This week we catch up with Paul from Money Tips Blog and discover how he manages blogging around a full time job, amd what drives him to blog about money.
Tell us about your blog.
All the information I share on Money Tips Blog is stuff I’ve had first-hand experience of. That’s important because unless I’ve tried and tested something myself I can’t be confident it will work. With 6 years experience working in the tech industry, MTB tends to focus on the latest apps and platforms helping people make, save or invest their money. Everything’s highly transparent and actionable should people wish to replicate what I’m doing.
Why do you write about money?
Ultimately, without getting all William Wallace, it comes down to freedom! I work full time, 9- 6, Monday to Friday and, whilst there’s aspects to my job that I enjoy, often, when I take a step back, I realise I’m almost permanently in a mild state of stress due to work. That’s why I’m obsessed with becoming mortgage free and retiring early. As a basic rate taxpayer, to realise that goal, I know I’m going to have to make my money work really hard for me! So I share the steps I’m taking to this end, in the hope that others will find this information useful.
How did you start blogging?
At university, I discovered a guy called Pat Flyn. He’s pretty charismatic and inspiring so reading his blog and listening to his podcast was an entertaining way to pass the time, as much as it was educational.
It’s thanks to Pat that I learned how to set up a blog and began to understand the basics of SEO. If anyone reading this is looking to start a blog for the first time I’d definitely recommend checking him out.
What’s your most popular post and why?
At this stage, the blog has only been around for three months and so the vast majority of my readers are from my personal network. Since most of my network are in their 20s, it’s not surprising that my First Time Buyer Guide has had the most views to date. Many of my friends haven’t got on the property ladder yet and are thankful for any tips they can get for how to do so.
What’s your favourite post you’ve written, and why?
I wrote a post recently about investing in start-ups that I believe will deliver a lot of value to my readers. Crowdfunding being a relatively new phenomena, it’s not a topic that’s been widely covered. At the same time, investing in start-ups that go on to be acquired or float on the stock market can deliver enormous returns for investors.
What’s your top blogging tip?
My top blogging tip is to blog about something you’re genuinely interested in. I had two other blogs prior to MTB and they both fell by the wayside because the topics they covered weren’t close to my heart. Rather, they were “niche sites” I thought I could rank for in Google.
Now, with MTB I’m not trying to play Google at all. I’m just writing content that I think will be useful to people and hoping, given time, that the posts will climb the ranks organically.
Why are you part of UK Money Bloggers?
I’m new to the UK Money Bloggers group but already I can tell it’s a friendly community in which members are helping one another daily. I absolutely want to be a part of that. I’ve already written a guest post for Budgeting is a Challenge and I’m looking forward to collaborating with others in the future too.
Who are your three favourite UK Money Bloggers?
I’m pretty new to the group so I’ve only managed to skim through a handful of members’ blogs.
Emma Drew’s clearly a popular member of the Money Blogger community. It’s cool that she’s been able to quit her job and now earns a comfortable income from her blog.
What’s your number one money tip?
Think long term: invest in a pension, buy a property (or two), invest in the stock market and allow compound interest do the rest!
What is the best bargain you have ever bought?
Everyone in my office is obsessed with a new app called MealPal. If you sign up but don’t pay, they start sending you discount codes up to 50% off. So I paid for 12 lunches at £2.44 per lunch, redeemable at some great places like Patty&Bun, Comptoir Libanais, etc. It really has been a great bargain because usually I spend £7-8 on lunch.
What is a product / service you are happy to pay the extra for?
Shoes. In my experience, a cheap shoes never lasts more than a few months. Plus, fast fashion is not good for the environment.
Tell us something about yourself.
Earlier this year, I bought myself an electric scooter. Uncharacteristic of me, it was an impulsive purchase and, whilst it’s a lot of fun to ride, I’ve barely used it since. The irony is that, prior to purchasing one, I was dead against adults on scooters, and concede that I look like an idiot riding one! That said, I’ve decided to start riding it into work to save money taking the tube. So if you if you spot a tall guy looking uneasy on an electric scooter in East London, that’s probably me.
And finally…where can we find you on social media?
For Twitter, it’s @PaulTebbs1
For Facebook, it’s https://facebook.com/moneytipsblog