Today, we are interviewing Aranka Haverkamp. Founder of blog ByAranka.nl. Aranka blogs about Fashion and travel as well as Beauty & lifestyle. We asked her some questions about how she started her career and her experiences with Join.
Hi Aranka, could you tell me a little more about yourself?
“I’m Aranka Haverkamp, 25 years old and I live in Zwolle. I mainly write about topics that many women have an affinity with, and things that women can relate to.”
What was the original thought in setting up your blog?
“I started over 8 years ago. I was 16 at the time and I started my blog as a hobby. That’s it! We used to have MySpace and MSN, those kind of platform. I really liked them! Later on, the first bloggers were coming up. I also started blogging and I could have never thought that I would make money with it.”
And if you look back , how does it feel that it has become a business for you?
“Yeah, it’s very weird and cool that blogging has become my fulltime job. It’s amazing that I can live of my hobby.”
What does it mean for you: being an influencer?
“That’s difficult, because when I started there was no such thing as an “influencer”. I don’t feel like an influencer either, but more like a friend to others. A friend other women can identify with. “
Now we use the word “Influencer”. What do you like most about being an influencer?
“The thing I like most about my job is that I can share my passion. Through my blog it’s possible to share the things I really like with other people. Besides that, I like the interaction with my followers. They are more likely to send me private messages and I really like the personal contact, I think it’s very important. ”
You’ve already done some collaborations through our platform. How did you experience the collaborations?
“Yes, I have a very good feeling about the platform and how everything works. I was registered with you and suddenly I was invited to three campaigns. I really like the platform. You get a briefing and you immediately know what you’ll get in return and you can accept or refuse the campaign immediately. Another positive point is that you get in touch with the advertiser through the chat function. This prevents you from spending a lot of time on emailing back and forth and waiting for an answer.”
Last question. Do you think you’ll keep blogging for the rest of your life?
“As long as I can keep blogging, I would love to. Sometimes I’m wondering if this is possible. I don’t have a YouTube channel and that was a conscious choice. My target group isn’t waiting for videos and it doesn’t show who I am. I don’t have much followers on Instagram, so I’m wondering how long blogging will be profitable. As long as I can gain my money with it and live of my hobby, I’ll keep blogging. ”
This was our interview with Aranka. In name of Join, we would love to thank her for her cooperation. Check out her lovely blog. Do you want to collaborate with Aranka? Sign the sheet blow to receive a demo.
