You have been a successful Journalist and worked with biggest of Media houses, Wasn’t it tough to start from the scratch?

To answer your question in one word, NO ! It wasn’t tough. Tough is a very strong word. I wont say it was very easy Though. You know they say, easy come and easy go ! Working for others and working for yourself are two very different things. When you work for others ( especially for bigger media houses) very little is at stake but as you start working on yourself, Your entire being ,your very existence everything is at stake. There is no way you can get lazy or feel like pushing it to tomorrow. You are your own boss, Your colleague, Your officeboy , your coach . Every morning when I get up, I am excited about what new can I do today , what new can offer to my readers or followers. That’s the kind of motivation you have when you turn your passion into your work . Coming back to your question , Another reason why I didn’t have to struggle too much was because my journalism background, pr companies/ brands kind of already knew me from before which really made my initial days quite a cake walk.

So when did you receive your first pay check post blogging?

It actually happened the very second month. It was a small amount , Only 5000 rs but I still remember how I happy I was that day. More than a pay check it was motivational for me. I would not like to name the client but I will honestly never get over how elated I was with those 5 grands.

Q: what are the current market trends in blogging?

Answer : Presently, it is all about Instagram. It has become a hard core number game where your success is defined by the number of followers you have. The old school blogging is slightly over shadowed by good looking pictures. Content has kind of taken backseat and its all about making good photographs. Infact the word , Blogging itself has slightly moved out of the window and we are all called Influencers now.

Q: Do you think this is a good trend for real blogging?

Answer: Well to be honest, Yes and No.

Yes because Change is inevitable in any industry. Every media has gone through its own course of movement and expansion. Blogging for me is experiential and an experience can be expressed to the readers or followers via long paragraphs or even with a well shot photograph. As long as your message is clear, there is nothing wrong with any platform. There are so many bloggers who just use social media to express themselves. And I find nothing wrong In it.

Yes, because shallow blogging with low quality content and no real knowledge is becoming acceptable. Brands have lost the focus since they just look at the number of followers now.

Q: But then how are you surviving right now ?

Answer : Haha, I am surviving because I had my basics right. I knew What I wanted to do. I knew what I am good at. I knew what is my niche. So instead of doing everything and anything, I chose to stick to my niche. My niche is also What I believe in personally so it wasn’t tough. Beauty is something very close to my heart. I feel very strongly about Beauty, Not looking beautiful but feeling beautiful. And yes, fashion is again a topic which is close yet personal and therefore, I do lots of personal styling posts and article. The idea is to provide information which is easy to do and easy to follow .

Q: So What’s your tip to the newbie bloggers/ influencers who are just starting off?

Answer :

Have patience: Rome was not built in a day . Everthing takes its own sweet time

Stick to your niche: This is very important. Find out your area of interests. Be a master of your trade rather than a jack of all. Once you know where your heart is, start reading more and more about the topic and make your notes.

Be informative : that’s the whole idea . Isnt it !

Get inspired but don’t copy : It’s a very thin line but make sure you don’t cross it. Have your own style else you will just get lost in the sea of influncers/ bloggers .

Be you : Because only you can be you. People will relate more if you are yourself rather than pretending to be someone else. Infact if you look at it , Being yourself is far more easy as you don’t really have to carry another personality with you all the time.

Value yourself : Do not underestimate yourself cuz you are new. Always remember, you will never get anything in life , if you don’t ask for it. This is applicable to almost everything including Paychecks.

I think to get started These pointers may come handy and as one grows with time , We all find our own do’s and dont’s.

Thank you so much shambhavi for speaking to us.