Is fashion and lifestyle your passion? Do you dream of becoming a famous fashion blogger? Would you like to learn how to write a blog and attain all the knowledge you need? Are you interested to know who are the most successful fashion bloggers and what makes them stand out? There is no “secret” regimen, no shortcuts – all you need is to acquire certain skills. For this reason, an “ad hoc” training course, such as the Web Content Editing Course by Digital Coach, is one of the best paths to take for all professionals aspiring to master the art of communicating effectively online.
Continue reading the article to learn more useful information about this digital profession:
- What a fashion blogger does
- How to become a fashion blogger
- Who are the most famous fashion influencers
- How much a fashion blogger earns.
What do fashion bloggers do?
Whether self-employed, entrepreneurs, and/or have contracts with agencies, fashion bloggers are not just concerned with clothing trends, but also with other related aspects including social events, shopping trips, food trivia, beauty tips, showbiz gossip, and entertainment news. If you feel “drawn” to these aspects, consider the following fundamental characteristics before thinking about starting a blog:
- You must invest your time and effort to stay updated with the latest trends. Starting a blog without keeping it constantly updated with the latest news is a huge mistake. It takes patience and perseverance to become a successful fashion blogger.
- Being knowledgeable in the world of fashion and being a good communicator. The first aspect is a must, as you definitely need interest and passion, as well as knowing how to convey your communication style in the right way to be incisive, make a difference, and voice out who you are. In practice, you need excellent storytelling skills to get your content across to as many people as possible.
- Creativity, imagination, marketing knowledge, and innate skills as a salesperson are other important aspects. This generally refers to the ability to understand consumer behavior, make analyses of the target audience, recognize industry trends in advance, make critical choices, and create original content. Innovation is the only thing that leads a fashion blogger to success: find your style and voice out who you are. Become a gleaming beacon, a uniting force that brings together people of similar interests.
- Multifaceted competence. A good blog must contain posts paired with enticing photos, videos, infographics, and other engaging graphic elements. You can do it yourself if you know your way around photo/video editing. You may also take courses to help you develop relevant skills, or get help from web developers, photographers, etc. It is also just as important to have good SEO knowledge.
How to become a fashion influencer
Popular fashion bloggers can become influencers, i.e., people who have influence over a target group of potential customers and, consequently, get sponsored by fashion houses to promote their products. True fashion influencers maximize the use of numerous opportunities online and integrate them together. They start with the blog then use social networks (e.g., Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube) to convey their content. Generally, social media posts should provide interesting and in-depth content of what is covered in the blog: backstage photos of events, live event coverage, and exclusive images.
How to start a career as a fashion blogger? The first step is to open a blog. Choose a name for the blog, a graphic template, create a logo, and then open one or more social pages: Instagram and Pinterest are currently the most used platforms. An easy and great way to start a blog is by following a WordPress Blogging Course.
The blog can be generalist, which talks about fashion and explores equally on all styles and products across the board. It can also be specialized, which is dedicated to a single type of product (example: shoes) or area of fashion (example: haute couture). Once again, it is important to have clear ideas and to know what you really want to converse to your audience.
A fashion influencer chooses this profession primarily driven by the desire to inspire his/her followers. Secondly, he/she aspires to become an entrepreneur to later on launch his/her own product line.
Who are the most renowned fashion bloggers?
It is often thought that fashion bloggers are mostly young women blogging about women’s fashion. In reality, fashion has been a growing interest in all sexes and ages, and attention to detail, accessories, proposals for “cool” trends, and unique and eye-catching outfits are what truly make a fashion blogger. Take, as an example, these two staple names: Mariano di Vaio and Nadia La Bella. As an introduction, Mariano di Vaio is commonly regarded as the most successful fashion blogger, while Nadia La Bella is one of the best-known fashion bloggers over 40.
Mariano di Vaio
The world of male fashion bloggers has been in constant rapid growth over the past few years. Mariano di Vaio is commonly regarded as the most famous Italian male influencer in the world. Born in 1989, he started his career in the fashion world as a model then, in 2012, he opened his own blog “MDV STYLE”.
Recent data show that Di Vaio not only has numerous collaborations, but also has an impressive collection of 6.3 million followers on Instagram. He has also become a testimonial for Kronoshop, while his clothing brand Nohow is in rapid growth: 22 people hired, all under the age of 30.
In early 2018, Forbes ranked him as the world’s most powerful under-30 in the retail/e-commerce fashion category. A single post on his Instagram can easily earn around €9,000, according to a March 2019 ranking.
Chiara Ferragni
Named by Fashionista as the world’s most famous fashion blogger, influencer, and fashion expert, Chiara Ferragni was included by Forbes among the most influential under-30s, being the only Italian in the ranking. Even Harvard featured her in a case study.
She started her fashion blog ‘The Blonde Salad’ in 2009. To engage a larger audience, she decided to write her content in both Italian and English. Since then, she obtains almost 15 thousand views a day, and has amassed over 22.5 million followers on Instagram alone. She boasts collaborations with all the most established fashion brands, has a clothing company with ten flagship shops worldwide, a shoe line that started in 2010, and some extremely profitable brand partnerships.
At the end of 2011, she was recognized as the “Blogger of the Moment” by Teen Vogue: the blog reached 12 million monthly visits. She began a collaboration with Guess, and with American designer Steve Madden, who wanted her to create a shoe collection for spring 2014. Her Instagram profile also gives her even more visibility, which grows together with the blog, helping her further monetize and forge new collaborations.
Today, at the age of 34, with 22.7 million followers on Instagram, she earns up to $12,000 with a single post sponsored by fashion houses. Her business now turns over 10 million dollars – from an initial passion, she now has managed to build a profitable career. Determination, perseverance, and communication strategy have enabled her to reach these levels. Chiara Ferragni managed to create with intuition what, at the time, was only barely present, with a simple yet unmistakable style.
Find out How to Become an Influencer with your Blog
Erika Boldrin
Working while being famous as a fashion expert? Erika Boldrin has proven it possible: from private banker to successful blogger to top influencer to entrepreneur. After graduating, she joined a consulting firm and later a major Italian bank. At the same time, she started writing a fashion blog where she posts her OOTDs.
After six years, she quit her job to devote herself exclusively to her blog, ‘My Free Choice’, where she shows her travels through picturesque places around the world. After 10 years, her blog has grown to become one of the most popular worldwide. She has a large following on Instagram, collaborates with Italian and foreign ready-to-wear brands, and more. Erika is also an entrepreneur: she founded ‘Honieh Beauty’, a brand specializing in vegan, natural, and organic skincare products.
Feel free to visit her website (honiehbeauty.com) and instagram account (@honiehbeauty).
Nadia La Bella
Over-aged fashion blogger? Nadia La Bella proved there’s no such thing as she created an identity for herself and her generation, serving as a face for beauty models that are closer to reality, that follow different physicality and femininities. More self-awareness and greater confidence in one’s own physicality and in what enhances it – these are the characteristics of this amazing woman who proves “fashion has no age” and one can be beautiful and fashionable even at a late age.
The aged-like-fine-wine blogger always conveys positivity, sharing her own experiences when it comes to lifestyle. She always makes sure to be close to her readers and show attention and sensitivity to their requests. Fashion advice must be practical, has an eye on fashion trends but also on timeless style, never losing sight of practicality and discreet elegance.
Fashion influencers nowadays are taken as a source of inspiration for women of all ages. One example above all is Nadia La Bella. At 53, she is setting trends, posting OOTDs, talking about fashion trends, and recommending fashion boutiques. But that’s not all. “The Fashion Mob” is a project about five women aged 27 to 52, who have launched a new influencer marketing concept.
It’s a perfect example of how the internet can generate work at any age and an example of solidarity between women. They have reached almost three million people, each with their own style and way of experiencing fashion and of interpreting a brand.
How much a fashion blogger earns
Difficult to generalize: the earnings of a fashion blogger can vary a lot from a few hundred euros a month up to 50 or 100 thousand euros a month. Individuals promoting luxury garments are more likely to have higher earnings as compared to others.
The blog itself is not a tool to generate earnings; it needs companies willing to use the site’s pages to promote products. The main and initial objective is to gain as many followers as possible and attract the attention of various brands. Sponsored clothing, collaboration proposals, and invitations to various events will naturally follow.
A fashion blog must, therefore, be thought more of as a useful showcase to make yourself known, a springboard to launch yourself towards collaborations with companies, events participation, and product sponsorship. In time, a fashion blogger can work and collaborate with magazines and periodicals, with clothing brands as an ambassador, and with companies in every sector looking for testimonials and photo studios.
A large part of the earnings obtained by the fashion blogger can also be derived from affiliate marketing, which involves joining an affiliate program promoted by numerous companies operating in the sector. The fashion blogger promotes clothing or fashion accessories on his or her own channels and, in this case, earns a commission for each sale made from his or her profile. To be profitable though, affiliate programs require a lot of followers willing to buy the products recommended by the influencer.
It is worth noting that a good fashion blogger directs consumer choices. His or her pervasive role makes the consumer inclined to buy an item or clothing sponsored by a fashion blogger.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
The world of Fashion Bloggers is a constantly evolving sector and is one of the most popular on the Internet. Being a Fashion Blogger, however, is not only a passion for fashion, but is also the ability to understand how people behave online. It therefore means knowing Web Marketing from all angles. This is why I decided to interview Valentina Castelli, author of valentinacastelli.it, Fashion Blogger by profession, and a Web Marketing expert. Valentina explains how important constant training and research is for success. If you would like to learn more about the topics discussed in this interview, Digital-Coach offers you the Master in Digital Marketing and the Master in Social Media Marketing Courses.
How to become a Fashion Blogger?
First of all, do not believe those who write and talk about tricks to become a Fashion Blogger; for the simple reason that there are no tricks and there are no rules. A true Fashion Blogger should not visit famous blogs like Chiara Ferragni’s or Chiara Biasi’s and try to copy them. That would not lead to lasting results. For me, a Fashion Blogger must, first of all, have public relations skills and be competent in web marketing, and it’s really important to be aware of how users behave online. Fashion experience is important, but it only comprises a small percentage. This is because in order to get people to follow you, it is much more important to do personal branding on social media and show the world your personality.
You have to show what you like and what you do – your most sincere side. It must be a studied personal branding, yet simple and understandable as if you were talking to a friend.
Being honest will lead people to follow you and create a legitimate community that will trust your opinion and what you write. Trust is crucial, especially at a time when all fashion bloggers are seen as people who advertise companies just because they get paid. People will follow you much more easily if you are sincere and unafraid to show your weaknesses, or even willing to ask for advice rather than give it.
Fashion Bloggers and SEO: how important is passion and how big of an effect can SEO and Marketing bring
Being a good fashion blogger requires a great balance between the two. Both passion for fashion and excellent strategy are important, as well as having the fundamentals of the more technical aspects. Therefore, being knowledgeable in SEO principles, having the skills to use WordPress, knowing how to write an article, and having the ability to use all the necessary tools in web marketing are just as essential to become a good fashion blogger.
A lot of fashion bloggers rely on agencies. Personally, I have always preferred to do it myself. This is because from the moment you study certain tools, you gain certain skills that remain with you and that you can also use for other projects. Perhaps, you won’t always deal with fashion; in the future you might deal with marketing for very different sectors for which the principles and tools you have studied might be useful. However, you should always try to balance all these tools. Too much SEO and focus on content risks is, in fact, likely to lead to a loss of personality in the article itself; at the same time, too much passion or personal style risks not getting you the desired results in terms of visibility.
Fashion Bloggers and Social Media: how to use them to succeed
Social media is essential for every Fashion Blogger. When you deal with fashion, visual content is very important. I have noticed that people often look more at the visual content rather than the content of the article. Many Fashion Bloggers even minimize the content as much as possible, focusing everything on the pictures of the clothes and accessories they wear. Every Fashion Blogger chooses their own way. As for me, I focus a lot on content but, at the same time, I still use Instagram a lot. The key thing is to understand how each social media platform has its own audience and calls for a different approach. On Instagram for example, photos will be totally important; on Facebook, you can focus more on public relations; on Twitter, you have to update people on what you do and what you write.
In conclusion, every Fashion Blogger must understand how is the main tool for getting public attention. However, one must know how to use them and with great caution. You must not mix your private with your professional profile, because it risks becoming a mixture where users who follow you as a Fashion Blogger no longer understand. You must always follow a line and a strategy, avoiding being cold, but on the contrary always trying to express, going back to the first point – sincerity and transparency.
Conclusions and career counseling
As you have seen, pursuing the profession of fashion blogger requires specific skills and whose ability is measured by the number generated by the blog: how many people visit it, with what attentiveness and behavioral habits, the comments and overall interaction generated by the posts (sharing on social media) and, most importantly, the number of leads (contacts) generated through the blog. If you want to know more, you may request a free career consultation.
Contact one of our experts help you discover your best path to becoming a successful fashion blogger!