What you’ll learn in this interview:

• The 11 tools this full-time blogger uses to run her business
• The 1 social media tool that grew her audience organically from 0-150K
• The 1 course she took that created a new revenue stream for her
• The other course she took that quadrupled her blog traffic
• The 1 book she read that changed her perspective on life
• Her 5 minute, 5 product makeup routine
• The 2 unexpected items that have made her more productive

How This Full-Time Blogger Runs Her Business Behind The Scenes

1. What do you do? Who do you help?

I help current and aspiring female entrepreneurs learn how to make money as a blogger and how to become an influencer.

My team and I create daily motivational content on LadyBossBlogger.com to inspire women to push past their self-limiting beliefs and rise up in business and leadership.

2. List your favorite business tools.

SOCIAL MEDIA

• SmarterQueue – social media scheduler that I’ve used to grow my following on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn on autopilot. I haven’t touched my social media accounts in over a year and I just hit 150K followers.
• Tailwind – best Pinterest scheduler and with their Smart Loop feature you can be 100% hands-free from your account as you watch your traffic grow.
• Planoly – top Instagram scheduler because you can visually plan out your feed. Plus it’s one of the few Instagram-approved schedulers out there which is why you can auto post from it.

EMAIL MARKETING

• ConvertKit – is designed for content creators who make (or want to make) a living online. They have integrated landing page and opt-in options as well as incredible segmentation and automation tools. It’s like 10 tools packed into one powerful software system.

DIGITAL PRODUCT

• Teachable – I’ve tried other course creation software programs and settled on this one because of its user-friendliness and customer service.
• Shopify – I would recommend this over Amazon because you can actually build your own brand with Shopify instead of it just being a marketplace where you don’t have access to your customers.

ACCOUNTING

• FreshBooks – comes with an app to make it easy to keep track of your mileage, receipts, and invoices on the go. Great way to track your income and expenses all in one place.

EDITING

• Grammarly – this free grammar and spelling tool has saved me countless times. I used to get called out for spelling mistakes on my graphics all the time, now it never happens!
• DesignEvo – the fastest and cheapest way to make a professional logo!
• 99Designs – another great place to get cheap professional designs of all kinds!
• Creative Market – the biggest online graphics store where you can get bundles of graphics for cheap and have pre-made content for a year, all you have to do is schedule it out!

3. What is a good course, website or book you would recommend and why?

COURSES

• Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing – where I learned everything about affiliate marketing from this 6-figure blogger.
• Pinterest Avalanche – where I learned how to use Pinterest correctly from these two 6-figure bloggers.

WEBSITES

• ShareASale – suitable for anyone, no matter how newbie you are, to help you get in contact with brands that will pay you to promote them.
• Awin – the top brands work with this affiliate marketing platform. You have at pay $5 to get in, but you get that right back once you make your first sale.
• MaxBounty – you get a dedicated affiliate partner who helps you find the best deals for you to sign up for and promote.
• Ultimate Bundles – the best bundle deals on the web for health, business, crafts and really anything! They usually bundle about $5K worth of course material and sell it for dirt cheap like $30-$50 a bundle.
• Business Name Generator – free tool to help you come up with spectacular business names.

WEBINARS

• Get Your First 1,000 Subscribers – Beginner
• Earn Your First Dollar – Beginner/Intermediate
• Email Copy-writing Tips – Beginner/Intermediate
• Make More Sales With Funnels – Expert

BOOK

• 5 Day Weekend – this book transformed my way of thinking. I was able to get through half of it with no problem, the other half is currently over my head! It’s a book I keep re-reading. My favorite quote from the book is, “If you don’t find a way to make money in your sleep, you will work until you die.”

4. What is the best piece of advice you have received?

• If you want something you’ve never had, you must be willing to do something you’ve never done.
• Done is better than perfect.

5. What advice would you give to other entrepreneurs?

• Don’t try to be everything to everybody.
• Only take advice from people who already have the results you want.

6. What is your beauty and/or fitness routine?

BEAUTY ROUTINE

I have a very simple beauty routine, I only use 5 products from drugstores like Walgreens and it takes me less than 5 minutes:

1. Covergirl 3-in-1 Liquid Foundation – this foundation is so creamy and stays on all day, I simply apply it with my hands like I do lotion.
2. Shiseido Eyebrow Felt Tip Pen And Powder – one end of the pen contains the brush, the other contains the powder. I use light strokes that mimic micro-blading then use powder to fill it in.
3. Revlon Colorstay Felt Tip Eyeliner – it takes me just two strokes to finish my eyeliner… yea I’m pretty good at it! Having the felt tip helps a lot because I don’t have to shape my cat eye, it basically does it for me!
4. Rimmel London Scandal Eyes Mascara – I only use curved mascara brushes that add a ton of volume.
5. Burt’s Bees Chapstick – or any other Chapstick that is laying around, but I don’t like to focus on lips, it’s too much work to maintain!

FITNESS ROUTINE

My treadmill and weights are in the same room as my office. I set a board across the arms of my treadmill so that I can walk and blog at the same time!

7. List the products or items that are indispensable in your life.

• DaisyCup – a menstrual cup that has helped me stay focused on business without worrying about leaking or getting toxic shock.
• Revive Light – red light therapy for anti-aging and health benefits. Use VIPLADYBOSS for a whopping 30% off!
• Just Natural – all their products are 100% natural.
• Heat Therapy Mat – infrared mat embedded with natural gemstones designed for wellness and pain management.

8. Which female entrepreneur(s) do you look up to and why?

Arianna Huffington – she is a game changer. She knew that media was the way to change the world and she is doing just that! Media is a powerful weapon and she has learned how to wield it to benefit us all.

Read my interview on the Huffington Post here.

9. List the social media platforms you use.

• Instagram @ladybossblogger, @elainerau
• Twitter @ladybossblogger
• Pinterest @elainerau
• Facebook @ladybossblogger, @elainerauofficial
• Facebook Group www.facebook.com/groups/ladybossblogger
• LinkedIn Elaine Rau, LadyBossBlogger
• Website www.ladybossblogger.com
• Email ladybossblogger@gmail.com
• Hashtags #ladybossblogger #entrepreneurblogger #womensupportingwomen