Blogging Tips From Brittany Bullen: Mommy Blogger Academy
I always love featuring other bloggers on this site, but I was thrilled when Brittany Bullen agreed. Brittany is a mum, a blogger and owner of a freelance blogging company. She has achieved awesome success with her blogging adventures and today she shares her journey with us. Please make Brittany feel welcome and connect with her at the end of the post.
1. Tell us about yourself and your blog at Mommy Blogger Academy
Well, I started my personal blog, brittanybullen.com, about six years ago and despite all my efforts, it didn’t pan out the way I was hoping, so I gave up. After several years of hiatus and several startup companies later, I returned to blogging with a new sense of resolve and direction.
Part of that direction included building a “tribe” for myself, which is now called the International Bloggers Association. Through that organization, I came into contact with a lot of moms who were in the same situation I was in back six years ago when I got started. They were frustrated and confused, and I felt for them. It quickly became clear that I needed a separate blog for the things I was teaching my new friends, as I’ve discovered I really have a passion for it.
My ultimate goal with the Mommy Blogger Academy is to teach my fellow “mommy bloggers” (although admittedly I’m not a HUGE fan of the term) the skills they’ll need to not only have successful blogs, but to build successful careers either now or at the time which they’re ready to re-enter the workforce.
Additionally, I think it’s important to a woman’s self-esteem to feel like the things she’s contributing are valuable, that she is intelligent and every bit as capable of making an impact on the world while being at home with her kids as she could be working a 9 to 5 job. It’s a really exciting time, because we no longer have to be physically present in an office to make our presence known.
2. What made you start blogging?
I’ve been writing since I was a little girl; it’s what I got my degree in. Dialogue is my specialty. I’ve definitely had my biggest successes writing/composing for the stage. The only problem with a playwright’s career, though, is that it’s all about waiting for someone to produce your work– you feel like you’re only as good as your current production.
I got into blogging because I was sick of waiting for permission to be seen and heard. I wanted to create something that mattered to people, inspired them, made them laugh or just taught them something useful. I’m always trying to figure out life, so it just made sense to write down all my musings and put them out there for people to enjoy.
3. On average, how much time do you dedicate each day/week to your blogging? How do you keep track of what you are doing?
Oh boy… it varies, and I really don’t keep track. I use ToDoist to keep lists of what needs to happen on any given day and that keeps me from forgetting anything important, and I also automate reminders and several other things using IFTTT.
I’m home with my boys all day, and my husband helps out with them at night so I can focus on my work. Then the two of us decompress and turn on Netflix after the kids go to bed and I keep working usually until it’s time to go to sleep.
During the day, when my boys are occupied with this or that, I’m usually at the kitchen table or counter with my laptop, or if we’re at the playground (or sometimes even at the gym) I write or respond to comments on my phone.
So I guess to answer your question… I’m always working, but I’m rarely JUST working. It’s a juggling act, for sure, but I love it. It doesn’t feel like work to me.
4. If you could have told yourself ONE thing when you started blogging, what would it be?
Don’t stop! Oh, how I wish I had stuck it out and been building traffic little by little all this time. I had the domain, I could have just knocked out one post a week while I figured things out… but I got too involved in other things and never thought to keep it up on a minimal basis. Longevity is huge in the blogging world, so it would have been nice if I’d been building a following for longer.
5. You have a section on your blog about ‘Freelancing Writing Services’. What does this involve?
I’m a big believer in freelancing for new bloggers looking to make money quickly, but I know it’s not always easy to come by new gigs. I started my freelance writing company, NerdyGirl Writers, as a solution to that problem. Through NerdyGirl, I manage a team of writers who’ve been trained and are ready at any given time to start churning out SEO-optimized posts for companies, since blog content is becoming an increasingly essential part of online marketing.
6. What would you say has been your most successful way of making money online to date?
Freelancing. For sure. That and the ads on my YouTube channel from back in my raw vegan days, I had a little cooking show. Those have been bringing in a little bit of passive income over the years, which is always fun. I also have some tracks on sale on iTunes that make money too. But definitely, freelancing has been the most successful by far.
7. As well as blogging, do you have another full / part time job or parenting responsibilities? How do you juggle these demands?
Hahaha! See above, #3. Actually I recently took on a real (salaried!) job with a new nonprofit organization, but that’s in its infancy so I’ve yet to see how all the pieces fit together. Needless to say there will always be plenty of demands to juggle!
I really don’t know how I would do any of this if I didn’t have the world’s most supportive husband. We’re both really into startups so he totally gets the “working all the time” thing. He gives me as much time to get things done as he possibly can, and he helps around the house quite a bit. I can’t say enough how much I appreciate his awesomeness.
8. What would you say is your favourite social media platform and why?
Pinterest. It’s fun to use and it’s not nearly as “flash in the pan” as other platforms. You can put something out there and it can still be sending traffic your way years later.
9. What has been the biggest hurdle that you have come across in your blogging career to date? How did you overcome this?
I can’t say I have entirely overcome it, but I think every blogger is always in a state of trial and error– figuring out what marketing efforts work and which don’t. But it’s more than that, because sometimes something works, but it doesn’t work as well as something else that might work better… so it can really be a guessing game.
As you might imagine, I’m always battling blogger burnout– who wouldn’t, running three blogs at the same time? So I’m always looking for ways to work more efficiently and keep things fun!
10. How do you drive traffic to your blog and grow your readership?
Lately I’ve been focused mostly on commenting and networking. The IBA has been a great way to meet new people, particularly mommy bloggers like myself, but still I always find myself gravitating toward reading blogging/marketing posts. I think it’s mostly because the titles are always more interesting!
11. What is the most important piece of advice you could give to a new blogger?
Set yourself up with a blog subscription service like Feedly or Bloglovin and actually use it. Fill it up with a “wish list” of bloggers you’d like to meet and read their posts, then leave thoughtful comments on them. Look for the other people who comment on their blogs or whom they feature for new people to add to your list. Networking is the single most efficient form of blog marketing– as evidenced by this opportunity to post on your blog, Catherine!
Oh, and don’t give up. Hang in there. If you have to cut back on your posting schedule, go for it, but don’t completely abandon your site. Let it grow and mature with you– or move your audience to a new site if you must, just don’t disappear! And if you’re completely stumped, of course, you could just buy my eBook…
I’d like to say a huge thank you to Brittany for sharing with us today. If you would like to connect further with her, you can do so at her social media profiles.
Google + / Twitter / Facebook / Pinterest
Would you like to be considered for an interview at Friday’s Featured Blogger?
Please complete the form below, and provide some information about yourself and your blog.
You will be contacted once your application has been considered.
Related Posts :
Written by Catherine Holt
Catherine Holt is the founder of Blogging Tips 101. She has been an internet marketer since 2012. Connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, Google and Pinterest.
“I’m always working, but I’m rarely JUST working” <- Hey! You, too?
So that's why Brittany can write like that, I think I need to take up another degree lol.
Love your interviews Catherine. Always a pleasure to read their life stories.
Dennis,
Thank you!! I think you do just fine yourself! I so appreciate the comment and the compliment. Have a great day!
Brittany
Lol Dennis. I don’t know if you would have time for another degree and blogging would you??
Thanks for stopping by
Not really, but Im open to it if I could learn to write better! ;p
Anything to improve.
Keep it up girls! Have a great week!
What a beautiful coincidence! I was reading about Brittanny, following her on Facebook and mentioning her in my latest post while you were publishing her interview here.
I just came to know her and I think she’s a wonderful person. Thanks for the interview that shares more about her.
Good to be in your community Brittany
Wow, Enstine, you were? I’m honored! Thank you! I think you’re pretty wonderful as well. It’s always fun to be interviewed, I think it helps you get clearer about who you are and what you want to achieve. Don’t you think?
I look forward to getting to know you and learn more from you in the future.
Brittany
It must have been meant to be Ensine
It’s awesome when you meet a blogger and instantly become inspired by them. Brittany is certainly one of those bloggers.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us
Hey Catherine,
Your interviews are wonderful. It’s always nice learning about where others have been during their blogging career.
I just recently started connecting with Brittany and she is an awesome person.
These type of interview make me realize that even though we may take different paths, many bloggers still face similar situations during their journey.
Happy Friday!
Steven,
I agree, her questions are great and I really enjoyed answering them. I’ve read a few of her other interviews and always enjoyed getting to know other great people.
I think you’re awesome too! Thanks!
And you’re absolutely right, despite being in different niches, in some ways blogging is blogging and those challenges exist no matter who we are or where we come from.
Thanks so much for your comment!
Brittany
Thanks Steven. I really enjoy undertaking the interviews, as it’s a great way to learn a bit more about the blogger behind the blog
Brittany certainly has some valuable information to share and I was thrilled to be able to feature her here.
Thanks for stopping by Steven
I actually just found “Mommy Blogger Academy” a week or so ago because of a Catherine posted. Now I’m hooked
Too many blogs out there are full of fluff. I love the real, practical, hands-on advice (which is why I love Blogging Tips 101 too!)
Ah that’s great to hear Brittany. I’m glad I helped you find her blog and I think you will really benefit from what she has to share.
Thanks for compliment here too. I appreciate you sharing here
Hey Catherine,
I’d say you really had a radical catchup with Brittany. Its been a while now since I saw her commenting. Nowadays, her comments are on almost every post.
And as you mentioned in your previous posts that blog commenting determines a blogger’s future and if one is good and active at blog commenting then his/her chances of succeeding are really high.
And fortunately, Brittany is on the right path now and I wish she succeeds. Nonetheless, thanks for sharing this wonderful interview Catherine and thanks a lot Brittany for sharing your inspiring experiences with us.
I wish you two have a great week ahead!
Cheers!
- Rohit
Brittany is certainly one of those bloggers who practices what she preaches Rohit. She is a great commenter, and you can learn lots from people’s comments as well as their posts.
I’m glad you found the interview useful and enjoy Brittany’s writing.
Thanks for sharing your ideas here
Hey Brittany and Catherine,
Good to see two of my blogging friends together in one place! Catherine, thanks for featuring Brittany and allowing us to learn more about you.
Great interview, Brittany. I especially liked this bit:
“Longevity is huge in the blogging world, so it would have been nice if I’d been building a following for longer.”
Amen to that one. I started blogging only a few months after Darren Rowse started ProBlogger. Oh how I wish I was doing what I do now back then. Sigh.
It was awesome learning more about you. You’ve built quite a “tribe” at IBA. I didn’t realize how big the group is until recently when I started browsing the site!
Hope you both have amazing weekends.
- Kevin
Hi Catherine and Brittany,
2 of my favorite bloggers, love it!
The last tip works. SO well. I built my blog on the idea that if you create something worthy and connect with blogging pros by helping them out something special will happen with your blog. Your friends in high places make your blog. Point blank. So keep making those friends to keep your blog growing.
Do not stop. Amen to that guys.
After starting and stopping many times during the past 5 years, I got clear 3 months ago on Blogging from Paradise. Blame the Fiji Water
Anyway, I chose to purify my intent. I am free to travel, and I want bloggers to retire to become full time, pro bloggers, if they want the same. Since I know how to become a full time pro blogger, I explain how to do it…..whether you want to island hop in paradise, or whether you just want to blog from home, to free up your sked, so you can spend more time with your fam.
SO many talented, skilled bloggers are running themselves ragged…..I just saw this and figured, if I can show through my blogs and eBooks how to create a relaxed, prospering, freeing lifestyle, you can get paid at home, or in paradise, while playing….otherwise known as “working”, to folks who don’t get it
Thanks BB and CH!
Tweeting through Triberr.
Enjoy your weekend.
Ryan
Awww thanks Ryan
Do not stop….that is a big one isn’t it. It can be incredibly easy to give up when things get tough (and they do get tough), but the trick is sticking it through. Learning how to keep going without running yourself ragged is certainly great advice!
Thanks for sharing here Ryan
Hi Catherine,
I love that you chose to interview Brittany. What a refreshing post!
Brittany,
You are clearly an inspiration and powerhouse now. Forget the past, it doesn’t really matter except for the lessons you learned that you can impart to others.
I can totally understand you and your husband. Our kids were ten and four when I first ventured out on my own as a new business owner. We found a way to make it work both in my businesses and at home. There was no way I was going to sacrifice my family for business. Business may come and go, but family is forever. I have no regrets!
I can also identify with you in regards to wishing I hadn’t been so wishy washy about blogging several years ago. I can’t imagine where I might be right now. But, again it’s a learning lesson. Right?
In many ways I’m much better for it.
I really enjoyed getting to know you better and I’m so glad we are connected. I’ll be sharing out from Twitter on Triberr and Google+.
I hope you have an awesome weekend!
~ Don Purdum
Thanks Don. It’s awesome when I can interview someone like Brittany. She is incredibly inspirational.
It’s certainly hard not to be ‘wishy washy’ about blogging when you are first starting. It can take time to really set your niche into place but also have an understanding of what that means. It’s a lesson that we all need to learn.
Thanks for sharing your ideas here
Hey Catherine,
Another great interview and I’m glad to know a little bit more about Brittany. In the short time I’ve gotten to connect with her, she’s truly a great person that always seems so positive. And that’s an awesome trait.
Hey answer for the hurdles to overcome is really something because we all have to do trial and error online to try to find something that works. And it may happen quickly or it may take a lengthy time. But that’s definitely something that bloggers do have to face.
“If you have to cut back on your posting schedule, go for it, but don’t completely abandon your site. Let it grow and mature with you– or move your audience to a new site if you must, just don’t disappear!”
Great advice. Blogging takes persistence.
Great job having Brittany on here, Catherine.
Hope both of you have an awesome weekend.
- Andrew
Thanks Andrew, it’s great to hear you enjoyed the interview.
I love the section you highlighted here too. If things are getting too much it is wise to cut back rather than give up all together. If you keep something ticking over it is much easier to resurrect than something that has been sitting dormant for weeks or months. It’s always great to have this kind of advice from successful bloggers.
Thanks for sharing your ideas here Andrew
Thanks Brittany, for sharing these tips. It’s great for those of us, like me, who are just starting out, to know that more long-term successful bloggers have faced, and still face, similar challenges. I love how you’ve been able to fit blogging into your family life.
Brittany is certainly someone who demonstrates how to fit in a family around blogging. It’s also great that she is transparent with her journey, as this is how bloggers learn.
Good luck with your blogging journey Rachel and if there is anything you need help with just shout out
Hi Brittany,
Nice to see you here. and loved reading your interview. Thanks for sharing about your blogging journey and experiences.
As a mom blogger, it is very hard to manage everything. Even, I have the same condition. My super-naughty daughter is just 2 years old. Really juggling with kitchen, baby and blogging but, enjoyable too.
Thanks again for sharing your wonderful advices. Thanks to you too Catherine for bringing up Brittany here.
Fantastic interview. Have a great weekend ahead both of you.
Hi Nisha. Brittany is certainly one of those blogging mummies that you can learn a lot from. I understand too first hand how hard it is to juggle blogging with a toddler, but Brittany just goes to show that it can be done…and done well!
I’m glad you enjoyed the interview, thanks for stopping by and sharing with us
Hi Catherine,
I have read many interviews yet but I found this one really interesting.:)
Though I have met Brittany few days ago in this online business and I am pretty amazed to know that she is a Mom and achieved a lot in her blogging career.
You know its really difficult when you have children with you and then you need to work for making some money. may be money is always not the concern. Many bloggers write just for fun.
I agree with Brittany that we need to work so hard to drive traffic to your blog. There are many things you need to do for your blog and one of them is traffic.
Writing for your readers should be the main priority. I have noticed that many bloggers only think about SEO of their blog which is not a positive approach.
As you know SEO keep changes as Don has written an amazing article related to SEO at his blog Unveiltheweb.com. He has pointed about changes of SEO and how he manage his blog?
Growing your network to have more readers at your blog is an effective way. And we all know that human relationships always work great.;)
Using social media is the way by which you can connect with many new people and if you are in marketing then you can turn them to your readers. Building trust is the key for marketing.
Thanks for making us aware about Brittany and her journey.
Hope you are enjoying this weekend.:)
~Ravi
Brittany is certainly an inspirational blogger and a lot can be learnt from her (whether you are a mum or not). She has shown that dedication and hard work can lead to a successful business.
I agree Ravi, blogs that are written solely for SEO are dull. It is no way to attract readers. You need to be thinking about who you are writing for, and this is something that Brittany does incredibly well.
Thanks for stopping by and commenting today
Hi Catherine and Brittany,
Oops, I think I sent my comment as a message
So here it is again.
I’m so glad that I’ve met you both, recently as you are both inspiring women.
My favorite tip of yours here, Brittany, is not to give up blogging and just keep going. I don’t know if some bloggers got it right the first time around, and if they did, well done, I would say, but for the rest of us it took some trials and misses before we got it right.
I’ve been blogging since 2007, but what a journey. Internet years are like multiplied by 10 at least, and even though it’s only 7 years, it seem more like it’s been decades
that I’ve been learning through my trials and errors.
But at least, as you mention here, when you write on your blog you own it, you don’t need to wait on some producers approbation or anything like that. You’ll get what you put in, and that’s a good thing.
Thanks Catherine for helping us to get to know Brittany better. Great job!
Absoluely Sylviane….never give up! You never know when you are going to reach that peak and the last thing you want to do is give up just before you get there! The fact that you have been blogging for 7 years already is testiment to your commitment and drive.
Britanny is an awesome example of someone who has kept plugging away no matter what, and now she is seeing the rewards of that hard work.
Thanks for leaving your feedback here Sylvianne
[…] Blogging Tips From Brittany Bullen: Mommy Blogger Academy […]
Very inspiring ! Britanny is such an awesome writer and mum. Thanks for sharing the interview Catherine.