In episode 645, Megan chats to bloggers, Ashley Freeman and Gwen Wolken, about how to achieve success as a new blogger. This is part 2 of the New Blogger conversations.

Ashley is a seasoned culinary content creator with 11 years of experience who launched her blog, Little Black Skillet, at the end of 2023. Her journey began in the publishing world as a recipe developer, food stylist, and cookbook editor before transitioning to freelance. Ashley has served as the editor of over 40 cookbooks and has authored two of her own, including The Duke's Mayonnaise Cookbook, published in 2020. She also brought her culinary expertise to television, working as the head food stylist for seasons 1–4 and culinary producer for seasons 5–9 of the Food Network show Delicious Miss Brown.

Gwen Wolken founded A Sweet Thyme to share her recipes with family and friends and to connect with others who love to cook. Today, the blog houses delicious and dependable Mediterranean recipes that are mostly gluten-free and simple to prepare. After spending time in corporate America, Gwen became an entrepreneur and had several businesses, but her favorite was a chocolate business that she nurtured for over ten years before creating A Sweet Thyme. Gwen is married and the Mom to three adult boys, two of which are married.

In this episode, you’ll learn how to invest wisely in your blogging business when you're starting out and why networking can make a big difference to your blog’s growth trajectory.

Key points discussed include:

- Understand your audience: Regularly survey your audience to ensure your content aligns with their needs and interests.

- Explore new content formats: Consider adding video content to your Pinterest strategy to diversify your offerings.

- Evaluate your marketing efforts: Regularly assess the return on investment for your participation in Facebook recipe roundup groups.

- Leverage organizational tools: Use tools like Reminders and spreadsheets to create a daily to-do list and stay organized.

- Find your niche: Identify your unique strengths and passions, and let them shine through in your content.

- Invest in your business: Be willing to spend money on hosting, themes, and other tools to improve your blog's performance.

- Build a supportive community: Participate in mastermind groups and attend conferences to connect with like-minded bloggers.

- Adapt to platform changes: Stay flexible and willing to adjust your strategies as platforms like Pinterest update their algorithms.

- Embrace authenticity: Focus on creating content that aligns with your values and resonates with your audience, rather than chasing trends.

Connect with Ashley Freeman

Website | Instagram

Connect with Gwen Wolken

Website  | Instagram