Sonia’s Stories
This page is like a brain dump of mine before I publish a blog post. All the ideas I get, I’ll be sharing many of them here. I decided to use this of a sort of “in progress” page. Like the “behind the scenes” you get from Instagram stories.
Thurs March 13
The Importance of Testimonials
Today I was reminded of the importance of reviews as I am looking to hire help in my personal life. And not just generic reviews like "Oh Sonia is SO GREAT! Highly recommend." But reviews that actually give potential clients insight on your teaching style, your personality, and your approach.
Here's an example of an actual customer testimonial that showcases my teaching style -
"Thank you, Sonia! This helped me SO MUCH! Just having a step-by-step, get it done, keep it simple approach helped hold my idea-flooded non-sequential brain keep it all in order to move it along. It took me some time, but I learned a lot. Thank you!"
Cee MK, Online Tutor
Here's another testimonial that could give potential clients insight on what it's like to work with me -
"Sometimes I have a plan in my mind and I don't necessarily know how to execute it. Once I started working with Sonia, it became clear I need to do this first, before I do this, before I do this. And it helped me narrow down what were the important things to focus on, and what were some of the things that could wait.” - Monica Golson
Here are two simple questions you can ask your current & former clients (save these for later!)
1) What were you struggling with when you first reached out to me?
2) Any specific results you achieved when working with me?
You can also check out an example of how I display reviews on my Work with Me page.
Hope that helps!
Sunday March 9 2025
Honing in on my “why”
I’ve been trying to better articulate WHY I run the business I do. I’ve mentioned my current business model (making 1-2k+ monthly through blogging & YouTube) to others in my life and I realized that this lifestyle isn’t for everyone! For some people, this is a very small amount of money, and insignificant to them.
For me, this is more than I could ever dream of! Since I have always wanted to help others, and I’m a former classroom teacher, I never expected to make very much money. Not only this, but I thought I would have to work HARD for every dollar. And I definitely did that in the classroom. But right now, I’m just sitting on my couch just writing this out. I know I can go out for my walk whenever. Go play on the playground. Go for a run. And whenever I feel like it, I can film a video for my YouTube channel. I’m playing the long game.
I wouldn’t have gotten to this point if I didn’t commit to this life for the last 7 years. It took a long time to find the right business model for me. And I’m still actively working towards diversifying my income, but I’m grateful for where I am now. Earning 4-figures without working a set schedule or do whatever a boss tells me to do. No work politics. I used to feel bad about myself that I couldn’t handle work drama.
The gossiping, the comparison, the judgment I experienced with other staff at school. As a trained special educator, I can handle the “challenging behavior” of kids that other adults couldn’t. What I can’t handle is petty adults. And now I don’t have to deal with that.
Friday March 7 2025
Offering VIP Days
I’m working on bringing back an old offer, Day of Voxer! You’ll get access to me via Voxer (texting/audio app) for a 4-hour block as you work through a project in your business. The project can be whatever you want, something you’d love to have a “coach on call” for!
Update - The sales page is ready! Applications are now open. Only three spots available for March!
Tuesday March 4 2025
Blog vs. Social Media
For me, the hardest part about blogging is accepting it takes time. When you post a video to TikTok, you can see your views spike right away when something goes viral. With blogging, it might take 6 weeks for me to rank on Google for a new keyword. While TikTok views give you a nice dopamine hit, it's not going to get you very far in terms of money in the bank. 🤑 Whereas a well-written blog can generate sales for months & years beyond the post date.
And when I talk about well-written blogs, I’m not talking about meeting an arbitrary word count number, or having the perfect structure with all the right headings. Just make sure that when you write your blogs, you’re offering a solution to a problem your clients are actively searching for.
The best tool I’ve found for keyword research is Semrush*. I was honestly really skeptical at first because it’s expensive! Billed annually, it’s the cost of my Kajabi plan. Oof!
But as a result of Semrush*, I’m ranking in the top 5 search results for multiple keywords. And they’re not just random keywords. They are keywords that lead to AFFILIATE SALES. So it’s purposeful. It’s generating a lot of money that I wouldn’t be getting if I wasn’t a top-ranked result on Google.
After going back and forth about whether Semrush is worth it, I took the leap and paid for the annual plan. I had a higher cash month in February, so I used that extra money to pay off a year of Kajabi’s* Basic Plan as well as Semrush.
Since I paid for both of these things upfront, my profit margin is temporarily lower than normal. This freaked me out a bit, but I know my net profit will increase over the next couple months when I get my next few affiliate payouts.
Should I start a homeschool blog?
Today I’m using Semrush to research the possibility of starting a new blog focused on homeschooling and making money as a homeschooling mom. I always get stuck (as many people do!) on whether to pivot the content of the existing personal brand as a whole, or separate it into a separate site.
*DISCLOSURE: This blog post contains affiliate links, which means we may receive a commission, at no extra cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link. Thank you for your support! See the full affiliate disclosure here.