Every #JoziMeetup has a special message for me and this one was no different. We’ve covered many topics in the past, and how to build your blog business wise is always a popular topic which we covered again. This time, however, we had a very special speaker talking about the very important topic of self care, a topic I really needed to listen to.
How does one take care of oneself? I think the first two most important steps are 1) to admit you have a problem 2) to seek help. Not an easy thing to do, but rather essential in this day and age and particularly, when, like me, you’ve been through a difficult time.
I was probably a lot better organised this time round with the #JoziMeetup (being at home has given me that extra time) but there were still a few surprises that tripped me up that reminded me of this basic concept of asking for help. It was probably on Friday night while surrounded by 30 huge boxes that would not fit in my car that I could admit to myself I had a big problem. Fortunately I remembered about a blogger (Melissa) who had messaged me on Facebook saying that if I need help I could give her a shout. Although she probably did not expect that Friday night phone call she gallantly rose to the occasion and pitched up the next morning to take some of the load off me.
The boxes in question? A very generous donation from Daily Dish. A meal box which I cooked that night and enjoyed the fresh ingredients and succulent steaks. And there was plenty left over.
Sometimes life hands you lemons but you can make lemonade… in this case a tasty meal. With a very interesting anchovy salad dressing.
Our first speaker at the #Jozimeetup, Dr Sindi van Zyl, described her journey with depression starting with not being able to go out and enjoy things. She was sleeping for longer too. It started back in 2013 with a promotion and moving house. But as this lethargy crept up on her she missed an important wedding. One day she was just not able to get up out of bed, even to assist her son. Her husband realised that she needed help and checked her into hospital.
I think what I liked about Dr Sindi’s approach was how matter of fact she was about it. About how it was an imbalance in her brain that needed to be corrected with medication. She stresses that there is no shame in taking medication and that the word needs to be spread that it is necessary and not addictive. She had voices in her head telling her she was not good enough. She also credits Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for dealing with problems in her life.
One image she mentioned that really stuck out for me is that you are like a bucket. And you can get hit with little holes and cope. You can fill your bucket again with Seratonin and be happy. But if it’s a big thing, a big hole, it really is too big and you need help. Furthermore it makes you accessible to certain things to fill that hole. Lots of people look absolutely fine on the outside but are empty on the inside.
I’m letting everything Dr Sindi said just percolate inside me but one thing I do know is that the hole that my husband’s death has left in my bucket really needs attention.
On a lighter note Dr Sindi is a bit of a Twitter addict and she loved the fact that all us bloggers were constantly on our phones! (Thanks Funso for the pics!)
After that heavy dose of self reflection let’s move on to making money with your blog…
- Partnering with brands
We had an interesting discussion with blogger Shaney and PR expert Mokotse.
Shaney gave us some tips on the essentials that you need to have for your blog. You need your own domain name because the stats for brands will be inaccurate on wordpress.com and you need Google Analytics. Invest in a good theme and SEO expertise. Value quality over quantity. Figure out why you want to blog and what is your aim. What makes you different? She also re,commends some good plugins, social media and networking at events to get ahead. She also recently wrote a post about the blogging journey, how lonely it can be but that she has found some worthwhile blogging friends to rely on.
Mokotse gave us a very down to earth perspective about how she has to run the numbers every month and how brands really want evidence based results. She spoke about the concept of relevancy and being different. How Kylie Jenner has done a make up tutorial drunk – she puts herself out there.
Brands are looking for how a blogger can add value and they appreciate feedback – even if it’s negative and you approached them directly about it. Go out of your way to give them extra content and they will come back for more.
As a blogger you should know the trends, find your niche, what you are passionate about and can write about.
Monetising your blog is hard work and a delicate dance between client, PR and blogger. And in a year where the economy is down, we often find that products are easier to come by than money. And that a giveaway does bring reach for your blog. Mokotse also recommends putting together a media kit.
If you do want to know what to charge for your blog posts, Shaney does recommend Webfluential as a place to start, as well as factoring in your time. She has packages she sells to brands of combinations of posts and social media and she suggests upselling them to other social media is always a good idea.
2. Digital Products and Services
Shelley Smith has multiple talents. She is a mom to a 3 and 6 year old as well as a blogger at Rocking the Playroom. Her passion is to help heart centred women business owners.
The interesting slant she brought to the aspect of setting up your digital empire is to assess where you are in the process. Are you a trailblazer, just starting out? A Biz boss, putting together proposals for clients based on what they want? Or are you a CEO who has a system already in place? You can’t jump to CEO unless you’ve tested the waters along the way and received feedback on more basic levels.
As a Trailblazer you need to think about what you could launch. It could be a one on one service package. A “tripwire” product – something you get when you sign up to an email list for a low price e.g. $19. (make a cheap offer if they buy it in the next 15 mins). You can do a small digital product like an Ebook, template pack, printable, or a tool.
A Biz Boss on the other hand could do a group program using tools like Zoom. A service package with multiple clients. A live masterclass. An online course. A subscription service. An email with expertise tips.
CEOs can create an evergreen online course on platforms like Teachable. You can create membership programs. Write an Amazon book. Have a mastermind class and licence your product.
Shelley then took us through her “Launch and Love it” formula. This consists of the preparations of Aim, Audience, Announcements, Activation, Asserts and then Action and Analysis.
One of the activations you can do is a sales funnel and Shelley took us through how you can take a website visitor through to a repeat buyer. You can find out more about her formula right here: bit.ly/jozimeetup
3. Young Living Essential Oils
Young Living is a direct marketing company and, if you know about these things, now is the time to get in on the action. Young Living will officially be coming to SA in October but there’s no time like the present to sign up. You never know who will click on your blog post and be ordering their oils under your link.
Plus there are loads of health benefits and the diffuser makes a really useful nightlight. This past week we’ve been using the oils to help us sleep (Lavender) unblock noses (RC) and chase mosquitoes away (Amoraease).
Young Living through Jen Jordon sponsored a “Stress Away” bottle as well as a booklet about the oils.
You can read my full post here.
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS!
- Aviator Hotel and Tin Goose Restaurant: I am so grateful to Nicole Subben for letting us use this stunning venue. It really is a unique concept hotel using the Aviation theme with a modern twist.
There are different room types with all the mod cons. Conference venues can host up to 400 people. The hotel is also very conveniently located close to the airport with a shuttle going back and forth every half hour.
We had lunch at the Tin Goose and it really was delicious. They gave us a buffet of different meat, poultry and fish. I had some of the fish and it was really tasty. They also had vegetables, salad and dessert. The restaurant has a lovely atmosphere too.
2. Headline Events provided spectacular decor. Thank you!
3. Drums and Rhythm had us swishing away with some spectacular salsa moves.
4. Prima Toys gave us some awesome Rubik’s cubes and Shopkins toys. Check out the happy prize winners!
5. Thank you to Just Fun Toys for the Teck Deck and Hatchitopia Life plush toy. We already have the cute soft toy riding the little skateboard. We have been busy with these all day. Yes I have lost my temper screwing all those little screws in the Tech Deck Skateboard and then he wanted a “skate park” so we had to make that (out of the Daily Dish box). His Hatch animal is called Bugsy and we made a helmet from part of the shell.
6. From Mattel we had the card games Uno and Dos as well as Crystal Creatures. Crystal Creatures are awesome! You unpack this egg which has slime and put a little horse together which actually fits on top of the egg. Nicky loves them! (Until the time he loses a piece and has a hissy fit!)
7. Shelfsquad.com gave us some Alkaline water, chocolate and an energy booster. Nicky consumed that water on our trip to take the goody bags on Friday.
8. From Ivohealth we received Dentyl Dual Action Mouthwash. This will really make a difference to your teeth.
9. Thank you Koo for the peach slices. Yes, I totally opened a can and had that for supper on Saturday night. Just because. They are tasty!
10. Chapstick gave us three different flavours: vanilla, coconut and original. I think I like the vanilla the best plus it has a really cool purple packaging!
11. Nicky loves his Bubblegummer shoes and from this brand we received some bubbles, balloons and a voucher.
12. A magazine: Baba and Kleuter from Media 24. Thank you!
13. Cute Wonderfall insense burners from Phezulu Procurement Enterprises.
14. Voucher from Organised By Gina who also transformed my study.
15. Vouchers from Uber Eats. Thank you!
16. Vouchers and a trial box from Daily Dish. Absolutely love this brand – the food is excellent quality and you can really stretch it out.
Thank you to everyone who attended – you are all stars and I am so glad you came!
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pleasure, thank you for coming!
Thank you for a great event.