My moment of realisation came on a plane. I was invited to a press trip to Monaco and was sitting on a plane with journalists from The Times, The Express and many other global publications, when it struck me, I had put myself on that plane. Being invited on a prestigious trip with a global brand, I did it myself. I didn’t have an employer with a higher profile than me putting me in the situation, I did it. I worked hard, raised my own profile, got noticed and put myself on the plane and I smiled to myself; this was my moment of realisation.
This is why you need your moment of realisation;
Why Bloggers rock & why you should value yourself
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We juggle
Most bloggers balance blogging with other things. Be it paid employment away from the home or simply the demands of being a parent, it is a constant juggle and we all do it. We don’t just do it, we achieve great things too. Our voices have made a real difference. Bloggers have raised vast amounts of money for charity (Team Honk, Save Syrian Children), helped to change laws, raised the profile for various causes and made people feel like they are not alone, the value of which should never be underestimated. We do all that while doing countless other tasks too.
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We hustle
As bloggers it is rare that a brand comes along and offers us a lovely opportunity on a plate. In most cases we hustle and work contacts, we are self-starters that make things happen. This is not always easy, but day after day we do it.
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We are creative
When we work with brands we are creative in the content we produce; many of us produce videos or put an unusual spin on the content we produce. We don’t just write basic posts, we create engaging content to highlight the brands we are working with. The creativity of bloggers never ceases to amaze me.
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We are jacks of all trades
Most businesses have different departments, finance, IT, HR, yet within our blogs we are all of these things. If we have a financial issue we can’t just fob it off on John in Finance we have to learn how to deal with it ourselves. If we don’t know how to do something we learn. This attitude results in us having a wide range of skills including photography, videography, finance, IT, social media, PR, the works!
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Our content has longevity.
When we post content on our blog it has longevity, unlike a newspaper which will be tomorrows chip wrapping. These posts whether they are a week old or a year old can still be searched for and found by readers. This should be valued, a brand can reap the benefit of a post years after it has gone live. One of my top performing posts which still gets searched for now is a review of Peppa Pig World. I also have a highchair review that gets hits even today, because people don’t care if that review is 2 years old, it is still relevant to them.
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We are both consumer and promoter
When we write about a product and brand we are seen as both a consumer and a promoter. The brand itself is seen as simply the promoter, but readers know that we are individuals who make our own purchasing decisions. Although we maybe acting on behalf of a brand, we are seen as more ‘human’ than the brand, which often means we are trusted more. Our readers know we are honest and wouldn’t promote something we wouldn’t buy ourselves.
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Building Social Networks takes time and effort
Say a company want you to tweet something out and you know it will only take a couple of minutes, do you do it for free? The length of time it will take is irrelevant; the point is that it might have taken you years to build your social following and that is what the brand should be paying for, not that fact that it is a quick job or not.
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Our Readers Trust Us
As a blogger your readers invest their time in following your life and because of this investment in time they often feel as if they know you. As a result of this assumed closeness they trust our advice. With this trust comes a responsibility to be honest and transparent with what we recommend on our blogs, so that we respect the trust of our readers.
Various studies have shown how trustworthy readers think bloggers are; one found blogs to be in the top five sources of trustworthy information. Research Now found that 84% of people have purchased products based on their appearance in blogs. I know I have bought things after I have spotted them on a blog. People are more trusting of bloggers than of newspaper articles, which they assume will be less objective. Among consumers aged 18-34, Blogs were the #1 most valued resource in making a purchasing decision (above friends and family, which is the most valued resource for anyone over the age of 35). Interesting stuff!
Consumers want to learn about a brand from a third party, not directly from the brand. A brand will be perceived as biased, but a third party who knows about the brand and likes it enough to chose to promote it is very powerful.
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We Are Niche
Unlike traditional publishers our audience is really targeted, so brands can reach their exact market, rather than wasting resources targeting a more general population who will not be interested in their product.
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We Have Influence
As Bloggers we are classed as “mid-level influencers”, not huge influencers like Beyonce, no we occupy the middle of the spectrum. Studies show that mid-level influencers influence the buying public more readily than the top-flight influencers.
Blogger rock right?! Do you value yourself as a blogger? The next time someone asks you to work for free, you know what to say. Value yourself and demand fair pay for your skills.
LIKE IT? THEN PIN IT!
Comments 43
Yes to all of the above! Blogging for a living is very different to most jobs in that you do not automatically know your worth and how valuable you are. Where before, I would have felt that from day 1 in a new job. Over time though, when you become more experienced and confident in your abilities and audience, you can put a value on what you think that’s worth 🙂 x
Author
🙂 It is hard to see it sometimes, but we are valuable and shouldn’t undersell ourselves xx
What a bloody brilliant post! yes to all of this and seeing it all written down makes me so proud to be a blogger. This is amazingly written, in fact I will be saving it for the future when I feel the need to prove how much we actually do! And you are so right, we frickin’ rock! xxxxx Ps I love that lippy one so much we are going to have to ‘reenact’ that this year hahaha xx
Author
Aw thanks huni. So glad you like it, we ALL really do rock 🙂 Oh yes, reenact multiple times 🙂 xxxxx
This! Bloggers are awesome and we put so much heart into what we do.
Thanks Aby, been up since 6 trying to finish a blog post so I needed to read something positive this morning. Going to make my kids breakfast and then try and put my creative head back on for another post I’m meant to be doing. (Oh, and neck a lot of tea!!)
Author
Glad you like it hun. Good luck with your posts! x
Inspiring post. I’m so in awe of successful bloggers like you! This has reminded me what I’m working towards x
Great post. Bloggers are valuable and when they provide posts that gain readers confidence they create a valuable resource. They should not let themselves be taken advantage of.
They also shouldn’t take advantage of their readers. Make sure you both get what you deserve and give your readers what they deserve.
I think I’m going to link to this post when I next get a ‘we don’t have any budget but this is great content for your blog’.
Great post! You always make me feel good about blogging. When your new to this like I am and understanding this new found career seems like a constant uphill struggle, it’s great to read something like this that reminds you that you should be super proud of all the hard work and graft you put in and to keep in mind your true worth! Love Mummy B xxx
A really interesting perspective. I’m one of the people who you mentioned at the start that just blogs to document our lives. That said, it has been a great place to showcase my writing which has led to some great work opportunities.
Natalie.x
So true-every word. I love how empowering blogging is and how democratic and liberating working in the digital world is. As influencers, we carve out our own space, doing what we love in a way that is meaningful to ourselves and our readers/viewers.
I read this post yesterday and have been thinking about it ever since. This really shines the spotlight on what it means to be a blogger…pinning to blog posts I love board! Perfectly articulated xx
What a fantastic, inspiring post!! I now feel motivated to go and ROCK today 🙂
Great post! And so encouraging for someone like me at the beginning of her blogging journey.
This is such a lovely post and so so many important points made. As a blogger myself I think I actually often underestimate how influential our role is. After reading this I feel empowered, so thank you 🙂 #TheList
It is so good to read this. I sometimes feel that I have to justify why I have chosen to blog and it can be hard to do with some who just see it as a lovely hobby. next time I will stand tall and be proud of my blogging credentials.
Oh so inspiring! I’m definitley finding blogging something that has to be juggled – there never seems to be time! But you’re right, its such an effort requiring a wide range of skills, definitely something to value.
Amazing blog post and so inspiring. So much work goes in to growing a blog and us bloggers definitely need to realise are worth. I love love love this #TheList
I enjoyed reading this. I’m a new blogger and really haven’t found my feet yet. I constantly struggle with what I want to do with my blog. You’ve given me a little aspiration and something to maybe work too! #thelist
What an amazing opportunity – congratulations!
I hadn’t quite thought of it like that – not that I’m a successful blogger yet – but you’ve made me proud of what I’ve achieved! Loved this post. X
#TheList
I recently wrote a similar post on asking bloggers to write for free and how to say no politely – I’m worth something! #thelist
I love this post! I’m sharing it everywhere. I agree – bloggers do rock. You make some amazing points there. Most of us juggle so many different roles. You should be so proud of yourself! What an amazing blog & community you have built. #TheList x
This is all very true and you are brilliant and have worked so hard to up at the top love your blog well done #thelist
Very true words and we do put a lot of effort into. We take time to learn.and evolve into developing more and more X #theList
I’m really glad I read this. Blogging is hard work, and it should be recognised as such. #thelist
I have slowly realised my worth over the past year or so, amazing really to think we have influence. Fab post, every blogger should read it!! x
Great post. I’m very new to blogging, but it’s good to see why we rock!!
Not long ago we were limited to just 15 minutes of fame – the internet and blogging has changed all that now and bloggers really do have a huge part to play and a lot more han just 15 minutes of fame heading their way!
Love this: so inspiring and motivating! #thelist
Love this post Aby! This and one of your other posts from earlier this week have really got me thinking about what my worth is and how I make sure I and others value it. Lots of food for thought here, thanks for sharing it 🙂 Emily #TheList
I feel really motivated after reading your post. Definitely food for thought #TheList
LOVE THIS! Thanks for the little ego boost xxx
Great post, really thought provoking! Thanks for hosting #thelist x
This a fab post. Some great statistics in there which I am had no idea how influencing us bloggers are. I am a million miles from your success and completely unsure where I’m going with it but you have given my confidence an amazing boost. Thank you
Good list! I’m fairly new to blogging, so it’s nice to see how well others have done 🙂
I love the way you look at things with such a positive boost. I know that I’ve been at events with journos and thought of myself (and described myself) as just a blogger….
I’ve not been blogging all that long but I completely agree with all of your points, feeling even more motivated now 🙂 Thanks for hosting #TheList x
Bloggers do rock! I don’t make a living from mine because I have my freelance work, but I’m so proud every single time someone messages me to thank them for feeling less alone and less scared when their baby has silent reflux and they’re struggling to find support. Or when a brand I love is keen to work with me, or someone I love tells me they think I’m a great writer. These things mean a lot and my blog has given me a confidence that nothing else in life ever has xx
Thank you for posting such great content. I am a new blogger working to put my all into this blog. It is exciting and encouraging to read this.
Not sure how I missed this but what a BRILLIANT post Aby! I couldn’t agree more. Blogging is hard work and takes huge amounts of determination, patience and creativity. What we are all creating, online, in our own spaces really is amazing. Great post my love x
Bloggers do rock – I couldn’t agree more. That plus the point you made about being asked to Tweet for a company and it’ll only take a few minutes. I agree – the time spent is not the point – they are after the access to a niche audience that we can provide. This audience that is engaging with us and who are built up around our blogs. Great post Aby.