Last Updated on May 4, 2020 by ellduclos
I am so excited to be starting my Boss Girl Bloggers’ Member Spotlight series again!! This week I am sharing interviews from 3 incredible bloggers who are a part of the Boss Girl Bloggers community! Learn how they dealt with blogging struggles and what they wish they knew before they started blogging!
Meet Laura
Hi y’all! I’m Laura Schneider and I run the website and blog at Laura Schneider Music. The blog is dedicated to indie and unsigned musicians who are ready to take control of their own music careers. Articles are posted weekly about education in different aspects of the music industry, social media, trending topics in the entertainment industry, and how to grow a career outside and independent of a record company.
In entertainment, and particularly music, the business side is often left to mystery, leaving musicians wondering how and why things happen the way they do. It is my goal to break down these walls and let musicians know that, yes, they CAN understand the business, and not only that, learn how to do it themselves, or understand the how and the why of the business side so they can thrive and make a living off of their music career.
How long have you been blogging and when did you start?
In the world of blogging, I am super new to the scene! I started my first blog in January of 2019. My approach to a website and blog was to basically spaghetti market myself – just like when you check pasta to see if it’s ready by throwing it against the wall and seeing what sticks, I too was trying EVERYTHING and seeing what stuck.
Blogging happened to stick (to continue this metaphor) and was one of my largest sources of traffic even in those early days. I decided to take it more seriously and built my website in March of 2019, transferring my blog there as well.
What does the Boss Girl Bloggers community mean to you and how did you come across it?
I first found Ell and the Boss Girl Bloggers through Twitter! This happened about 4 short weeks ago (in early July 2019) when I was starting the process of using Pinterest and SEO to get more traffic to my blog and website.
After a few days of following, I knew that I needed to sign up and get more involved, so I joined the Facebook group, took her Pinterest with Ell class, and dove headfirst into learning as much as I could! And, amazingly, it worked. I have seen a 55% increase in my traffic on my page from just 4 weeks ago with Pinterest being my number one source of traffic.
What has been your biggest struggle when it comes to blogging? How did you overcome it?
My fears and struggles when first starting my blog were twofold: One, was it too late to start a blog in 2019? And two, would people really listen to what I had to say?
The second arose naturally from the simple fact that I am blogging in a space traditionally dominated by men: Music. Only 17% of the top performing global music artists were women in 2018. Only 2% of music producers are women in the USA. The only stat I could find for women in the music business comes from Canada, where sales and business have been combined to a total of 7%. Women in music are sorely underrepresented. I have experienced this myself several times in conversations where my knowledge and opinions were cast aside from the simple fact that the boys didn’t want to listen.
My fears of starting a blog too late were also a subconscious manifestation of worrying that people would not take me seriously, listen to what I had to say, and things of that nature. Would musicians listen to what I had to say?
Both fears were overcome through the simple act of closing my eyes and jumping in.
I started to blog weekly. I posted on social media. I wrote a book that you can download on Amazon. Basically, I wanted to prove to myself that I have the knowledge and capacity to sit at this table and start to run this show. The biggest shift came from reaching out to other bloggers in the music space and offering to guest post as well as to companies in the music space and offering to write articles for them. To my amazement, they all agreed.
Today, my own stats are a reversal of the norm in that my audience is around 60% women and 40% men.
The blog that I had been creating content for each week was the social proof these companies needed. There are so many projects now that are just starting out as a result of taking that initiative and trusting in myself, that I am so excited to see where and how they develop.
What is the one thing you wish you knew before you started blogging?
Don’t think you have to do everything all at once. When I first started, it was enough to write the post, create a graphic, and get it posted on time. Over time I started to add things to this; Pinterest, linking to my social media, SEO, backlinks, guest posting, etc. Don’t worry about overwhelming yourself. Don’t compare your journey to someone else’s. Each person has different strengths that will manifest themselves in different ways at different times.
Also, blogging from the couch is MUCH more enjoyable than sitting at your desk all day. It’s still work if you’re surrounded by comfy pillows!
What has been your favorite part about blogging?
My blog is about educating musicians so that they can take control of their own music careers. I love it when musicians reach out in comments, DMs, emails, and tell me that they had no idea they could understand the business and now they are starting to.
Making money doing something I love is also pretty neat.
The best part about blogging is the community that I am just starting to build. I’m reaching out to other bloggers and connecting with people from all over the world through this blog.
What are your blogging goals?
For 2019, I hope to continue to become more professional with the blog through affiliates, guest posting, and sponsored articles. Moving forward, it is my dream to have my blog be the number one resource for musicians when trying to understand how to take control of their own career and being the amazing musician bosses that I know they can be!
Be sure to follow Laura on Social Media!!
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Meet Priyanka
1. Priyanka, How long have you been blogging and when did you start?
I created Glamour and Giggles in 2013 and have been blogging for 6+ years!
2. What does the Boss Girl Bloggers community mean to you and how did you come across it?
I came across BGB YEARS ago when I was looking for FB groups to join! I wanted to find an empowering, supportive place to get to know and speak to fellow bloggers and that’s exactly what BGB is for me. I love that it is focused on uplifting others and encouraging growth.
3. What has been your biggest struggle when it comes to blogging? How did you overcome it?
My biggest struggle with blogging is consistency. Life can be so chaotic, I find it difficult to stick to a schedule to create new content.
4. What is one thing you wish you knew before you started blogging?
I wish I knew what kind of time commitment blogging required. It’s not just writing a post and pressing the *publish* button. I think most, if not all bloggers can agree with me..that’s just a small percentage! There’s taking photographs, focusing in on SEO, social media marketing, email newsletters, etc. I love it all but wish I had a better understanding from day one!
5. What has been your favorite part about blogging?
My favorite part is the community. It’s been so rewarding talking to my blog readers and other bloggers about topics we’re all passionate about. I love how blogging can bring so many people together, especially from all across the world!
6. What are your blogging goals?
I’d love to call my blog my full time job one day!
7. Links to social media for people to follow you!
Check out Priyanka on Facebook , Twitter , Instagram , Pinterest
Meet Physio Queen
1. How long have you been blogging and when did you start?
I have been blogging since childhood. I used to write fictional and inspirational stories on e-magazines and websites.. I set up my own personal blog last year in July 2018 & I used to post short fictional stories on that but two months later the same year, I just had left updating that because of study reasons. This year, I set up my own blog at 24th of July and I’m regularly posting content on that. I have started a lifestyle blog where I share everything informational. Find out more on my blog!
2. What does the Boss Girl Bloggers community mean to you and how did you come across it?
I came across Boss Girl Bloggers through twitter when I set up my twitter handle and was following each of the blogger supporting platform. I have found immense support from Boss Girl Bloggers and for me, Boss Girl Bloggers is my motivation and inspiration.
3. What has been your biggest struggle when it comes to blogging? How did you overcome it?
The biggest struggle I found when I started blogging this year was to engage readers. I wanted more and more people reading my content. I couldn’t find out any solution until I learned that there are two rules to whom I have to strictly adhere in order to attract readers. Number one being that I have to share each of my blog posts as much as I can and the second thing that I have to write for readers. I have to give them reasons to read my blog. As soon as I started working on these two hacks, I invited a decent number of readers and subscribers to my blog.
4. What is one thing you wish you knew before you started blogging?
I wish I knew how to play with the html coding before starting blogging. Even though, I have learned that now but it would be better if I knew that beforehand.
5. What has been your favorite part about blogging?
The thing I love about blogging is that your head is always being bombarded with different ideas. You drain your ideas onto paper and through that, you make a connection with people all around the world.
6. What are your blogging goals?
My blogging goals include getting myself recognized as a passionate creative lifestyle blogger and share every single experience of mine in terms of mistakes, lessons and everything else so it may benefit others. I wish to make a healthy & positive connection with people all around the world!
I only use twitter because I think it’s the only best platform for bloggers. So do give me a follow here!
Stay tuned for next week to meet more amazing Boss Girl Bloggers!!!
I love posts like these. It’s always so great to discover new bloggers!
Thank you so much!