You Don’t Need to Read this Blog Post…for real, though

I’m so much better at the shortened versions.

I mean, I like to tell the whole story and give you details that may not actually be important, but what if I weren’t communicating effectively and you didn’t understand the story without an idea of the whole picture, which is important when you’re telling a story.

Deep breath and exhale.

I think that was a question within a statement.

I’ve been thinking about writing a book, which is the reason for the first statement in this blog post. Writing an e-book is shorter than a full length novel, but I’m not sure I could stay focused that long. I wanted to get in on the flash fiction action, but I haven’t started yet, and it might be over already. That stuff is super short. But amazingly, profoundly heart-gripping. And it doesn’t use many details–just the super important ones.

But I digress. Or maybe I don’t. I’m not even sure what the point is of this post. I read that the best blogs have posts with focus and direction. This is more like stream-of-consciousness, which, apparently, not many people pay for. I’m not sure why they would, except maybe to get ideas for a new sci-fi movie. Sometimes the things I write during times of streaming are … strange.

And if you’re actually reading this, please move on to something else! I’m not sure this is worth your reading time. But it’s on my blog page because it’s my blog page and I want to put it there. Jus’sayin.

Photo by Lum3n.com on Pexels.com

Learning Marketing the Hard Way

So.

I noticed, when I write about business, I get followers who also have businesses. When I write about parenting, I get followers who are also parents. I should know this already, but apparently my mind is going a little slower than usual.

I don’t know whether I should combine my two WordPress blogs or just keep the sales page as its own entity. I’m thinking I may keep them separate, so eventually I could purchase my own domain name for the business and keep my personal blog my own personal blog. I feel like I can write whatever I want in my personal blog; I even mentioned it in my headline: “whatever I feel like sharing.”

I guess this is how learning about marketing works overall: try, fail, try, fail, try, fail, try, fail, try, fail, try, almost succeed, try, fail, try, fail…eventually try, succeed. Then maybe some more try, fail. I don’t know. So far, I haven’t gotten to the try, almost succeed or the try, succeed part of learning this new skill. Sure, I’ve read blogs and e-books and started a free portion of a certificate in social media marketing, or maybe it was digital marketing, from Shaw Academy. I keep thinking I want to get back into it. The online course was set up well, but my computer and internet connection was a problem. So (I have probably used this word too much) until I make some money to pay for my learning, I am going to keep going to the school of hard knocks and see if maybe I can try, succeed.

How I Buy Purses: An Example of the Psychology of Consumer Behavior

I like purses. Actually, I like handbags in a variety of styles, designs, and sizes. It’s nice to have a small purse to grab and run when I have the opportunity to get out of the house without the children. It’s nice to have a tote bag when I’m taking my children to the splash pad so I can carry some extra sunblock, towels, and something for me to do while sitting there watching them play. I like to carry a pretty purse for a nice outfit when I go to church or maybe dress a little nicer and have an elegant purse with me when my husband takes me out for our anniversary. During times of limited resources when I’m stuck with just one purse, I like to carry something mid-size in black or brown so it matches most of my clothes. I even like bags in place of suitcases for traveling. This is the first step: how I use purses.

How do I get my handbags? Well, it is certain that I have not made any of them myself. So there’s the second step: my handbags are purchased or given to me, not self-made. I buy them randomly at thrift stores and department stores. I get some as free gifts with my online catalog purchase. I purchase them specifically to match a new outfit and might buy one at the clothing store when I get said outfit. I have a sister who made me a bag and a father-in-law gave me one he had received as a free gift with some purchase. A friend who sells bags gave me one for watching her son. And my husband bought me a new purse from my favorite brand for Christmas one year.

Now, when I am purchasing my own purse, I go through my own little repetitive behaviors. The first thing that happens is that I gravitate toward purses with an appearance I like. I don’t like saggy purses or ones with too much going on; I like a nice purse that can stand on its own, with strong lines, something that says I’m a strong, independent woman. This is the third step in my own consumer behavior: the purse I’m drawn to look at longer than the other ones, which for me often speaks to an emotion or personality trait. I’m particularly fascinated with Nine West and just saw a new design from Coach I loved. (No, they’re not paying me to say this and mostly I don’t buy purses from brands that I feel are over-popularized, which is another aspect of my own consumer behavior.)

The next thing I do stops me from buying just any purse: I look at the price tag. There are purses with a price tag that is greater than what I have ever made in a year. Maybe they’re worth it. I’m not sure because I don’t think I’m allowed in a store that sells purses that expensive; I’ve only seen them online. When I see the price, I have to consider how much money I have available to spend on a purse and whether I think that particular purse is worth the amount it is being sold for. Usually, the price is something that ends in 9.99 or 4.99 so I feel like I’m not actually paying a whole dollar amount. Those are two parts of the price tag step: how much I think the purse is worth and how much I’m able to pay. There are plenty of purses out there that I think are worth the price but I just don’t have that much money. Then there are other purses that I have the funds to purchase but I don’t think they’re worth it. I continue to look around at the different options, weighing out in my mind which one I want the most at the price I’m willing to pay.

There are a few other things that contribute to my spending, like if the store looks and smells clean, if the music feels calming and happy, and if the sales people are kind, smiling, helpful, and approachable but not in my face about it.

Then there’s the cumulative moment where everything about my spending habits comes together and either I come out of the store smiling and content with a new handbag or I leave the store feeling a little disappointed, but happy I still have that money for the right purse when I see it.

Did you notice how many feeling words I used in this blog? My shopping behaviors are connected to my emotions. I know how to disconnect from my emotions to make decisions based on other factors, and I use that ability to my advantage whenever making a purchase, but emotions are a part of me, and how I feel in what I’m wearing or carrying as an accessory is a part of my own consumer behavior. For example, I love the color green and will choose that color over pink any day of the week, but if that green purse is saggy and shapeless, I will not buy it. I don’t want to carry a bag that makes me feel baggy and saggy and shapeless. I want a bag that makes me feel good, in addition to being able to hold the items I need to bring with me.

A lot of women do their shopping and spending based on how they feel, like about the product or the price tag. Sometimes we buy things based on where they are placed on the shelf or what else is close by. Marketers use this knowledge of how we shop as a way to sell us certain items. Which can be used for good, I suppose, but I feel like it’s mostly just manipulative. It can be really frustrating when you have spent a decent amount of time perusing the options and carefully weighing out the decision of which product to purchase only to find out that the one you have decided on is entirely out of your reach, or my reach as is often the case. I’m frequently asking the employees for help reaching items that shouldn’t be that difficult to get to. Or, like the last shopping trip, I grab other products to knock down the one I want and hope I catch it before it hits me on the head!

So, that, my friends and random people I don’t know, is an example of the psychology of consumer behaviors. And now that I’ve been writing about it, I think I’ll look at some purses online…or maybe a new outfit…mmm, some nice shoes…maybe a light scarf for added flair…

Frustrated Freelancer

Frustration.

This one emotion brings out the worst in me. I yell at the children when I’m frustrated that no one is doing what they’re told. I speak harshly to my husband when I feel frustrated that he doesn’t seem to understand the importance of what I am saying. I give up trying to sell a poster when I feel frustrated because the design doesn’t fit properly or the website is glitchy or the resolution isn’t high enough or whatever is going on that isn’t working properly. I turn my back on the dishes when I’m frustrated that I have to wash them all by hand instead of being able to put them in the dishwasher. I don’t even want to put them in the dishwasher, but if I have a dishwasher I can tell myself, “At least you don’t have to wash them all by hand!” Backwards, I know, but it works.

So today, I’m frustrated. I had to give up on the poster because I couldn’t find a solution in a reasonable amount of time. I designed a couple tote bags, a t-shirt and a hoodie instead. I really wish I could get the posters to work, though. I wanted to focus on fixing some of the problematic ones that I had attempted to create from my phone. The design feature isn’t compatible with mobile devices, so, while I was able to put a design on the poster, I wasn’t able to fit it correctly, enlarge it, or change it in any way. I had a burst of desire to be productive and wanted to improve my teespring store, but I ended up feeling frustrated because it still didn’t work.

That seems to be my overall emotion in attempting to be a freelancer. Frustrated. Frustrated that I can’t find the right work from home gig. Frustrated that I can’t find the right information. Frustrated that ebooks about freelancing are all filled with the same basic information that just isn’t all that helpful. Frustrated that apps don’t function properly. Frustrated that no one has an app that does what I need it to do. Frustrated that I have to pay a bunch of money to purchase a program or app before I even know if it will work for my needs. Frustrated with all the useless stuff out there on the internet. Frustrated that I don’t have the cash flow I need to get the cash flowing. Frustrated that I will end up working in some brick and mortar store for a company that pays its CEO bunches of money and leaves the workers who are doing all the work constantly strapped for cash and without adequate healthcare or retirement savings. Frustrated that minimum wage is poverty. Frustrated. Frustrated. Frustrated.

And I’m most frustrated that I can’t figure out how to change any of it.

That would be the best part of this all, you know: figuring out how to change it. And then changing it.

Fluffy Writing

How much of what is written as an article or blog post is just fluff with a catchy headline to get you to click on the post so you’ll view advertisements and the “writer” will get paid for you to see the advertisements? I think the advertisers should pay me to see all their advertisements. I’m kind of tired of all the advertisements. Advertisements. Advertisements. Advertisements. I’m tired of looking for something of value to read and instead, it’s just fluff filled with advertisements. I get that I’m not paying to read the article and the author needs to make money in some way and advertising is often a fairly easy way to get paid. Some posts just aren’t worth reading.

Did you know people use the term, “expert,” loosely? I could call myself an expert housekeeper simply because I wash dishes and do laundry and know a few things about ways to wash different materials properly. Or not wash them at all because water is bad for wool. But that doesn’t make me an expert. I’m actually just average and maybe not even that skilled.

I’m not an expert at raising children, either. I’ve raised or helped raise five children now, currently between the ages of 16 and 3. I know a few things that work and a few things that don’t work. That doesn’t make me an expert. I’m actually just average and maybe not even that skilled.

I’m not an expert at playing piano or singing, while we’re on the topic of not being an expert. I’ve played piano and sung for 29 years and I know a few things that beginners don’t know and I’ve learned how to keep playing and singing in spite of mistakes, but that doesn’t make me an expert. I’m not sure I’m even average.

So that’s what we’re left with on popular search engines’ top pages: a bunch of average people claiming to be experts in their field, writing a bunch of fluff with catchy headlines and various advertisements popping up from nowhere or a hundred advertisements throughout the nonsense post. Bang my head against a wall.

Photo by freestocks.org on Pexels.com

And in case you’re wondering, this is an opinion piece and I do not claim to be an expert. I didn’t even do much for research. My opinion, which I really enjoy sharing, is based on my experiences over the last several months of looking into how to make money online as a stay at home mom doing freelance writing. Which is basically just a statement that includes lots of popular keywords people use in search engines.

How to Make Money from Home…or Not.

I’d like to make some money. I’m willing to work, online, from home or a nearby coffee shop or fast food restaurant. I’m okay at writing, though I haven’t quite learned SEO or content writing or copyblogging, or whatever the latest popular idea is. Mostly, I’m good at writing how I feel and think. That’s what you get when you spend a good part of your life journaling to deal with the emotions and upheavals of childhood, adolescence, and life in general. I did write a lot of papers in college that had nothing to do with how I feel or even what I think and I did okay with those, so I could probably get the hang of it again if I put my mind to it and FOCUS.

I started learning how to do digital marketing through an online course, which I don’t mind doing if I’m selling something of value, like my Hate Stops Here t-shirts and hoodies. I might even be good at it, if someone could show me how to research, because I end up getting bogged down with a million pieces of information and I’m not sure which information I’m supposed to be looking at. Maybe that’s what the course would teach me if I could make enough money to pay for it. You know, make money so I can learn how to make money. AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Photo by rawpixel.com on Pexels.com

I also found an interest in investing, particularly day trading and binary options. I’m starting to learn how to do those things. I like that NADEX offers a two week opportunity to learn how to make/execute/trade? binary options before you lay down your real money and end up losing it all in the beginning. But again, I have to make money before I can start making money. Shake my head.

Oh, the joys of adulthood.

And, no, I’m not receiving any money from NADEX to share my opinion. I was researching day trading a bit ago and found the website and information. So there you have it.

Today I am sitting here, sipping on a mocha, staring at the mess on my table, thinking about how I can avoid cleaning by doing something else more important but less productive. Heh. Eventually, I will get up, put on some happy music, and get a few things done. But not right now. The coffee hasn’t quite hit me just right. The children are annoying me with constant questions and demands and fighting. My muscles feel a little tense in my calves. I have a bit of indigestion happening.

Apparently that’s all the excuses I can think of at the moment.

…

Ten minutes have passed since the last sentence. It took me nearly that long just to get a photo on the page! The rest of the time was spent yawning.

Did you just yawn? Imagine evil laugher here (because I don’t know how to add a gif!)

Plans for the rest of the day:

1. Take a nap.
2. Wash dishes.
3. Take a nap.
4. Fold and put away laundry.
5. Take a nap.
6. Regret that many naps.
7. Cook supper/dinner/whatever you call the evening meal.
8. Organize the closets.
9. Get children to bed.
10. Go to bed, unless I can’t sleep because of those naps.

There you have it — a day in the life of a sleep deprived stay at home mom. So glamorous. So eventful and dramatic, like one of those not reality TV shows.

On to the nap…

Frustration

Sometimes I feel like banging my head against a wall.

This isn’t my picture, but it could be. I’ve been experimenting and educating myself in the mysterious art of social media marketing. I took part of an online course in Digital Marketing from Shaw Academy last year (I didn’t finish it because my internet connection quit working and I could no longer view the lectures). What I learned from the lessons I was able to take part in was a great introduction that helped me get started. Now I’m learning to use apps I am unfamiliar with and doing things I’ve never done before. Thus, my frustration.

Have you ever tried to do something, like add a picture and link to Pinterest? It should be fairly easy and not at all time consuming. Not for me! A ten minute project took me nearly five hours. Of course, I did get sidetracked by Facebook a few times… and some really great Pins… and Instagram stories… and a YouTube video…

As you can see, or read, I didn’t get much done today! Tomorrow I’ll have to make a to-do list. Or maybe one of those honey-do lists. Hmmm.

My New Business

I finally feel like I am doing something with my life; I started an online certificate course in digital marketing from Shaw Academy.  It’s the free trial course, so I don’t actually get a certificate until I start paying for classes, but I am learning!  Specifically, I am learning how to use the internet and its numerous options to show my products to the entire world and get people to buy them.

The process of earning an income, making money, involves a great deal of thought for me.  Since I am a terrible sales person, I needed a product I could actually sell, something I believe in, something that has value.  Since I have no cash on hand, I needed a product I could sell without overhead costs.  Behold, the power of the internet!

After an agonizingly painful thought process (actually, it wasn’t that bad; I quite enjoy a lengthy pause in my day spent thinking through things), I decided that clothing is a need (for most people, at least) that even I, the world’s worst saleswoman, could sell to somebody. My online research indicated that tee shirts are quite popular in clothing.  I found a few sites that offered me the option to sell a variety of tops and other merchandise with no overhead costs.  Not only that, but they do the printing and shipping and handle returns.  Easy enough for a beginner with no money.

What is this amazingly simple, no overhead cost, do everything for you except for design and marketing website?  Why, it’s teespring.  I started with two campaigns, the second designed with women in mind.

My business website is also on WordPress.

https://laceyannesapparelandmerchandise.wordpress.com

More than just selling a few products, my goal is to bring awareness to social problems, like bullying, racism, social injustice of all kinds.  I even considered worker conditions, knowing that the clothing industry has in the past, and probably still some in the present, sent factories to other countries and treated workers poorly, paying them almost nothing for their labor, among other atrocities.  I chose brands that have workers’ rights already in place, like Gildan, Fruit of the Loom, and Hanes.

Clothing speaks to people; first impressions are difficult to change. What do your clothes say?

 

Another Blogger’s Startup Experience

I do not come from money, I do not have a lot of business investors, friends, or experience. I have a dream, a computer, and now a domain name. You can do this. We can do this. This is what beginning looks like. It is slow, a little lonely, really intimidating and overwhelming, but let that stop you.

via 5 Stats On What Beginning Looks Like — Year As The Blog