Welcome to the Ultimate Blog Podcast!
Welcome to the first episode of the Ultimate Blog Podcast! We are so excited you are here. This podcast is something we have wanted to do for a very long time and we have finally hit record.
Our goal is to share helpful tips and tricks with women who are wanting to start a blog or who already have a blog they want to improve.
We are both bloggers and want to have open and honest conversations with you about what it looks like to be a blogger a how you can grow and improve your blog.
Today we want to chat with you about our story and how we got started, how we met, and how the company we own together, Spark Media Concepts, got started and how we can help you.
Jennifer’s Story
Jennifer’s story starts back in 2012. She had been an accountant for about several years at that point and ended up having a lot of life changes going on and ended up leaving her job. Jennifer loved work but she did not want to go back to the corporate world. She did not want to spend her days commuting any longer and being away from her kids or answering to someone else and asking for a day off. Jennifer knew she wanted to work but wanted to find something different that allowed flexibility in her schedule.
Jennifer had been an avid reader of different food blogs, always trying to find a way to get a healthy dinner on the table for her family. She was always looking for healthier options that used more wholesome ingredients and so she started adapting the recipes she was coming across in the blogs she was reading. While she was looking at blogs, she came across a blogger who was sharing information on how she made more with her blog and she started thinking. She loved to read blogs and loved making recipes and didn’t want to go back to her corporate job. So, she became a blogger.
That idea turned into her blog which launched fall of 2013, Slow Cooker Gourmet. During her first year as a blogger, she didn’t make any money but the second year, she started making a decent part-time income which continued over the next few years. By 4-5 years in, she replaced her income that she was making as an accountant.
Amy’s Story
In early 2016, Jennifer realized that she needed to bring in some help. She wanted to hire a Virtual Assistant (VA). Jennifer had a specific person in mind but didn’t know how to ask her. Jennifer posted on Facebook that she was looking for help and Amy replied right away (turns out that is exactly who she was thinking of when thinking of a person to help). Amy and Jennifer are neighbors and so began them working together. Little did they know it would turn into a bigger business than they had ever thought of.
Amy had been in the content creation space since 2015. She was spending a lot of time forming connections on Instagram and sharing content via Instagram without getting paid. She always considered herself an entrepreneur at heart, making burlap wreaths, selling books, and she loved contributing to her family financially.
When Jennifer said she needed help with her blog, Amy jumped at the opportunity to be a VA and learn more about how bloggers can make money. So, she started working as Jennifer’s VA and ended up going to a conference that changed her entire perspective and made her realize that she should start a blog (along with Jennifer’s encouragement). Amy was amazed that you could actually make money with a blog.
Amy launched her blog, Beautifully Broken Journey, in fall of 2017 and just a few months later, Spark Media Concepts, the business she and Jennifer run together was launched.
How Spark Media Concepts got started…
Jennifer was talking about her dreams and goal one day and she mentioned that she had a feeling that there were other people out there who wanted to do the same thing, but maybe they were scared or they didn’t have anybody in their life who would support them and they may would start a blog if they had the right help.
A few weeks later Amy is talking to a friend who was looking for exactly what Jennifer had mentioned so Amy said they could help her! And so began their business. In December 2017, Amy and Jennifer began building blogs for women who either needed them for their business or had one and needed improving. They did this for 2.5-3 years. But, what they found was people were not feeling empowered with the blogs and weren’t sure how to use their blogs.
When the pandemic hit, they launched their course, The Ultimate Blog Bootcamp to not only teach women how to start their blog, but to support them every step of the way.
We truly want to inspire others to keep pressing on and learning and growing.
We hope that you will come back every Tuesday to listen. From tips and tricks about blogging, having conversations with others, and sharing everything we know about blogging, we want to help you learn and grow.
Please share this episode with someone who it may help or inspire or share this episode on Instagram and tag us at @sparkmediaconcepts.
We would love for you to review the podcast so that we can reach more people. Our goal is to help as many people as possible who want to start a blog.
Thank you for being here and being a part of this community. We cannot wait to connect with you!
IN THIS EPISODE, WE COVER:
- Jennifers’ story to becoming a full-time blogger. Check out Jennifer’s blog HERE.
- Amy’s story to becoming a full-time blogger. Check out Amy’s blog HERE.
- How Spark Media Concepts was started
- The ways we can help you become a blogger – The Ultimate Blog Bootcamp
LINKS AND RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
- Wanting to learn more about starting a blog? Start HERE.
- Follow us on Instagram: @sparkmediaconcepts
MORE ABOUT THE ULTIMATE BLOG PODCAST:
Welcome to The Ultimate Blog Podcast! This podcast is for you if you’ve ever wanted to learn blogging basics so that you can start your own blog or if you have been a blogger for years but are struggling to grow or need inspiration and community.
Every Tuesday we will be sharing a new episode where we will cover topics from the basics of starting a blog, monetizing and growing your site, to finding the inspiration you need to keep going. You will also find guest interviews with experts on different blogging topics as well as interviews with bloggers who’ve been in your shoes.
Amy Reinecke and Jennifer Draper are bloggers themselves who want to encourage you to believe in your potential, step outside the norm and step into a life where you create your own schedule, your own success and your own story.
We’d love to connect with you on our other platforms so please visit us at www.sparkmediaconcepts.com or follow us on Instagram at @sparkmediaconcepts