The Ugly Truth Behind Starting a Blog

When I decided to start a blog eleven months ago, I thought it’d be relatively easy. I can write my butt off, have lots of stories to tell and knowledgeable gems to drop. What more do you need when starting a blog, right? Nine months later and “my baby” has been everything but what I deemed to be easy.

Lots of hard work and dedication.

Are you prepared to be a writer, researcher, editor, photographer, website designer, marketer, location scout, content creator, publicist, people person and everything else I forgot to mention? If so, are you prepared to dedicate the time to figuring out how to do those things? Unless you’re a jack of all trades (kudos if you are), then you’ll be spending countless nights researching how to do x, y and z. It’s all part of the game. . . I’ve spent countless hours trying to complete one thing off a list of ten.

It’s Nowhere Near Glamorous.

DO NOT fall into the hype of those style photos and brand deals that you often see; they’re anything but glamorous behind the scenes. The easiest part about shooting photos is scouting the location. . . and that’s it. First off, are you a photogenic model who doesn’t mind posing nonchalantly in the middle of a busy town where people are staring at you? If not, get to use to it and figure out how to become comfortable because that’s a challenge within itself. Additionally, I hope you aren’t shy because you’ll be doing most of your outfit changes in your car! Oh. . . and how could I forget the changing seasons. In the summer, you’ll be trying not to sweat through your clothes. In the winter, you’ll be trying to appear happy while you’re freezing your behind off. 🙂

You need to be a millionaire.

Well that’s how I feel anyway. Start up costs can be A LOT, especially if you aspire to make a career with blogging full time. There’s your hosting package, domain name, plug-in upgrades, LLC, website/logo developer, photographer, accountant, lawyer, educational courses and the cost of “things” related to your niche. Our audience doesn’t see all of the initial/monthly costs that go on behind the scenes. The biggest thing our audience doesn’t realize either is, before we “make it” we have to fund the clothes, beauty products, travel etc. all by ourselves.

Related: 5 Things I’ve Learned From Starting a Blog

Brands WILL undervalue you.

Once my site and social media started to evolve, companies began to reach out to me. The excitement I had when I opened my email and saw that a brand wanted to work with me! Here’s the ugly truth though. . . most of these companies do not have your best interest in mind. I’ve had to decline brand collaborations and some I didn’t even bother responding to. Stay completely clear of the companies that ask you to market their product(s) but ask you to purchase it first. Yes, even if they “graciously” provide you with a discount code and swear to call you their affiliate. It’s a scam!

You need tons of patience.

This is a big one because everywhere I turned, there was another successful blogger writing about how important it is to find your niche and audience. Truth is. . . finding your niche and audience takes a lot of time! It doesn’t happen overnight and if you overthink it, you’ll more than likely be going down the wrong path. My advice on this is, just continue to write and see what your audience responds to. If you find that a particular topic sparks more interest than others, then write more of that! Don’t expect to find your niche and audience overnight. . . it’s highly unlikely.

 
Being a blogger definitely wasn’t what I thought it would be! The funny part about all of this is. . . I love every single minute of it. Although it can be quite irritating at times and requires my attention 24/7, I seriously don’t view any of it as “work.” The biggest takeaway is, loving what you do whether you’re being paid for it or not! What are some of the things that you didn’t expect to do after starting your blog? Let me know in the comments!

Until next time ASSASSINS. . . Stay Motivated!

Let’s be friends! 🙂

Follow me on Instagram @MissAshleyAllison Twitter @MsAshleyAllison and Snapchat @MsAshleyAllison.

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