Pretty, intelligent
and affable are the right words to describe Helen Ozor, one of the rising
bloggers in Nigeria. She let us into her word and shares with us the secrets to
her meteoric rise in the world of Online Publicity business.
Can you share with us what makes you go into Blogging?
It all started during my final year in
school. Before then, my aim after university was to go into event management
because I loved the job and I had been into ushering/modeling jobs for about
4years. All through the four years I barely spent a week in school without
coming down to Lagos for castings or jobs. At the time I was about graduating,
I thought it would be wise for me to concentrate on school activities so I
don’t have an extra year. It was during this time a friend called to find out
what I had been up to. I told him I had stopped ushering jobs to concentrate on
school so he advised I start a blog to keep myself busy. But, I never took it
seriously until months later when a lecturer invited his friend who has a
website to class to explain what online advertising meant. While the man was
explaining, he advised that as students we could start a blog to promote our
businesses or publish our thoughts. So I got back home and started by research
on how to start a blog etc. I guess I was the only student who heeded that
advice. Basically, I’ll say I started the blog to keep myself busy rather than
getting myself involved in unnecessary conversations and distractions from
friends.
Why did you specialize in reporting events?
I already had a flair for events. Imagine a
young girl leaving secondary school at the age of 17 and that same year, I had
already started ushering jobs. I got admission into the university and still
continued with the job. My dream back then was to be an event manager but
as time went on, I found out there are so many event managers in Nigeria and
the competition between them is really, really high. I also realised that the
blogging world is very saturated with almost everyone blogging the same news,
same gossip. Also, I found out that for you to have access to event stories,
you would probably have to buy a copy of Ovation magazine for N1500. So I
thought, why don’t I create a platform where people can have access to these
stories at no cost. All they need is a smart phone and data. Our pictures and
stories from these events are on the blog few hours after coverage. You don’t
need to spend so much buying a magazine or going to the vendor stand. From the
comfort of your home all you need is just a click away. Aside that, I wanted to
be different, I wanted to be in my own space. At the moment, I’m the only
blogger known to specialize on event blogging. It is a risk I’m willing to take
and make the best out of it against all odds.
Is your blog limited to stories and pieces around events only?
80% of the stories are around events.
What are the challenges you faced when starting up?
The first challenge I faced was finance, I
needed money to buy a laptop. I needed money to buy data. I had exhausted the
money I saved from ushering jobs I did to buy my first laptop. I also used some
of the money on data. Because I had stopped ushering jobs I didn’t have cash
anymore. At some point I started using part of the upkeep money sent from home
on data. It was really tough for me then. Another challenge I faced was getting
to start and knowing the technicalities of managing a blog. The story is different
today because a few people organise trainings and seminars on blogging. When I
started there was nothing like that. Whenever I had issues with the blog I
always had to be under pressure to resolve the problem. Once your readers can’t
have access to your blog they move to other blogs. After all, what is a blog
without content and loyal readers? Also, getting people to read the blog was
another challenge at that time… I was still in school and whenever I told any
of my classmate that I now I have a blog it sounded like, what is this girl
talking about. I also met a very popular Nollywood actress, I introduced myself
to her and said I run a blog and the next thing she said was, “Pleass what is a
blog’ Lol!” I said to myself, how can this lady not know what a blog is.
These were just the few challenges I faced then. Luckily for me, I had people
like Tosin Ajibade and Seun Oloketuyi to put me through some things and to ease
the stress.
So what's the experience like so far?
Hmmmm! It’s been fantastic. I get to meet a
lot of people; I get to attend a lot of events. I get to take a lot of risk and
then I find myself in some very dangerous situations. Imagine coming back from
an event at 11:30pm and you have a flat tyre while descending from Agbongbon
bridge or imagine coming back from an event and your car breaks down at about 2am.
There’s the good, the bad and the ugly side of the business but God has always
been very, very faithful.
Is Blogging in Nigeria profitable?
Yes it is. Only when you see the blog as a business,
only when you take the business seriously and you make people understand that
you put in a lot of time, effort and money into it. Blogging is profitable when
you offer a service to people and you make people understand that they have to
pay for that service. The moment you can set the record straight then people
start taking you seriously. But if you blog for fun, then am sorry but you may
not be able to make good money from your blog.
Are you into other business or you blog full time?
I’m into blogging full time.
Tell us your educational and family background?
I was born into a family of six girls and a
boy, I’m from Delta state. I started my primary education at Ikeja Local
Government Primary School and then proceeded to Ikeja High School for my
secondary education. After my secondary education, I got admission into Olabisi
Onabanjo University. I graduated in 2011 and I’ve been blogging since then. This
year, I got certified as a Digital Business Manager from Google.
Can you share with us your memorable campus experiences?
Lol! Yes. I remember my very first year in
school during our second semester exam, I and my friends had submitted our exam
sheets. While walking towards the gate, some cult guys stormed the campus.
Everybody, I mean, the gate man, lecturers in the halls and the ones in the
school offices took to their heels. Some students went home with their exam
sheets. Some misplaced their school fees receipt. The whole campus became a war
zone. Students were scaling the fence. It was really shocking because that was
my very first time of experiencing such. The next day, we heard that the
lecturer who invigilated in my hall that day was beheaded. Apparently, he was
their target.
What inspires you?
I’m mostly inspired by things I see at
events, I get inspired from the challenges I face. The lesson learnt can
be perfect to help someone else. I find lots of inspiration through visuals and
social media websites like Pinterest and Instagram.
Who are your role model?
A have a few role models. I have Ayo Rotimi,
Ayo is a Social Media Strategist. I look up to Ayeni D’great of BHM; Femi
Awoyemi of Proshare. All these people have been able to run all their
online businesses successfully.
Can you tell us what style means to you?
Style to me means doing things in my own way.
Ways that I’m totally comfortable with it.
Are you into labels? If yes, who is your favourite designer?
I was a lover of LV but these days, I’m just
cool with anything that looks good.
What's your favourite fashion item?
I love dresses. They are my favourite at the
moment
Your signature perfume?
I don’t really have any. I’m a very simple
person. If the fragrance is nice then am good with it.
Your advice to young ones that might want to take up Blogging as a
career?
Don’t start a blog because you want to make
money from it. Be sure you have genuine passion for blogging. Ask yourself
questions and provide sincere answers. Ask yourself if you’ll be able to cope
with the challenges of starting a blog. Find your own voice, find out what
works for you and stick to it. Be unique, be creative. At the initial stage of
your blog, work on getting traffic to the blog; work on building your brand. Be
confident, be persistent. Involve God in everything you do regarding the blog.
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