6 Things I Learned My First 3 Months Of Blogging

I can’t believe its been three months since I have launched InfamousJoi.Com! I also can’t believe the love, and support that I have received by starting this blog. I don’t think people really understand how easy it is to support creatives (and not even spend a dime). So first off, let me say thank you to all of my regular readers (Hey Grandpa!), and also any faces that stop by every now-and-then. I’m a corporate girl, so the first 90 days in my eyes is always a probation period. It is where you can see if this is going to last, or if you are just wasting time. So excuse my excitement on getting out of the probation period. 😉

I don’t believe I truly told you guys my background story on blogging, and how I began my start as a “blogger”…SO- lets dabble on that for a second:

My first glimpse of blogging started in 2013. I worked on a collaborative blog with a family friend of mine. Our lives got super busy, and honestly I don’t think it was God’s timing for me to have anything of my own just yet. In essence, the blog flopped. Ya’ll know I keep it real (Shout out to my OGs that used to follow MarloweGrey!). Once this happened, I felt that I needed to give up blogging forever. You know when you go through runts in your life. Instead of giving up, I decided to take a different approach, and I began ghost writing for a lot of HUGE bloggers around the United States. You would be surprised how many bloggers/social media influencers, don’t have the time of day to write their blog posts, or instagram captions. But here I was,  getting paid to not only do what I love, but also have a secret part time job. Not to shabby!

In 2018, I was fed up with other bloggers blowing up, while I was at home stuck writing their blog posts on how to style fringe jean shorts. You get sick and tired of that feeling. So boom- I birthed the InfamousJoi.Com. Since then, I haven’t looked back! I designed, built, and launched this website by the grace of God (and coffee), and I absolutely love blogging! I’m terrified, but excited to see where this blog will take me!

I receive a lot of questions such as…have I earned any money? Did I ever receive any sponsorships? What’s the tea! Welp, I’m spilling the tea below on what I have learned these last three months on restarting my blog:

• Content, Content, Content: I understand a lot of bloggers will tell you to have a content/social media calendar so you can stay on top of posting, and become more organized. I’m going to keep it real, a calendar won’t do much for you, if you don’t have it in your heart to post regularly and become consistent. Once again…transparency moment, when I launched InfamousJoi- my real job quickly took over my life, and I slacked off. I saw how bad I slacked off in my Google Analytics, my subscriptions, and also my Instagram followers. If you don’t make the choice in your life to be consistent, a calendar won’t help. What I learned is to make the decision to be consistent first, and then the calendar will follow. If I could provide newbie advice, I started treating my blog like a job where I had to perform certain deliverables. One deliverable for me was 2 blog posts a month.  If I posted more than 2 blog posts a month- then great, I went above and beyond the expectation for myself. If I slacked off and only posted 1 blog post that month- we have some reevaluating to do. Long story short- be consistent THEN buy the glitter calendar.
• Keeping Up with Being Infamous: In these last three months, I have only posted on Instagram 17 times. Lol, that is NOT good. Don’t worry, I’m well aware this isn’t good. I’m human, and there are just some days (or some weeks) that I don’t want people all up in my business. But to be honest- people gravitate towards individuals who openly share things about their life. Your pictures don’t have to be perfectly edited, or your caption doesn’t need to ask people what flavor pizza they love…BUT- be present and real. This is something that I am working on every single day, being more present, more open, and more infamous (to a certain degree).
• Sponsorships: Once I became a little more consistent, I landed a few paid campaigns. Which really blew my mind! I get this question multiple times, “Joi, Are you just showing product for that check, or do you really like it?”. Just so everyone knows, I would never showcase anything on my page that I don’t like. In these last 90 days, I have worked with Joy Shave by Gillette, SoapBox Soaps, Tide, and I have something in the works coming by the end of August…(which I’m really excited about!!) What I lacked in posting on social media, I made up for by posting on my Instagram stories, where I was able to showcase my personality, and my love for certain products. So glory to God- Ya girl got paid!
• No One Can Be Joi…but Joi: In this industry, you can get caught up all the time comparing yourself, and wondering why am I not getting the things that other influencers and bloggers are recieving. Some mornings I wake up, and see my favorite bloggers doing an unboxing of MY fav products, and I get all in my feelings. Then I have some mornings where I wake up and say “WHO CARES!, LET’S DO THE DAMN THING” No one can be Joi. If you are wanting to become an influencer/blogger, I highly recommend you start your journey by implanting in your head, that no one can be you.  You would be amazed at the comments that I reject on my blog posts (and hell yeah I reject comments, don’t bring that negative energy over here boo). There are some real haters out there. I remember someone told me that my writing is too bubbly, and that I should take a grammar class. I legit laughed. But if you would’ve caught me in 2013, I would’ve cried HARD. Being Joi, and being true to Joi- is the best gift I can ever give myself, and to you.
• Own Your Ish: This is going to be short and sweet. Invest the money now to own your blog. Pay for your own domain, website hosting, and brand. Own it NOW. Instead of 6-7 months down the line. I’ve made that mistake way to many times on taking short cuts, when I should’ve just invested the money the right way…the first time. Invest the time, money, and energy into owning your creative space in the beginning.
• Patience: You can ask anyone in my core, my patience is Kevin Hart short. Starting this blog has taught me that this is def a “slow and steady wins the race” type of experience. I can become very obsessive over watching how many people look at my blog posts, or how many great people subscribe to my blog. I had to take a major chill pill. Every day my patience is tested, and I’m still learning and growing in this new realm of my life as a “blogger”…but I will say even in these 90 days, I feel so blessed to have a platform that can reach can touch so many women in the world. If that doesn’t make you chill out and be patient, I don’t know what will LOL!

I hope you enjoyed my heart spill out on exiting out of the probation period and finally getting some BENEFITS!! (My corporate folks know exactly what I mean by this analogy). I love to hear from any and everyone, so shoot me a DM on Instagram, or leave a comment below 🙂

 

Infamously Yours,

 

Joi

 

 

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