of blogs and then unsubscribed later when there are a million reviews, most of which sound the same (i.e. “I really loved it!”) and are often for products that aren’t so interesting to my family. One thing I’ve long appreciated about your blog is that you review a variety of products (not to mention that the yogurt maker we won still gets used weekly and my girls have truly enjoyed the music they discovered from your CD reviews and giveaways), and your reviews are sincere. Your voice comes through. I also thank you for making your giveaway requirements reasonable. I unsubscribed to some review/giveaway blogs because it was so complicated to enter and to be honest, I don’t want to be able to get up to 60 entries for one giveaway.
Long story short, I’m glad your blog is still around and that you’ve found a way to make it best work for you!
Tiffany Merritt says
Thanks so much for your kind words, Kristin! And thanks for your feedback on the giveaway entries. I’d like to cut them down even more, actually, and may be able to do that later in the year. It is on my goal list. I don’t like having 60 entry possibilities either!
Even though I’m mostly not doing music reviews, anymore, your comment is inspiring me to do a music round up post where I share some of our very favorites. There ARE folks out there who love great children’s music, and I’d love to share with them! 🙂
Kristin says
A music round up post would be great—especially now that my twins are, ahem, appropriating some of their big sister’s collection whenever they have a chance. Ever since they learned that they can drag the step stool out of the bathroom and get into all sorts of things, life has been quite interesting here. If I get them more of their own music, maybe they’ll leave their sister’s alone (or not).
Dorothy Teel says
Cool to share more of your world with us, I enjoy reading your blogs..
Lindsey G. says
I remember being one of those readers emailing you TWO years ago. You were, & still are, a fab blogger & Mom inspiration to me.
I use my Google Calendar for blog planning, but I’m wondering if something like this would help me more.
Tiffany Merritt says
If you prefer having a paper calendar, then this really is fantastic. Plenty of space for writing stuff down. It’s a winner to me! And you are an inspiration to me, too! One of my favorite blogs to read! 🙂
Courtney Johnson says
I thought of blogging, but I was too hesitant to go into it and now I just don’t have the time to do it. I will add it to my bucket list then.
trisha says
Great post! You will be shocked how much you change over the years on what you find value in!
trisha
Bonnie Way says
I’ve been blogging for six years, but only doing product reviews for about the past year. It’s been a great fit for my blog, but I agree with you – it’s not free stuff. It’s stuff that you’ve worked for. Thanks for sharing your tips.
Tiffany Merritt says
Yes, indeed! Thanks for sharing!
Billie says
The “Stuff Pie” is very alluring. My family/friends, etc. still don’t understand that companies don’t just send me stuff because I’m lucky. They want hard work in return. Saying no is still one of my biggest difficulties.
Tiffany Merritt says
Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts! I would definitely encourage you to spend some time thinking about what you actually need in order to write a post and NOT do any of the other million things on your to do list. Once you realize what that is, it becomes significantly easier to say no to anything that does’t match up, I promise!
Kelly @ Texas Type A Mom says
I also started out as a review blogger and you quickly learn that there’s no such thing as a free product. You are working hard to get the company’s name out there, take pictures, test the product, share with others, etc. Now to just start writing more than a day in advance again…
Tiffany Merritt says
So true! I’ve even improved significantly in the quality of my posts over the last 6 months because what readers are drawn to is changing. But better quality (ie better pictures!) means more time! It really is hard work.
Hanan says
I completely agree! I’m slowly getting to a place where I feel like I know what my value is. Blogging is a lot of hard work, and I don’t want to feel taken advantage of.
I’ve so many great things about the blogging planner. The price is the only thing that keeps me from buying one.
Tiffany Merritt says
Thanks so much for chiming in on the issue. I firmly believe that bloggers who make a decent income from their work don’t do it by accident. I always tell people that if their only motivation for blogging is to make money, RUN in the other direction! There’s money to be made, but not without lots and lots of hard work! 🙂
And I hear ya about the price point. My assumption is that the price is high because when you get stuff printed in smaller batches the price per unit that the printer charges is significantly higher. The paper is really high quality, though.
brandy says
I think you are one of the best reviewers out there and I love your blog! I have been reading it for at least a year if not more. You are so true to your style and actually review things yourself! I am so happy to read your posts about your experiences. I hear you on the three month mark. Either you’re still rolling or it just kind of fizzles out.
I hope to still be going! With me in grad school + the sequester, going back to work doesn’t seem viable right now (we are in the DC area). Learning all I can if I do need to make this transition!
Brandy
MommySplurge
p.s. my favorite review was the one for your dad’s birthday. melted my heart.
Tiffany Merritt says
This is one of the sweetest comments I have ever received! I seriously got choked up reading it. Thank you so much for your kind words. It totally made my week (not just my day!) to hear how much you enjoy Stuff Parents Need!
Brandy says
Well I totally meant it! I don’t actually subscribe & READ all that many review blogs. Yours I absolutely do!