We had the good fortune of connecting with Paola Mendez and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Paola, what is the most important factor behind your success?
At The Blogger Union everything we do revolves around being of service to our members and our partners. “How can we help?” This is our main guiding principle and we use that to make all kinds of decisions. By focusing on the members of our community instead of ourselves, we’ve seen our community grow organically.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
The Blogger Union is a network of blogger communities dedicated to growing our members’ brands and incomes through in-person meetups, workshops, and brand partnerships. We give our members the tools and knowledge they need to tell their story so that they in turn can help others. We welcome everyone to join our community whether they are small business owners, entrepreneurs, or content creators. It all started when I started my personal blog, Coral Gables Love. I was trying to give it a go at doing it full-time; and very quickly realized there was so much to learn: writing, photography, social media, digital marketing, SEO, etc. So I thought to myself, “Maybe I don’t have to do this by myself?” I found five local bloggers and invited them to join me for coffee at a local cafe. It was a fantastic experience, we spent hours chatting and sharing tools, apps, ideas, tips, and tricks. I’d found a group of people who understood what I was struggling with and we were willing to support each other to succeed. After that meeting, we opened it up to any local blogger who’d like to join us. Fast forward six years. We have over 7,000 members and communities that meet across different cities the U.S. with the mindset of helping each other. We call that Kind Collaboration. There have been growing pains. Opening chapters, what we call a community that has in-person meetups, has been a learning experience. I’ve realized what works in one geographical location may not necessarily work for another location. At end of the day, our guiding principle has been what has helped us with every challenge. If something stops working we go back to the question, “How can we help, make it better?” Answering this question always gives us the clarity we need.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Breakfast: Chocolate Fashion in Coral Gables Activity/Lunch: Fairchild Gardens for a picnic, stroll, take photos, butterfly garden. Coffee Break: Salty Donut in South Miami Breakfast: Bachour in Coral Gables Activity: Books & Books in Coral Gables Lunch: Caja Caliente in Coral Gables Activity: Wynwood Walls photo opportunities in Wynwood Breakfast: Biltmore Hotel Brunch in Coral Gables Activity: Ride Bikes down Red Road trail on 57th Ave Lunch: Madruga Bakery in Coral Gables Movie Night: Gables Cinema in Coral Gables Breakfast: OTL in Design District Activity: Design District for Photo opportunities Activity: PAMM in downtown Miami Activity: Frost Museum in downtown Miami Dinner: Bombay Darbar in Coconut Grove

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My success has only been possible because of the immense support I received from many talented individuals including family members, chapter officers, mentors, and volunteers. I’d like to dedicate my shoutout to all of them. The Blogger Union is only possible because each single one of you. But my rock and partner in crime for every crazy idea I’ve ever had is my sister, Andrea. She’s a talented creative who runs a design agency called Vintage Unicorn.

Website: http://thebloggerunion.com

Instagram: @coralgableslove

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pinkghost

Facebook: https://facebook.com/coralgableslove

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Thebloggerunion

Other: instagram.com/thebloggerunion instagram.com/southfloridabloggers

Image Credits
Paola Mendez, Nabila Verushka, Andrea Mendez, Alejandro Veliz

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