This month, I am celebrating 10 years since I launched my little blog. Since then, it’s
been quite the journey and a life of experiences I never could have dreamed.
How it all started...
On January 19th, 10 years ago, I launched a blog called Jenn's Trends in Social Media Management.
There was no strategy. There were no goals. I had no idea what I was doing. But I started a blog.
It was on a free WordPress site and theme. I started publishing randomly and frequently. It was fun, and honestly it was just a hobby. But it started to gain momentum. I started making amazing connections with people around the world.
I remember "going" to Social Media Marketing World back in 2013. My blog launched in January. SMMW was in March. It was a BIG conference and super expensive for me. So I didn't go to the actual conference but I hung out at the hotel (it was here in San Diego where I live) and intentionally met up with people, struck up conversations, joined group chats in the bar, and more. I met some of the most influential people in the industry.
And that was when I KNEW, I knew I wanted to be a speaker. I knew this was the direction my life would go. I didn't know how it would happen, but I the fire was lit inside me.
And then, about 3 months after that, I fell in love with this "little" app called Instagram. I loved it but wanted to know how to use it for business. And back then, in 2013, there were not a lot of helpful resources. So, I started blogging about it. I tested things. I hypothesized strategies. I found accounts doing things well. I kept blogging about it.
And I started ranking on Google. A lot. Not just first page results, but first listing results.
That's when things started to change. I migrated my blog to my own domain. I started getting strategic with a posting schedule. Friends started inviting me onto their Google+ shows to talk IG. I started getting invited onto podcasts - I still joke that I was a podcast whore and pretty much said yes to anyone that invited me lol. But it worked. My audience grew. Exponentially.
And then I slowly started getting requests to speak. I spoke at Social Media Day San Diego and then at SMMW15. Two years after crashing the party, I was standing on the stage at SMMW (while pregnant too lol) and doing what I knew I was meant to do.
But that was just the start!
It’s been an amazing 10 years!
I can't possibly break down everything that's happened over the last 10 years into one simple list.
My business has witnessed me go through a ton of life experiences - having a baby, getting divorced, being a full time single mom, homeschooling during covid, sending my kid off to school, and so much more!
It's been a roller coaster but I think my business is better for it and I know I'm better for everything my business has helped me accomplish.
But it’s so much more than just that list
What I’m most grateful for over the last 10 years is the people. I have made the most amazing connections with people around the world.
I have friends that are now like family whom I never would have met without this online world connecting us.
People over the years and around the world have helped me build this business, they've given me microphones and stages, they've helped me welcome my daughter to the world, they've toured me around their cities, they've held space for me through my divorce, they've offered support and advice, and so much more.
While this video doesn’t capture it all, it is certainly a lot of highlights of wonderful people over the last 10 years:
Instagram Expert (@jenns_trends)And I’ve learned a lot this last decade
Again, way too much to distill into a single blog post, but here are some of the business lessons I learned in the last 10 years:
