The Blogger Union: Blogger Communities, Education, Networking & Collaboration

The South Florida Bloggers had their March meetup at Le Provençal. Thanks to fashion photographer Bonnie Rodriguez and veteran fashion blogger Valentina Tamayo, attendees got all kinds of helpful tips on how to monetize their brand with new avenues, in addition to affiliate marketing and working with sponsors. Some of the questions asked were: Can you give us a breakdown of how you diversify your revenue streams? How did you come up with the idea for the products and services you offer to your audience? In terms of revenue streams, do you find sponsored collaborations to be the most profitable way to make an income as a blogger/influencer vs your other products and services? What research did you apply to these ideas to find out if they are feasible sources of income and worth investing your time and money? How do you market your products and services or attract clients? (For example: affiliate marketing, influencer marketing, social media, digital marketing, etc) How has your influence helped you monetize your additional revenue streams? Do you have a team or is this an amazing one-woman show? What were the major difficulties or setbacks you encountered when creating your products or services? Special …

We’ve been seeing an increase of social media accounts getting hacked. Members who’ve been devoting time and energy to growing their following see all their work disappear overnight as someone takes over their Instagram account, changes their email/password, and locks them out. Sometimes they ask for money to restore the account. Sometimes they just wipe it out maliciously with no way of getting in contact with them. Some of these accounts are restored by Instagram, some are not. Those unlucky ones unable to get Instagram to restore them, have to start from scratch. Don’t let your hard work vanish before your eyes. Make a few changes to reduce your chances of getting hacked and locked out of your Instagram account. In this article, we’ll be focusing on social media and your website, but these tips are also relevant when it comes to your bank account, and any other sensitive information you’d rather not fall into the wrong hands. Phishing: Don’t click on spoof emails Phishing is when a hacker tries to convince you to give them your username and password by sending you a spoof email that imitates an email from a service provider like a social media network or …

This past weekend, The South Florida Bloggers had their very first meetup of 2018! Thanks to our wonderful speakers, photographers Luccia Lowenthal & Bonnie Rodriguez, and model Nadia Peña, we got all kinds of helpful tips and tricks for killing it at a photoshoot. Some of the things that were discusssed: -How to pose for the perfect selfie -How to pose with accessories -How to pose with the right posture -How to pose in a picture with a friend or significant other After the Q&A, everyone paired up in teams to practice what they had learned. Special thanks to Capital One Cafe for hosting us in their amazing space and for providing delicious Peet’s handcrafted beverages and chicken & waffle sandwiches from Ms Cheezious! They also gave out goodie bags to every attendee. And thanks to Vintage Unicorn for her beautiful brush lettering! Keep scrolling for more photos:                 Thanks to all the lovely bloggers who attended! Can’t wait to see you all at the next one! <3     — ***Capital One Café in Coral Gables recently opened their doors for the public. What is Capital One Café, you ask? It is a one-of-a-kind inviting …

When it comes to influencer marketing and blogging, a photo can either make you or break you. Take your cell phone photos and posing to the next level at our September meetup. Learn tips to take incredible photos with your phone and how to pose to look your best from professional photographers and bloggers: Gabe, Luccia and Stephanie.  RSVP Your Spot Powered by Eventbrite Speakers About Gabriel Sanchez (@gabemedia) Gabriel Sanchez, better known as ‘Gabe’, is a Miami based fashion and commercial photographer as well as cinematographer. He has been a working photographer for the better part of his life by creating images for personal clients, well-known and major brands in and out of the United States. Gabe’s photography style is self described as “simple, candid, and somewhat minimal” with contrasty yet subdued tones. His background in psychology is entwined into his photography and videography, placing value in the relationship between him, his subject, the environment and the moment. About Luccia Lowenthal (@lucciaphotos) Luccia is a professional fashion and lifestyle photographer born and raised in the beautiful summer sun and tropical landscape of Miami, Florida.  In love with the exotic feel of South Florida, Luccia began capturing its essence through the lens of a camera at an early age.  …

This month we talked all things travel with veteran travel blogger Scott Eddy, foodie blogger / PR Director of Four Seasons Resort Nevis Mitchell Nover, Miami lifestyle and travel blogger Blame It On Mei, and the founder of The Blogger Union, Paola Mendez. Best Advice When Pitching a Travel Brand For a Collaboration Find the PR contact for the brand. This person is most likely the decision maker. How do you find that contact? Search on LinkedIn. Google press releases. Press releases usually list the PR contact for the brand. Ask for the person in charge of blogger collaborations via the brand’s social media Direct Messages. Ask a fellow blogger friend to exchange brand contacts. Talk to people on social media and email as you would in person. Introduce yourself, say hello, and ask how they are doing. Ask for stays during low season. Don’t ask for a complimentary stay during high season. It shows you didn’t research the hotel. Brands are looking for content to use on their social media channels. Offering to provide high quality content will catch a brand’s attention. Research the brand before pitching them for a collaboration. Find an opportunity the brand is missing and …

Learn how to pitch hotels for staycations, tourism boards for complimentary tours and attractions, free stays at travel destinations or media rates. Join us as we discuss travel collaborations with Mitch Nover, Director of Public Relations and Communication at Four Seasons Resort Nevis, and Mei from Blame it on Mei. RSVP Your Spot Powered by Eventbrite Powered by Eventbrite About Mitch Nover (@mmtakemiami) Mitchell Nover is a travel and hospitality PR professional and the co-founder of the blog Mitch and Mel Take Miami. A native of the DC Metro Area, Mitchell has lived in Miami since 2005. Since moving here he’s really grown to love the city, so much so that he’s even adopted the distinctive Miami accent – literally!  In addition to co-managing Mitch and Mel Take Miami and constantly on a quest to discover the ins and outs of Miami food scene, Mitchell spends his days as the Director of Public Relations and Communication for Four Seasons Resort Nevis, West Indies. Mitchell’s passion for adventure and exploration melds perfectly with these two roles as he’s traveling about the globe and trying some kind of new and different cuisine.  About Mei Jorge (@blameitonmei) Mei Jorge is the founder and creative mind behind the award-wining and bilingual blog …

If you’re not generating income through your blog or social accounts, this meetup is for you! We’ll hear from two successful bloggers who use affiliate sales, Amazon sales, courses and more to bring in income. Stephanie Li of @LaShoppinista and Aline Lowry of @AlineLowry will show you what works, what doesn’t and how to take advantage of various ways to build income streams online.  We’ll be meeting at the Market @ Macy’s Galleria, an in-store, pop-up boutique that features fresh new finds. RSVP to Save Your Spot Date: Saturday, Aug 10th, from 12 to 2 pm Location: The Market @ Macy’s Galleria, 2314 E. Sunrise Blvd., Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33304 Fee: $10 (Space is limited.) Guest Speakers: Stephanie Li Stephanie Li or “La Shoppinista” is a multimedia entrepreneur who founded the Shoppinista™ brand in 2012. She is a bilingual content creator and influencer who focuses on shopping, lifestyle, online entrepreneurship, business, wellness and empowerment.  Stephanie uses her platforms to empower women of all ages and speaks to a community of more than 450,000 Hispanic shoppers in the US and Puerto Rico. She has been featured in various TV and print media, including Univision, Telemundo, CNN en español, El Nuevo Día, …

If you’re not going live on social, you’re missing out on opportunities. Learn how to leverage livestreaming to reach your audience and monetize your efforts. Social Media Trainer & Consultant Daphne Leblanc is a livestream pro who will show us the tools and techniques she uses to create live content that stands out.   We’re having a joint meetup with the South Florida Mom Bloggers chapter at the beautiful Marenas Beach Resort in Sunny Isles Beach. RSVP to Save Your Spot Date: Saturday, July 13th, from 12 to 2 pm Location: Marenas Beach Resort, 18683 Collins Avenue, Sunny Isles Beach, FL Fee: $10 (Light bites and refreshments will be served. Space is limited.) Guest Speaker: Daphne Leblanc Daphne F. Leblanc has more than fifteen years of experience in the social media and web-based marketing fields. She helps entrepreneurs and small business owners with all aspects of social media. Her clients call her their business’s personal trainer. She helps her clients make sense of their social media and digital marketing goals. She helps them create workable, on-budget strategies to achieve those goals, just like a personal trainer helps you achieve your fitness goals. As a presenter and speaker, she’s worked with organizations …

We’re switching things up this month with a Blogger Social instead of a Saturday meetup. Join us to network with blogger friends at Xtreme Action Park in Ft. Lauderdale. Xtreme is offering one free beer, wine or well drink per person. See you there! RSVP to Save Your Spot Date: Thursday, June 6th, from 6 pm to 8 pm Location: Xtreme Action Park (the Pit Bar) – 5300 Powerline Road, Ft Lauderdale, FL 33309 Fee: No fee (One free drink per person and light bites. Space is limited.) Sponsor:Xtreme Action Park Thank you to our sponsor, Xtreme Action Park in Ft Lauderdale! It’s the largest indoor entertainment complex in Florida and was awarded nationally as the Family Entertainment Center Location of the Year. Find it online at www.XtremeActionPark.com or on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Interested in sponsoring the Ft Lauderdale Bloggers? Contact us.

Did you know 80% of content consumed online is video? Did you know YouTube is now the second largest search engine online? Making video is becoming more important each day. Stay ahead and learn how to create video content and edit videos with Marj Suarez from @marjanne.co RSVP Your Spot Powered by Eventbrite Speaker Marj, raised in Dubai, studied Marketing & Economics and has been in the Creative industry since 2014 carrying creative multiple contents for brands/companies locally and internationally. Her content creation has developed within the years and opened an opportunity to pursue her passion full-time. Now that Marj has moved to the USA, working with different cultures and markets, she is all the more determined to step up her craft that is suitable for personal and business content creation. She believes that being true to your brand and being creative goes hand in hand and her goal is to inspire people to do the same.”

On Wednesday, February 16 th 2019, Madison Messer from @sweetteawithmadi delivered an amazing presentation on “The Dos and Don’ts of Blogging” at Lulu Lemon Athletics in Georgetown, DC with a sold out crowd. After 6 months in the corporate world, Madison quickly realized the “9-5” job was not for her. She then took a leap of faith and became a full time fashion and lifestyle blogger. She quickly grew a following after posting affordable outfit photos and was on the fast track to having over 115k followers and making more money than she ever did working in the corporate environment. Now Madi posts at least once a day with the current algorithm and uses only phone pictures for content. Madison added, “Going full time as a blogger was one of the best things I ever did. It allowed me to give my blog the time and attention it needed.” Here are some helpful tips Madi shared with our DC Blogger Union members: 1. The algorithm is awful, but there are ways you can work with it and continue to grow. The first thing is consistency. Even when she is sick, she never misses her daily posts. Madison added having a …

On Wednesday, January 16th 2019, Yasmine Nashed from @yasminenashed spoke at the lastest DC Blogger Union event located in the Chandelier Room at La Vie, a beautiful new restaurant located in the heart of DC at The Wharf. The atmosphere at La Vie is super fancy with beautiful views overlooking the water. This place is sure to impress any guests you bring there! As a full time blogger and with a full time job working at the Pentagon, Yasmine spoke to Time Management Tips and Tricks for Bloggers and here’s just a few things we learned: 1. Make time for the priorities in your life. Think about all the free time you have in a day that you let pass you by. Most of us have way more time (30,40,50 hours per week) than we realize to work towards our goals. We all have time it’s just whether we utilize it or not. Get a planner and prioritize your time! 2. Find a partner to help. Surround yourself with people who have similar goals. Get together and create content to have for the upcoming weeks. This way you a repository of pictures to post and you don’t have to scramble …

We kicked off the new year with an exciting presentation made by Sian and Lorna from The Roman Guy and Katie from The Hostel Girl at the brand new hostel, The Rome Hello, located in the center of Rome, just a short walk from Repubblica metro station. February’s meetup was all on brand and influencer collaborations with Katie sharing her tips and advice on the influencer side and Sian and Lorna sharing their advice on the brand side. They spoke about their experiences working with brands/influencers, the right way on approaching collaborations, and do’s and dont’s. The evening started with a brief introduction by everyone. We had a full house this evening with a total of 25 people present! The Rome Hello was kind enough to offer those attending complimentary wine and prosecco to start the evening off. After the initial introduction, we went straight into the presentation with Sian, Lorna, Katie, and Estrella answering questions and speaking on their previous experiences with collaborating. Some of the points discussed during the meetup were: The Different Ways to Collaborate in return for product/service testing sponsored posts and affiliate programs social media takeovers co-creating content together How to Find One Another How …

We had such a great time during our April meetup with journalist & public radio professional, Katy Sewall, as she spoke on the topic of interviewing. The meetup took place on a beautiful Sunday afternoon in Rome at the Alembic restaurant in the neighborhood of Trastevere, as we welcomed a packed house full of bloggers, writers, and photographers. During the presentation, Katy gave us practical tips & tricks we can use for interviewing- not only in a professional setting, but also when having day to day conversations with others. To become a better interviewer, Katy spoke to us about how to bring out personal stories of the people we encounter, how to mine for more depth in their answers, how to create a narrative arc in our questions, and even find out about the common mistakes interviewers make. Katy Sewall is also the host of the internationally known podcast, The Bittersweet Life, alongside co-host Tiffany Parks. Together the duo discuss expat life, repat life, travel, and try to answer some of life’s biggest questions, with some guest interviews along the way. To tune in and subscribe, click here. To summarize the conversation on how to be a good interviewer, here are …

To kick off the end of the year, Rome Bloggers hosted a fun, interactive aperitivo meetup at the Peaky Blinders cocktail bar located right in the center of the city, between Piazza Navona and Castel Sant’Angelo. Peaky Blinders cocktail bar is the perfect place to go sit down and enjoy a drink from their carefully crafted menu. During the aperitivo, they provided us with drinks, cheese, and curated meat while chatting about holiday plans, travel, work & more. Although many of our Rome Blogger members were traveling during this time, we were able to keep the meetup small and intimate to really get to know one another and chat about ideas for future blogger meet-ups. Having this time to chat was well-needed to settle into the end of the year. We plan on having very exciting events to come in the new year and can’t wait to have everyone participate. If you are new to Rome Bloggers, be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for updates on events which are hosted monthly. Also, a huge thank you to Peaky Blinders for hosting us in their beautiful space. If you’d like to check out Peaky Blinders while in …

Vibrant, colorful, fun, and informative—there are too many ways to describe the blast we had at our June meetup. Our June 8th meeting was held at STORY at Macy’s inside of Memorial City Mall. We had the privilege of learning photography tips from Maritere Rice, Houston’s very own the color queen and professional photographer. If you don’t know Maritere, you’ll want to follow her ASAP. Maritere Rice is a contemporary portrait, travel, fashion and lifestyle photographer and content creator located in Houston. She has a passion for inspired living, travel, and color—all of which you’ll see on her vivacious Instagram page. The morning began with members browsing STORY, dining on breakfast from New York Deli & Coffee Shop (catered by Houston Catering Concepts), and indulging their sweet tooth with themed cookies from Dessert Gallery. When the workshop kicked off, Maritere and Chapter Officer Jillian Goltzman kicked off a lively Q&A on all things photography related. Following the Q&A, Maritere gave one-on-one advice to each Blogger Union member so they could perfect their photo game. When our bloggers weren’t striking a pose or staging products at our flat lay station, they were connecting and making new relationships with local content creators. …

Join us for a Q&A session and hands-on tips with Houston photographer Maritere Rice (@mariterec) to learn about photography styling, shooting, and editing. Let STORY at Macy’s be your colorful backdrop as you learn to craft the perfect photo!  What to Expect:  Explore a world of color in one of Houston’s most Instagrammable destinations! From photo walls to flay lay stations, STORY at Macy’s is a colorful playground where our special guest Maritere Rice will be hosting a hands-on workshop to help you craft the perfect shot. Light bites and beverages will be provided by Dessert Gallery and Houston Catering Concepts. What to Bring:  Bring your camera/phone for a hands-on workshop to practice what you learn.  About Maritere:  Maritere Rice is a contemporary portrait, travel, fashion and lifestyle photographer and content creator located in Houston, TX. She has a passion for inspired living, travel and color. Maritere was born and raised in Mexico, and moved to Houston almost 20 years ago after marrying her husband, where they now live with their 4 children. About STORY: STORY, the narrative-driven retail concept shop brings to life an editorial approach to retail in 36 Macy’s stores nationwide. Opening with “Color” as its inaugural …

Growing a business isn’t easy, and we constantly applaud all of our members for taking the leap to hit publish on each and every blog post they create. No matter where you are in your blogging career, having a coach to guide you can be instrumental to your success in business. This month, we were lucky enough to partner with LaShanta Green, a multi-hyphenate entrepreneur who has made a career through coaching brands and businesses. LaShanta took us through her exciting workshop, “Going & Growing From Basic to Boss Blogger.” We gathered at Latitude Med Center, a stunning luxury high rise apartment building in the Texas Medical Center. Of its many amenities, the 35-floor Latitude Med Center features a sophisticated meeting space called the Sky Club. We gathered in a mastermind group of 12 budding bloggers at different areas in their career and got to work! After enjoying refreshments and taking in the sweeping views of downtown in the Sky Club, our guests opened up their new workbooks and a lively discussion began. LaShanta had us openly discuss her tried and true “5 Strategic Steps for Purposeful Planning.” We opened up about our challenges working in such a competitive industry, …