TheBurg

11.19 | theburgnews.com | 35 on the grInd Mom blogger and Harrisburg resident Jahava Brown has been writing about parenting, faith, travel and style on her blog Onlygirl4boyz for three years. After reading blogs that inspired her, she wanted to provide encouragement to others. But that wasn't her only goal. From the beginning, she knew she wanted to make her blog a business. Within six months, Brown was making an income through business deals with brands to advertise their products. She worked her way up and now works with brands like Gatorade, Soma, Walmart and Amazon. Brown's blog has become a full-time job that earns her an equivalent income, she said. Not only is she making money, but, through a partnership with Disney, Brown, her husband and their three boys have gone on cruises free of cost. Along with the advertisements and sponsored posts, Brown posts content about motherhood, travel and her faith, filling a gap she sees in the blogging world. "ere's a disparity of minorities in this market," she said. "ere's not a lot of minority mom bloggers. at's why I'm unique." She also realized that, for many of her white blogger friends, their audience is primarily white, and, with her black blogger friends, theirs is black. "My audience is 50/50, which I think is really cool," Brown said. "People are saying, 'I relate to you,' no matter what race they are." #deLIcIous Blogging isn't all business. Harrisburg food blogger Corinne Foster—known on Instagram as Foster the Foodie—just wants to help people eat good food on the cheap. A recent college graduate and new to the area, she hoped to find the best places to eat in the city, within a lower budget. She began by creating an extensive Excel spreadsheet listing local restaurants, bars and bakeries to keep track of her new favorite Harrisburg spots. As the file grew, it quickly evolved into something she knew she needed to share with others. Here, her social media account was born. "I want to help people find things that aren't Google-able," she said. "It's cool that people are taking my advice." e Foster the Foodie audience is in the 20s to 30s age range, a group similar to herself—young people looking for a good meal that's also a good deal. In addition to Harrisburg eateries, Foster has shared with her followers her favorites from Lancaster, York and Lititz. Foster has promoted local restaurants like Iron Hill Brewery, Ann's Cupcakery, Café 1500 and a slew of stands within the Broad Street Market. She also has partnered with businesses, like Sweet 717 in the market, to do product giveaways, which provide the vendors and herself more publicity, while giving back to her audience. Often, she receives compensated meals, but pointed out that she never promotes restaurants she wouldn't eat at herself. "I wouldn't want this to be a business," she said. Jahava Brown Corinne Foster

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