You Are Valuable

Creating value is integral to the success of any brand. I've been thinking about the value of my brand lately. I have enjoyed being a part of the journey these past few years as Reason To Play has evolved into what it is today. It began as a way for me to simply share my fitness journey and keep myself accountable. It has gradually involved into a motivational fitness blog featuring my personal running and fitness journey, everyday runner stories, product reviews and anything else that fits into the theme of finding a reason to stay fit, healthy and play! Fitness should be fun, it should keep you young and yes, it can be considered play time. Running can be fun. 

My blog is not the biggest fitness blog around, nor can I claim that I was an Olympic athlete or state champion runner. This blog is simply the thoughts and journey of an every day athlete with big dreams. I experience the same highs and lows as most of my readers. This is my place to be open, share what I have learned, or how I have failed and found a way to succeed, and hear back from you, my loyal fans and followers!

Since my blog has yet to pay the bills or land me my dream job with the swoosh team, I am constantly working on other pursuits. I enjoy working in the social media world and recently have been working with new clients providing my social media expertise. With this new job, I have been refreshing some of my social media knowledge with classes from Digital Royalty University. One of these classes speaks about how to create value. In most cases, companies ask how they can get more likes and become more visible on social media. While reach is important, the most important thing is the strength of the relationships that you do have. If you have one million followers, but only 500 interact with your brand, you would be better off simply having those 500 liking your Facebook page or interacting with you on Twitter. Value is key.

I have noticed with all of my lovely readers that you are some of the most dedicated and inspiring people in my life. Often times I reach out to my blog readers and Instagram and Twitter followers for support during training for endurance events. I have even met some of my best friends through these platforms and been able to attend amazing events with Nike Women, Nike Running in San Francisco, espnW and others. I have been the one to inspire, and more often, I have been inspired by you. My fitness journey would not be where it is now if I had not began this blog on a leap of faith and with the courage to share my dreams with the online community. It's not always comfortable to share my successes and failures, but every time that I do I am overwhelmed by the support I receive and those that tell me how I have inspired them. 

I value my smaller viewership and incredible relationships. I can respond to everyone that reads my blog and sends me comments because my brand has not gotten too big or out of my reach yet. You are a dedicated group of readers and I will always be thinking of how I can motivate and inspire you through my blog first. So thank you for for standing by me and supporting me in this journey. You are truly the best readers a girl could ask for and I wish you all the success in the world.