In episode 352, Lauren LeBlanc teaches us how to make money doing SEO-focused ghostwriting for other food bloggers.

We cover information on knowing what your worth and how to determine your pricing, conveying a professional look with templates and tools that help you brand yourself, track your time so you also save time for your own blog and ways to organize yourself for seamless interactions with clients.

Listen on the player below or on iTunes, TuneIn, Stitcher, or your favorite podcast player. Or scroll down to read a full transcript.

Write Blog Posts that Rank on Google’s 1st Page

RankIQ is an AI-powered SEO tool built just for bloggers. It tells you what to put inside your post and title, so you can write perfectly optimized content in half the time. RankIQ contains a hand-picked library with the lowest competition, high traffic keywords for every niche.

Guest Details

Connect with Lauren From Scratch

Website | Facebook | Instagram

Bio Lauren has been blogging on and off for the past 7 years, and started food blogging in January 2020. Her focus is on creating savory recipes from scratch using high quality ingredients, and teaching people how to make restaurant worthy dishes in their own kitchens. Additionally, Lauren generates income by ghostwriting SEO focused recipe posts for other bloggers.

Takeaways

  • Know your worth
  • There’s no standard in the industry but don’t undersell yourself.
  • Your experience level + length of time to do a job =
  • Create packages to offer options
  • Everyone’s at a different stage in blogging so your prices aren’t for everyone, but that’s ok.
  • Take a professional approach.
  • Create templates so everyone gets communicated with all the details they need. Use tools like Canva to put together a professional look.
  • Stay current with SEO practices by educating yourself constantly.
  • You have to find clients.
  • Keeping a balance between how many clients you have, managing your own blog and anything else in your personal life done.
  • Don’t be discouraged by ‘no’ because it opens up room for a yes from the right clients.
  • Stay organized. Lots of moving parts in blogging so use tools that assure you and your client you’re on top of the work and meeting deadlines.
  • SEO Report Card – this will help provide value to your clients.
  • Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) – helps to avoid distraction and keep to a professional standard

Resources Mentioned

Check out Lauren’s resources for bloggers:

Blogging resources – email sign up

Blogging From Scratch on Instagram!

Blogging From Scratch on TikTok

Businessese – translating the legalese and handling the fine print.

Transcript

Click for full script.

EBT352 – Lauren LeBlanc

Lauren LeBlanc: Hey, this is Lauren LeBlanc from Lauren from Scratch, and you are listening to the Eat Blog Talk podcast. 

Sponsor: Hey everyone, real quick. I want to take a moment just to tell you a little bit about Clariti. Clariti is a powerful tool that allows you to organize, optimize, and update your blog content for maximum growth. One of the most powerful ways bloggers are using Clariti to make their content better is through the use of projects. You can think of projects as groupings of your content that need similar updates. They help you make data driven task lists for each of your posts. Some popular projects that bloggers are currently running with Clariti are old posts that need to be no-indexed or deleted, seasonal posts that need to be refreshed or pushed to social full revamps for old posts, broken link fixes, posts to reshoot, adding alt text and top posts health checks. Projects are at the heart of how bloggers are using Clariti to add extra value to their blog posts to maximize their traffic. If you are interested in learning more and potentially becoming an early adopter of clarity, you can go to clariti.com/eatblogtalk to sign up for the waiting list and receive 50% off your first month. Go to clariti.com/eatblogtalk or check out the resources page on eatblogtalk.com/resources to learn more. 

Megan Porta: Hey food bloggers. Welcome to Eat Blog Talk, the podcast for food bloggers looking for the value and confidence that will move the needle forward in their businesses. This episode is sponsored by RankIQ. I am your host, Megan Porta, and you are listening to episode number 352. I have Lauren LeBlanc with me today, and she is going to talk to us about how bloggers can make money from blogging by doing SEO focused ghost writing. Lauren has been blogging on and off for the past seven years and started her food blog in January, 2020. Lauren focuses on creating savory recipes from scratch, using high quality ingredients, and teaching people how to make restaurant worthy dishes in their own kitchens. She realized she needed to spend money to grow her blog, so she needed to generate income. Lauren used her blogging skills and began ghostwriting SEO focused recipe posts for other bloggers. Super excited to chat with you about this today. Lauren. I love this topic. 

Lauren LeBlanc: Hey, Megan, nice to be here. 

Megan Porta: Thanks for being here. It’s such a pleasure to have you on the podcast. Lauren. Let’s hear your fun fact. What do you have for us? 

Lauren LeBlanc: My fun fact is I’m actually a physician assistant and part-time food blogger. But before I became a physician assistant, I was working on my PhD in biochemistry, and I love science, I love teaching, but I actually hated being stuck in a lab by myself all the time. So I had to pump the RS on that plan and rethink what I wanted to do with my life, which was scary. But I actually take a lot of those skills that I learned in the science field into my recipe development, and I approach it like an experiment. So I feel like I still get to do a little bit of that, which is nice.

Megan Porta: That’s awesome. So you said you still are a physician’s assistant currently? 

Lauren LeBlanc: Yes. I’m a full-time physician assistant. I work in psychiatry. So that’s my day job and I do blogging everywhere in between. 

Megan Porta: Wow. Okay. So you have a very well rounded life. I feel like that would fill all the boxes, right?

Lauren LeBlanc: It definitely fills all the boxes. It fills out my time boxes for sure. But it’s good. 

Megan Porta: Yes. Time, energy, and all the categories in life. So cool. Thank you again for being here today and I guess just to start, we would love to hear about your journey in food blogging and how it’s gone, when you started, and how it’s evolved a little bit, and then when did you get to the point where you were like, I need to make money. How is this going to happen? Just talk us through all of that. 

Lauren LeBlanc: Sure. So I started a blog in 2017 that was non-food related. It was about my journey of being a PA student and then I started my actual food blog in 2020 right before the pandemic. I think when most people took the pandemic as a time to ramp up their food blogs, I was just in a paralysis mode, especially being in healthcare. It was super scary and I was like, am I gonna have a job still? It was a very uncertain time. So I actually took a little break. But I started treating my food blog like a business in 2021. I realized that we put so much work into our food blogs and also with that a lot of money because it takes money to get started. It takes a little bit of money to keep things going. So I figure, before I get to that Mediavine status, I have to figure out some kind of way to generate income. I know a lot of people are in that position, because it could be a very expensive hobby, food blogging. So I looked into doing food photography for other bloggers, which I really love the food photography aspect, but I realized that when you’re doing that kind of work for other bloggers, sometimes you’re gonna make less money than you [00:05:00] would if you’d be working for a brand. A lot of people really enjoy food photography. So I realized that one thing people do not enjoy is writing. That’s where I figured out that if I could take some of the writing off of people’s hands, that’s a really valuable resource to have because so many people save writing to the last step and it often gets overlooked. The problem with that is that SEO writing’s super important. We all know because SEO is king. We have to get our website out in front of the eyes of everybody else, so it seems like a really good way to actually get a job like that. 

Megan Porta: Writing is a necessity in our world, right? We have to write, we can’t just put up photos and a recipe, like there has to be writing involved. So I love your approach to that. A lot of us do photography because it’s creative, it’s visual, it’s beautiful. But when it comes to writing, it’s more of a necessity. So smart of you to approach it like that. We all have to do this and a lot of us probably don’t want to do it. What are your tips for getting started with something like this? Because it can seem overwhelming. Obviously we wanna help and we wanna get the work, but how do we go about that? 

Lauren LeBlanc: So I came up with five things that can help other bloggers get started with SEO focused ghost writing for others. Because making that first dollar, I feel is really important, but it’s also super gratifying when you can finally say I spent all this money in my blog, but hey look, I’m actually bringing in some income now. So the first step is the most important I think, and that is to know your worth. So as an entrepreneur, pricing things can be hard because we all have imposter syndrome. We all are just setting our own rates. There’s no standard of how much certain things are gonna be charged. But I just want to encourage everybody to not undersell yourself. When I was first doing research on how to price my services, I was really shocked at some extremely low rates. So to write up whole post keyword research and make it SEO compatible, that takes some time. Some of the rates that people were charging per hour, it would almost be less than minimum wage. I know my time is worth more than that. I know a lot of other bloggers that have any kind of expertise. Really our time is worth more than that. So I just wanna encourage you to not be scared that nobody’s gonna pay your price. Do it competitively, but also don’t undersell yourself. 

Megan Porta: Where do you recommend starting out with that? Because I don’t wanna be paid minimum wage, so do you have a range? Just so people have something in their minds? 

Lauren LeBlanc: Yeah. So I also say take into consideration what your expertise level is. So if you’ve been blogging for any amount of time, you’ve been writing your own blog posts, so that counts as your expertise. So your experience level, also how long it’s gonna take you. So I would set a timer and from start to finish, start timing yourself because I think it’s hard to conceptualize how much a project is worth, but if you can break it down into hours, I think we’re all more familiar with what an hourly rate is like. If you want numbers, I saw some people and this is no offense to anybody who’s actually charging these rates, but I just wanna tell you that I guarantee you can charge more. So some people were charging $50 per blog post, and I just feel like that’s not enough for the multiple hours it would take to keyword research, to write. Not only that, but I think it’s important when you’re writing for others, you wanna write in their style and you wanna write in something that’s consistent with their voice and their brand. So if you’re doing all of those things. I think it’s worth way more than 50. 

Megan Porta: Oh my gosh. Yeah. When you said 50, I was like, Ooh, that’s a punch in the gut. That is like working, basically working for free especially if you’re doing keyword word research and focusing on SEO a little bit. 

Lauren LeBlanc: Exactly. It’s yeah, much more than that. So my prices, I actually just redid my prices recently, but I have different packages I offer. So if you do one blog post, I have a bare minimum package, which is really just the writing. Then I also have a white glove package, which I do keyword research for people. I am writing this post. I also plug it into WordPress. I put in your photos. I basically do everything on the blog post, so obviously that’s a little more expensive. But my prices range from like 150 to 250 ish, depending on the package you get.

Megan Porta: Yeah. I had that in my mind, actually like 150 starting, so I love that aligns.

Lauren LeBlanc: I was like, wow, this is expensive. Nobody’s gonna pay for this. I got a lot of no’s and that’s okay. But I did get a few yeses and the clients that I have seem to be really happy with their services. So just because somebody tells you’re too expensive, that does not mean you need to change your prices. 

Megan Porta: I do not like hearing that about not just my stuff, but other people’s stuff too. Like I hate the words, that’s too expensive. I think if you’re not willing to pay for it, that’s fine. But I just think instead of saying something’s expensive, saying that it’s an investment is so much more, it shows their worth more. 

Lauren LeBlanc: Everybody doesn’t have the budget for this, and that’s okay. We’re all on different stages in our blogging journey, and that’s okay. But I think that the people that are looking for you and do have the money to pay, they are for sure out there.

Megan Porta: Yeah. I think that is a hangup that we all have. At some point in our journey people aren’t gonna pay me for X, but there’s always somebody out there who is going to see your worth and who will pay you. So I love that this was tip number one. Okay. Anything else before we go on to tip number two, or are you ready for that one?

Lauren LeBlanc: I think that’s everything for that, yeah. 

Megan Porta: All right. Go on and yeah, share tip number two with us. 

Lauren LeBlanc: So for tip number two, I say take a professional approach. So what I did is I wanted to have everything kind of fluid and streamlined. So I made an email template of people when they reach out to me, the basics of what I offer. So that way if somebody emails me, I just plug in the template, customize it a little bit according to them, but it makes it a lot easier. That saves me tons of time than having to think of emails every single time. Same thing with flyers. I went onto Canva and just made a decent looking flier of an explanation of my services, what the different packages include. That makes it really easy just to send out when people inquire about your services. Another thing that goes in with professionalism is staying current with SEO practices. So if you are offering SEO focused ghost writing, you wanna make sure you know what’s going on in the world.of SEO and it’s always changing and it’s always evolving, but I really try to stay current with what’s going on. I listen to all of the Top Hat rank seminars, which are great. I listen to SEO podcasts. I try to keep an eye out in the Facebook groups for anything new popping up. So that’s definitely something you want to stay on top of. 

Megan Porta: The good thing about that is that bloggers by default need to stay current with SEO if they want to keep upping their game and producing quality content.

Lauren LeBlanc: So there’s no downside to staying on top of what’s going on in the SEO world. 

Megan Porta: Yeah. That’s great. Okay. Anything else about just being professional? I love your points about email and Canva. Just keeping things looking professional.

Lauren LeBlanc: I feel like one of the other points I make gets into the profession, which is staying organized, but we’ll get to that one in a minute.

Megan Porta: Okay, awesome. What is tip number three? 

Lauren LeBlanc: So tip number three is you have to find clients. So this can be a little intimidating too because we don’t necessarily want to cold call people, although I have done that before. But Facebook groups are a great way to start. So there are a ton of VA services related Facebook groups that people are always looking for photography or writers. So just join a bunch of those groups and see. Another thing you can try is websites like Upwork, but I actually haven’t had much luck getting clients from that. But I will tell you, most of my clients have come from word of mouth. So it only takes a few good clients that really, what you’re doing, they’re gonna tell all their blogging friends if you’re doing a really good job. So I think making sure you’re keeping your clients happy and making sure you’re providing a good product, that’s the best way to get the word out about your services.

Megan Porta: Once one or two come, then it’s like they come in droves, right? Because if you produce that quality content, people are going to talk about you.

Lauren LeBlanc: You only need a few. Unfortunately, if I could write all day, I could, but I still have other things to do and other tasks for my own blog. So you really, at the end of the day, you really only need a few clients to stay afloat.

Megan Porta: I have a question about just enjoyment. Do you like writing? Do you ever get tired of it? Is it something that you really do enjoy?

Lauren LeBlanc: I do enjoy writing. I’ve always been a decent writer and I’ve enjoyed writing. It does get to be a lot sometimes when I have to write things for my own blog and a bunch of clients, so I think keeping a balance is key, but I do enjoy it. 

Megan Porta: That’s good because , you want to, and yeah, that’s probably a key thing too before you get into it, is just knowing that writing is something that you’re not gonna get burnt out from, and that you are going to at least semi enjoy doing it here and there through your week. Okay. So finding clients, I do feel like that is a hard part. People are like, Oh, who’s gonna hire me? I don’t know where I’m gonna find them. So just keeping your eyes open in the Facebook groups and getting those first few. Then from there, things should unfold for you. 

Lauren LeBlanc: Don’t be discouraged if you get a bunch of no’s, because every no just opens up more room for the right yes. So you can’t get upset if 10 people write back and say that they’re not into it. That’s okay. The right client’s coming. 

Megan Porta: Oh, I love that. Yes. Great mindset. 

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Megan Porta: Moving on to tip number four. 

Lauren LeBlanc: All right, so tip number four is a big one, and I think this is important in blogging in general, but also for writing for others, is to stay organized. There’s a ton of moving parts in our blogs. We know that staying organized is really key. So how I keep all of my client’s stuff organized is I have a shared Google folder that we share between us.

When I get a new client, I put an intro document in there. . So it lets them know what the flow is gonna be, what they can expect, what I need from them, timeframes. I also have a document in there of how to set up WordPress access for me, because you can be an editor or you can be an author so that it breaks that down so they don’t have to think about it. They can literally just go step by step and set that up for me. 

Then I also recommend doing a contract. I use a template from a business called Businessese, which has entrepreneurial, creative related contract templates. So I use one of theirs that’s actually good for food photography or like other creative services. So it’s great cuz once you buy it, you can continue to use it for all of your contract needs. So it’s a little investment. I think it’s maybe $200 or $300, but you’ll make that money back and it’s good to have a contract to protect everybody. 

Megan Porta: Oh my gosh. I love that and I, not everybody does that. I’ve done work with, I’ve hired people before to do random things on my blog, and a contract isn’t always used. It doesn’t always come up. But I do think that is the smart way to go. 

Lauren LeBlanc: I didn’t use it at first and I didn’t have any problems, but after I started doing a few more, I just figured it can’t hurt there. We have contracts for reasons, so I think it’s a good idea to have it, especially if you’re gonna continue to do this.

Megan Porta: Yeah. Great recommendation. What other ways do you stay organized with your clients? 

Lauren LeBlanc: So I’m a very visual person and I love using Google Calendar for the time blocks. I like to see what my day looks like, on the calendar. So if I know I have certain client posts coming up, I plug that in as a time block and I know that’s the time to do it. I have to get it done. Maybe I can move it around a little bit, but I’m on deadlines because they have content calendars to stick with, so I wanna make sure I’m devoting time to all of my clients. I also recommend having a timesheet tracker. So I made one an AirTable, which I love. AirTable is the freaking best.

Megan Porta: Yes, agreed. 

Lauren LeBlanc: On that I keep track of the client name, what invoice they have, what post is related, the price. I also keep track of my time because I just like to know, am I getting faster? Are things taking me longer? If all of a sudden things take me longer, maybe I’m not charging appropriately. So I like to keep track of that. Also, did you get paid? That’s important to keep track of. So I have all that in a tracker. 

I touched on this earlier, but I think it’s important to familiarize yourself with your client’s writing style. So some of my clients have just been like, sure, do whatever. Just get started. I don’t care. And some of my clients have been really beautifully meticulous with documents of how to write in their voice and how to write with their brand’s style in mind. So that’s amazing. Not everybody’s gonna give you that, but I would recommend reading a few of your clients’ writing samples and blog posts just to kinda stick with their style.

Megan Porta: Do you do test paragraphs or anything like that just to see if they align with what you’re writing? 

Lauren LeBlanc: So a part of my packages I’ll have a single post and then a five post package. So what I find that a lot of people do is just pay for a single post. Just to be like, let’s see if we’re a good fit for each other. Then they’ll continue on a more ongoing basis. But I also am very open to feedback. If people don’t like anything, we gotta communicate about that. But I haven’t really had anybody say Whoa, you’re doing this totally wrong.

Megan Porta: Yeah. Do you find that easy to do? To latch onto somebody else’s writing style. 

Lauren LeBlanc: It’s hard when you’re switching, so sometimes I’ll just, if I haven’t written for a specific client in a while, I’ll go back and just refresh. Unfortunately, because we’re all writing for SEO, a lot of our personality gets lost in writing, so I try to still inject a little bit of personality into the writing or else all of our posts just sound the same. Some clients don’t really care so much about that, and some do. So I think it just depends on who you’re writing for.

Megan Porta: Then do you have any sort of outline or template that you start with or do you just wing it? 

Lauren LeBlanc: So I have templates for everything. I feel like that’s another part of taking a professional approach is that you want everything to be cohesive and streamlined and consistent. So I use Google Docs and I make templates for my SEO report card basically that I send to them. I also have, so let’s see, I’ll pull it up. So in that template I have a block for the RankIQ grade, because I do that sometimes when writing posts. I have blocks for all the keywords that I research and what those search volumes are, as well as the competition score. I have templates for my search engine results page analysis notes, and I also plug in their whole blog post into that Word document. . And if I’m updating a post, I put their old post in there as well. Because say if you’re rewriting a post for a client and you delete all their old stuff and put yours in there, and maybe they don’t like it, you wanna make sure you have their original save somewhere too. So I like to have that in there when I’m updating a post. 

Megan Porta: That’s so smart. I think it’s so smart to just think through some of this on the front end and have it prepared. So it’s just this natural flow, which kind of leads to your next point, right? So you have SOPs. So go ahead and talk about that.

Lauren LeBlanc: For sure. SOPs are standard operating procedures, and I think it’s important to have those for a lot of different tasks in your blog, but having one for your writing flow is really important because sometimes we just get distracted and all of the things we have to do, we’re always thinking about what’s coming up next and I know for me, focus is a struggle sometimes. So if I can go back to a paper that says step one, step two, step three, and just check it off as I go, I know I’m not missing anything and I know that it’s easier for me to stay on task. So a little sample of what my SOP writing flow is as I always start with Keysearch to do keyword research. I’ll also look at Google just to kinda see what things are popping up. Once I decide on a keyword for a post, I will plug that into Google and look at the first search engine results page, because those are the top, sometimes it’s seven, sometimes it’s eight, but those are the top posts that Google is showing, so there’s gotta be something good in those posts.

Now, obviously we know we never wanna copy, we never wanna just look at word for word what they have, but I think it’s a good idea to glance at all of those top posts just to see what they have. If you’re writing a post about steak and every single post on the top page talks about how to pick the right steak, then you wanna have that in your post too. The goal is to write the most helpful content we can, so we’re never copying, but we do wanna review that to get a good idea of what we should have. 

Megan Porta: That is so smart. And then you go through RankIQ as well, correct? 

Lauren LeBlanc: Yes. So I usually run the post through RankIQ and I have them side by side. I like to actually write the post in Google Docs because it saves automatically. Sometimes if I’m just writing from scratch in RankIQ, I’ve had the page refresh on me or automatically get logged out and I lose things. So you wanna make sure you’re obsessively saving, really no matter what you’re doing. But I like to plug it in and see which keywords I’m missing, which keywords I have, if there’s anything really big that I should have in there that I’m missing. But I try to be careful. Don’t just put a bunch of keywords in because RankIQ says to. Because we wanna be concise with our writing. We want it to make sense. We don’t wanna keyword stuff and we don’t wanna add words just because it says so, because then sometimes Our writing is, it’s too much. If you can say everything you wanna say in five words, then you really don’t need to say the same thing using 10 words. So I think the reminder to be concise. It’s great to use all these tools, but just still keep your writing concise. 

Megan Porta: Yeah, I think that is a really great tip because sometimes I will put keywords in that an optimizer says I should, and then when I go back and read it, I’m like, Oh. That really didn’t sound super clear. It was just too wordy. So yeah, I think that’s a really good reminder just to go back and read some of that stuff that you’re writing and adding keywords to, just to make sure that it sounds good. 

Lauren LeBlanc: Yes. Cause at the end of the day, we’re we all, we’re writing for Google, but we’re writing for people. We’re writing for a user on the other end, and we wanna make super helpful content so it doesn’t matter what all of the other tools say. You have to do that at the heart of writing as just write helpful content. 

Megan Porta: Yeah, I totally agree.

Lauren LeBlanc: Yeah, and then of course proofread. Especially when you’re writing for others, You don’t wanna have grammar mistakes, you don’t wanna have spelling mistakes. So read it once, read it twice, have somebody else read over it if you can. It’s always great to proofread. 

Megan Porta: Then you just give it back. Do you get feedback like, I don’t like this. I need to change this. Do your clients often change what you write? How does that go once you’ve delivered it? 

Lauren LeBlanc: I don’t know. I don’t think I’ve really ever had anybody ask for a rewrite. I will notice that sometimes people just change things on their own when they plug it in, which is fine. I do like to know what they’re changing, especially if you’re working with a client on an ongoing basis. So after they actually post the recipe, I’ll go back and just review it and see how many things differed from what I wrote and get an idea of Oh, they just don’t like the way that’s worded or something like,

Megan Porta: Then do you take note of that? If they don’t like maybe certain words to be used or whatever, just note it so that you avoid it. 

Lauren LeBlanc: Yeah, I’ll try. Yeah. I have a document for each client of just little tidbits of things to remember. Also, something important to go over with your client is how they like other posts structured. Some people don’t care. Some people say do whatever’s best for SEO, but some people don’t want certain things or they do want certain things. So I know one of my clients doesn’t like it to be very wordy. She just wants really concise, very short steps. Very short process information. So I know with her I have to keep things short and sweet and to the point.

Megan Porta: I have a question for you about food. So let’s say you’re writing for somebody who has a recipe that you’re not super familiar with. How does that go? 

Lauren LeBlanc: I do research. I try to bring my own culinary expertise into the writing as well. I can recommend my own substitutions or a better explanation of the recipe or the steps, or if there are certain techniques involved. I feel like I have enough knowledge to be able to write that. But if there’s something that I’m not super familiar with, then I always try to do a little research. I have a client who writes a lot of posts about Jewish holiday food, and so I’m not Jewish and I’m not really familiar with that. So when I first started with her, I spent some time and asked questions and I wanna make sure I’m writing things that make sense, but are also appropriate. So I did a little research, but I also had her walk me through some things and explain some things as well.

Megan Porta: This just goes back to knowing your worth and you’re putting in that extra time to understand in the back end, so it’s not stuff that you’re actually delivering. So this is money, this is time and energy, and this makes you more worthwhile. 

Lauren LeBlanc: For sure. Definitely. 

Megan Porta: Yeah. Is there anything we missed before we go onto your bonus tip? This has all been so great, Lauren. 

Lauren LeBlanc: Just the last thing is sometimes my clients will actually want me to upload to their WordPress. So I also have a separate checklist of things to do before you press publish. Because you wanna make sure your alt tags are written and you wanna make sure I change the author to them and put the appropriate category. So I also have a checklist of everything to do before I hand it off to them to make sure that’s perfect as well.

Megan Porta: Awesome. Okay. What is your bonus tip? I know you have one more for us. 

Lauren LeBlanc: Yeah. So the bonus tip is actually something that I struggle with a lot, and it saves time for your own blog. So being a professional ghostwriter is not really the end goal here. It’s to advance your own blog, it’s to make enough money to get to the point where you don’t have to do this writing for other people anymore. So unless you wanna do this, unless this is your end goal, then great. But I think saving time for your own blog is really important, and that’s something that I struggle with too. Because it’s easy to take on more and more clients, because in your head you’re like, Oh, more money. I can buy this or I can save money for this. But if you’re not working on your own blog, then what’s the point? 

Megan Porta: Oh, that’s such a great point. It can be just really enticing to focus on dollars. Oh, I can make more, get another client or two, But then you’re not spinning the wheels on what you set out to initially. Your blog is going to generate income, so keep focusing on that. Love it. 

Lauren LeBlanc: If I use the Google calendar and I know it takes a certain amount of hours to shoot, it takes a certain amount of hours to test, and I visually plug that in, that really helps me because I’m the kind of person that’s Oh yeah, I could do that. I could do that. I add on so many things, and then I’m like, wait, my days are not 97 hours long. I truly cannot get all of this done in a day. So I think it’s important to be honest with yourself about how long everything actually takes. Once you start doing that, it’s hard to be honest with yourself sometimes, because I think as entrepreneurs we’re all kind of superhuman and we feel like we can do it all, but at the end of the day, we really only have a certain amount of time. So it’s important to be realistic with yourself about that. 

Megan Porta: That is so important. Yes. Great way to end here. Is there anything we’ve forgotten? Anything that you just wanted to mention on the topic of ghost writing before we say goodbye? 

Lauren LeBlanc: I think that’s everything. I encourage people to try it. It’s really frustrating when you’re putting a lot of money into your blog and you’re not generating any income and this was definitely a great way to start making, even if it’s a little bit, start making some kind of revenue. 

Megan Porta: Thank you so much for being here, Lauren. This was such a fun chat.

Lauren LeBlanc: Yeah, for sure. 

Megan Porta: I loved it. Do you have either a favorite quote or words of inspiration to leave us with today? 

Lauren LeBlanc: Yeah, I have some words of inspiration. So I know we talk a lot about mindset. I know you do, and I know just in general in this field we do. But practicing daily gratitude has truly changed my life. If you spend five minutes a day just sitting with the feelings of happiness that all of the blessings in your life bring and all of the good things, it really helps shift your mindset into a place of negative because it’s so easy to get caught up in all the crappy things happening in our lives and in the world. But I just really feel like taking a few minutes every day and thinking about all the good stuff, it just brings more good stuff into your life. 

Megan Porta: It is a game changer when you can do that, especially if you can start your day like that so that you kinda set the tone for your day. Oh my gosh, your life will change. I know it’s so easy to hear that and be like, oh. But try it. Try it for a week and I promise you will see results. I love that you do that as well, Lauren. That’s awesome. 

Lauren LeBlanc: It sounds woo. A lot of people are not into that kind of stuff, but it’s so simple and sometimes it’s not magic, but sometimes it really feels magic. The changes that it can make are really great. That is my tip.

Megan Porta: Totally love it. Yes. We’ll put together show notes for you, Lauren. So if anyone wants to go look at those, you can go to eatblogtalk.com/laurenfromscratch. Tell everyone where they can find you online, social media, and anywhere else, Lauren.

Lauren LeBlanc: So I am online. My blog is Laurenfromscratch.com. I am on Instagram at Lauren from Scratch Blog. If anyone wants to sign up for some SEO blogging tips, you can go to Laurenfromscratch.com/subscribe and subscribe to my email list. 

Megan Porta: Ooh. Awesome. Thanks for mentioning that. And thank you again, Lauren, for being here, and thanks for listening today, food bloggers. I will see you in the next episode. 

Outro: Thank you so much for listening to this episode of Eat Blog Talk. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you posted it to your social media feed and stories. I will see you next time.


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