Hi friends! I am so happy you are here and excited to share this week’s blog with you! The most common question I get asked is what exactly is a lifestyle blog and what does that mean to be a blogger? If you’ve been here for a while, you know that I graduated with my doctorate to be a PT. When it was time to start paying back those dreaded student loans, and I was working full-time and paying $1,000/month in loans. Talk about a harsh reality check. This dream of being a Physical Therapist quickly burst and I realized I needed a creative outlet to keep me sane.

That is where my blog came into play. I launched Strawberry Chic as a side hobby and it was such a great creative distraction. I was thriving in creating content and loved sharing my passion for clothing, marketing, and home decor. It was literally a breath of fresh air. The initial plan wasn’t to take this full-time but to have an outlet. It led to connecting with others who have similar interests and making new friends!

In 2020, the world drastically shifted and I went PRN (as needed) at work and really began to focus on my blog. How could I monetize this? How do sponsorships work? Would anyone even be interested in reading a lifestyle blog? These were all questions I was asking myself and trying to learn. With my head down, I poured every bit of my free time into this — and it was taking off.

What Is A Lifestyle Blog

Have you ever thought to yourself…what exactly is a lifestyle blog? Think of it as a personalized space for you to share your personal interests, activities, and even your experiences. Maybe you love to share your love for food, home decor, trends, fashion, or even wellness. The curated content is often a look into personal taste, your lifestyle choices that resonate with others, or maybe even inspirational content to inspire your audience. Your blog content is totally up to you and your personal preference and what you want to offer. Think about your interests, create a list, and go from there!

Lifestyle blogs are often known for their visual content as well. When you are creating a captivating visual that could be shared on stories, in your blog, or on your Pinterest, you are giving that visual appeal to make your content even more interesting for your audience. This aspect of blogging is honestly one of my favorite parts. I get to put together outfit inspiration, and collages, and lean into the creative digital marketing side a little more.

The one thing I love most about being a successful full-time blogger is the freedom it allows in my schedule. When I was a Physical Therapist, my days looked different and felt overwhelming. I no longer feel stressed out all of the time, get the Sunday Scaries, and my stress levels are more manageable! Are you curious about what it is like to be a full-time blogger?

Read more about becoming a full-time blogger over here!

Blogging

Quitting My Career As A Physical Therapist to Become A Full Time Fashion Blogger (My Story)

Hi Friends! I thought I would do a little life update because I still get questions on whether or not I’m still working as a physical therapist, so I thought I’d address it here and chat about how it’s been..

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What Does A Lifestyle Blog Consist Of

Let’s say you are ready to start your own lifestyle blog, but now you have to decide what you want to focus on. Think about your interests and what feels most natural to you. Is it fashion? Cooking diaries? Maybe you are big into budgeting!

I have created a list of topics that can help jumpstart some ideas for you if you’re interested in starting your own lifestyle blog!

• Fashion and Style Trends
• Beauty and Skincare
• Home Decor and Organization
• Budgeting & Investing
• Parenting Styles & Hacks
• Sober Living
• Health & Wellness
• Living Sustainably
• Expanding Your Career & Education

The topic options have endless possibilities with the content you put out! The plus side to lifestyle blogging is that it doesn’t have to look like what someone else is doing. When you are focused on content that genuinely brings you joy and allows you to get creative, your content will come off as authentic and resonate with the right audience.

Being a lifestyle blogger should feel like a good fit for you and align not only with your interests but your values, too. Think about it like this…when I am sharing products, clothing, vacation spots, etc. with my audience, I know that I am sharing what is most authentic to me. In a vlog of mine, I talk about how planning the outfits for my vacations is truly one of the bigger parts that brings me great joy. Sounds silly, right? But it’s so true! I know that the vacation is a plus, but sharing my clothing hauls, looks, and outfit combinations is truly what speaks to my heart. When I do this, I know that I am helping YOU with your clothing purchases, handling the trends of fast fashion, and sharing my favorite tips and tricks to help you not only look your best but feel your best as well!

How To Create A Successful Lifestyle Blog

Okay, so you’ve got your ideas, you’ve got your blog content style you want to create, and now you need to make this a successful stream of income. What do you do next?

Step 1

One of your top priorities to ensure this is a success is working on your SEO (Search Engine Optimization). When you work on the strategy behind your blog’s visibility when someone is searching online, your blog will gain a larger audience. Putting in the time to rename your images, work on searchable keywords, and prioritize this aspect of your blog, your audience range will be much higher and only benefit your longevity and exposure in the long run.

Step 2

Your blogging platform matters. To name a few off the top of my head, you have WordPress, Squarespace, and Wix. You want to make sure you read up on each of these and look into what will be most valuable for you. Make sure that the metrics are going to meet where you need them to meet and that your SEO work will also align with your blog platform. Not all platforms are created with the same intention behind them, but when you choose the right one that will perform well for you, that will launch your blog in the right direction.

Step 3

Have you considered affiliate marketing? Affiliate marketing is a strategy for companies to sell their products by “affiliates” who market the company’s products. In return, you gain a commission for any purchases made through your personalized affiliate link. How it typically works is you join an affiliate program that is offered. Once accepted, you are sent a personalized link to share with your audience via your blog, your newsletters, social media, or your website. When you are promoting this company’s product, you can share your affiliate link and when a purchase is actually made by someone using your link, you will earn a commission! It’s simple…the more you share, the more opportunities you have to earn money!

Step 4

Consider adding displayed ads to your blog. This can be a controversial topic and mostly a personal preference, but I believe it works. When you are offering a service such as a personalized lifestyle blog, getting rewarded for all of your hard work is a plus. When ads are displayed, they are customized based on the viewer and targeting your audience to click on them. This is another indirect way to monetize your blog. You are opting in for ads to be displayed on your blog, therefore you are raising your chances to make a profit, too!

Step 5

Email marketing is NOT dead! Do you hear me?? I love a good email…and especially when it has an offer i know I will love. Chances are, if someone is following your social media, reading your blog, and supporting your business, they will also love your emails! Don’t miss out on the opportunity to share even more of what you love with your audience. You can create templates inside of your email platform (Flodesk or Mailchimp are some examples), and have these sent monthly with fun round-ups of what you did, affiliate links, what is coming up next, and so on!

Step 6

Exactly how important is your social media marketing? If I had to say…I would say very important! Most everyone is on social media now and it is the visual instant gratification we all love. Take the time to push your blog content to your followers and share to your story! Maybe ask questions to your audience and get a feel for what they are looking for in a blog. Use this as another marketing tool to share your blog with the internet…besides, you never know who could stumble across it!

Curious to learn even more tips and tricks about making your blog profitable? You can learn more inside of The Profitable Influencer!

With all of that being said, I hope that you know that you can do it! You can make blogging happen and with the time, dedication, and passion for sharing your interests with your audience, you can become a successful full-time lifestyle blogger! As mentioned before, this wouldn’t have happened without all of you and I am so thankful!

So, are you jumping in?? What is holding you back? Let me know below so I can keep cheering you on!