In this digital age, where social media dominates our lives, it's no wonder that there is at least one person in our social circle that has their own blog. In fact, blogging is so popular that there are over 70 million WordPress blogs according to the latest statistics.
There is no doubt that blogging has had a significant impact on the fashion industry and has opened the doors of the fashion world to those not directly involved in it. So, if you want to reap the benefits of having your own blog but are not sure where to start, check out the tips below.
1. Choose a topic for your blog: It could be something that you are really passionate about or something that you have a lot of experience or knowledge about. This will help you to attract readers and establish your credibility, particularly if you stick to one or two key topics. Popular combinations include health and fitness, fashion and beauty and food and travel.
2. Look for inspiration: Choosing a name and theme for your blog may seem daunting at first. If you have no clear idea about how you want your blog to look, browse through the countless number of blogs to find your inspiration. Take note of particular layouts, writing styles and themes and think how you can incorporate them in to your own blog.
3. Choose a blogging platform: There are plenty of good platforms and websites to set up your blog, so choose something that appeals to you and your needs. For example, WordPress is very popular because of its many useful features and tools. One of the old school champions is Blogger, which is still very popular with new bloggers as it is very straightforward to use and allows you to monetize your blog easily. Another popular platform is Tumblr, which is excellent for micro-blogging and audio-visual posts. The best bit is that all three are free!
4. Time to go online: Once you have registered with your preferred platform, work on your new blog's design and layout, before publishing your first post. Make sure you create a detailed and interesting blogger profile as well so that people get a good sense of who you are.
5. Promote your blog: After your first few posts, it is a good idea to begin promoting your new blog. Start small by sending links to friends via email or posting URLs on your Facebook status. Once you have gained confidence and established a regular blogging schedule you can broaden your blog's marketing mix by creating a Facebook page and posting links to your blog on other social media, such as Twitter and LinkedIn.
Finally, don't forget to persevere. The blogging landscape, or the photosphere as insiders call it, is extremely saturated so don't feel discouraged if you do not receive the kind of feedback you were initially hoping for. Just like other media outlets, it takes hard work, passion and patience to become a true ‘bloggeratti’.
