Vlogging the new Blogging

So we all know what a huge phenonmenon blogging has been. Bloggers are practically celebrities (well in the fashion world!) Sitting on the front row of fashion shows, having articles written about them and being a major part of PR for brands. Well recently I came across a far more modern version of blogging that I believe is going to be even bigger and better than blogging, especially when used in conjuction with it. Its called Vlogging.

Now many of my favourite bloggers such as WishWishWish and Gem Fatale have used videos in conjunction with their blogs for tutorials and a different take on a post. But the job of a vlogger is to use only video and gain a community via sites such as YouTube and Vimeo. At first I did find it slightly cringey to watch, especially because many of the Vloggers aren’t trained on proper video etiquette, but it quickly became addictive and rather interesting! Vlogging can be about anything, but a lot of the Vloggers are comedians, but it's great to see fashion vlogging starting to make it big.

Just like blogging brands are now contacting vloggers to do sponsored videos about their brand. This can sometimes be even better than blogging posts as it's more than just pictures and vloggers can show people how to properly use the product, making it more likely that they will buy it.

So check it out! Vlogging! Below is a video of one of the Voggers I liked the best.

Want to find out more?

I recommend reading these articles:
Vlogging The Good The Bad
Pros and Cons of Vlogging
Teen Vloggers: Fashions New It Girls?

Pinterest

Sparked by one of the recent FIR, I’ve decided to find out more about Pinterest. Recently the first Pinterest user to be sponsored has been in the news and it’s made me want to know more about what draw people to ‘pinning’; Why use it for your own promotion and Why should companies use it?
So if you don’t know already, the whole concept of Pinterest is to create moodboards of photos. you easily categorize them and they can be about anything in general, but it’s basically an online pinboard that you can share with others.


One brilliant thing about Pinterest is firstly it’s a great way to flow traffic to a website or other social media links. What I think is really great about Pinterest is that it’s a great network to gain inspiration, and in that sense it is like no other social networking site. In a recent FIR(23/04/12) they mentioned the fact that Pinterest is losing users because once people have tried it out they have decided it isn't for them. But I don't think this is a threat for Pinterest as it is still in a growth faze.
Pinterest is a great source of PR. Recently one Pinterest user was sponsored by a company to pin live during a fashion event. Very similar to PR that bloggers create. It’s also great for companies to have a pinterest as it’s visually a unique way to communicate the personality of the company and another great way for brands to reach out to their customers.

That's it, I'm won over, I've already requested my invite to join the Pinterest community!

Want to know more?

As well as reading the linked content I recommend these articles:

Pinterest as a CV

Pinterest User Sponsored

Four unique ways to use Pinterest

Below are two videos, the first is a general talk about pinterest in the first 10 minutes. The second is exclusively as to why brands should create a Pinterest.

For Immediate Release

Over the course of this blog it's essential that I stay up to date with newest and most current social media trends and to help me do this I will be listening to the weekly podcast called For Immediate Release.
16th April
For Immediate Release: The Hobson and Holtz Report

Main Topics discussed included:

• Update on Pinterest Report from last week
• A recap of Ragan’s International Public Relations and Social Media Summit in Amsterdam last week
• A discussion on whether Procter & Gamble made the right decision to block employee access to Pandora and Netflix
• Michael Netzley’s Asia Report focuses on the right amount of transparency and China’s political legitimacy crisis
• Dan York’s report includes Facebook’s acquisition of Instagram and the photo service 500px
• Five ways to get the most out of your Google+ experience

Things I found Interesting

The one thing I found really interesting is the campaign that confused.com are doing using Pinterest. They have found out that 40% of women drive wearing heels! So to encourage better behavious they have launched a competition to win a pair of roll up ballet pumps and to be in for a chance of winning you have to pin a picture of you wearing your most outrageous shoes. I think this is really great as the company confused.com are using one the largest growing social networking sites to engage with their customers to do something very beneficial. What a great PR campaign, as it not only increases their profile but creates a good aura about the company.

I don't know too much about Pininterest but I will definitely be looking into further.

Google Plus VS Facebook Timeline

So I recently saw the new Google+ advert, and like many thought wait, is that not exactly the same as Facebook timeline? (I’ve put both adverts below so you can decide what you think!) I myself am an avid Facebook user, so the idea of going to a completely new social networking site (something I haven’t done since the days of MySpace!) seems like an alien concept to me. But being a curious person, and a social media geek I can’t help but find out what really makes Google plus a good social networking site.

This article '9 reasons to change to Google plus’ definitely helped my research. Better photo tagging, strong group chat features and better friend management are pros among many. But for me the winning feature of Google+ is the integration it has with other google features, such as news, maps, search etc. You could basically live your own ‘Google’ online life. I can imagine it being really easy, just using one platform for everything; videos, networking, searching, that part of it seems to make sense. But for me I enjoy the fact that everyone I know is on facebook and I think it would take many years for everyone to go to Google+ .

In terms of PR, I think that every company should be jumping on the Google+ bandwagon, it seems like the smartest thing to do and is a brilliant tool for market research due to the 'Google circles'. H&M is definitely one company that is using it the best, and they will no doubt be reaping the benefits from it. But for me despite the pros, I’m not completely convinced so I’ll stay a facebook fan for now. But what do you think? I’d love to hear your opinions!

Want to know more?
Read any of the linked content but I also reccomend these articles.
Google the new social network
Google vs Facebook
Is Google or Facebook better for business?

Twitter VS The Press

Twitter has been a huge issue for the press since it began. With twitter having grown in popularity so much in recent years it’s even more of an issue than it ever has been before. But really how credible is twitter? Is it really a repetable news source? And what impact is it having on the press?

Myself I check twitter more than I do online newspapers so I generally find out much of my news via twitter. I also tend not to follow newspapers as they tweet too much content that I’m not interested in. I do believe that twitter is taking over the press and is actually far more repatable then many newspapers for a couple of reasons:

-        Firstly many newspapers have an allegiance to certain political parties, so many of the stories can be bias, especially when it comes to election time.

-        Selective information is used in news stories. With twitter you follow exactly what is happening at certain events from people tweeting, therefore you can get a much more realistic picture.

Twitter is becoming more and more powerful and influential, such as actually bringing news stories to the forefront and in some cases reporting things before the press. This article exemplifies that perfectly claiming that the news of Whitney Houston’s death was release by two twitter users 27 minutes before the press.

It’s a tough time for the press right now without the internet and twitter posing such a huge pressure. But I agree with MelanieStills article when she concludes that it isn’t twitter versus the press it’s the press and twitter. Twitter links things to the press and is creating a two way road for the public to have an opinion on news stories.

Want to know more?

I definitely reccomend reading this article or any of the others I have linked to with the post.

The Future Of Fashion Blogging

Lately, blogging has taken a back seat for me. I haven't been blogging and I definitely haven't been reading as many blogs let alone discovering new ones regularly like I was doing before. But I did happen to stumble across this post by Fashion Rambler that really made me think about the future of fashion blogging. For those of you that haven't read it, he discusses the professionalism of blogging, the current state of the bloggersphere and what the future holds for blogging. But what are the pros and cons of fashion blogging? And who is currently doing it best?


Fashion Week is a really good example of the pros and cons of fashion blogging. With Global Fashion Weeks having come to a close, posts are popping up everywhere over the bloggersphere about peoples fashion week experiences, opinions on shows and what they wore. But really how rich is this content? I think it all depends on the individual e.g. what job they have and how long they been in the industry to make their content credible. Also naturally as creative people we focus mainly on the aesthetics and not so much on the content. I think there is definitely a lack of interesting content on fashion blogs that I am currently reading.


I personally have started to grow tired of the big and really popular blogs and am definitely more inclined to read blogs with not as much popularity. India Rose and My favourite company blog definitely has to be Topshop InsideOut.

India Rose

Personally the reasons that I love these blogs is for the following reasons:


India Rose

-        It’s authentic, not too many sponsored posts and it follows the pattern of her life and the things that are happening in it. You get the feeling that blogging is part of her life rather than being her life.

-        A good balance of posts. The posts are generally about fashion, music and herself. She does a couple of outfit posts every so often and intermittently puts in content about clothes that she loves or new designers that she’s found.

-        Her tone of writing is really good, it’s not condescending or patronising. It’s friendly and you feel like it’s a friend talking to you. It makes it much more credible  and interesting to read. With each post you get to know her better.

Lucy a Junior Buyer at Topshop

Topshop – Inside Out

-        The main reason I like this blog is for the content. You get an insight into the company with interviews with people of all different levels.

-        They give you backstage pictures and an insight into how their catwalk show is created.

-        Like India Rose, it has a friendly tone and gives Topshop a personality.

-        It’s always up to date with the newest social, fashion and beauty trends. They also speak to key people in the industry.

-        Overall you realise how much Topshop do behind the scenes. The blog allows you to become part of their world.

 It’s really difficult to tell what the future of fashion blogging will be but it has definitely taken a dip. I think both personal blogs and company blogs need to go back to the core of who they are and what they want to  get across from the blog and that will make the blog far more successful.