{"id":121365,"date":"2024-02-16T07:46:17","date_gmt":"2024-02-16T12:46:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.enchantedhome.com\/blog\/?p=121365"},"modified":"2024-02-16T09:17:05","modified_gmt":"2024-02-16T14:17:05","slug":"personal-post-blogging-giveaway","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.enchantedhome.com\/blog\/2024\/02\/16\/personal-post-blogging-giveaway\/","title":{"rendered":"A personal post about blogging and a giveaway!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hi everyone, hope \u00a0this finds you well. \u00a0You may want to take a 15 minute coffee break for this one, this is very text heavy! We finally got almost \u00a07″ of the most beautiful snow, 2 days ago it was amazing and so magical! I got so excited running from window to window seeing taking in every angle of our landscape blanketed in white crisp glistening snow. It was a snow day for our office, \u00a0so a great day to stay in and catch up which leads me to my post today. I wanted to send out this post for a few weeks now, which is a bit \u00a0more personal than what my posts often are, \u00a0which typically center around lifestyle or design.<\/p>\n

Because this is super heavy on text, I am enclosing a few pre- spring pictures from seasons past just for a little eye candy:)<\/p>\n

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I am so beyond grateful to so many of you who have been following me for a very long time, I often hear from some of you who have followed me from the very beginning, which is astounding and incredibly gratifying.When I get an email from someone stating ” I have been with you from the beginning” theres a palpable flutter in my heart.\u00a0I thank you for your continued patronage and support. It is thanks to you that I started a business which has continued to grow and without my steadfast readers, I am not sure that would have been possible! I always say and mean it, blogging has been, and continues to be my form of therapy. So cathartic, cannot imagine life without it!<\/p>\n

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The other day, \u00a0I went down memory lane and went really<\/em> deep into a rabbit hole, started way back \u00a0to my very very first post and it brought back so many warm and fuzzy memories. At that time the blog world was its own little universe, even though it was online, I forged friendships with several like-minded wonderful people. And not only other bloggers, but customers and readers as well. It was a unique and special moment in time, because that was the juncture where blogging, was really starting to take off, and I feel so fortunate to have somewhat serendipitously landed upon it.<\/p>\n

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\u00a0I still \u00a0find it incredibly cathartic, almost 12 years (wow) later! \u00a0I love getting “in the zone’ when I can sit down in my office just with my own thoughts and write, whatever it is that I am interested in talking about, on that particular day. I also have and continue to enjoy the connections that I get to make with so many of you, truly icing on the cake! And in a world that seems to spin faster (and feels more out of control) then ever, \u00a0the constant of my blog and my amazing readers is one thing that allows me to feel grounded and connected.<\/p>\n

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The entire landscape of blogging, however, has changed dramatically<\/em> as I\u2019m sure many of you might have noticed, particularly if you follow other blogs. I guess I was living in a bit of a bubble or under a rock, but I was unaware just how much<\/em> it really has changed until recently, I was asked to be part of an online focus group about blogging\/social media, and it was almost like I\u2019ve been living in a parallel universe.<\/p>\n

There have been SO MANY changes, almost all unbeknownst to me! Most traditional blogs like mine have fallen to the wayside or restarted on one of these new blogging platforms. There are new glistening platforms like Substack taking over and reenergizing the blog world. And even more upcoming. Blogging has and is changing really fast.<\/em> In fact, \u00a0many say there is a resurrection of blogging thanks to a platform like Substack. I did not even know it existed, guess \u00a0my heads been in the sand:) I think this was their rebuttal to the emergence of social media like Instagram, TikTok, etc…..<\/p>\n

I know for myself, I love<\/em> the written word. I enjoy “getting to know someone” which is what blogging affords. It’s much more personal that looking at pretty picture or series of pictures, or even a well done video. Blogging goes deeper and is much more personal.<\/p>\n

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I \u00a0have been told for years that I was missing a huge opportunity by not allowing ads or not monetizing my blog, which when you think about it equates to my time. I really did it (still do) out of nothing but love and joy, but the truth is, it does<\/em> take a lot of my time, and though the blogging has afforded me a wonderful way to connect with my online shop of Enchanted Home products, the blogging itself (lifestyle and decor content) requires many hours of research and writing.<\/p>\n

So I am therefore upon the recommendation of a “consultant” who was present for that focus group, absorbing all this new information about this entirely new frontier and \u00a0throwing around different ideas. I am considering the pros and cons of each of these opportunities to begin to monetize my blog for my time and effort So hear me out here..when you think about it, a typical home shelter magazine \u00a0is roughly $5-8.00 and frankly most of them are pretty skimpy.<\/p>\n

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Recently at the airport, I picked up two magazines for a whopping total of $18.00! They were so thin and I was done with them in a matter of minutes. So I see the argument which is pretty persuasive about blogs having tremendous value. I blog between 2-3 times a week so that is roughly 8-12 blog posts a month, minimum. I think for the very minimal subscription cost that has been proposed , that it sounds extremely fair.<\/p>\n

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So this is where you come in because I greatly value your opinions, thoughts, and perspectives.<\/p>\n

One option is I have wanted to, for quite a while, start a new account\/blog which is a bit more personal, think of it as an Enchanted Home 2.0 (while keeping this current blog). \u00a0There are often times (almost daily) that I want to discuss subjects, which really have nothing to do with business, my business or the world of design. Since my current blog is also tied heavily into my business, this new more personal blog would really be content about “life” (not business oriented) I love creative writing and frankly miss doing it as much as I used to so this is a big plus with this idea.<\/p>\n

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But I have never felt, and I think rightfully so, \u00a0that these were not necessarily topics that belonged on a design\/lifestyle blog. This idea would be more of a personalized blog regarding thoughts on life, my life, perspectives on a whole hosts of things and eventually would include full insider access to our eventual renovation project.<\/p>\n

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If I were to do this, \u00a0this new more personal based blog \u00a0would post 2 to 3 times a week. Therefore, a minimum of 10 to 12 post a month.I would love to know first what you think about this idea and secondly what subscription rate you would feel is fair ?to be charged monthly)<\/p>\n

Rates vary wildly but it seems the $5-7 monthly fee is a very fair and easy to swallow price to start.<\/p>\n

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The second idea would be to keep my blog (that you have always gotten) and charge a comparable monthly fee. It would essentially remain the same, and would still be tied in with my e-commerce platform (shop site). We are launching our new site ( I know, I know I have been saying this for months) but we really are, just had to update some new features so we are nearing the end. I refuse to say when because I have had to eat my words more than once. But I promise its soon!<\/p>\n

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As time goes on, hopefully within the foreseeable future, we are going to begin a massive renovation on our current home, which I\u2019m incredibly excited about. I want to be able to journal and chronicle it properly, filled with pictures, resources, information, etc. but I also have to acknowledge what I have been told for years now is true, that this type of information has value, my time<\/em> has value, and I think it\u2019s fair after all these years, that I am able to ask for a nominal monthly fee. After all, this is a business and it\u2019s my full-time job, which I am incredibly devoted to.<\/p>\n

Plus there is so much more I like to talk about, like cooking, day to day challenges and how I deal with them, fashion and beauty for someone over 50,etc….<\/p>\n

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So bottom line is, the options are keeping my blog\/shop exactly as is with the addition of a new, much more personal blog (not focused on shop or business) that would have a monthly subscription rate or keeping my blog as it is with a monthly subscription rate and not changing anything else. I am not great with change, I will be the first to admit that. I am a definite creature of habit but trying to be more proactive this year and be more open to new ideas and opportunities. That is my one singular goal for 2024, to get out there more and try new things, be open to new ideas and incidentally this entire new blogging conversation ties right into that.<\/p>\n

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So yes, this is a lot of information to take in. \u00a0I am not doing anything anytime soon however I really would love to take the pulse of my most valued readers and followers to know what you think. I value your opinion greatly and will be carefully reading over all your replies once they come in. I will share with you what my thoughts are once I have had a chance to go through the poll results and will be studying the various options in due time. You will be the first to know, I promise!<\/p>\n

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Thank you so much in advance for reading and if you made it to this point, you are a true devotee! To thank you for participating in my survey below I am offering a fun giveaway. I will announce the winner on Sunday.Just leave a comment in the comment section with your name (first name and last name initial) and you will be in the running!<\/p>\n

Scroll down to complete the 9 questions below and thank you in advance!<\/p>\n