Living

My Blogging Life: The Truth Behind Running A Blog (Not For The Freebies)

25th January 2018

Why is it if someone is happy and successful in a field that one may not understand about or comprehend, they are immediately scrutinised and judged simply because it doesn’t fall into their everyday conundrums.

I have to admit I was feeling really low the last week because this whole Elle Darby/Hotel scandal really got to me. Basically in a nutshell if you weren’t made aware, a blogger had sent a polite and professional email to a hotel owner asking if they’d be interested in a collaboration for a free stay in exchange the hotel being featured on her social platforms. Instead of dealing with it privately, the hotel owner made his reply (and her email) public, ending it with ‘ perhaps you should get a real job’. This really made my blood boil. To make matters worse the whole thing escalated with people hurling abuse at the blogger calling her all sorts, from free loader to f****** brat to way worse. It became a really ugly case of cyber bullying.

I found myself reading the comments and really got myself so worked up, feeling depressed and deflated. I’ve always worked so professionally and hard as a blogger and seeing all these names coming our way was really horrible. Apparently we are all a bunch of free loaders, talentless who don’t have real jobs and do f*** all!

It started off as a Hobby

Ok, I admit, this blogging thing that I fell into started as a hobby nearly 8 years ago. It was a past time on the side while I got on with my interiors job. Slowly it evolved into so much more. I created an online magazine on Interiors and from there I never looked back. I had no idea what direction I was going; all I knew was that I was so passionate of what I was doing and to have opportunities arise from this was so satisfying and quite surreal. I had no business plan whatsoever it just organically happened.

I slowly created my personal brand that I am so bloody proud of! So to hear people really bad mouthing us gets me a little angry especially when I hear blogging is easy – well that really pisses me right off! Yes we do get free stuff sent to us and the occasional perks which are bloody fabulous and I count my lucky stars everyday! But to hear a friend (non social media savvy) to say oh I better start blogging so I can get free stuff too – NO! Doesn’t work like that and it definitely isn’t the reason why I started blogging in the first place.

The Freebies

In order for me to get these so called ‘free stuff’ sent to me, or the occasional press trips are all due to the on going contacts, networking I have built over the years. You see I didn’t just build a blog and be done with it. I built a social media presence, I networked, I built a relationship with PRs, with brands and so on. Blogging isn’t just about writing a few lines and that is it. It’s about creating content where I will spend time on photography, hours spent on editing, then there’s the planning and scheduling, promoting and the list goes on. It’s about marketing yourself and putting yourself out there, pitching to brands and coming up with a creative story to cover. It never ends, everyday responding to emails and coming up with new ideas. I will always put 100% in any project I am given. Also lets clarify that blogging can open up a lot of opportunities for other work as well. I have seen people turn their blog into successful businesses where they went on to open agencies, write books, TV work and so on.

Sponsored Work

Anther thing is how people can be so petty and rude about sponsored work. Lets get this clear, since I have realised the potential of my blogging & social platform (years spent building this) I have had brands approach me for bloody good paid work. Am I going to turn it down because it might upset a few people? Hell no, I am running a business and bills wont pay themselves. I believe in working with brands that I genuinely love and I have turned down so many that didn’t feel right. However if a match is made and they are paying, why should I be made to feel guilty about this? I have and will always be honest and always declare if a campaign is sponsored. I really hope my readers can see this as I have always been transparent, and understand that this is my job.

Job Title?

So yes it is always deflating and annoying when you turn around and say you are a blogger, you get that look of disapproval. I tired to change my job title but I really do not like the term ‘influencer’ as it’s a little too pretentious for me. I guess content creator fits the bill, but to be quite honest I am a blogger and shouldn’t be ashamed of what I am!

It can be hard to ignore the haters and those that like to undermine bloggers, but it really can be a case of pure ignorance on their part. So, as a blogger all I can say is carry on doing what you are doing, keep your head held high and create the best bloody possible content that you can offer! Whenever you are feeling down make sure to surround yourself with inspiring people!

We’ve got this!

Here I am Wearing

Jacket from Sandro; similar one here

Top From Sezane, similar one here

Jeans from Donna Ida

Shoes from Senso

Bag from Balenciaga

Shop The Look

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5 Comments

  1. Kate Baxter

    26th January 2018 at 6:00 pm

    Yeah, its so disheartening to see people bashing bloggers as freeloaders with no understanding of the work we put in! It’s crazy to think how much the industry has changed since we started though, isn’t it? I could NEVER have predicted it! Although the best ‘perk’ to come out of blogging is all the friends I’ve made, like you my fellow blondie 😉 xx

  2. Candy Pop

    26th January 2018 at 7:55 pm

    I agree with Kate regarding the friends I’ve made. And as a freelancer, I’d swap a few gifts/samples for holiday pay, sick pay and a pension scheme any day! l hope you have a great weekend. x

  3. Grace

    1st February 2018 at 12:29 pm

    Absolutely love this post! Super inspirational as always 😘 As a relatively new blogger on the scene, I’m loving the little insights into how you developed your hobby into such a successful career. Oh and I totally agree, it’s such a lovely community to be a part of! Thanks so much for sharing this with us all xx

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  5. Laurie

    28th May 2018 at 12:06 am

    I’m so with you on this Arianna! Firstly, like you say people really don’t get the hard work we put in! I find myself working longer hours than any job I’ve ever done!
    Ps. Love the blazer!
    Laurie xx

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