Bloggin on a Budget

From the moment I started blogging 2½ years ago, I told myself that whatever knowledge I gain about successfully growing a blog/Instagram without breaking the bank, I’m going to share it with others out there looking to do the same. When I first started blogging I reached out to dozens of bloggers that had become successful and been in the game for a while and I asked them for their honest advice on how to grow in the blogging world. I got the same response from basically every single one and it went along the lines of “be yourself” and “be consistent.” And while thats all great, I was already doing that and in no way did that tell me how I could become successful without having to spend a bazillion dollars on expensive clothes and handbags in order to gain a following or catch a brand’s attention.

I went on to build my blog/Instagram learning everything along the way with might I add on a major budget. Once I got into the swing of things I realized I could actually grow as a blogger without having to spend a crazy amount of money on clothing or fancy vacations. That being said, I still don’t see very much information online on what exactly it takes, or even basic tips, on how to grow in the blogging world when you’re on a budget. It sort of seems like no one wants to share their blogging secrets or let fellow bloggers in on how to get started without breaking the bank. I personally felt this first hand when I started blogging and I am not here for it. Therefore, I wanted to create a comprehensive, real, honest and straight forward guide on how to blog on a budget so that other bloggers struggling to make it work have some real advice on how to get started.

How to Blog on a Budget

You’re going to have to get creative:

When I first started blogging I shot whatever cute outfits I already had and I borrowed clothes, accessories and shoes from my sister, mom, cousins, friends, whoever was willing to let me borrow something for a photo and didn’t mind. Use what you have to get started, it doesn’t all have to be new, you’re just trying to show your personal style at this point and create an aesthetic. I didn’t have beautiful marble counters to shoot my flat lays on so I went and bought a marble cutting board on sale and staged all my flat lays on it and guess what no one could tell. I also didn’t have a ton of makeup or skincare products but I shared what I used and loved with my followers and if I wanted to try something new I would get a sample from Sephora, test it out and then give a review to my audience. While it may not be as easy as it is for someone who doesn’t have a budget, you can still make just as beautiful content for your blog and Instagram, you just have to get creative.

Find a Friend to schedule Photo Shoots with Weekly:

This is one of my best pieces of advice I have for bloggers starting out, especially if you’re on a budget. Enlist a friend or family member to help you shoot content at least once a week. The best way to go about this is to find someone who also needs content shot, that way you’re helping each other shoot new content and both benefiting from it! You also both learn the style of photos that each other like, much like a photographer who regularly shoots for the same blogger does. For example, my cousin and I shoot new content every Tuesday and I’m therefore able to shoot my collabs or even personal posts and she hers, every single week without having to worry about begging my fiancee or sister to help me shoot. If you don’t have someone in your life who can help you, seek out a local blogger in your city who may also need someone to shoot with. You’ll be surprised how many other bloggers would love a consistent shooting situation like this.

Buy Clothes on the Cheap:

Sure there are a ton of bloggers who post mainly designer or high end looks but there are also just as many bloggers who focus solely on affordable fashion and if you ask me, thats way more valuable to their audience. While you may have a couple staples that aren’t super affordable in your closet like your jeans you wear everyday or maybe a handbag that was a gift on a special occasion, if the majority of the looks you post are affordable and attainable to your audience, they will not only value it but be much more likely to actually go out and buy the pieces. Attainable fashion is in and that is a great focus for a blogger starting out to have. Forever 21, Tobi, Windsor, Vici and many more affordable brands have a huge social media presence so styling and posting looks featuring pieces from these brands and tagging them is a great way to be seen and grow as a blogger.

Take Advantage of Where you Live:

Starting out blogging in San Diego, I sort of felt like I had to be traveling to LA, the hot-spot in the blogging world, and that I should be shooting all my content there and focusing more on the LA blogger community. But the truth is that I had a beautiful and less saturated city to take advantage of right where I lived and once I started doing so, I began to have a bigger presence as a San Diego blogger. Wherever you live, explore your city, seek out cool and unknown spots to shoot, talk about your favorite places to eat or sight see or better yet create a comprehensive city guide so that fellow bloggers in the area or tourists coming to visit can refer to your recommendations to have the best experience in your city. My most popular blog post is my San Diego city guide because it contains valuable information that you can’t find anywhere else and is a great resource for anyone visiting San Diego. Creating something like this for your city is a great way to kick-start you blog and your presence in your local blogging community.

Another major piece of advice I have is to reach out to your local businesses for collaborations! Some of my favorite collaborations have been with businesses that are local and unique to my city. This is a great opportunity for a blogger just starting out to take because a lot of small businesses and brands in your city would love to collaborate with bloggers but they also need them to be local, creating the perfect opportunity for you to reach out and propose a collab!  Another great tip I have for bloggers trying to grow is to befriend your local bloggers, seek out blogger events in your city and if there aren’t any, have get togethers, shoot content or just get to know the other bloggers in your city. This is some of the best networking you can do when starting out. Speaking of networking…

Attend Blogger/Brand Events:

Often inexpensive or even free, blogger or brand hosted events in your city are one of the best ways to network, get to know your local brands, befriend local bloggers and build relationships in the blogging community. Not to mention, you can get some great content at these events because they’re usually decorated super cute and they’re a great opportunity to tag the brands/bloggers there and even get reposted or featured on a brand/venue Instagram. I recommend attending as many events as you can when you’re starting out. Don’t have any events like these in your city or town? Throw one yourself! I know so many bloggers who host their own events, and you don’t need a huge following or a lot of money to do so. Build connections with local venues or businesses that may be willing to host, reach out to local brands you’d like to participate and let your local bloggers know about the event and invite them to it. This is a wonderful way to get coverage on social media because everyone will be tagging you and sharing snaps from the event!

Don’t Wait for Brands to Contact You:

Some bloggers have had their inboxes flooded with brand collaboration emails since they first started, but let me tell you, I am not one those people. To be completely honest, in the majority of the collaborations you see on my Instagram and blog, I reached out to them and proposed a collaboration, not the other way around. I still reach out to brands daily and have no shame in doing so and neither should you. I’ve already mentioned reaching out to local brands and businesses but you should also be reaching out to brands or businesses that you want to work with regardless of where they’re located. To be completely real, emailing an enormous brand to collaborate with when you’re just starting out and expecting an email back from them isn’t realistic.

I recommend reaching out to smaller brands, specifically brands with a small Instagram following. I say this because sometimes you think a popular brand is going to have a huge Instagram following so you never reach out, but in reality some brands that I thought would have massive followings on Instagram actually don’t. This is a great example of the type of brand you want out reach out to because you’ll get recognition from having worked with a well known brand but at the same time the brand will be benefitting from collaborating with you even though you may have a small following. And of course you should also reach out to lesser know brands that have a small following that could also benefit from collaborating with you. I advise reaching out to as many brands as you can and building your repertoire with branded posts when you’re trying to grow as a blogger. Of course, only work with brands that you actually love or that you would actually use/wear their items in your real life.

Tag, Tag, Tag:

One of the best ways to get recognized by a brand and grow your following is to be reposted and in order for that to happen you need to tag the brand and have some killer content for them to want to repost. I struggled with this starting out because, to be real, I couldn’t buy a ton of new stuff so I couldn’t really tag brands and its not like a brand is going  to repost a photo of a two year old shirt I got from them. Here’s my advice, when you do buy something from a brand, tag it, find out what hashtags they look for to repost photos and use it (for example Forever 21 uses #forever21xme not just #forever21). Brands also love try-on videos especially on Instagram stories. Go to whatever store you want to try on looks for and film the try on in the dressing room on your stories and tag the brand. Of course this can be tricky with lighting and noise since its not in your own home but its a great way for the brand to notice you and also to show your audience what new pieces you’re loving right now. As for beauty products and makeup, of course you can shoot makeup looks or flat lays with makeup you have and tag the brands but if you want to constantly be trying out and posting photos with new products, get samples, create a makeup look or video and tag the brand.

Honorable Mention: Photography

While this isn’t a photo editing guide (which I know you guys have been asking for, I’ll get one out soon I promise!), I did want to go over one more thing and that is how to shoot beautiful photos without spending tons on a camera and my answer to that is…You Do. Not. Need. A. Nice. Camera. I shoot 90% of my photos on my iphone 7+, not even a new iphone and guess what, they turn out great! Even some of the biggest bloggers I follow solely use their iphone to shoot their photos. I should also note that you don’t need expensive editing software or presets to edit your photos. I personally use snapseed, darkroom and vsco to edit all of which are free but I did buy the $20 filter pack on vsco which is a tiny price to pay for what you get. You can 100% create beautiful photos without expensive cameras or editing software.

 

I hope this guide on how to blog on a budget guide has been helpful and provided insightful information to you! I can’t tell you how much I wish I had something like this to refer to when I was first starting out. I also hope this shows other bloggers who have become successful not to forget what it was like when they were struggling to grow, and that we should always be willing to offer the advice we wished we were given to fellow bloggers who are starting out.