Our team reached out to blogger and marketer Jenny Barrett who is in the field for 8 years. We talk to her about blogging, writing, fashion, and more!
1) Can you tell our readers about yourself and your blog?
I’m Jenny; a thirty-something who works in marketing by day! I’ve had my blogs for almost seven years, it’s called Jenny Chat which was a nickname I was given years ago when working as a holiday (and yes, it’s a very accurate nickname!)
2) Describe how you first got into blogging?
I got into blogging when I was at university. I was studying English and constantly looking for fashion content online, so thought ‘why not make my own’?
3) How would you describe your blogging style?
My blog used to be 100% about fashion, that was my main interest, and after a little while, I included a bit about food and travel. As time went on, I found I enjoyed writing more chatty posts about real life and things I’ve learned and think, so I’d say now it was almost like a weekly column-style of the page to visit. I still adore fashion, but I mainly save that for Instagram and Tik Tok.
4) What would be your ideal working environment?
This changes all the time! Sometimes I want to bounce ideas off people, sometimes I want to be by myself and figure things out. Sometimes I work best in an office, others on my couch or in a coffee shop on my phone. I like the fact I have the option to do any and all of those things.
5) What was the most challenging moment in your blogging journey so far?
Honestly, it’s not having as much time to spend on it as I used to. When I was at uni I had lots of free time to devote to it, however, as I’ve returned to work and gotten busier over the past few years I’ve had less time to sit and create content.
6) How much time do you spend blogging?
Maximum of a couple of hours every week, but I would love it to be more.
7) Is blogging your profession or just a hobby?
Blogging is my hobby, but it has led me to my current profession by developing a lot of the key skills that I use in my marketing day job. Anyone who has a blog should ALWAYS remember to include it on their CV to show the time taken and skills developed.
8) Describe your writing process, from concepts to publishing?
There’s no method to my madness, just the madness! I don’t have a set process. Sometimes a post starts with a title, a conversation with a friend, or something I’ve seen on the news that I want to offer an opinion on.
In terms of writing. I could have an idea and type the whole post up there and then, other times I prefer to leave it a little longer to do a bit more research or work out how best to word things.
Where possible, I write and schedule my posts in advance so that I have regular content going out on the same day each week.
9) How would you encourage other people to make their blog?
If you have any interest in something that you’d like to share (e.g. fashion, food, skincare or dating experiences) a blog is a great place to share this. You’ll want potential readers to know what kind of content they should expect to see from you and when, so have a think about this before making a start. Sites such as WordPress allow you to set up a basic blog for free whilst you’re getting things underway, there’s no need to pay for fancy add-ons until you know you’re serious about making a go of things.
10) How often should you update your blog?
As often as possible and as often as you can. I used to upload three posts per week when I had more time, now that I have less time I aim to post at least once per week.
11) What’s your favorite part of the writing process?
I enjoy being able to entertain, educate and inform people through my words, it’s the best creative outlet I have. Writing is my absolute passion.
12) Can you tell me some of your strengths that really helped you in blogging?
I love writing, I am interested in the things I write about and I try to learn new tips and skills from others to help me improve.
13) How do you motivate yourself?
Working to a deadline is the best motivator I’ve ever come across. If you’re writing only for yourself, having a set date/s you publish each week will help stick to this
14) Where would you like to be in blogging five years from now?
With the rapid development, in digital technology and how people consume content, it’s difficult to say. What I’d like to achieve may not have even been invented yet!
15) Do you have some tips for those people who are interested in making money from the blog?
DO NOT GO INTO BLOGGING WITH THE SOLE INTENTION OF MAKING MONEY. This is not the best reason to start a blog, and you’ll probably quit three months down the line when you haven’t had brands knocking at the door to work with you.
Once you’ve established your blog; your audience and your content then is a good time to approach brands to see if they’d like to team up. Having a well-written email pitch and a media kit is essential for this. Make sure you’re only approaching brands that would be a natural fit with the other content on your blog. For example, if you only wrote about skincare and makeup, it’s unlikely that a restaurant would want to work with you (and your readers would probably find such a different kind of post a bit strange too).
