A B & Me Blogger in Focus : Expat Bride / Bride Club ME

Thank you for supporting Blogger in Focus! Today I will be featuring a business woman and also a blogger, the pretty Rio. Her story is quite interesting… read on…

 

Name: Rhiannon Downie

Location: Dubai

Blogs: Expat Bride and Bride Club ME

 

 

How did you start blogging?

I’ve dabbled in blogging about life in general for a few years, but I started to seriously blog in April of 2012 at www.expatbride.com when I became engaged. I then launched my business ‘Club Media FZE’ which runs a number of lifestyle media websites/blogs, including www.brideclubme.com.

What do you write about?

On expatbride.com, I started writing about my own personal wedding plans, offering tips and advice that I had accumulated along the way. Now I use the blog to talk about my journey as an online media entrepreneur, married life, moving home, our honeymoon, etc. Bride Club ME on the other hand, is purely focused on inspiring readers (engaged brides to-be in the UAE and abroad) with wedding tips, advice, real wedding interviews, vendor contacts and imagery.

Tips for new Bloggers?

First establish your reason for blogging, what is your USP, why are you blogging? Is it an outlet for your thoughts? Is it a hobby? Are you looking to promote a business through blogging? Do you want to make blogging a business? Take time to get accustomed to blogging before you start marketing your blog. It can be overwhelming at first, but once you get started, you establish a routine.

What are the challenges you face with blogging?

Writers block. We all get it. There will be times when you simply want a digital detox..especially if your blog becomes your business and/or is very popular. Keeping it real is very important too, your readers can sense when you publish a post just for the sake of ‘keeping up appearances’. I’d personally rather go a few days without posting, then post a Lacklustre article. Also, many of us bloggers are not trained journalists, we mess up with grammar and spelling from time to time. I think with any blog, content is key, but it’s also important to ensure you put out content that has been double checked for grammar/spelling. I’m a little less concerned with expat bride as it’s my personal blog, but for Bride Club ME, I always have my posts proof read.

What do you do outside of blogging?

Writing is my passion, but I also dabble in anything that inspires, motivates and interest me, such as singing, interiors/DIY, cooking, travel, connecting with nature and animals and I have a soft spot for astronomy

Blogs you recommend my readers should read/follow?

There are so many gosh! I personally love Gala Darling, she is very inspirational, and my one of my best friends blogs http://alicehartleyphotography.com/. Her style of writing is so quirky and she documents her life journey through photographs.

3 Random Facts about you

• I studied the performing arts and used to be a professional singer.
• I can impersonate over 15 accents
• I have seen a UFO in Dubai…woo hoo!

 

You can also find Bride Club ME on Facebook. Please do check them out. 🙂 If you want to take part in Blogger in Focus series, please shoot me an email at Sheila@abandme.com. Thanks!!