There's often much debate around the blogosphere about what bloggers choose to write and share on their blog, and how often they do so. I've lost count on how many posts I've come across where bloggers are apologizing for their lack of presence, their unplanned blogging hiatus, lack of consistent daily posts, sponsored posts, and so on. Reading those posts always leaves me wondering what it is about the blog world that leaves us bloggers feeling so pressured to come here and write daily or avoid writing certain things at all.
With that being said, I'd like to touch on the subject of content; the stuff bloggers choose to write on their blog. There seems to be unsolicited opinions regarding blog posts. If you're not sharing every detail of your life on your blog, you're not personal enough. If you only highlight the positives in your life, you're fake and not relatable. If you write fun lists and join linkups, you're unoriginal and lack creativity. If you post sponsored content, you're a sellout. The list goes on, but my point is that whatever it may be, someone's always going to bitch about something. You can't make everyone happy no matter how hard you try.
Now hold it right there and lets go back to that last sentence about sponsored content. This is a popular topic among the blog world. People either support sponsored posts or they don't. Those that share sponsored posts have their reasons that explain why they choose to do so and those that don't have their reasons of why they'll never do so. To each their own. I happen to be one of those, along with thousands of other bloggers, that chooses to share sponsored content on my blog. Before I was a blogger, I was an avid blog reader that couldn't even tell you what a sponsored post was. Now that I'm on the other side of things, I understand exactly what they were doing. When I saw bloggers talking up products, I never thought it was strange or annoying, and a lot of times I was genuinely interested in what they had to say. Sure, I sometimes would've preferred hearing more about their weekend happenings or personal stories they shared, but I never held a grudge or rolled my eyes when I got a few less of those posts and a few more sponsored posts in my feed.
The sponsored content never bothered me because I looked at it this way: if there's an omg so freaking amazing everyone must know story or the best sale that everyone needs to take advantage of stat, it would still be shared regardless.
Before I made the decision to accept sponsors on my blog, I wondered how it would affect the content I had originally planned to share, which was documentations of the happenings in my life. After much thought, I realized how stupid I was for ever even worrying about it because one, two, or heck, even twenty sponsored posts weren't going to stop me from sharing other stuff I want to share. Instead of seeing it as being a sellout like some eye rolling people do, I see it as an opportunity to share something new with others in a creative way. Nobody is being forced to read it and for as many people that dislike those posts, there's even more people that like those posts. As long as I'm being mindful in the sponsorships I accept and can relate it to my life and feel it could be valuable or interesting to others, I'll share it, especially when I can turn a sponsored post into something I'd otherwise blog about anyway, like
this one.
It's one thing when a blog only posts about fashion and then shows up to class with sponsored post after sponsored post about baby diapers, but that's not the case for everyone. The beauty in lifestyle blogs is that you have the freedom to blog about whatever you damn well please. For most (myself included) our blogs are just a space to come and document and share random stuff with people. You and I both know the unwritten rule of blogging that says you should have a blog post scheduled at the same time, at least five days a week. Want my opinion on that? I say screw it. If there's something more important going on in your life or something you'd rather be doing than trying to think up the next big thing to post, do it. It's your blog and you make the rules. There's no need to apologize for your lack of presence. If I have nothing personal to say for a week? Too bad. It is what it is. If I have a lot to say, then it is my hope you gain something out of it and enjoy it at least.
Blogging started as a hobby and regardless of what you're writing and if you're getting paid to write it or not, as long as you're having fun while doing it, it will always be a hobby. You shouldn't be ashamed if you're making money off of something you love. If that's not the case, then everything in my
Etsy shop, and anyone else with one for that matter, should be free.
I can't speak for everyone on this, but at least for me, at the end of the day, if there's something I want to share, I will. Having sponsored content isn't going to take away from other posts I have planned.Labels: blogging, rants, thoughts, when blogging gets annoying