When I started blogging, it was like how a weblog should be – an online open (or close) diary to the public. It was more on writing personal stuff – typing every memory that I find enjoyable or disappointing. It was just like its offline counterpart. It was more of a personal hobby.
From a Simple Diary to a Powerful Digital Marketing Tool
Then around the first decade of 2000, many opportunities came knocking in. They offer payment to link certain websites in words that naturally occur in our blog post entry. It was an exciting venture.
A few years after that, local companies in our country started inviting bloggers to events. They asked bloggers to blog about their events or their products. Others, send bloggers a few products for review. It was another phase of excitement.
But then social media platforms came, the advent of quick or short information started. Bloggers started venturing to these platforms and created a medium for their blogs, and of course, I was one of them. This phase was fast. Just after a year or so, it gave birth to influencers.
What started as a simple online diary that was harnessed for digital content marketing transitioned fast to social media marketing and now… influencer marketing.
To a Reliable Side Hustle
When I started making money from my blog, I never thought of it as a full-time income. It was more of a side hustle. Then when the phase for the product for a review happened, it was more of a hobby. But as years and years progressed, my blog and my social media accounts have become a reliable source of side hustle. The market blew up into mega proportions that even the smallest business elicits the help of bloggers or social media influencers to promote their product and services – especially now with the pandemic going on – everything is going online! Well, of course, an influencer marketing campaign may fail if some strategies are not implemented properly. Help is needed as well.
Before all of these types of marketing happened, the oldest of them all is… word of mouth. This primordial method is the basis of this type of marketing only it’s digital. They work with established influencers and their klout to pass on their message (products and services. They work closely with people that are considered as a key opinion leader of the niche they are planning to market to. For example, like Julie Story, she is known as a DIY queen. She has an awesome following of 317K reach. So, if your market is about craft or DIY items, she is a good choice for your influencer marketing venture.
Where Am I Heading
Though I don’t consider myself an influencer, I just like the way how I can talk about the things I like with pay or no pay. As I have said, blogging for me has become a reliable side hustle over the years. My presence in social media is not for fame, but more of my own personal space to share my wandering thoughts.
As of the moment, I will just enjoy my personal sharing. My own little way of spreading good things by word of mouth. I might not be doing this full-time in the near future, but I am still keeping myself open for future possibilities where my blogging journey will take me.