We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Laura Funk a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Laura thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

I fell into blogging as a hobby. I have always enjoyed writing and storytelling, but it wasn’t until I became a mom and the world went digital that I found my passion. The past decade has been a constant learning curve. I started by learning basic coding to design my blog, from there I spent countless hours learning how to best market our blog page and pitch companies, while also building our social following. Then it was SEO, camera equipment and photo editing courses. I feel like I am constantly learning and growing and I like that as social media and the digital space continues to change.

When I first started SEO was there, but it wasn’t something that was at the forefront of the blogging community. I wish I would have jumped on that and learning how those search engines work. If I were to start over, I would start by building my communities on my social channels and then I would launch the website.

I think photography is probably at the top of the list. I work with a massive amount of brands and they want *that* photo that stands out, that tells a story, but is real and creating that, editing that, making that happen, is at the top of the essentials list. From there, I think it’s just a connection. You can tell when people are not being authentic. I look back at some of my posts in the beginning when I was getting new brand partnerships and I can see right through it. Now I make sure that if I sign on with a brand, there is a reason, there is a connection and I am not just trying out something because it’s cool. I want what I share to be beneficial to the people that have been by my side for 10 years or even just 1 day. Connection is important and my online family is very important to me.

As far as obstacles. Social media is constantly changing and adapting. You have to be willing to put the hours in, to learn, to grow and to hit those walls as you learn. It’s not always easy and there is always an obstacles, but if you are willing to do the work, you will come out ahead.

Laura, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Laura Funk. I am a digital content creator. Although some call what I do influencer work, I focus more on the content creation and less on trying to be what everybody wants. I do freelance writing, photography, reviews, giveaways and videos focused around lifestyle and parenting.

It is hard to choose what I am most proud of. I think as a whole, I am proud of where we are and where we have come from. I have a team of people behind me and my little blog has bloomed into a business that has allowed our family some incredible experiences as well as relationships that I will treasure forever. My community online is something that I love and protect and I would be nowhere without them.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Before I knew the blog would take off, it was just a hobby. I was a young mom of 2 and a full time high school teacher. I was trucking along and writing regularly and decided that I would get graduate school done while the kids were still little and I was pretty early into my teaching career. Then the blogging business took off, full speed ahead.

It was like I was on a rollercoaster, riding the downward drop for 2 years straight, managing a billion things and doing my very best not to let a single ball drop. In the midst of that we lost some close family members and were dealing with grief. I look back on those years in shock and awe of what I was able to accomplish. To some it is just what a mom does, but to me, it was like I battled a dragon and won.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Authenticity, Engagement, Work. In the early days of social media, you could do a giveaway and gain 50-100 followers in a heartbeat. However, as social media grew and people started to pivot towards curating feeds that they truly love and enjoy and connect with, that is where the game changed.

People want connections. They want to know that the thoughts, feelings and emotions they are having and the trials they are going through are normal and they want to be part of a community. They want to laugh and cry with you and YOU should want to be there for them too. Connect, that is the bottom line.

Contact Info:

• Website: wegotthefunk.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/laurat_funk
• Facebook: facebook.com/wegotthefunk1
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-funk-63076798/
• Twitter: twitter.com/laurat_funk
• Youtube: youtube.com/lauratrevenafunk