The Ultimate Blog Podcast - 46. Diversifying your blog business

Episode Date: November 1, 2022

Have you thought about diversifying your blog business but aren’t sure where to begin? Well, today’s episode is for you! On today’s episode, we are talking with you about how you can diversify your blogging business, taking your blog seriously, and setting goals. Whether you are a new blogger or have been blogging for a while, this is an episode you are going to want to hear!Thanks for listening! Connect with us on Instagram: @sparkmediaconceptsCheck out The Blog Depot. This is a community and course that we have set up for you if you need questions answered before you start your blog. Join the waitlist for The Ultimate Blog Bootcamp, our online course and coaching that helps you build the blog that you have always dreamed of.SHOW NOTES: www.sparkmediaconcepts.com/episode46 

Welcome to the Ultimate Blog Podcast with Amy Reinecke and Jennifer Draper. We're on a mission to empower women who want to start or grow their own blog. This podcast is for women who want to learn blogging basics and who crave inspiration and encouragement. Whether you're just getting started or have been a blogger for years, we're excited to welcome you into this space where we are passionate about creating community over competition. We are bloggers who want to encourage you to believe in your potential, step outside the norm, and step into a life where you create your own schedule, your own success, and your own story. Join us for weekly episodes as we navigate blogging

and work from home life, all while raising a family and having some serious fun along the way. all while raising a family and having some serious fun along the way. Today, we are going to talk about how you can diversify your blog business. Now, if you're a new blogger, you're probably like, well, why do I need to do that? Well, you're listening to the right episode. So we are glad that you're here today. So first and foremost, we want you to make sure that when you are blogging, when you're starting this whole new adventure, you got to take yourself seriously. So consider your blog a business from the start. Having this mindset is going to give you a leg up in regards to success because blogging isn't easy. And while it's enjoyable and why we love doing it, it does take a lot

of brainpower to make sure that we're doing the things that we need to do in order to grow. And if we're going to be putting that much effort into it, you have to take yourself seriously. You have to take this craft seriously and know how to show up in this space in order to be successful. And if you show up and you're just like, hope it works, then you're going to have a hope it works result, if I can be honest. So you really do when you're starting your business is think about it like a business, your blog as a business. Part of that too, is being willing to think outside the box. So I'm guilty of this. And Jennifer, I would love to hear how your mindset has evolved too in this. When I started my blog, I literally thought that was all it was really going to be,

was just my blog. What did you think? Yeah. I mean, I never had a concept of everything that existed in this world. And I think I've evolved from thinking I was a blogger to more of thinking I'm an online entrepreneur at this point. Yeah. And a content creator. And I do think that that's kind of evolved as we've been bloggers. That's evolved very much. So it used to be just a lot of writing posts, but it is not just about writing posts anymore. So I know when I started my blog, I honestly didn't really know how I could help people in a greater capacity. And so that's something that my mind has definitely had a shift out of. This has got to be more than just sitting down and writing posts.

So you do have more avenues. And you can help more than you probably even realize at this point if you're new. So when we're talking about diversifying your blog business, I want you to... And if you're having any self-doubt, I want you to change that mindset back. Your blog is a business and how can you help your business grow? And so let's keep that mindset as you're listening to this episode. One of the things that I think we've alluded to here is that blogging changes over time. Like we said, we thought one thing when we here is that blogging changes over time. Like we said,

we thought one thing when we started and now it's something completely different. And that really comes back to blogging changes constantly. So if you want to stay in this game, so to speak, if you want longevity when it comes to being a quote blogger, you'll need to stay on top of... We're calling it trends. I'm not sure if that's the right word. But like developments, changes, new technology. I mean, the world is moving at a very, very fast pace right now. And so to keep up with everything, you're going to need to stay on top of the news, the changes, all of that. That doesn't mean you have to jump into every new thing that somebody does, but you need to be aware of technology and how to reach people and all those things.

And make sure that you're meeting the needs of the people that you're wanting to serve and how their needs are evolving over time as well. I think something to think about here that's important is where is your ideal reader? Where is your ideal audience? Where are they at? So when we talk about staying on top of current trends, we don't mean that a new trend pops up and you have to hop on it right away. But it's something to have on your radar and ask yourself, okay, should I be paying attention to this or not? Because your ideal reader might not be on TikTok. They might not be on Reels. They might still be searching just Google, or you might have somebody who's interested in a course for a specific topic. So just be willing

to dive in and understand where your ideal reader is and how you can engage with them more. And to really bring this back to what that means in terms of being a business, like, you know, are you doing keyword research? Are you sharing in the right places? Is your blog optimized? Are you using social media appropriately? Are you building strategies around your email subscribers and the content that you share? So really making sure you have that business mindset will give you the content that you share. So really making sure you have that business mindset will give you the tools that you need to create this as a business. What we're really going to dive into here is how you can not only think of yourself as a business,

but the things that you need to do to protect your business and ultimately protect the income that you're creating from this business. Yes. So diversification is important for that reason. Something we're not going to go into today at all, but I do want you to go back and listen is if you are treating your blog like a business from the start, we are going to highly encourage you to meet with an attorney and consider getting it trademarked. That is something that the longer that we do this, the more that we research on this topic, it is important to at least have that conversation with an attorney so you can make the right decision for yourself. We are not telling you that you have to have a trademark. We are telling you that we think it would be a good

idea if you had that conversation. Whitney Bauer is who we would recommend for that. We have a podcast episode with Whitney about trademarks. We'll make sure to put that in the show notes. So that's just something to consider. And we don't tell you that to overwhelm you. We tell you that so you're prepared. Because we do want you to think of your blog as a business. And that is partly because it has the capacity to earn you a lot of money. Truly. If you put forth the work and effort for your blog, you can make a lot of money blogging if you never give up. And how can you do that? Well, think about other businesses and the way that they diversify their income streams. And you might be on a smaller scale, but that's just as important for you. What you need to do when you're diversifying and what that essentially means

is you're creating income streams from multiple sources that aren't dependent on each other. So this is why we also say you got to be on more than just Instagram. There are so many people building solely on Instagram. And this is why we would encourage you to at least have a blog, at least at the minimum, have a blog because you own that space. You don't want to put all your eggs in one basket, so to say. And you don't want to put all your income streams in one basket either. Wouldn't you rather get 10 paychecks versus one? Think of it like that. When you have multiple income streams coming in and multiple ways that you're doing things, you get to show up in different spaces and help different people.

And so think of it that way as well. And the beauty of that is that they're not dependent on each other. So it really doesn't matter how many Instagram followers you have because that isn't really necessarily dependent on how many people show up on your blog. If you're doing keyword research and SEO, because people on Google are going to be able to find your content because you're paying attention to that part of your business. So that's kind of what we're talking about here. Yeah. And honestly, creating these different streams of income isn't just about helping you have more income. It's also about mitigating any risks that are inherent in running your own business. And let's even think about it this way. It's honestly kind of risky to even just

have a regular job or you just have a paycheck coming from one company. Because what if something happens? Or what if you lose your job? But... I think the last couple of years have taught us a lot. I'll just say that. I don't like to talk about the last couple of years a ton and what the pandemic has done, but I think it would be foolish to look at this and say that that hasn't impacted us or our mindset. I know it has greatly impacted the way that Jennifer and I go about our business. I mean, we completely changed the way that we ran our business in May of 2020 because of it. And so I think that that's something to consider. I think we've realized, we've all realized, sadly, that nothing is guaranteed. And so how can you set yourself up to protect yourself. And that's really our goal is to make sure that

you have all the information you need so that you can decide how this will work for you. But creating different streams of income that are independent from each other, that doesn't mean they're not related and that you're not utilizing essentially all the same things. But say, for example, you have a blog and you have an Instagram. And on Instagram, you do a lot of sponsored content. And on your blog, you have ad revenue. Well, sure, if you lost one of those streams of income, that could significantly impact you. But it's not going to completely wipe out all of your options. So you just need to be thinking about at the end

of the day, not just how much money do you want to make, but how much money do you need to make and making sure that you've diversified in a way that will cover that and take away some of the stress that comes along with feeling the pressure to just make enough money every month to scrape by and making sure that you have different streams of income that will cover what you need. And so even though we always tell you your blog is your home base, and we personally feel like your blog is your most important, that means even diversifying that income that you're getting, using your blog as a tool, it becomes more of a tool. It doesn't become like your sole stream of income. I think a lot of bloggers over the years have built up fabulous businesses by having a blog that gets tons of traffic and lots of ad revenue.

And that's probably safer. Well, it is safer than using something like social media as your sole stream of income. But that doesn't mean you couldn't be impacted by something like an algorithm update, etc. That could impact what you're able to make for ad revenue. So besides just creating ad revenue or just doing sponsored content, you really need to think about the different ways that you can create an income using your blog as a tool and a way to gather your readers together and your audience together, and you can have different ways to serve those people.

Absolutely. And you're probably asking yourself, well, what are they talking about? We're going to tell you. Do you want to start a blog, but you aren't sure what to do first? Are you still wondering what you're going to write about and who your ideal reader is? Have you researched blog platforms only to be left with even more questions and have a no idea what platform to build your blog on? Guess what? We created the blog Depot just for you. The blog Depot is a nine module course that was designed for someone who thinks that they want to start a blog, but wants to build a solid foundation and ask themselves the important questions before jumping in. In the blog depot, we will help you understand what you need to build a successful blog and

important questions to ask yourself. And we do it all with our self-paced online course and membership community. You get access to the course and community forum immediately upon signup. And as a special bonus, we do a live coaching call with Depot members every month. So you can talk to us about your specific questions and needs. We want you to feel confident when you decide to finally start blogging someday and the blog Depot will help you do it. It's only $47 a month, but if you sign up today and use code U B P50, you'll receive 50% off your first month. The link to join us is in the show notes, and we can't wait to help you build your solid foundation in the blog depot.

So ways that you can serve people, more people. I want you to think of yourself as a more than just a blog. I want you to think of yourself as a community. That's essentially what you are, is a community. You're creating this community of people who are like-minded, who have similar interests. They might have a similar goal. And so think of that. How can you show up in that space? Some things that you could do to diversify your blog income, meaning creating multiple income streams is one course creation. So think about your niche and what you talk about. How can you turn that into a course? It doesn't need to be like a huge robust course.

And it doesn't need to be a course that you have like multiple launches. It could be a small mini course that's like evergreen that helps people through a specific need or teaches them something. So how could you possibly create a course? You could also sell your own products. I mean, there are a number of different products that you could sell. You could self-publish your own cookbook. You could self-publish your own book for that matter. You could create journals or apparel or cooking products.

I mean, it's so funny to me. It seems like all the time, like bloggers come out with like their own product of something that, you know, they use every day. And I'm like, man, that's, that looks like so much fun. And so think about what you use every day and how you could turn that into creating a product line of your own, but then you could sell to other people. One of our, well, the next two are two of our favorites. One is the podcast. We love showing up here. You guys like this is one of the best things that we've ever done with Spark is create this podcast because it allows us to talk to so many interesting people and share how we can help others in their blogging business and show up in that space and be

encouraging and supportive. And I mean, the statistics are amazing in regards to podcasts. There are significantly less podcasts than blogs. So think about if you had a podcast and a blog and the amount of people that you could serve when they see you in both those spaces. Because I think something to consider there is not everybody is looking at blogs and not everybody is listening to a podcast or on social media. So you're reaching different people in different areas. So think about how you can kind of widen your reach there. So we really love doing a podcast. That's been a really fun thing for us. And if you think about your niche and how you could show up in that space, and if that's something that you would enjoy, that's something

to consider as we're kind of going through these things is, does any of this stuff make you curious? Or are you like, I think I'd like to do that? That is where you want to put your energy. It's something that would excite you and make it fun. One of our other favorite ways is coaching. So think about your niche. How could you do either one-on-one coaching or group coaching in order to help someone with your specific area of expertise? And don't sell yourself short here. In 2017, when we started Spark Media Concepts, I had a blog for less than six months before we started coaching people on how to have a blog. So I want you to know that you do not have to be the best expert ever in order to coach on something. You just have to know a little bit more than the person who needs what you know. And so think about that. What do you know just a little bit more of? Or what lights you up?

What makes you feel excited? And could you help somebody else do the same? This also, Sarah Hagstrom, when she was on the podcast, that's episode 42. When she was on here, she talked about she was a health coach. And she used this example that somebody had approached her and said, I'd like to learn how to do that. And she's like, well, I don't really know how to do that. But she kind of took this person under her wing. And then the person asked for more. And so then it's turned into a coaching business. So you have no idea

what just pouring into even one other person could potentially do for you. And so think about that. How could you show up in a space in order to serve others? And you could build that stream of income in regards to coaching on the side. Membership groups are another way. We have a membership group within the blog depot that we have. And we have a membership group also for any student that has completed the ultimate blog bootcamp. They also can join our alumni group and they get monthly support. They get two coaching calls every month. That's a way that you can stay connected and build that income every month that you know is coming in. So you're not at the beginning of every month asking yourself, where's the money coming

in this month? Where's it coming from? You already have that built in to your business model and your business plan. Another way to diversify your blog income is through affiliate sales and brand work. But you can totally do that. But what I want to make sure we preface that with is there is a lot of money to be made in that area, for sure. But we also want you to build your wealth on things that you've created too. So when you're doing affiliate sales and brand work, you're kind of at the mercy of those brands and what they're able to do.

And you're essentially helping them build their brand and their business. And that's great because you do get that affiliate sale on the side. But what could you do that could show up in that space for you to create that stream of income as well? Yeah. And I think that over time, these things are going to change. You might start out more doing brand work and affiliate sales. And as time goes on, you get more readers and you figure out what they need.

And you'll move into some of these other areas where you're diversifying your income more and more. And that's why it's so important to do goal setting. I think that's how we're going to end this by talking about how important goal setting is. And you've probably heard it from us a million times, and you'll hear it from us a million times more. But being intentional, setting goals, and then checking your progress is so critical. So we're never going to stop talking about this. stop talking about this. When you know what you're working towards, it's so much easier to create the path you need to get there. And this is not something you can do once. This is something you're going to do again and again and again. So you're going to have yearly goals. You're going to have quarterly goals. You're going to have monthly goals, but you're going to have to sit down and assess constantly where you're going, what is working, what is not working, what you want to do, and what has been successful. And then just really be intentional. Going back to that episode with

Sarah that Amy mentioned, being intentional is so important. Being able to pivot, being able to listen to what people are asking for, that's going to be the difference in being successful. So make sure you're not only setting your goals, but you're coming back, you're assessing what was successful, how much money did this make? How much of my time did it take? And you can really think about where... Because we're all one person. And so where are you going to invest your time? How can I create these different streams, but in a way that is mindful of my abilities and my capabilities and how much time I have available? And just go towards those things that make the most sense for you. Go towards the things that create that safety net of your income and all of that.

And again, over time, that might change and you might find new things and you might be able to take new things on. You might be able to hire somebody to help you. But when you're getting started, just constantly be aware of those goals, constantly be assessing what's been successful and what hasn't. And don't be afraid to just jump in and dive in and test out some smaller things too, just to get the ball rolling. You do not have to wait. There is no rule that says you have to wait until you have X number of page views or X number of followers or X number of email subscribers to start testing out these different streams of income and to start creating this business that's going to be sustainable for the long-term. Such great advice. Absolutely. And that all right from where we started this podcast episode goes back to mindset. Because if you have that mindset that

you're building a business and that you're taking yourself seriously, then you know that goal setting is important and checking in with those goals is important. And I think to consistently ask yourself the question, am I showing up in the way that feels good and right for my business and my life? Because we talked about integration, overbalance, and blogging. And so how are you integrating your blog with your life right now? That's something to consider when you're thinking about adding different income streams and diversifying your blog business and being more than just a writer at the computer. That's something to think about is how is this going to integrate into your life?

And if you're listening to this and like, well, I don't have the capacity for that now, that's okay. That's okay to not do it right this moment. But it's something we would encourage you at some point to consider, to ask yourself, how can I grow in this way? When I get more time or when I can adjust my time differently, how would I like to show up? How would I like to serve? And so those are just important questions to ask yourself. We'd love to continue this conversation with you. Feel free to email us or DM us on Instagram if you have questions about diversifying your blog business, or maybe you're just at the beginning and you're feeling overwhelmed with

all there is to know, we would really love to support you in that space because we've been where you've been. And we know how important that is to consider a lot of these things when you're in the beginning parts of your journey. So thanks for listening to this episode today. And I hope that it's given you a lot to think about in regards to how, how you can show up and light your own world on fire. Thanks so much for tuning in today. If you'd like to continue the conversation about blogging with us, please find us on Instagram at Spark Media Concepts. You can also sign up for our weekly newsletter where we share blogging tips and inspiration. You can sign up by finding the link in the show notes. For those of you who are ready for the

next step and want to start your own blog, join the waitlist for the ultimate blog bootcamp. The link to join the waitlist is also in the show notes. Go out and make today a great day.