Blogging is a Small Business Too.
When I launched 614 Mom over 5 years ago, I knew I was going to turn it into a thriving small business. I could feel it. It was going to take a lot of long hours, late nights, learning things I knew nothing about (ahem - photography), and present me with challenges I didn’t even know existed. Now, over 5 years later I’ve worked hard to create something I am so proud of. I’ve learned a lot, I’ve tried new things, created amazing things, met a lot of amazing humans, and created a life and business I am obsessed with!
It’s kind of wild, I know. It’s a job that 11-year-old Eryn never predicted I would have and a job that some of my very loving grandparents don’t fully understand. But it’s real and it’s part of how I earn a living. The money I make from sponsorships, ads, affiliate income, products, etc. all goes back into this business, my family, and local organizations I love to support.
Influencers and Bloggers are small business owners!
From personal experience, I know that not everyone fully understands how a blogger or influencer can be a small business. I’m used to sharing with friends, family, and strangers how this business model works, and with everything I’ve been seeing online against bloggers, I thought it would be a good time to address this on the site. When I started blogging in 2011 (under a different domain) social media influencers weren’t a thing. This industry is relatively new and sometimes when things are new and we don’t fully understand the process it’s easy to throw out some judgment.
So what are some things you may not know? I am registered as an LLC with the state of Ohio and I have an accountant and an attorney that help this business thrive. I couldn’t do it without their attention to detail and email reminders when my creative brain can’t focus on the tasks they need me to accomplish. Blogging can be expensive. Website hosting, photography, email hosting, equipment, are just a few of the things I have to spend money on regularly to keep the blog running.
More importantly, this work is so much more than money which is why I am focused on the value it adds before saying yes to any project, partnership, or throwing up a random affiliate link.
The most important thing I want you to know is that...
Every single like, comment, share, link click, save, pin, etc. matters to me. It matters to my business. Every time you do one of these things you’re supporting a small business! *and most of those are FREE for you!
Why am I bringing this up now? Because I’ve seen a lot of negative feedback directed towards influencers for continuing to run their businesses in 2020 in ways that don’t *feel* right to audiences. I get it, I truly do. 2020 is hard and as an empath, it’s been hard for me to feel creative this year as my heart is just so weighed down. I’ve spent a lot more listening and absorbing and less creating because it just didn’t feel right for me at the time. That doesn’t mean I believe that’s the right path for everyone.
6 Things You Should Know About Blogging as a Small Business
There is SO much work to a blog post, social media post than writing a quick caption, and taking a blurry photo on your cell phone.
We spend so much time emailing with brands to negotiate contracts that feel right for our platforms. Content that brings value to our readers, matches the brand's business needs, and pays well enough to justify the time it takes to produce the content.
It took a lot of late nights, showing up when no one was listening, and growing to get to a place where we can monetize our websites/platforms.
Sharing an affiliate link from a big business doesn’t mean I don’t support local businesses. Affiliate marketing is easy for the reader and it helps support my business.
This business is personal.
Bloggers and Influencers deserve to be paid for their hard work.
So the next time a blogger you love is sharing a sponsored post give it a like, if they share a product you love try and shop through their affiliate link, it costs you nothing extra and it means the world to a small business owner. Either way, show kindness even in your DMs to us because we are humans too.
