Meet Heather Allard of Mogul Mom

Me: What is your blogs name and what is it about?

Heather: My blog is called The Mogul Mom and it’s a blog that offers free coaching and resources for mom entrepreneurs—those special ladies juggling raising a family and running a business.

Me: What do you think about the new Mommy Blogger title changing to Digital Mommy?

Heather: I think it’s great—Mommy Blogger is pretty generic whereas Digital Mommy is more specific and will give readers a better idea of what the blog is about.

Me: What kind of cell phone do you own?

Heather: I have a Blackberry Pearl.

Me: What do you use your cell phone for besides talking on?

Heather: Well, last fall I made a bold move and cancelled my email/Internet service on my Blackberry in an effort to be more fully present for my three children. I was constantly checking my email, tweeting from the parking lot or uploading photos to my Facebook and I realized it was ridiculous. I’m always trying to teach my children to not interrupt and yet here I was allowing my Blackberry to interrupt me all the time. So, now I use my Blackberry to make phone calls and send texts.

Me: What is your favorite social media website?

Heather: Hands down—Twitter. I love the speed, the fun and the opportunity to learn. Twitter is full of friendly people who are so willing to share knowledge, encouragement, laughs and resources. I love it.

Me: What are the three blogs you read on a consistent basis?

Heather: I read Seth Godin’s blog (http://sethgodin.typepad.com/), Simple Mom (http://simplemom.net/) and Zen Habits (http://zenhabits.net/). I learn so much from these blogs and Simple Mom & Zen Habits really help me manage life as a mother of three.

Me: Do you shop online? If so, what are your favorite online stores?

Heather: Um, YES! I most definitely shop online—it’s my preferred method of buying things. I am so overwhelmed when I go to an actual store, usually because my kids are with me and one of them has to go to the bathroom, one wants to go home and the other is running all over the place. J Ok, my favorite online stores are probably Sephora, Nordstrom and Ballard Designs.

Me: What is your online schedule like on a typical day?

Heather: Well, my two daughters are in school and my son is home with me (he’s only 2), so I have to get online whenever he allows me. ;) He literally swipes my hands off the keyboard in a desperate attempt to get me off the computer! LOL! If I can catch a few minutes here and there, I try to reply to a few quick emails or get on Twitter for a few minutes. I usually try to do most of my blog writing after dinner when my husband is home and can watch the kids. Each Sunday, I try to schedule my blog posts for the week so I’m not frantically trying to write posts every night. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. That’s life with kids, right?

Me: What blogger do you feel you have learned the most from?

Heather: It’s tough for me to single just one blogger out—but if I have to, I’d say Darren Rowse of ProBlogger. I’ve read his book and I subscribe to his blog and have learned so much about writing, finding my voice, growing my readership (I’ve almost reached the 800 subscriber mark!) and carving out a niche. I also love Yaro Starak, Gideon Shalwick, Chris Brogan and Katja Presnal. I’ve learned a great deal from them too.

Me: What is the one piece of advice you would give to a mom that is just starting out in the blogging world?

Heather: Go into it knowing WHAT makes you stand out in a sea of bloggers and hone that, promote that and remain true to that. There are SO many mom bloggers out there and to be successful (assuming you are not doing it just for fun), you must somehow stand out and offer something that’s not out there right now. I’d also strongly suggest that you read Darren’s book, subscribe to his blog and use a self-hosted Wordpress blog—Wordpress offers so many wonderful tools that make blogging easy and successful.

Me: Do you ever feel like getting back to the 9 to 5 work day?

Heather: You know, there are definitely times when I envy moms who work outside the home, mainly because I think it’d be nice to go to the bathroom without a toddler following you in there and telling you how much you stink. ;) But most times, I’m quite happy being an at-home mom blogger. Before I began blogging, I had my own company (I designed two wearable baby blankets called Swaddleaze & Blankeaze—I sold them to Summer Infant last summer.) and I have really come to love working from home and being able to be there for my children, being able to put them first, as it should be.

Me: How do you balance your online life and your offline life? (or do you?)

Heather: I’ve put a few things in place that really help me balance my dual lives. Hee. I schedule most of my blog posts on Sunday and have recently had the good fortune of having a handful of guest bloggers write posts for The Mogul Mom—this has lightened my blog load tremendously and offers my readers new content from experts in their field. As I mentioned earlier, I also don’t have Internet service on my Blackberry and that has really helped me not become Internet obsessed. If you’re not careful, being online can swallow your day whole. I’ve also come to realize that there is nothing that’s so pressing that I NEED to be online all day. So, those things have helped me balance my online life and my offline life pretty effectively.

Me: What kind of car do you drive? What are your favorite features?

Heather: OMG—I drive a Honda Odyssey, which my husband gave to me for my 37th birthday when I was pregnant with my third child. I used to think anyone who drove a minivan should be shot and now I’m one of them. LOL! I’ve had my van for 3 years (yes, I’ll be 40 on 5/30!) and honestly, I can’t imagine my life without it. I love that both doors slide open, that my kids can climb into it on their own, and that I have such great visibility in it. The Odyssey is really good on gas which has been particularly great this past year with gas prices fluctuating so much. I’m over the “geek factor” and now I love the van. As the ad says, I respect the van. ;)

Me: Do you make money with your blog?

Heather: I’ve just started to earn money from my blog through advertising. My readership has increased significantly over the past few months and that has allowed me to offer advertising.

Me: What gadget are you crushing on at the moment?

Heather: Oh boy, I’m always crushing on the damn iPhone. I actually had one last year and returned it because frankly, I just wouldn’t use all the features AND I was petrified my kids would drop it and smash it. But every time I see those blasted “We’ve got an app for that” commercials, I have to suppress my secret yearning for one. It’s the coolest thing ever.

Me: Why do you think you influence so many people?

Heather: I think I influence a lot of mom entrepreneurs because I’ve “been there, done that” and have real knowledge to share with them. I offer free coaching and a very honest opinion and that goes a long way for these moms who are trying to run a business & raise a family in a very tough economy. The Mogul Mom has become a place of real community for mom entrepreneurs, a place where they’ll find not only great information but also camaraderie and fun.

Me: What projects/events/contests do you have going on that you’d like everyone to know about?

Heather: Let’s see, I have several things going on. Each month, I give away 3 ad spaces to readers who subscribe to my blog by email. Each week, I feature 2 mom entrepreneurs—if mom entrepreneurs go to http://www.themogulmom.com/2009/05/21/the-mogul-mom-featuresyou/ they’ll see how they too can be featured. I feature each & every mompreneur who fills this out—it’s a great way for me and my readers to learn from each other AND a great way for these talented mompreneurs to get some free press!! J Finally, I just started a B2B directory called Black Book—it’s a directory where companies can list their products or services for mom entrepreneurs for $150 per year. It will be free for mom entrepreneurs and I plan to promote it heavily through my blog, HARO and Twitter. It’s a great opportunity for companies to get in front of thousands of potential customers who need their products and services.

Me: Do you feel like your kid/ kids watch too much TV?

Heather: No, that hasn’t been a problem for us yet. Although I do have to say that my son is obsessed with Maggie & The Ferocious Beast and would watch it for 12 hours straight if we let him. ;)

Me: What talk show host or news anchor would you love to be interviewed by?

Heather: Probably a cliché, but I’d have to say Oprah—I really admire her and think she’s pretty funny. I’d love to be on her show—maybe a show about amazing mom entrepreneurs so I could help Oprah advise them—and give her a big hug. She looks very huggable.