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When the social media craze of sharing food snaps began, Bryony Morganna, 28, decided to join in, setting up her own page in 2016 – oblivious to how it would totally transform her life.
By 2019, she had hit the big time, with her page racking up almost 20,000 followers, and even catching the attention of food brand chiefs, who invited her to dine at some of London's swankiest eateries for free.
Having such a large fanbase meant she could monetize her page, charging between £400 (~$490) and £2,000 (~$2,451) for a post – cash that has helped her and her ship broker fiancé, Simon Harvey, 30, pay for their September 2021 wedding.
Bryony, of Guildford, Surrey, England, who also works full-time as a personal assistant, said:
“My Instagram page has turned out to be a good little money earner."
“When I started out sharing pictures of food, I did it because I love food – not because I thought I could make money out of it. It was only in the summer of last year that I started getting paid for my posts."
She continued:
“The money side of things has come as a nice surprise – not only do I get to try amazing food all the time, but I've managed to save £15,000 for my wedding."
“The big day will cost about £30,000 (~$36,769) – but so far my Instagram is paying for at least half."
A foodie from an early age, Bryony was given her first taste of cooking as a youngster when her dad, Martin, 61, taught her to make a slow-cooked Bolognese from scratch.
Growing up, she also loved baking with her grandma Brenda.
So, it was no surprise that when she moved into her first flat in 2014 with singer-songwriter Simon – who she met at a punk rock gig in 2011, when she was working as a ticket girl and he was singing in a band – that she made the most of having her very own kitchen to cook up a storm in.
And by 2016, she had enough confidence to share some of her favorite recipes on YouTube.
“It was like a budget version of Nigella Lawson," she laughed. “I'm not a chef, but I love food and cooking, so I focused on easy-to-make, yummy dishes."
“The first dish I made for my YouTube channel was avocado carbonara, which is so creamy and delicious."
“The most popular dish was a spicy sausage rigatoni – which people seemed to love."
But when, after two years of regularly posting content, Bryony's YouTube had not taken off in the way she hoped, she decided to focus her efforts on Instagram instead.
“I'd been posting pictures of food on Instagram since 2016 – when the craze to post about what you were eating was first a thing – while I focused on my YouTube," she continued. “But in 2018, I started taking my Instagram more seriously."
“The thing is with Instagram, it's easier and quicker to engage with your audience than it is on YouTube so you can build a following a bit more easily."
Teaching herself how to take the perfect picture, Bryony's efforts paid off, and her Instagram profile began to steadily gain traction.
Then, in 2019, she switched her page to a business account, meaning she could monitor things like audience engagement more closely, and within just a few months, the offers came rolling in.
“Brands started approaching me and asking if I could create content using their food – either in pictures or a short video," she explained.
“The prices for working with brands can vary but my base fee is about £400, which would include one post on my grid, three Instagram stories and a swipe up link to the product website," she added.
“Sometimes, if I agree to work exclusively with a brand for a period of time, I can charge up to £1,000 (~$1,226). Or, if I get asked to work on a longer project over a few months, which will include something like six pictures and multiple bits of video content, I can charge up to £2,000."
“As much as I'm working for the brand, it's also providing content for my page, so I tend to go above and beyond what's been agreed."
She added:
“I'm always happy to have a bit of a haggle or negotiate though – none of my fees are set in stone. I'm a firm believer in, 'You don't ask you don't get.'"
And it is not just Bryony's bank balance that has benefited from her Instagram account.
Her social life has improved too, as her page has grown so popular that she has been bombarded with invites from restaurants wanting her to try their food.
Before the nationwide lockdown was enforced to combat the spread of the virus, she would go out to dinner at least three times a week.
“I get to go for a free meal and in return I post about the experience on my page," she said.
“Before my Instagram took off, on a weekday, I'd go to work and come back home again and not do too much else."
She continued:
“Now, I get to go to amazing places, and the benefit of having a plus one, means I can invite my friends along too."
“I have a running list of friends that I like to invite but if burgers, steak, or sushi is on the menu, then Simon always has to have first dibs."
Though Bryony does not accept every invite, as she only wants to post about food she likes, and so avoids dishes she would not ordinarily eat, she has enjoyed meals at some of the capital's most popular restaurants.
She continued:
“I've been to amazing places like Al Dente which does pasta, and Duck & Rice, which is one of the best Chinese meals I've ever had."
“My favorite type of food has to be street food. There are always interesting cuisines to pick from and you can really see the passion that goes into creating the food."
“Flank, which is a barbecue place, Dumpling Shack, and Black Bear Burger would be my top street food picks."
As well as being invited out, Bryony gets sent an array of food and drinks to try at home – and if she posts about the products, she gets paid.
“Recently I've branched out into drinks," she added. “I get sent quirky drinks to make my own cocktails with at home which is fun."
“I was also sent a pack of six wines, but one wine was blue, the other was pink and they were flavored with different teas – one was English tea and the other was Japanese tea."
Bryony's top food blogging tips
- Don't do it for the money - do it because you love food
- Only do it if you're passionate about it because your audience will know if you're not being sincere
- Remain positive about everything by only sharing food that you really love
- Incorporate your personality into the page but don't give too much away about your private life – it's important to get a good balance
- Enjoy it!
Although Bryony has only been monetizing her page for a year, she has enjoyed stratospheric success, with brands and fans alike going wild for her aesthetically pleasing snaps.
The majority of the cash she has made so far is going towards her wedding day, after Simon proposed during a spontaneous mid-week trip to Lulworth Cove, Dorset, in November 2018.
Wanting to go “all-out" to celebrate, the happy couple set aside a budget of £30,000 – half of which has come from Bryony's Instagram earnings.
The big day was supposed to take place in September – but has been postponed until 2021 due to the pandemic.
“I'm a big believer in 'Go big or go home,'" Bryony said. “Even though we've had to postpone our wedding, when it does finally come around, we want it to be a huge party with all our family and friends."
“We're planning to have around 200 guests – and feeding 200 people doesn't come cheap."
She added:
“I've managed to save all the money I've made from Instagram for the wedding. I'm lucky because it's not my full-time job, so I can put away all the extra money I make from it."
Bryony also hopes that, by the time the wedding comes around, she will have managed to earn enough from her Instagram to also fund an three-week honeymoon road-tripping across the US.
Reflecting on her success, she said:
“My Instagram page has given me such an amazing social life, a hobby I love doing and I get to try some delicious foods that I've not tried before – I have no complaints."
She concluded:
“Maybe in the future, when my life moves on a bit and I have a house and children I'll post about those aspects of my life too."
“For now, I'm not going to plan too far ahead, I'll see how it goes. Things in life can be fleeting so I just plan to make the most of it while I can."
“If it did die out one day then at least I've had a great time while I've been doing it – and made some amazing memories."
To find out more visit Instagram: @brymorganna