On April 15, 2019 I hit my 6 month blogging milestone! In these past 6 months, I have learned so much, met so many wonderful women and let myself become overwhelmed at times. I’ve always been a bargain hunter or “thrifty” shopper so I created The Thrifty Blonde Blog as a way to show people how to shop on a budget like I do, how to shop sales, and that you don’t have to wear designer to still stay trendy. I feel like I am accomplishing that goal so far and I have received a lot of positive feedback and it’s also grown into way more than I had imagined in a very good way! I don’t feel like I’m a wealth of information but I do feel like I’ve learned a lot in these 6 months and still learning every day.

I am an introvert and pretty much the least out going person you’ll ever meet. Blogging has really helped me come out of my shell a lot because in this industry you really need to find other like-minded girls to chat with or form a bond with. I have made the bestest of friends over the internet, and I know that sounds so weird to say but it’s the truth. More than likely, there are other bloggers in your area that you can meet up with for coffee or lunch and I highly suggest reaching out to them. I’ve met and had lunch with two of the sweetest girls in my area that are bloggers and I’m so glad that I did! There is a lot that goes into blogging and lingo that your family or significant other won’t understand that you will need other bloggers to talk to about. I’m part of a few engagement pods where we chat and get to know each other and I have a few close friends and bloggers that I look up to that if I have question, I know I will get a genuine answer.

I was not prepared for how much work blogging was going to be, hence why I said I let myself become overwhelmed at times. One thing I’ve learned about myself, is that I’m really good at planning and making schedules. I feel like I have the hang of it now, but until I came up with a way to plan when I was going to shoot my photos, when I was going to type my posts and what I was going to post on my feed every day, I was a little all over the place. I invested in a planner…a very good planner where I carry pretty much everywhere and this is how I stay organized and it’s easy peasy for the most part. At lot of people have the misconception that blogging is just being an Instagram model, basically. It’s so much more that goes into it like getting your outfits together, planning a blog post, writing a blog post, taking photos, editing photos, linking all of your items, etc…At first, I worried myself to death about having something to post every day. Now, I do agree that when you are growing your following that consistency is key, but I’m a bigger believer in quality over quantity. If I don’t have a picture to post that I don’t love, I don’t post that day and I’m okay with that. I normally try to post 5-6 times a week.

It’s very easy to get caught in the comparison trap. DON’T FALL IN IT!! I let this bother me for long time, way before I started blogging, but it hit me one day that I have so much to be thankful for and I’m so blessed that I don’t have to look at other people and be depressed that I don’t have what they have or look the way they look. I wrote a blog post on the this early on because it’s so easy to get caught up in.  You may wonder why other blogger’s accounts are growing faster than yours or they are getting to work with brands and you aren’t. You keep doing what you are doing and stay in your niche and it will work out for you, just try not to get caught up with numbers and follower count. I will eat you up.

I highly recommend getting your account verified by FOHR, which is free. It’s a company that helps influencers work with brands and if you are verified with them, it means that you have a healthy, authentic and growing audience. Once you get verified by FOHR, you have the opportunity to work with AmbassadHER, which is a company that pays you to post ads for them on your Instagram feed. You go through and pick which item you would like to promote, then apply. The cost is $2.99 a month to be a member with them. There are more, but this is who I have dealt with. I have worked with some great brands and have 3 awesome collabs coming up that I’m super pumped about. I never even thought about that when I started this…I just wanted to share my thrifty finds and maybe some recipes and DIY stuff. If you are blogging just for free stuff or to make money early on, you need to quit now because girlfriend you are in it for the wrong reasons. Don’t take every collab thrown at you. Try and pick collabs that are true to you and your brand and if you wouldn’t wear it or use it, then don’t share it.

Am I happy with starting a blog? Of course! It’s helped me show my creativity, helped me be more outgoing, helped me be more confident (because never in my wildest would I be on stories showing you how a swimsuit fit) BUT, when I feel like blogging is becoming a chore for me, I take a step back. I don’t post as much and I don’t have a blog post come out every Friday like normal. If I’m not feeling inspired or if I just don’t feel like I have anything to write about, I’m not going to throw together something, just to have something to post. I like my blog posts to have meaning and lots of meat to them, not just a picture of an outfit, so I put a lot of work into them and then I go back and edit it several times to make sure that it’s just how I want it. I guess it’s the perfectionist in me.

If you are on the fence about starting a blog, vlog, YouTube channel, whatever it may be, JUST GO FOR IT! If you are passionate about it, you will love it and you will thrive! I love blogging and showing girl’s how to dress on a budget but yes it is hard because I do have a full time job and family. I do it though because I enjoy it and I have made lifelong friends in the process! There are a few tips that I didn’t mention above that if you are a blogger just starting out, that I would like to share:

GET A PRESET YOU LIKE: I ordered mine off of Etsy and I use with the LightRoom mobile app. If you are trying to get accepted into RewardStyle, a cohesive feed is one thing they look for.

NOT EVERYONE WILL BE A FAN OF YOUR WORK: Not everyone likes “influencers” and will question what you are doing. Just let it go in one ear and out the other.

DON’T FOLLOW TO UNFOLLOW: This is one of my biggest pet peeves and not a good way to gain followers. This was happening to me so often that I got an app that shows me who follows and unfollows me. It’s just rude to do this so if you are a decent person, you won’t do it.

ENGAGE, ENGAGE, ENGAGE: This will get get you noticed and if you are stuck in that comparison trap I talked about earlier, complimenting people is a good way to get out of it. I spend a good few hours of my day engaging on other girl’s posts. Just go through the followers of a blogger you like and pick a few and like and comment on their photos and maybe follow a few. If you have the opportunity to be an engagement pod, I would do that. Some people swear by them, others swear them off. Personally, they have helped me. It wouldn’t hurt to try.

USE YOUR PINTEREST ACCOUNT TO MOVE TRAFFIC TO YOUR BLOG AND IG PROFILE: I always thought that Instagram would be the only platform I would use for my blog, but as I’m doing this longer, the more I learn that there is so much many more opportunities to grow my blog! I converted my Pinterest account to a business account and started pinning my photos from my IG feed and blog posts. A LOT of people still rely on Pinterest for outfit inspo and pretty much everything! I also have a Facebook page for my blog as well. Anything to get your page seen or direct traffic to your blog is worth trying.

BE CONSISTENT: I touched a little on this, but when you are first starting out and growing your following, you must be consistent. Try to post every day if you have enough quality content to put out. If not, 4-5 times is enough. Don’t post, then go a week with nothing. You will lose followers and people will wonder what’s going on? Where did you go? Also, try to get on your stories everyday. I don’t talk on stories everyday, but I do at least post something…like posting the photo I did on my feed, but putting a GIF over it, so people will go to my feed to see it. Also, hashtags will get you more story views.

BE NICE AND BE FAIR!!! I seriously cannot stress this enough! Just be a kind human. Not everyone will like what you post and that’s fine, but don’t be one of those people that gives negative vibes and starts drama. If someone comments on your post, go to their page and reciprocate. If someone reaches out to you with a comment or question, always take the time to respond. There is room for everyone, so we should all be supportive of each other.

I think that’s it, haha!! If you ever have any questions, I’m an open book! Feel free to ask!

XOXO, Lauren