Episode 674: Smart Strategies For Growing a Food Blog as a Side Hustle (+How to Avoid Social Media Burnout) With Alicia Gonzalez Tome

EBT674 – Alicia Gonzalez Tome

Intro 00:00

Food bloggers. Hi, how are you today? Thank you so much for tuning in to the Eat Blog Talk podcast. This is the place for food bloggers to get information and inspiration to accelerate your blog’s growth, and ultimately help you to achieve your freedom. Whether that’s financial, personal, or professional. I’m Megan Porta. I have been a food blogger for 13 years, so I understand how isolating food blogging can be. I’m on a mission to motivate, inspire, and most importantly, let each and every food blogger, including you, know that you are heard and supported. 

Supercut  00:37

Hey there food bloggers. Check out our new finance supercut. This is a bonus 15 minute episode capturing highlights from finance episodes that we have recorded recently on the podcast. Go to eatblogtalk.com/Financesupercut to download today. 

[00:00:55] Megan Porta   

This episode is made for busy people like you and like me who need a little bit of efficiency in their lives in order to stay sane while they keep blogging. Alicia Gonzalez Tome, she is the blogger at Bytes in the Wild, joins me in this interview to talk about how to grow your blog as a side hustle or as a busy person and just tap into some efficiency so that you don’t feel burned out all the time.

[00:01:26]   

 She has so many resources that she shares that are really helpful for both newer bloggers and more experienced bloggers. She believes that honing in on your photography can really make you more efficient. So she has some tips for photography, especially if you like to travel a lot. And she has some really good tips for just basic time efficiency and how to plan ahead and make sure that you are streamlining your time and your business and your life as much as possible so you can avoid the bad stuff, the burnout, the anxiety, and just feeling frazzled all the time.

[00:02:04]   

 I gained so much from this interview and that’s coming from someone who has a pretty efficient, streamlined life and business. I thought it was great. I hope you absolutely love it just like I did. It is episode number 674. 

[00:02:28] Sponsor

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[00:03:04] Megan Porta

Alicia Gonzalez Tome is a gluten free and dairy free nomad foodie who loves nature and sports. She had a thyroid disorder that led her to change her diet and was part of her natural recovery from this autoimmune disease. Originally from Spain and based In Australia since 2017, she is constantly traveling and currently living in her camper van which is so cool along the coast. Alicia, welcome. So great to have you here.

[00:03:32]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Hi, Megan. Hello. I’m so excited to be here. It’s my first podcast, so yeah, very excited and a bit nervous.

[00:03:41]  Megan Porta 

 Oh, no need to be nervous. It’s all good. We’re calm here. Chill over at Eat Blog Talk. No, this will be a great conversation. I’m really excited about it and I’m really excited to hear about your story because you have grown your blog as a side hustle and it sounds like you’re a fairly big busy human.

[00:03:59]   

 But before we get into that amazing story, do you have a fun fact to share with us?

[00:04:04]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes, I have a fun fact. And is that me and my partner, when we met, it was the Mardi Gras parade, which here in Australia is like the parade for like the gay people. And he was wearing a red dress and the day that we met, he was wearing that. Well, he was dressing up as a woman and I thought, pretty fun story.

[00:04:30]  Megan Porta 

 That’s how you met and you fell in love with the red dress. So every time I meet a couple, I like to ask them what their meeting story was because every story about how people meet is so unique. And I haven’t heard one that I’m like, oh, that’s boring. It’s always fun. And I love yours.

[00:04:50]   

 That’s great.

[00:04:51]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yeah, I remember, yeah, like we met, we were in the club and then at some point he was inviting me to a drink and I was like, all right, I love your dress. But what about if next time that we catch shop, you are just wearing pants and heel, which is good.

[00:05:07]  Megan Porta 

 So he did show up with pants next time. That’s good. That means that he’s fun, he has personality. So it probably told you a lot about him that he was willing to dress in a red dress, right?

[00:05:21]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes.

[00:05:22]  Megan Porta 

 I love it. Never had that fun fact. Thank you, Alicia. So let’s get into our topic and to frame this, I think it would be really helpful just to give us a little bit of information about your blog, which is called Bites in the Wild.

[00:05:38]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes, So I started my blog in 2021. That’s when I decided that, yeah, I wanted to, yeah, I wanted to do something with my passion for cooking. I come from a very big extended family, nine siblings either side. On my mom and my dad’s side. There’s always been a super big cooking tradition and I guess I grew up with that.

[00:05:59]   

 I loved it, but I was never like a social media person or anything. Although I would always like scroll Pinterest because I love cooking. So I would love to browse recipes. And it was in 2020 I was diagnosed with a thyroid disorder, so with Hashimoto’s disease. So that really, I’d say, like, it was kind of like a bit of a tipping point in my life because I was like, well, at some point I, I thought I was losing control of my life.

[00:06:26]   

 It was a really hard time for me. But I’m very lucky I was able to overcome it thanks to changing my diet. So, and also with Chinese medicine. So I changed my diet to a gluten free and a dairy free diet obviously as well. Like no alcohol and no processed food. But I was already like not doing a lot of that.

[00:06:46]   

 So yeah, I could see how changing my diet really made like a huge impact in my body. It was super helpful for me and I guess it was that what really made me want to share more of that with other people. I thought that could be maybe like the reason for me to start sharing recipes online and sharing my passion for cooking.

[00:07:08]   

 And that’s also why I decided to do my blog as gluten free and dairy free. And we were always kind of like moving, traveling. We have a camper van that we love to do trips on and I kind of wanted to incorporate a bit of that on my blog. So that’s where the name of Bites in the Wild come from.

[00:07:29]   

 Because I do a lot of cooking in the wild, I guess. And yeah, that’s a bit like the back story.

[00:07:35]  Megan Porta 

That and like your story with meeting your partner. I feel like that story just completes your blog. I love that it’s been a while now. It just makes sense. Of course. So your blog is focused on certain diet restrictions. Dairy free and gluten free you said?

[00:07:57]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes, that’s right. So all my recipes are gluten free and dairy free. Sometimes I also like when I’m doing the recipes, I, you know, I explain if you are not like dairy or gluten intolerant, these are the modifications that you do. But yeah, I decided to make that my niche since that was really the diet that I was following when I was healing from my thyroid disorder and today I still, I’d say that 85% of the time I still do that diet.

[00:08:27]   

 I’m a little bit more flexible now because I’m, I’m fine now. I don’t suffer from the thyroid disease anymore. But yeah, I decided to keep that as my niche. And all my recipes are like very healthy recipes, very wholesome, using fresh ingredients and pretty much like cooking from, from scratch.

[00:08:44]  Megan Porta 

 Okay. Love getting that background on your blog. And you. So you grew your blog as a side hustle, so you must have been doing something else. Did you have a full time job or do you have a full time job?

[00:08:58]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes, so I did. I did have a full time job until. So it’s now end of February 2025. So I had a full time job until end of, of last year. I’m an interior designer. It was funny as well because. So I live in Australia since eight years ago. I’m originally from Spain, but I’ve always had the same job in Australia.

[00:09:20]   

 And I started mainly like as a kitchen and bathroom designer. I really loved it. But then the company that I was working for kept growing so now we do full renovations. And today I’m still working for them, but now I’m working as a contractor for them rather than an employee, which is great because it gives me a lot more flexibility in a personal level.

[00:09:41]   

 And then also to work on my blog because it’s really, I mean, and I’m sure everybody that you know is trying to run a blog while working full time, you know how hard it is to try to do everything. And sometimes it can also be a bit like frustrating, let’s say, because you really want to work on your blog, but you really need to fulfill a full time job and you know, it’s hard to, to do it all.

[00:10:05]   

 And I’m not gonna lie, last year, like, I already knew I was going to make the transition to work as a contractor slash freelancer. And I really wanted to grow my blog during that time because I really, at that point I really wanted to start making it, turn it into a business. And yeah, I was trying to do so much and at some point I burnt out.

[00:10:30]   

 I could identify how I burnt up because I remember one day I was trying to do a muffin recipe. It didn’t turn out well and I started crying and my partner was like, why are you crying? And I’m like, my muffins didn’t turn out well. It’s okay. And I was like, all right, I think I need to slow down a little bit because this is not healthy for me.

[00:10:54]  Megan Porta 

 Crying over muffins is a sign that maybe you should slow down.

[00:10:58]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes, yes, I know. And it was funny as well because like one of the things that in a way was a bit scared when I started the blog because like, I started also wanting to share like a bit of my story with the thyroid. But I knew that I couldn’t just be loading myself with like so much work to do and I was a bit scared of that.

[00:11:20]   

 And at some point I could see how that was happening. So I guess, you know, I experienced it. But in a way it was good that I was able to identify that and, you know, like, step back a little bit because also if, you know, it was a little bit contradictory if, you know, I wanted to share how, you know, we have to be healthy and listen to our body and, you know, like live a little bit, like in peace and slower.

[00:11:45]   

 And then I was not doing that, so I was like, all right, I really need to be doing what, you know, in a way I share that is kind of like the, you know, the right thing to do.

[00:11:56]  Megan Porta 

 Right? Yeah, it is a lot. I mean, it is no joke. I’ve been there. Working a full time job and running a blog and having a family, having a child with special needs. It’s. It’s no joke. Life, I think, for all of us is no joke. So whether people listening have a full time job or maybe they are just like a mom of four or something, life is kind of crazy.

[00:12:24]   

 And we need to get those little tips and resources that can help us to grow and do this without burning out. So it sounds like you have some things to share with us. So you have tips and resources. So tell us what has worked for you as you’ve grown your blog.

[00:12:40]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes. So, well, I want to say as well that I guess as a lot of the people out there, when I started my blog, I had no idea about anything, so I did everything wrong. Yeah, you know, I didn’t know about keyword research, I didn’t know about SEO. So I was just saying, oh my gosh, I’ve got this amazing recipe, I’m just gonna post about it.

[00:13:00]   

 But then obviously if you know, there is no search volume for that, nobody was looking for that. So sorry. It’s not driving traffic to my blog. So it took a little bit of time for me to understand how things work. So some of the resources that I found really useful were listening to podcasts.

[00:13:17]   

 I listen to your podcast, I listen to Food Blogger Pro and then I also listen to the blogging millionaire. So I found them all very useful for the first year as well. I signed up to Food Blogger Pro. I thought it was very useful to understand basic tools like Google Analytics, Google Search Console and also learn some basic photography tips.

[00:13:41]   

 Also to get like some understanding of SEO. And it was also really good to be part of a community where you can ask questions and there’s people out there that is going to respond to your questions. But the only thing is that I only was there for a year because I found I didn’t have enough time to use it.

[00:14:01]   

 Basically I was working full time, I was trying to create content and then I had so much information, which was great. But I found, right, like, to be honest, like, I couldn’t justify the price after that because, yeah, I just didn’t have time. And then also YouTube was very useful to do like photography tutorials.

[00:14:20]   

 There is so much free content. There is one channel out there that I found very useful. It’s called The Bite Shot, I think. And yeah, she does photography videos and yeah, she explains everything very in detail very well. So I highly recommend those if you need some like, yeah, just photography tips. And then so at the beginning, what I started using for keyword research was Semrush.

[00:14:46]   

 So you can do a few, like you can research a few keywords for free every day. So I was using that and then I also did a few free trials. I used a few different email addresses to get a few free trials and I found that it was very helpful. Once I started understanding SEO, some of the recipes that I did with Semrush that I found I had ranking potential, they actually started driving traffic to my blog.

[00:15:14]   

 So I’d say that it was around 2024, maybe like mid 2023 when I started doing things right. I was pretty doing things wrong for the first two years. And once I started really, I. I could hear how everyone was like, you need to focus on SEO. You need to focus on SEO. And then I was like, all right, maybe I need to really focus on this.

[00:15:36]   

 And once I started doing it, it I could really start seeing results, which was really good because I decided that, you know, I was putting so much effort into my blog, I really wanted to turn it into a business, not only a hobby. So I realized I really need to use the right tools.

[00:15:54]   

 And then another tool that I use, and I know you love it, is RankIQ. I just can’t explain how much of a difference this tool has made. To my blog.

[00:16:05]  Megan Porta 

 I’m so glad you use that. Yes.

[00:16:07]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 It’s incredible. And I have to thank you because, you know, it’s been after listening to your podcast that I was like, all right, maybe I need to give this a try. Honestly, I’m in love. It’s just made, like, a huge difference, I think. Is Rank IQ really the tool that has made skyrocket my traffic.

[00:16:25]   

 It’s so much easier to. It’s so easy to use. It makes writing very easy because I know exactly all the keywords that I need to include. So I do all the keyword research on their keyword library. And if I have a recipe that is not on their keyword library, I still run the report through them.

[00:16:45]   

 Like, I use another tool, like, for example, Semrush, to check if I have ranking potential. So if I see that I have ranking potential, then I run it through the Rank IQ report and I write the recipe. I always aim for an A+ in the H1 title and an A++ on the content.

[00:17:04]   

 I know some people say, like, oh, you don’t always need like A plus plus. I’m like, I’m just gonna play it safe. It’s working, so I’m gonna keep doing it. And I know sometimes it can be a little bit hard to include enough keywords to achieve an A mark, but what I found is that sometimes some of the keywords that maybe don’t feel like in your recipe, you can use them, for example, in the substitutions and variations section.

[00:17:32]   

 And that’s a way to include those extra keywords to achieve that higher score. I also find the reduced version of rRnk IQ is enough for me. So it allows eight reports a month and it costs $29 American dollars, which is $46 Australian dollars. So I know it’s a bit of an investment and it’s hard to justify this when you are not making money.

[00:17:58]   

 But I think if you want to, you know, if you want to use your blog as a business, you need to invest money. At the beginning, I was trying to do everything for free, but as any other business, you need to spend a bit of money. And then. And the reality is that I saw the returns, so, you know, I think every cent was very well spent.

[00:18:19]  Megan Porta 

 Good. I’m so glad you used Rank IQ and found find it to be helpful. I do think that people overlook tools like Rank IQ as being something that can actually give you your time back because you can do so much, so much legwork trying to get all the keywords strategizing down. And that tool just Simplifies everything and makes my life so easy.

[00:18:46]   

 So I’m glad that you find that as well.

[00:18:48]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yeah. Amazing.

[00:18:51]  Megan Porta 

 Yeah. Yes, it is. And the Optimizer is. Is my favorite. It just helps me to write posts so fast and write updates too. I do a lot of post updating, so it is a magic tool. I swear it is. And I want to. So you talked about The Bite Shot, right? I have not taken part in The Bite Shot, but I know a lot of food bloggers who have and find that that adds so much time to their lives because it helps you to become more efficient with your photography, Correct?

[00:19:19]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes. I mean, and the photos. I’ll talk about like, like my photography tips kind of thing a bit later. But you know, my photos in general are quite simple. But I find is having, you know, those basic concepts and those basic, you know, tricks that are really, is. Are really going to make a difference in your photography because we all know how important photography is. So I think it’s worth spending a little bit of time on learning basic things about photography for sure.

[00:19:49]  Megan Porta 

 Okay, we’ll get to your. I know you have some specific photography tips in just a bit, but let’s go back to other resources that you’ve used to make your life more efficient.

[00:19:59]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes. So another thing is the Feast plugin for my blog theme. So I love the layout and the simplicity of this. Again, it’s paid. I was using a free theme at the start, but then I was like, how is all these people having like this amazing themes on their website? I also want it and I realized again I had to use a paid one.

[00:20:21]   

 I know it’s a bit of an investment, but again, it’s worth it. And these themes are also optimized for SEO. So I also think that using the Feast plugin, which costs like $249 American dollars, which is like 390 Australian dollars is a year. I know it’s a fair bit, but it really does make a difference.

[00:20:41]   

 Is very, very easy to use and the theme is very beautiful. And then also a very good web hosting. I use Bigscoots, which I think. Yeah, you also promoted or yeah, they have great customers support.

[00:20:57]  Megan Porta 

 The best is.

[00:20:58]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes, it’s $35 American dollars, which is 56 Australian dollars per month. So again, it’s a fair bit of money. I spend about like a hundred dollars a month plus like some yearly expenses on my blog. But it’s been so worth it. Think spending, you know, investing all this is really made a difference and I can see how since I started using the right tools, the right hosting.

[00:21:23]   

 You know, my traffic has really improved a lot and I think obviously it’s about the content that I have put out there, but it’s also about using these things.

[00:21:34]  Megan Porta 

 Absolutely. And I love that you use the word investing over spending. You actually corrected yourself. Yes. So so often people talk and they’re like, oh, I’m spending so much money. And it’s like, no, actually you’re investing in your business if you do it wisely and that’s giving you your time and energy back.

[00:21:54]   

 So I love that you are like, oh, not spending, investing.

[00:21:59]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Exactly. Because then you know we are going to make money thanks to all this money that we’ve put in. So it’s an investment.

[00:22:05]  Megan Porta 

 Absolutely, yes. They’re giving you basically money back in your pocket. But yeah, I know, I know it’s a hang up for some people like wait, I don’t have $30 a month or 250 a year or whatever. But in the long run this is going to give you all of that money back plus some.

[00:22:23]   

 So you have to kind of change your perspective on it.

[00:22:26]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes.

[00:22:27]  Megan Porta 

 Love everything you’ve mentioned so far. Anything else as far as resources that are, that’s going to help.

[00:22:31]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 I think that’s it. Yeah.

[00:22:34]  Megan Porta 

 Okay, so let’s move on to your photography tips. What tips do you have for us to be more efficient with our photos?

[00:22:41]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 So perfect, well, first of all would be to get a professional camera. You don’t need a fancy camera. I have a pretty simple mirrorless camera. I’ve got a Canon EOS M50. It’s super easy to use. I’ve got a basic lens because also I move a lot. So for me it’s just not possible to have like a huge camera with a huge lens, you know, also because to be fair, like I don’t really know how to use like a super fancy camera but I find this is enough and it makes good photos and then I edit them in Lightroom.

[00:23:13]   

 Then also because I’m always in the move, you know, I was living in Sydney for a bit but then we went traveling. Then we went back to Sydney. Now we are kind of like traveling again. We are in Australia, we go to Indonesia, I go to Spain. So you know. Yes, so we are definitely with you.

[00:23:32]   

 So I don’t have access to like, you know, lots of props all the times and things like that. So I always aim for simple photos. And I know, you know, sometimes we all want to make those amazing photos with so much decoration. But I think be realistic about the photos that you can make.

[00:23:48]   

 So you know, I just get like a nice crockery set, just like some nice cutlery, like a nice bowl and a nice plate and you know, just play around decorating with like ingredients that you have like or some herbs and you know if you get like a very nice, well, few very nice shots of the main recipe that can be enough.

[00:24:08]   

 You don’t need, you know, these super fancy photos. So that can be enough. So. And then also have a nice backdrop. So I actually have a backdrop set in my camper van. I have one in Spain at my parents house. And then when I travel and I know I’m. I might do some photos, sometimes I, I take with me like a very big like tea towel or something that, that I can use for decoration and also as a backdrop.

[00:24:36]   

 And then I always shoot with natural light as well. And this can also. Sometimes it can be very limiting because I, you know there’s only certain times of the day where I can shoot. But I say just plan, know what times of the day are going to be good for shooting your recipes.

[00:24:54]   

 I find that early in the morning or later in the day work well for me just with not with direct sunlight and cloudy days are best. So you know, just plan your shoots around those times when you know the lighting is gonna, is gonna be good.

[00:25:12]  Sponsor 

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[00:25:12]  Megan Porta

I love that you do simple. I think I too love the lavish photos that I see sometimes. I personally am a simple gal as well because I’m kind of lazy and I just feel like this looks beautiful too. So if I can choose between simple and quick and extravagant and not quick, I’m always gonna go with simple and quick.

[00:25:55]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yay. And you know like they require a lot of like time and setting up and you know like having a good space and sometimes also like artificial lighting. So if you don’t have access to that, you know. Yeah. Just don’t make your life so hard trying to do all these things and then getting frustrated.

[00:26:15]   

 Like if that’s where you want to go for sure go for it and learn how to do it. But you know, if you only have like limited resources, aim for simple and it can still be very beautiful.

[00:26:27]  Megan Porta 

 It’s so true. Simple can be so, so beautiful.

[00:26:30]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yeah.

[00:26:31]  Megan Porta 

 Do you have anything else for. First of all, I love that you travel and take pictures on the go and on the road. That’s so cool. And that you’ve just made it work. So do you have any other tips for us?

[00:26:44]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 No, I think that’d be it. I mean, I will be honest. Sometimes I get really frustrated because I’m like, oh, I need more resources to be able to do this, you know, like, it’s hard. For example, like if I’m traveling in my camper van, you know, and I’m trying to shoot recipes, it can be very challenging sometime times.

[00:26:58]   

 But, you know, I kind of learn as I go and I try to stay calm and tell myself it is what it is. You know, if some one day something doesn’t work out, it’s okay, I can try again the day after.

[00:27:11]  Megan Porta 

 Absolutely, yeah. I love that perspective. So outside of photography tips, Alicia, do you have tips for just being overall efficient with our time? Because all of us, every person listening can use these tips.

[00:27:26]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 I feel like, like, yes, I do. My first tip and something that I have really implemented over the last year is to be super intentional with my content. So I understood that, you know, if I wanted to grow my blog, I really had to aim for recipes that had high volume traffic. So I have been super intentional with my keyword research and I have really focused on doing first recipes that have the higher volume volume, especially because my capability to shoot and public recipes is more limited.

[00:28:01]   

 So I’m like, all right, if I’ve got, if I’ve done keyword research, I’m going to start shooting the recipes that have the higher volume first. You know, I’m not gonna do recipes that barely had any search volume because there’s no point, right? Like my aim at the moment is to grow my traffic.

[00:28:20]   

 So, you know, you have to publish recipes that have high volume. Even though we all know our mom’s recipe for whatever it is, it’s amazing and we really wanna publish it. But if nobody’s looking for it, you know, maybe wait until your blog is bigger to publish those recipes. And then also I wanna say that I use Pinterest.

[00:28:42]   

 So Pinterest at the moment drives about 10% of my traffic. It’s not huge, but it’s definitely, it’s know, it’s definitely enough to, you know, use Pinterest. I highly recommend it is good to use. And then with Instagram, I’ve always had a love hate relationship. It just takes so much time to do Instagram and I, I’ve never found that, you know, it’s really work for me.

[00:29:07]   

 I’ve had times that I have spent so much time on Instagram, really tried to grow my Instagram, but I haven’t been successful with it. I know some people are, but you also identify your strengths. I found that if I spend time doing SEO, I have seen results like it’s, you know, it really, it really works.

[00:29:30]   

 So, you know, I also took an Insta, A break from Instagram about six months last year. I just didn’t feel like using it. Like I wasn’t really planning to have this break, but it just came from inside and I kind of listened to my needs as well and it was really good because I find sometimes Instagram can also drain a lot of our energy because I love to have the blog, I love to share recipes, but Instagram requires you to be there all the time on the platform, interacting, you know, so it can be very draining.

[00:30:04]   

 So I, you know, if you feel like, whoa, Instagram is taking so much of your energy, I encourage you to take a break because you know, it’s not going to be the end of the world. Worlds and people are like, oh my gosh, you take a break from Instagram, you know, and the algorithm, the numbers, blah, blah, blah.

[00:30:20]   

 But it’s okay. I promise the world doesn’t end. And after Instagram and I tell you, my blog traffic in that break went up a lot, so it can be worth it.

[00:30:31]  Megan Porta 

 Oh, good. That’s amazing.

[00:30:34]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes. And then I also say just plan. So plan ahead. For me, for example, that I travel a lot, so I always plan ahead. What I’m going to, what I’m, what this I’m going to, to develop or to shoot. Also sometimes it’s depending on where I’m gonna be, the resources that I’m gonna have, like, resources, like, can be like appliances.

[00:30:56]   

 Am I gonna have like a proper kitchen? Am I not? So for example, if I’m gonna go to Spain and I know I’m gonna be staying at my parents place, I know I’m gonna have like a lot of appliances and resources. I’m gonna do a bit of keyword research beforehand. So I’m gonna be prepared for the time that I’m gonna be there and know, you know, exactly the things that I wanna, that I wanna cook.

[00:31:19]   

 And also I would say batch, your recipe shooting. I do this a lot. So for example, maybe I might have like a month when I’m like shooting so many. I can be like, you know, a few months that I actually don’t shoot anything. And I find that it works really well because, you know, I Have, have that time where I’m really focused on, you know, making recipes and shooting them.

[00:31:43]   

 And then I know I have the content for the coming months. So I found that it. That really works for me in terms of organizing my time. And I’ve heard in podcasts, a lot of other bloggers out there that they also, that they also do this. So I think it’s very helpful for a lot of people.

[00:32:01]   

 Another tip would be be realistic about what you can do do. And you know, you hear so many times, like, if you want to grow your blog, you need to post four recipes a week.

[00:32:13]  Megan Porta 

 You’re like, what? Who does it?

[00:32:16]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yeah, like four recipes a week. I. Sometimes I can’t even do four recipes a month, you know, and I think that’s okay. Just, you know, really be realistic about what you can do. Don’t compare yourself to what others are doing out there, because we are all different. Our situation is different to each other, and that’s completely okay.

[00:32:38]   

 So at the moment, for example, because we are traveling in Australia, I’m in the camper van. So I’m aiming for two recipes a month. And that’s okay. That’s working for me. It also fits within my design job that I do as a contractor. I do a little bit more than like, what is would be like part time.

[00:32:57]   

 So I find that works. And it also works with my personal life because I’m also in a moment where I’m like, all right, I went through a period of my life when I was trying to do too much. Now I’m in a period of my life where, you know, I really want to have a very good work life balance and the blog is part of work. So, yeah, I try to not like, stress myself with that. And then I say always.

[00:33:22]  Megan Porta 

 Can I say one thing really quick about the. That last point? The same. This is where I struggle and where a lot of people struggle. And it’s just like we feel like we can take on so much more than we can. And when we do that, that’s when the burnout and bad things happen.

[00:33:41]   

 So I don’t know. Do you have, do you have advice for that? Like how. How did you land on your. The number of recipes you do a month and how. How does someone else land on that? Is it just by experimentation or do you have another way to do that?

[00:33:58]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yeah, yeah, I think definitely experimentation. You know, see where you’re, you know, understanding how much time a recipe is going to take you to do, because obviously you need to, you need to do the recipe testing. I mean I always recipe do the recipe testing. Even if it’s a recipe that you are kind of like super sure is going to work.

[00:34:22]   

 Because I’ve tried not doing it in the past and then I’m shooting and then it doesn’t work and then I’m like, that was a waste of time. So always recipe test and then. Yeah, I guess. Yeah, just like experience. Just experience. And also understanding how much time you want to be spending on your blog.

[00:34:42]   

 How much time, how much spare time you’ve got, you know, after your personal life, if you’ve got a full part time job, whatever it is. Yeah, understanding how what works for you. I’ve got to say that I do to two new recipes, but I also do, I update old posts. So I try to do maybe like another two or so a month.

[00:35:05]   

 I don’t have like a set number, but I think this is kind of like, you know, after a few years I landed on this number because I was like, all right, I think this is doable. And I’ve also reached kind of like a volume of traffic now that I’m happy with. So I’m like, all right, my blog is kind of like my side hustle is not my main source of income. So I’m happy to, you know, put this much effort and you know, slowly keep growing it.

[00:35:32]  Megan Porta 

 Yeah, no, I like that. Okay, that makes a lot of sense. Okay, sorry I interrupted you. So back to your amazing time efficiency tips.

[00:35:42]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yeah, I to be honest, I think, yeah, I think this could be it. I don’t know if you have like any other questions.

[00:35:49]  Megan Porta 

 How do you manage your just kind of your week to week schedule. So it sounds like you travel a lot. Do you plan really far in advance? It sounds like you do some planning, but how far out are you? Like, okay, in two weeks I’m going to be doing this. And how specific do you get? I would love to hear all those details.

[00:36:08]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yeah, so I always do the keyword research first. So super important. I’m gonna make this recipe because I have ranking potential and it’s got volume. So basically what I try to do do is like I want to cook it in like five days or two weeks. I guess sometimes it can also depend on how complex the recipe is and how much recipe testing I’m going to need.

[00:36:34]   

 So let’s say I’m like, I want to shoot it in like two weeks. So during my day to day I try to feed like two recipe testings. Usually that is enough. Sometimes I’ve needed more, but I find that two recipe testings is usually enough. And then I always plan or right this day and time, I’m going to do my recipe shooting.

[00:36:56]   

 And then. Yeah. And then usually now that I don’t work full time, I said like a time, you know, one day, whether that is five hours or depending on how much time, I’m gonna need to really focus on doing that. Because otherwise, I find it’s really important to really schedule the time when you are going into the things.

[00:37:18]   

 Because otherwise, guys, life happens. We find excuses not to do it. So I would say, yes, definitely, like, schedule your time. And if you say, all right, next Friday, I’m going to do this, put time aside and say, and do it. Because I found that otherwise I had before, I was like, all right, well, I’ll do it one day this week.

[00:37:38]   

 And then the week passes and I’m like, oh, I haven’t done it. So schedule things always.

[00:37:43]  Megan Porta 

 Yeah. For me, the pain of getting behind is enough to make me stay on track with things I schedule. Does that make sense? Like, yes, I’ve been behind in the past to the point where it’s like, oh, my gosh, I’m so frazzled and burnt out and tired and I cannot do this again.

[00:38:01]   

 So now when I plan something, I. This is why I stay on track, because I don’t want to go through that again. I need to stay. Stay the course. So important, especially if you run, you know, if you’re doing something else besides your food blog and. Or if you have a family or if you travel a lot or whatever. If you have a life basically and run a food blog, you need to plan.

[00:38:24]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes. And I mean, how much I plan in advance, to be honest, it really depends. So now that, for example, I try to fit it with within, like, my life at the moment. So now we are, as I say, we are in Australia where now we’re camper van. So I’m pretty limited with.

[00:38:45]   

 With what I can do. So I just plan like, you know, I say, all right, this month I’m gonna do this. And I’ve got two recipes that I know I want to shoot and I find the time. Obviously, living in a camper van is limiting. So two is what it works. Then in a few months, I’m gonna be going to Spain to visit my family for a few weeks.

[00:39:04]   

 So I know, for example, when I go to Spain, I’m really gonna try to. To squeeze a lot of recipes in there. So I’m gonna do a lot of, like, batch cooking for there. Hopefully, like I. Maybe I can get like eight recipes, shoot, in like, four or six weeks, and then I’m gonna be publishing those recipes, you know, throughout the following months.

[00:39:26]   

 So, yeah, I plan ahead, depending on what my life is going to look like on the…

[00:39:32]  Megan Porta 

 Yeah. And I think all of us. Us have those things, right? Like, a lot of us might not travel as much as you do, but, like, summers for me, my boys are off of school and I want to spend time with them. So I always cut way back on blog content. And last summer, I was so burnt out that I didn’t even open my website.

[00:39:53]   

 I didn’t even open WordPress most of the summer. And guess what? Nothing exploded. Everything was fine. That’s kind of. Kind of talking on the point. You said earlier, like, if you have to ignore a platform or even your blog for a little bit just to get by and be sane, it’s okay. And you are going to survive and everyone’s gonna.

[00:40:11]   

 Everything is gonna be okay, right?

[00:40:14]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yeah, totally. And I think, you know, also it can be very, you know, draining sometimes, the world of content creation. So I think if you feel like you need to take a break, you know, listen to yourself and take the break, because you might think, oh, my gosh, I’m missing out. You know, I could be being productive all this time, but it’s also very important to be and, you know, just be okay.

[00:40:39]   

 And if you take a break, then you’re gonna come back with more energy, more creativity, you’re gonna be more inspired. So it’s actually. You’re not gonna waste your time, you know, it’s gonna. It’s gonna be good for you, because sometimes we just need a bit of time to reset. So I think it’s super important to do that as well.

[00:40:56]  Megan Porta 

 Yeah, that. That’s such a good point. I know that I’ve tried to push through periods where I’m like, either burnt out or just exhausted and trying to work like that is, like, the most counterproductive thing. Have you ever done that where you’re. You kind of force yourself to work and then it takes you 19,000 times longer than it should?

[00:41:19]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Oh, yeah, I have. And, yeah, especially when I was still working full time, you know, and I was trying to do so much because I was concerned. I knew, you know, I was going to stop working full time and I wasn’t going to have, like, a steady income, and I really wanted to grow my blog to start making me an income, so I was like, I really need to, you know, put a lot of time on this.

[00:41:43]   

 And sometimes I would stay, you know, up until late at night and push through. But then I wouldn’t sleep well because I wouldn’t, like, I would be in front of the computer until too late. I couldn’t have a good night’s sleep. I would wake up feeling tired, and I would just be dragging myself.

[00:41:58]   

 And I. I was, as I was saying at the beginning, you know, I was like, this is not what my blog is about. My blog is also about, you know, like, a healthy lifestyle. And a healthy lifestyle involves not only food, but also, you know, like your personal work life balance. So, yeah, definitely, yeah.

[00:42:18]   

 Don’t overwork. Although I must say, as well, I also know that for me, it was a specific period that I was doing that. And then, you know, it pay, it paid back. Because I know. Know that I work a lot during, you know, during a few months, and then I could actually see the results.

[00:42:36]   

 But, yeah, probably if I could go. Go back, maybe I would try to be a little bit more gentle with myself or. I don’t know how to say it. Just, you know. Yeah, gentle.

[00:42:49]  Megan Porta 

 Yeah. I think gentle is the perfect way to say that. Yes, I. I can so relate to what you were saying, Alicia, about kind of preaching or walking the walk, talking the talk, like, doing what you’re telling other people to do. Because I. I talk a lot on the podcast about taking care of yourself and making sure you’re balanced and you have to do all these things and be mentally in the right space and you can’t overwork and all of that.

[00:43:16]   

 But I get there, too. So I. I get to that point where you were at, where it’s like, wait, I’m telling everyone else to do this, yet I’m feeling burnt out. It’s such a cycle for me. I like, here I am again. Then I start over, here I am again. But, yeah, I think over time we learn how to deal with ourselves, like how to handle ourselves. Does that make sense?

[00:43:40]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yeah, no, for sure. For sure. And I think, you know, like, us as food bloggers, we can go through burnout and a lot of other people can experience it as well. But I’d say yes, if you have experienced it, one just be very aware of what took you to that point and avoid it in the future because, yeah, it’s, you know, it’s not good for you.

[00:44:05]   

 We can avoid it and, you know, sometimes we make mistakes, and that’s completely normal. It’s just part of being a human. But, yeah, don’t overwork yourself to that point because, you know, Know, it’s not worth.

[00:44:17]  Megan Porta 

 Is not worth it. It’s nothing is worth it getting to that stage. So take it from Alicia and me. So my last question for you, Alicia, is if there was one single tip you could give to somebody who is really struggling with just having to do all the things, they have so much going on and they feel like they can make no time for their blogs, what is your number one tip?

[00:44:44]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 So I think my number one tip would be just, yeah, just be realistic and be patient. You know, like, for me now it’s taken. So it’s taken like three and a half years to arrive to where I am. I’ve just been accepted to Mediavine, which has been super exciting. But, you know, know, if you can’t do everything, we are not superhumans.

[00:45:10]   

 So, yeah, just be realistic and it’s okay. You know, we only have the time that we have. There’s only 24 hours a day and eight of them we should be sleeping. So don’t try to. Don’t. Don’t put yourself goals that are impossible because you are just gonna put, you know, so much pressure in yourself.

[00:45:31]   

 And sometimes things take time, and that’s okay. And maybe if I can say two tips, the other tip would be, yeah, just be very intentional with your content, you know, and really, you know, go for the content that you know is going to give you results.

[00:45:48]  Megan Porta 

 Yeah. You want it to matter, right? If you’re going to take the time to put the content together, then make it count or at least do your best in calculating that, because we can’t always know for sure, but you can plan your best. What an amazing, inspiring conversation. I so appreciate this and just you sharing about you and your story, and I want to come visit you and do all of your traveling with you.

[00:46:13]   

 As you’re talking about going to Spain and being in your camper van, I was like, oh, that sounds fun. Sounds pretty amazing. So I’ll show up your doorstep next week and then you can take me with you. I’m just kidding. But thank you. Seriously, thank you for sharing everything and we just so appreciate all of this, Alicia.

[00:46:31]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Thank you. My pleasure. It’s been so fun chatting with you Megan.

[00:46:34]  Megan Porta 

 How did your first podcast interview go? Give it a rating. Good, Good. I’m glad.

[00:46:41]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yeah, it’s been fun. Thank you.

[00:46:43]  Megan Porta 

 It was painless, I hope.

[00:46:45]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes, definitely.

[00:46:46]  Megan Porta 

 Okay, good. Well, do you have either a favorite quote or words of inspiration to leave us with as we end?

[00:46:53]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes, I do. And I always like to say that with intention, effort, and dedication, amazing things can happen.

[00:47:02]  Megan Porta 

 What an absolute perfect way to end this conversation. I love it. So true.

[00:47:06]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Thank you.

[00:47:07]  Megan Porta 

 We will put together a show notes page for you Alicia and you can find those at eatblogtalk.com/bitesinthewild so remind everyone where they can find you.

[00:47:18]  Alicia Gonzalez Tome 

 Yes so I’m on Instagram @BitesInTheWild and also in Pinterest at Bites in the Wild. I had a TikTok account but I never use it so probably don’t bother looking into that. I’m also on Facebook at Bites in the Wild and then my website which you’ve mentioned.

[00:47:37]  Megan Porta 

 Everyone go check out all of Alicia’s channels and thank you again for being here and thank you so much for listening food bloggers. I will see you next time. 

[00:47:48]  Outro

If you enjoyed this topic you’ll also love the episode episode I recommend in the show notes. Click on the episode description to find the link. Thank you and I will see you next time.