Samia Perveen - Everything is Available Online, People Look up to Social Media for Almost Everything (Blogger and Social Media Marketer)

I am a blogger and social media marketer based in UAE.

1. Tell us about your background and journey.

First of all, I would like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak my heart. I feel honored.

My name is Samia Perveen and I am 27 years old. I am from Pakistan and I am born and raised in UAE. I have a passion for photography and I love using social media.

For years, I have been been using social media. I worked as a part-time Sales Representative for a cosmetic brand AVON for several years. I worked as a Business Development Executive in a fitness center. I left the center after 2 years seeing no growth.

After a long gap, I joined another fitness center. I used to be in customer service cum social media marketing. Side by side I used to fill up surveys online and got paid for it.

Due to covid, I lost my job in March 2020. I had 2500 followers already. I decided to step into the world of blogging and I had no idea in no time I would be having plenty of projects. I started writing reviews in exchange for tasting sessions. I did photography and videography for the respective brands.

When I reached 6-7K followers, I started charging for the efforts that I put into it. I am happy that today I am paid for all the projects and my work is loved and appreciated by my family, friends, fellow bloggers, brands, and the people. I have been on Instagram for years.

But I would sometimes only post shots that I have clicked or food I cooked or scenery that caught my eye. I never got time to think and write detailed reviews as I was caught up with other things in life. It's only after I lost my job, I got time to focus completely on my Instagram.

This is how I started my journey. I wanted to give my heart ♥️ a try and now I am here.

2. What led you to start your page on Instagram and what is it about?

I have been on Instagram for years but never had time to keep it up to date and do regular posting or write long reviews or advertise brands etc. It's only after I lost my job, I focused on my Instagram and started an unstoppable journey.

My page is about blogging and photography. My blogs are not restricted to just-food. I have also collaborated with reputed clothing and cosmetic brands. Anything that pleases my heart and eye, is on my Instagram page.

3. What did you want to do as a kid and What was your upbringing like?

As a kid social work aspired to me a lot and still does. I always wanted to help people on a big scale. I still do to my best capability.

I am an introvert and I am the youngest in my family. I belonged to a strict family. My mother is a homemaker and we are 5 siblings.

This is the toughest question I ever had to answer. Growing up may not be the best time of my life but it is now. I have had a rough upbringing but at-least I made it this far!

I used to be a class topper. I was really good at extracurricular activities. But let me admit, I have bullied horribly all my childhood which shattered my confidence completely and I started losing my grades. I was mistreated by my classmates and teachers who students usually look up to!

Till 6th grade, I used to be a class topper and class prefect. I used to be a student who would cry without shedding even a tear in-front of people. I stood firm against my teachers who were completely unjust to me. I changed my school after completing my 6th due to the bad reputation of the school.

I was admitted to the best school in the city. The teachers were really good. But the students weren’t. I faced the same level of bullying. I saw huge differences within the class based on how you look, where you are from, and how much you score! No one focussed on what you think, what you say, or how you behave. This broke me completely.

I have a distant memory of the day when the board exam results were out. As a junior, I always saw my seniors being called on stage for scoring good grades. I dreamt to be called on stage and appreciated for my hard work. Unfortunately when I completed my 10th and 12th.

Both the times, I was standing next to the stage in a queue with my classmates and waiting for my name to be called. I saw all my classmates on stage except me. Nobody thought me worthy enough to be called on stage. However, I am such a strong person now that I don't care who thinks what. I am happy with who I am and where I am.

There was a time when I lost faith and will to complete my high school even. I have had a very hard time in my school. Despite all the odds, I completed a metric with 8 CGPA (which even wasn’t applauded by my teachers) and inter with pretty good grades. I decided not to continue further studies, again my personal choice.

I had no interest in engineering or medical studies. I wanted to do something creative, stress-free, something that I would love to do. Something that would make me happy. Something that I can call PASSION! Unfortunately, there was no good opportunity for me in my city to seek that would suit my interests. My decisions were not very well received by people. But I stood firm.

I am lucky and blessed Alhamdulillah. Allah SWT has blessed me with the best mom who supported me unconditionally no matter what and helped me achieve my goals.

4. How would you distinguish the term blogger from an influencer?

Bloggers produce quality content that helps readers gain knowledge about the respective topic. It is NOT necessary that a blogger is an influencer.

A blogger can become an influencer if he/she has a mass number of following, and can influence his/own thoughts on the readers. If the blogger recommends something, and that influences readers, to purchase or review the products, that blogger can be called an Influencer

But despite the huge following, if the reviews and recommendations are not inflicting anything on the readers, then the bloggers are just BLOGGERS.

5. Who is your favorite creator and why?

I have been following so many creators on social media. I found Wardah Syed’s content really amazing. She is a hard worker and I find her work unique and creative and different from others. Apart from her work, found her extremely down to earth and humble.

6. How and where do you find inspiration to churn out content?

I always plan how my content would look like and how am I going to present it to my followers. I get my inspiration from social media. I read a lot. I always see my surroundings, nature, and people. Always helps me to produce quality content.

7. What is your idea of success or your mantra in life?

My idea of success is HAPPINESS, INNER PEACE, SATISFACTION, POSITIVITY, and ACHIEVING WHAT I LOVE.

My mantra in life is to LOVE YOURSELF, STAY AWAY FROM TOXIC PEOPLE, STAY POSITIVE NO MATTER WHAT, HAVE FAITH, STAND FIRM, STAY LOYAL, BE HONEST, and BE PATIENT.

8. Which is your favorite book and why?

Forty rules of love because it gives us so many lessons. But one lesson I would like to mention is DONT BE JUDGMENTAL. It is NOT necessary to always pinpoint and criticize others unnecessarily for things you have no idea about.

We should always focus on being the best version of ourselves rather than focusing on how to demean others.

9. What is the future of influencing on social media going to look like according to you?

The future of influencing in my opinion is going to be really strong. Everything is available online. People look up to social media for almost everything.

Lastly, since I have been given the opportunity to speak up, I would like to thank my mom, my brother, siblings and not to forget my best friend Sandeep who were all a big support in my journey throughout.

I want to especially thank Sumayya, my twinnie, sister, my best friend, and my everything, for always staying with me through thick and thin. I don’t think without her immense support I would be here!

Instagram Handle - @samia_s13