I’m a hyperlocal blogger in Monroe, NC. My name is Steve Sherron. The road I travelled to get here is pretty long. I’ll talk about that as time goes on. Briefly, I took an early retirement after 24 years in a corporate job. I took an early retirement in 2006 to pursue real estate development at the coast of NC. Real Estate was booming back then and it looked like a sure thing. It was very good for a brief amount of time and I do mean a brief amount of time. Little did I know that there was an economic storm brewing that would almost completely shut down the real estate market.
Cutting to the chase:
I became very interested in marketing and online promotion through web sites, especially video. About 3 years ago I realized that one could set themselves apart from their competition with a good web site and videos. I set out to learn what I could. What I found was something I enjoyed very much. A hobby quickly turned into a passion.
Once the real estate market tanked, I started examining opportunities on the internet where one could make a name for themselves and the possibility of producing an income. After months of research, the word “Hyperlocal” kept popping up and the more I studied it was apparent that this was a ground floor opportunity. There is not a lot of new on the web to me. Most of the web is re-hashed, re-packaged stuff that slicksters are trying to sell you. Hyperlocal blogging would allow anyone to start fresh in any community in the world.
I dove into the world of hyperlocal blogging in December of 2008 in my hometown of Monroe, NC. I bought the domain name of monroescoop.com. I had a clean plate in front of me with nothing on it. Now what? Honestly, it was a little scary and I was not really sure about how to proceed because I didn’t want to screw up. Actually I had nothing to screw up. I have always been the type of person to just go for it and worry about a plan later. I didn’t have a mentor. I didn’t have a blueprint. I had a domain name and a desire to succeed. What the hell, just do something…anything.
I published my first hyperlocal article on December 4, 2008. What is the Monroe Scoop? Bam! I online and I have just made a public statement that the Scoop is here in Monroe, NC and summarized what my readers could expect. I would recommend that the first article of your site be your public declaration of what you plan to do when you go hyperlocal. It serves as a catalyst. Making a public statement reinforces the fact that you have made a decision. It’s good for your soul. Your site has a purpose. You are going to fill a need that will serve your community.
That was day one. As of the writing of this article on bloggerlens, I’m now 4 months into my project. It’s become my passion. My child. I absolutely love it and it has been very well received in my community. I have not scratched the surface yet, but the Monroe Scoop gives me all the reasons to get up in the morning and work hard. I can certainly understand all of the internet’s A-List bloggers and the passion they feel about their sites. When your work does not feel like work, you can be confident you are heading in the right direction.
Copyright 2009 bloggerlens.com Hyperlocal Blogging
