It’s time for another blogger to pop over to our site and share their insight into the world of blogging. This week we have Emma joining us from The Money Whisperer.
Although she may be a new blogger she has some great advice for anyone thinking of starting out.
I’m going to leave it to Emma to share more:
Tell us a little bit about you & your blog:
I’m Emma and I’m mummy to two beautiful little curly haired princesses and wife to my wonderful husband. We are dual nationals with U.K. and Australian roots (one through birth and one as a happy result of an extended 7 year work secondment).
I’ve recently started blogging as The Money Whisperer , It’s something I have thought about doing for a couple of years but have never bitten the bullet and got going with. One night on a whim when my husband was watching football and I had been on Facebook for 90 minutes consuming largely meaningless information, I decided I was going to have a Facebook hiatus. I realized I was probably spending 15 hours+ a week doing something mind-numbing. I wanted to turn this around to do something creative in that time instead. And so The Money Whisperer was born….
What inspired you to start blogging?
I’ve always been money savvy and my experience as an accountant within the corporate finance sector means I have a certain grounding and business acumen in finance. I take it for granted that I understand how credit card interest works, why you should be saving for your retirement as well as the ways you can, and why compound interest is your best friend.
Speaking to my mummy friends during my maternity leave made me realize that this knowledge is not necessarily widespread. Many of them looked to Facebook forums for guidance on things like ISAs to invest in for their children, and I would shake my head reading some of the misguided responses they received. It worried me how many people made bad financial choices because of a lack of knowledge, or worse still, didn’t have pensions/insurance/savings accounts because they simply didn’t know where to start.
I set up The Money Whisperer initially as a way to empower and inform others on basic fundamentals of money management and products. I do a lot of research on products and services that enable our family to save money, invest wisely and build our wealth; sharing it through my blog is easy! Last week’s post on the easiest way to spend money abroad is a case in point; I was going on a girl’s weekend to Barcelona anyway, so writing up about my new no-fee debit card was just an extension of my personal research.
What has been your highlight of blogging?
I work in the childcare sector and my first post was on the new 30 hours ‘free’ childcare for pre-school children written from both the parents and the childcare providers perspective. I shared it in a Facebook group I am in for childcare providers and it went wild with comments and shares!
Most first time bloggers would hope for a hundred views of their first post, with daily views keeping at this sort of level. This post was shared so much it had visibility to over 20,000 people and my first week traffic on the blog topped 5,000 views. I was over the moon! Plus lots of nurseries put a direct link to my blog on their sites which is great for google juice for a new blog! To get this kind of a response so early on really showed me the value of topical and relevant content…
Is there anything you have learnt about blogging which you wish you knew when you started out?
I genuinely didn’t appreciate that you could monetize a blog. I’ve quickly had my eyes opened to the fact that good bloggers can make a very successful business out of blogging. If I’d known this before, I would have started sooner!!
Bloggers sometimes get a lot of stick however many work really hard and are reaping the rewards, what has been the most rewarding part of blogging for you?
My blogging journey is in its infancy but already I am so proud of what I have created. I would readily say I am a technophobe (I call my husband to fix any technical issues!) so self-building my WordPress site was a really rewarding achievement. I don’t think many people realize how easy WordPress is – if they did, I think more people would be blogging for both fun and commercially. You see a fancy website and think it’s been designed by a developer when it could well just be a beautiful theme chosen by a newbie blogger!
Accomplishment breeds a certain level of determination to aim higher and achieve more. I think the world is changing and certainly by the time our children are in the workforce, self-employment and entrepreneurship coupled with digital presence will be commonplace. Bloggers are just capitalizing on this now.
I want to be an inspiration to my girls and if this means challenging myself in a new industry, learning new skills and being bold, then I’m up for it. I’m proud of myself for challenging myself and I hope they will be proud of me when they grow up. Any rewards that may come later will be a bonus…
What would be your 1 tip you would give all new bloggers starting out?
Don’t wait until you have your blog ‘just right’, just get going. Blogging isn’t about perfection; you constantly learn as you go along. Join groups of bloggers in your niche and you will pick up tips and tricks to enhance your blog as you muddle along. Engaging in these groups and contributing will see you pick up lots of valuable insights as well as some new friends 🙂 Blogging isn’t a solitary game!
Who do you find inspiring to read/watch in the blogging world?
I love love love Mother Pukka. I’m a huge supporter of the Flex Appeal movement and of woman’s equality in the workplace in general. She works hard to champion a cause which is really gaining momentum, through the medium of her blog. Her Flex Appeal flash mobs are amazing! She is also a genius when it comes to Insta – I would love to have her creativity and eye for design.
I also need to give a huge wave to all the friendly and welcoming bloggers at ‘UK Money Bloggers’ and ‘Blogging your way to riches’. It is so refreshing to see collaboration rather than competition – the bloggers in these groups readily share insights, advice, help and paid opportunities. I’ve never experienced this sort of collaboration in the corporate world; it’s a nice place to be 🙂
Lastly – do you have any big plans/dreams for your blog in the next 12 months?
I am really passionate about financial literacy in children and I really hope that in the next 12 months, I will have enough clout through my blog to be working with some big companies in this area. There, if I write it down I’ll be accountable for it!
I also aim to significantly grow my social media presence so please give me a follow and a share 🙂
Facebook:https://Facebook.com/themoneywhisperer
Twitter: https://Twitter.com/MoneyWhisperer_
Instagram: https://Instagram.com/moneywhisperer_
