I admit this blog post has been in my βdraftsβ folder for quite a long time now. I keep going back to it, messing around with it, losing confidence and then leaving it in drafts. But I think itβs important for me to be totally transparent with you guys. I know so many people who donβt really get how βblogging for a livingβ works and I thought today, I could perhaps bridge that gap a little.
And ya know, thinking about it, blogging as a βcareerβ β despite all the press it gets these days and despite the fact that itβs at times pushed as some kind of βget rich/get famous quickβ thing to do β is a bizarre choice to make a living. Most of my non-blogging friends donβt understand it. Acquaintances will cock their head to the side when I tell them what I do and assume I just get a lot of βfree stuffβ from brands, lamenting, βI wish I could get free stuff. Must be niceβ followed by questions about how they might get into blogging so they can get βfree stuffβ too. (And yes, Iβm putting that in quotes for a reason ;))
Now, if thereβs one thing I want to make clear in all of this is that I LOVE what I do and Iβm forever in awe of the fact that Iβm able to do this and support myself in the process. Iβm also so incredibly grateful for the support I get from my readers and my fellow bloggers β I am fully aware that without you guys coming to visit me, I couldnβt do what I do. And that, for me, is mind-blowing. However, there are some truths that I think are important for non-bloggers to understand and today I want to address a few of these from my personal perspective. Of course, not all bloggers work the same way β in fact, thatβs part of the beauty of it, that everyone is sort of figuring out whatβs best for them. So today, I just want to chat about my own experience here. So weβre all clear on that, yes? I love you guys, I appreciate you guys so much and Iβm super grateful I get to do what I love for a living. I just want to start with that. Okay, then, letβs talk realities of blogging now!
The time costs of running my blog
A single blog post can take me anywhere between 5-15 hours to create. Creating 2-3 a week is incredibly time-consuming especially when it means waiting for decent natural light (hard to come by at times here in the North West), styling the space, shooting it, editing photos, writing the post (reading and re-reading and correcting the flow and checking for any typos or errors), ensuring itβs SEO-friendly, scheduling it and then creating a newsletter for subscribers with a brief summary of the post. Then after itβs published, I need to promote the post across all my social media channels β this means scheduling the post on Facebook, scheduling tweets on Hootsuite, scheduling pins to Pinterest via Tailwind, choosing images to use on Instagram and scheduling those on Later including whatever hashtags are pertinent at the time and perhaps doing an Instagram story on it and so on.
I also need and want to interact with you guys. So that means responding to comments, answering emails, responding across my social media channels and keeping up with these comments and interactions that are coming through all day and all night from readers around the world. Donβt get me wrong β I LOVE IT. Itβs so nice to interact with you guys and it makes blogging such an amazing thing to do when I get to chat with you. But of course, this takes time. Iβm not complaining about it but itβs something I want to do and feel is only right.
Of course, you may be thinking, βWell, this is what you do full-time so youβve got the time to do these things and, well, you only post a few times a weekβ which, of course, is true. But bear in mind that I also have client work alongside my blog so whilst I am working on my own blog, Iβll be researching, sourcing images, writing, editing and communicating with my clients, for whom I create on average about 3-5 posts a week. So thatβs around 6-8 blog posts a week when you include the ones I create for Swoon Worthy.
Why I Need to Make Money on My Blog
So shall we talk about the unmentionable? I make money on my blog to support me and to support the projects I do.
Running a website and a business isnβt cheap. My operating costs alone for the blog last year totalled over Β£8000. This included hiring a designer to help me create my branding and website but also includes costs I have normally on a month-to-month basis. So Iβve got an accountant, website hosting on a virtual private server (which costs more β this is because I have a backlog of more than 6 years of content β itβs a HUGE website) to make sure the site runs smoothly and never gets hacked, the domain name, monthly subscriptions to schedulers, monthly charges for a business bank account, leasing a copy of Adobe Photoshop so I can create nice images, the costs of having a camera, laptop and all the paraphernalia that comes with that.
So letβs get real nowβ¦ I have to make enough money to cover my operating expenses just to break even, never mind pay my mortgage, make sure the fur babies are fed, pay the utility bills (Iβm home all day which means our heating costs are slightly higher despite the fact that I try my best to just layer on the clothing during the coldest months and use my cats as hot water bottles) and have food on our table. Of course, I need to also cover the costs of creating content for you guys. So updating rooms and styling means Iβm spending money to do up the house which of course creates content for the blog in kind.
I admit, not all of these things would be absolutely necessary and many bloggers get by just fine using a cloud hosting service (where they share a server with lots of other websites) and I could do my own taxes and not bother scheduling my social media feeds. The unfortunate truth is that I need these βhelpersβ in my life to create the blog I really want to create. For the quality to remain high, I need the time these things save me and itβs worth every penny for me to have them. The longer Iβve been blogging the more I realise that while they add to my costs, they also help me to create a better work-life balance and assist me in creating more quality content here.
The Ethical Standards I Hold Myself To
My email box is constantly packed with offers of collaborations. This is not a brag, itβs just a fact. An awful lot of them are unpaid, many of them are for product reviews and far too many are from companies who want me to publish their own content on my blog in exchange for a dodgy link buried in there somewhere. I have to weed through all the crappy emails for the odd email from a company I really like and whoβs product or service I actually love and want to share.
Now, I have always ALWAYS been picky about who I work with. This is something thatβs vitally important to me and something I will never change. Iβm not going to promote a product just because someone has paid me. I have to get excited by it. I have to think the company is pretty great or their products are awesome. I donβt go into a collaboration lightly.
The trust I have from you guys is something I value above absolutely everything else and damaging that trust hurts both of us. I canβt express enough how much I have to feel like a brand is the right fit for what I do.
This means that I will turn down many many more collaborations β some which are incredibly lucrative β than I accept because I donβt want to damage that trust. It has to feel right. If it doesnβt, I say no, simple as that.
But when I do say yes, I want it to be as good of a post as any other youβll see here. In fact, I often hope itβs even better. With the help of a brand, there are times when I can get creative, think outside the box, have the chance to share something I might not otherwise get the chance to do.
Why I Accept Sponsored Posts
So letβs start with the big one. I limit how many sponsored opportunities I take a month. I accept no more than 3 a month. In the last year, I had one sponsored post in January, one in February, one in March and two in April. If you look at that in terms of a percentage, I have published 50 blog posts so far this year and of those, 5 of them were collaborations. Of those 5 posts, only 3 were actually paid, the other 2 were product reviews (where I donβt get any cash, I just get to keep the product).
So including both review and sponsored, thatβs 10% of my posts. I think Iβm doing okay with that one because I donβt want to fill my blog with sponsored content. Again, this is just how I work and I donβt begrudge other bloggers taking more than that.
Why I Have Display Ads on My Site
Now, hereβs something I wanted to chat with you about specifically because you probably have noticed thereβs been a change in my display advertising on the blog over the last few months. I now have βin-contentβ display ads that pop up between the text and I also have a display ad in the footer of my blog. I realise itβs probably annoying to have to scroll past the adverts or click the little βxβ at the bottom of the screen to get rid of it.
But hereβs the thing. I make money when people do click on those adverts β this is just how this kind of advertising works. And making money from those display ads is one way Iβm able to support myself and support my blog. Only accepting a very limited amount of sponsored blog posts means I have to make money in other ways. I make enough income on those ads to mean that I donβt have to accept sponsored content that I donβt want to accept and I can continue to be picky about what gets coverage on Swoon Worthy. While I completely understand itβs not ideal, it gives me more freedom to create content that I want to create here.
Why Nothing is Really Free
So letβs go back to the whole βmust be nice to get lots of free stuffβ comments that I often get in my personal life as well as from readers. Ya know, I would be lying if I said it wasnβt nice to have companies send me stuff to make my house prettier. Itβs one of the big perks of being a blogger and itβs amazing to have the support of brands who want to see their items in my home. Itβs an incredible accolade and of course, it saves me money as well.
But hereβs the truth of the situation. Nothing is free. They arenβt sending me stuff out of the goodness of their hearts because they think Iβm just swell. They are sending it to me because they are expecting to see a return on that investment. They want me to show off their wares in the best possible light, they want me to take my time to style and share it with you guys and thereβs an additional pressure when you know some corporate types are waiting and watching to see what you do. These kinds of posts will normally take me longer because Iβm so keen to get things right and to not disappoint the brands that are providing products to me.
So while it may look like Iβm getting lots of free stuff, throwing it into a space and taking a few shots, the reality is that Iβve probably spent many many hours in communication with the brand or PR agency, discussing concepts, arranging delivery, deciding on a schedule, discussing what will be shown and how. And then, of course, itβs styling it and shooting it, writing up the post, sometimes sending them previews of how the items look. And then itβs all about what happens after the blog post goes live in terms of promotion, sometimes sending stats on the post performance and communicating with the brand to make sure they were happy with the outcome.
Thereβs a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes of every βfreeβ thing you see on Swoon Worthy and while itβs lovely and I appreciate these things, they arenβt really free β itβs always reciprocal so I am, in fact, working for these items.
I Never Switch Off β Ever.
There are so many aspects of blogging that I really do truly love. But if thereβs one thing that I wish I could balance much better (Iβm working on it!) is that I have no idea how to completely switch off. I am always on my phone, Iβm always thinking about my blog or my social channels and Iβm always thinking about content. Iβm also always worried about things like the latest algorithm changes to all the major platforms like Instagram or Pinterest or Facebook. Iβm trying to keep up with it all, stay active on everything all the time. And I just never ever switch off. Iβm on my phone pretty much all the time and if Iβm not on my phone, Iβm on the laptop.
I take around 2 weeks completely off every year. One week in the summer and one week over the Christmas break and this includes taking time off not just from my blog but also from client work. When I used to work full time, I used to get paid holiday. Of course, as a freelancer, I donβt get this anymore. So if Iβm not working, Iβm not making any money. You can understand why I canβt just take 4 weeks off a year like I used to! I kind of miss it!
How Important Feedback from You Is
Sometimes when you blog, you sort of feel like you are talking into a void. If thereβs no feedback from anyone, you just donβt know whether people actually like what youβre doing or whether the content you are creating is actually resonating with those who are visiting your blog. This is why comments β whether here on the blog or on social media or even via email β are so so vitally important. I know everyone is busy and I know how time-consuming it can be to leave comments or respond on social media even if you thought something was great.
But my goodness, this kind of feedback is SO important to me because it lets me know that yes, you got something out of the post or that you enjoyed it or that you learned something. So please, please continue to share the content or leave a little comment or click like on Facebook or the little heart on Instagram or retweet it on Twitter. It really does mean the world to me when you do because that means then that Iβll continue to create content like that β blog posts that you really love and get something from. It also tells Facebook and Instagram that you want to see my stuff. The algorithms work on interactions β so the more your interact, the less chance of missing something in the future.
And finallyβ¦
I just wanted to say a HUGE thank you to everyone whoβs gotten through this monster of a post. I hope itβs shined a little light on how things work here behind the scenes at Swoon Worthy and how much I appreciate you guys. Without you, I wouldnβt be able to do any of this and I feel incredibly lucky that I get to have this little space on the internet where I get to share my random thoughts with you. Is it always perfect? Well, nothing ever is but itβs still pretty freaking great most of the time. Am I constantly working on making this a better place? Absolutely and with your feedback, I can continue to do that.
So Iβd love to know if anything I said surprised you or if you learned anything new today. Perhaps you are a blogger yourself and thereβs something you wish your readers knew about blogging that youβve never discussed? Iβd love to hear from you!
Love this post Kimberly! So honest and a really good explanation on what bloggers actually do behind-the-scenes to bring beautiful content to life and why good, paid, collaborations with brands are essential to keeping things afloat. Keep up the fabulous work hun, you totally deserve all your success! xx
A-MEN!! You work your leopard print socks off to create a very unique and professional website. Your content is always on point. Your images are always top notch. And youβre all over those social channels. No such thing as a 40 hr week or switching off at 5pm when youβre a blogger. Eeesh!
Great post Ms D xx
Well said! You are right to be proud of everything you have achieved. I was really interested to hear about the level of activity that goes on behind the scenes. I love your posts and will now read them from a better informed platform. Thank you. Just donβt be afraid to take a bit of time for you, without you there is no Swoon etc.
Ah yes, all that βfreeβ stuffβ¦ ;-) I know from experience just how much work blogging is (even if my blog posts are a lot less frequent than yours), but itβs great to actually see it all written down like this. Youβre definitely working hard (itβs not a 9-5 where you just switch off in the evening) and deserve all the success xo
Every single word of this is true! With blogging you get out what you put in. Putting in beautiful content like yours which is award winning takes time and money. I really hope brands listen to this. And donβt expect your fur babies to suffer by working for free :)
And I know your readers appreciate how picky you are to give them crafted content.
You really need to take more time off though darling (although I will miss the posts that month) x
Well said Hun. I get the βfree stuffβ comments too. I even get the βcanβt you get me some free stuffβ comments occasionally. Now that really does make me get all wound up and uppity. Imagine. xx
As a reader and not a blogger, I admit that over the last year I have stopped reading some blogs because they seemed to become nothing but ads. Some of them are very famous and popular. I sort of figured out some time ago how blogging as a profession worked, but when itβs all ads or selling books -mercy, I am tired of those- then the true kernel of the blog which caught my attention in the first place, is lost. Kimberly, I have never tired of your blog or content. Itβs refreshing and unique. Keep doing what you are doing!!! Sadly, this old lady isnβt interested in tweeting or instagram. I just love to read your blog. Thank you!
Kimberley, your hard work doesnβt go unnoticed! You can clearly see how much you love what you do and your posts are always informative, styled beautifully and fun to read.
Such a great post Kimberly, Iβve only had my blog going for a year but I really find it difficult to switch off too, any free time I had before is now taken up with trying to keep up the momentum of posting blogs and all the other bits that you have to do to publicise the blog. Youβre content is always amazing and I really donβt find the ad pop ups that annoying so Iβm sure others wonβt too. Keep up the great work lovely xx
Thank you for sharing this. Although I kinda knew that doing this for a living was more work than just taking a couple of pictures and writing some witty comments here and there, I donβt think I realised how much work went behind it. Never be afraid to sound your own trumpet (is that even a saying?). I am not big on commenting for the sake of it but I appreciate that sometimes all you need is someone to say βI see you, I hear you, I appreciate youββ¦Working in Operations environment myself I know all to well the impact of a simple thank youβ¦I love your blog and your style and it makes me wanna try new stuff all the time.
Keep on going, look after yourself and donβt let anyone tell you that swoon isnβt worthy!
I see that, in addition to an extremely talented person, you are such a fair one. No one of the bloggers I read daily wrote so openly about what he is doing. He has never given so much information which information can also be a guide for new bloggers. It is no coincidence that I have stuck with your blog literally and I am so pleased that I have the honor to meet you even through Internet.
PS: Iβm sorry for my bad English
Amazing post I love honesty that is my one rule in business, otherwise whatβs the point. Loved reading it xx
This is such an honest and interesting post. Im very knew to blogging, so have no experience of earning money from it, but I do have experience of running a business so a million percent agree with the nothing is for free point! I love your blog, and yes, ads do drive me nuts, but the ones you have on your site are not going to put me off visiting, not a chance. Who else could convince me I need peach accessories in my life!
So glad you published this post. As a blogger, I am always interested in hearing about other people βlife as a bloggerβ. I completely agree with everything you have said. I would never want to stop blogging but it is very hard and emotional journey. Thank you for sharing your feeling about blogging to your readers. Xoxo
This is all so true!! Especially the βfree stuffβ part. Iβm being a lot fussier with who I work with too. Quality over quantity ever time.
A really interesting read and beautifully written as always! x
I hope youβre writing an eBook about blogging tips because I want to buy it.
Excellent postβ¦thank you so much for sharing. I only follow a handful of blogs (of course youβre one of them) and itβs specifically because your passion and dedication resonates throughout your blog. Thanks
Yours is one of the finest blogs I follow. I love the incredible attention to detail and your well thought out written descriptions that take sophisticated decorating concepts and make them approachable to anyone with the desire to bring more beauty into their lives. You are so generous with your ideas and talents, and it really shows. Yes, itβs a ton of work but you are so good at it and deserve to make a nice living from your efforts.
Swoothworthy is the only home blog I read and I love it! I find it very inspiring and interesting. Thank you. Keep up the good work!
Your blog is so beautifully crafted and I love your honest an open approach to everything that you do. As a reader it is very obvious how selective you are about the brands that you work with. I totally agree about the βfree stuffβ comments. Nobody sees how much work goes into those posts but you definitely have to work (and damn hard too) in exchange for all those βfreebiesβ. This was a really well written and thoughtful post. Thanks for sharing the behind the scenes of blogging!
A really interesting and insightful post. I will be honest and say that the inline ads on your site do annoy me, but they would annoy me regardless of what site theyβre on. I understand why you have them and for that I actually continue to come to your site regardless of them. I understand you have a living to make. If I see them on other sites Iβm not usually as forgiving π This is a great post and shows the work you do and the effort you put into your work. Keep at it π Thanks for sharing!!
Wow as a none blogger, I knew that you put a lot of work in to your blog, but I didnβt realise just how much. I take my virtual hat off to you and all the other people who do this, youβre all stars. As a reader I get the easy bit I can just sit down and read it. Having said that I think you do an excellent job, and I love reading your blog, itβs just brilliant.
Iβve said this before, you can tell itβs more than a job with you. How you write your posts and the contents are amazing, and when the weather is good your pictures are ace, so keep going flower you are doing a great job xxx
wow! how do you fit all that into the hours in the day? Iβm guilty of not bothering to comment, sometimes because I see a lot of comments from other bloggers (rather than just βreadersβ) and assume that they are the ones that are more important or relevant to you. Will try harder from now on :)
What a grafter! This really shines a light on some of the behind the scenes work blogging involves. I will never moan again about spending a few hours writing mine, I can see you are incredibly thorough, and I am inspired!
This is a great post and really refreshing to read. Thanks for your honesty about thatβs really involved in planning, styling, photographing, writing and sharing blog posts.
amazing blog post, I can see why it took you so long, I think I can speak for other bloggers that we appreciate your transparency, not every blogger would do this, but for me as a new blogger this explains a lot and itβs true that it is time consuming, something I balance myself! Congrats again on such a beautiful approach to blogging. X
A really insightful postβ¦ Iβd love to make blogging a full-time job β itβs very easy to glamourise. Good to know in real terms how many hours of work go into your posts (- not that Iβm really surprised, you content is great quality!) Rx
rosannaalicia.com
A really lovely, honest post. You can see the hard work and dedication that goes into your blog. I never switch off either, when somethingβs your passion itβs always on your mind! x
Love. Love. Love this post.
Nothing but true words :)
This is a great post and really highlights the behind the scenes aspect of full-time blogging. Itβs easy to get annoyed by ads on a blog, but itβs your job to create the content we all love reading, and you need to finance it somehow!
I genuinely have always felt that your have a lot of integrity with your blog β the sponsored posts you do always fit seamlessly with your content and I know how much you turn down to ensure that happens.
Keep up the good work, and thanks for opening our eyes to the reality of blogging for a living! xx
This is a really enlightening and interesting post β and it all sounds exhausting! How do you reconcile the relentlessness with being an introvert β does the time creating the posts then give you the energy for batting off the unwanted advances and cultivating the wanted ones?!
Wow, so much useful information in one post. Iβm just thinking about getting a blog going, and this has really helped me as a little help would be gratefully received. First time Iβve read a post of yours but I will be back, thank you.
Great piece Kimberly, I completely relate on so many levels! I love blogging, and yet I love holidays too! Waiting to find a happy medium between the twoβ¦
I always learn something new, interesting and useful when I read your posts Kimberly. Youβve been my main blogging inspiration since I started this crazy job last year and I want to say a huge thank you for being so generous with your time and advice. You are truly brilliant at what you do, and you do it with such integrity too. Now go lie in the sun for a week with an Aperol Spritz β youβve earned it! E xx
Hi Kimberly,
Such a fresh honest post as many here have already said.
I used to work for Floormaker and as such kept a keen eye on you bloggers and interior designer. Always impressed on the amount and originality of the content you guys and gals create.
Itβs a living and youβre well within your rights to have sponsored posts and ads. And the fact youβre so Pinicky about which ones you use β shows that youβre still thinking about your readers even when youβre trying to look after yourself.
Bravo. And I hope youβre up for an win some of those IBA awards this year again. Canβt think of a more swoon(worthy) winner.
Great post and telling it how it is (LOVE that). Iβve only been blogging a year but its taken a long time and a lot of photography to make it even the smallest bit monetised. Itβs bloody hard work! Youβve got it nailed and thank you for writing this xx
Great post. You absolutely deserve to earn the money that you do. Your blog is my favorite, I read your posts religiously and always get something out of them, so thank you. I am working on a new interiors brand in my full-time work and you were first on the list of bloggers that I would love to work with, hopefully, something we can do in the future together. xx
Amazing article Kimberly, a wonderfully honest appraisal of how hard it is behind the scenes, I donβt know how you do it! I manage about one post a year!!! LOL. You deserve each and every success you have sweetheart xx
Lovely article, as I am only beginning my blogging journey finding articles like this inspires me. I canβt wait to read more in your blogging category. Xo
Love this post. Friends and subscribers who do not blog are not aware of just how much hard work goes into a post and the entire process it involves. Especially in a niche like decor where the visual aspect is so important and the images take a great deal more time to prepare than websites who rely soley on stock, pre-made images. I really enjoyed reading this and will be back to read more!