Featured Mompreneur: Meet Abbey

Name: Abbey Fatica
Business Name: Living My MoMent
Where to find Living My Moment:
Website: www.livingmymoment.com
Twitter: @LivingMyMoment
Facebook: Living My Moment on Facebook

Tell us a little bit about your business.

Living My MoMent was started in April 2009. I had been a SAHM for over a year and felt that I needed to contribute financially to our family. For awhile I had been researching ways to make money and still be able to work at home, but none of those options seemed quite right to me. So after watching Oprah one afternoon, I had actually seen Heather from Dooce.com talking about how successful she was at blogging. I didn't know much about blogging but knew that I had a knack for writing and wanted to explore my options. With the economy as bad as it is, the thought of starting up my own business was not feasible for us at that moment, but how great would it be if I could support other moms who do have their own companies during these hard times. That's when I am came up with Living My MoMent. The name has two meanings; obviously the first one is living in the moment and not focusing too much on what the future will hold. Living your life day to day and cherishing the moments you have with your children right now. The other meaning is how important it is to stress the MoM part of the word MoMent because that is what the site is all about; helping other MoMs out and being their support system.

The site is geared towards MoMs and my most popular advertising option is the FREE one for MoMbusinesses and MoMblogs. I put in a logo of their website, do a write up about their company and the products they offer, mention their specials and also plug the other social networking sites they are a part of. I also write about Living My MoMent as a Mom of a toddler and one on the way and things that are going on in our life at the Moment. The website also provides MoMgiveaways, MoMreviews (of products), MoMtips, and a listing of MoMblogs. We have a little bit for everyone, so come check us out!

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

My husband John and I currently live in Columbus, Ohio and have been married for 3 years (together for 10). We met at THE Ohio State University (GO BUCKS!) when I was just a Freshman and the rest is history. Our almost 18 month old daughter, Luci keeps me busy all the time and our little peanut (who is due in December) also wears me out. Our dog, Shelly provides a lot of good writing material since she is a high strung, barky, herding Shetie that is paranoid about everything. But we love her nonetheless. I am working part time (one day a week) at PF Changs China Bistro where I have been a bartender for 6 years, but have cut my hours way back so that I can be a SAHM. It is nice to get out once a week and socialize with adults who can talk.

What advice would you offer any women with their own business or starting out as an entrepreneur?

My word of advice is to love what you do or sell because the hard times will come and go but if you continue loving what you do then it will all be worth it in the end.

What is a typical “day in the life” of Abbey like?

A typical day in the life is mostly me being a Mommy which is by far the best job in the world. Unlike most Moms, I get to sleep in till at least 8 or 9 every morning. Luci is a great sleeper! We do breakfast, shower, check my email (which I do constantly throughout the day) and get ready for the day. Sometimes, we'll run errands in the morning but usually we play in the living room for a couple hours before lunch which is at 12. Naptime comes promptly at 1, because my little princess needs her beauty sleep. This is the time that I take to work on the website. I get about 2.5 -3 hours to get all the new listings entered and update MoMspecials, spending time tweeting or facebooking and that usually is enough time to tackle the business for the day. If I don't get everything done on my list for the day, then sometimes I work on things after Luci goes to bed, but usually by then my unborn child tells me it's time to rest. My day to day life is very similar but it allows me to work on the business when I can.

In your opinion, what is the best thing about Living My MoMent?

The best thing about my business is the flexibility of it all and that I get to raise my children and be home with my family when I need to. It is also something that I am very passionate about and it brings me joy being able to support other moms who are trying to achieve the same goals as me.

What was the steepest learning curve in terms of developing your company or business model?

Before starting Living My MoMent, I had never really written a website or worked with WordPress, so learning the ins and outs of website building has been quite challenging, but luckily my husband has a little bit of knowledge in that area and can help me out when I need it. Also, marketing a website/blog has proven to be more difficult than I had imagined. There are so many outlets to market your site in that it seems endless and it can sometimes be a little bit overwhelming, but I have realized to just take it step by step and eventually I will be able to reach out to more readers.

What has been your greatest success to date?

Everyday is a new success for me. I never imagined that the website would catch on as quickly as it has. I have over 240 MoMbusinesses and MoMblogs on my site and everyday more people ask to be a part of it just because they saw my ad on a bulletin post or heard about us from someone else. One of my MoMbusinesses told me that she was at a trade show and someone mentioned my website to her and that it would be great if she got in touch with me. It makes me feel great that I am able to reach out to one mom and she can help spread the word.

Have you experienced a low? If so, how did you dig yourself out and get back on track?

The financial profit of the website has probably been my low because it is hard to get ad money and support for your website when I am giving away FREE ad space, but I have to remind myself that I am here to support MoMs with businesses that otherwise can't afford other forms of marketing and advertising for their business. As long as I am doing what I love the money will follow.

What has been your biggest obstacle and how did/do you get past it?

Marketing of my website has been my biggest obstacle and I still have yet to totally get past it. I have been able to reach out to other moms who have had success in marketing their website and have received a great deal of advice on what I need to do to get my name out there. I will get past it when I can no longer market to anyone (which I hope will never happen). This is a type of obstacle that I can embrace and one that will help my business grow.

Is there anything in business you wish you could change or go back and do over again?

So far, I am really happy with the way that everything has come out. The only thing that I would change is my knowledge of website building so that I could have kicked off my website with a bang. But I'm loving that I am learning a lot along the way and so far everyone has liked the changes I've made. This is me living my MoMent and figuring things out as I go along.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

I would like to tell all the MoMs and viewers out there that I can not succeed without you. MoMs are a great support system for one another because you know what we go through on a day to day basis. I love what I do and would not change it for the world, please come support all our new businesses and blogs that we add daily to LivingMyMoMent.com.