I came across one of the most useful sources of research for my blogging which was a less academic source, as this is self-led research it is important to focus on what benefits me the most as the creator of the content and site.
Vogue is a publication which has inspired almost every piece of writing I have ever done. There is no doubt that their online presence, website, youtube and social media content is immaculate. This series covers the world of fashion by Alexa Chung, an idol of mine who has successfully made it in the fashion world. Her investigation in this episode explores fashion blogging and how it began. What was interesting was how people managed to create success as more and more people began trying it so how it became ‘The survival of the fittest as only the superior specimen survives.’ Then Instagram arrives, and the most successful bloggers had a voice in campaigns and took part in activism.
The useful advice inspired me to not be too afraid to express some of myself in creating a brand to the audience, if I am writing this then inevitably my personality will come across whether intentional or not and this should be embraced.
Travel & Food Blogging Industry Now:
Stats on the blogging industry by https://techjury.net/stats-about/blogging/ from March 2019:
In 2019 there are approximately 505 million blogs and the scene is growing rapidly. Within one month of 2019, in February, there were nearly 350 million new blog posts, so around 5.8 million blog posts are published each day.
The regularity of blog posting, however, is changing, in 2014 most bloggers said they posted several times a week. Now only 2% of bloggers post daily, but the highest percentage of bloggers said they posted several times a month.
This shift in the trends has shown the need for more thought through posts which take longer to research or present using the best story treatment or angle.
The importance of video and ‘vlogging’ is rising and so this is a future priority to eventually incorporate once people have developed a following. 65% of the audience are visual learners says Jeff Bullas.
This research helped me to find aspects of professional practice I would like to apply to the form of the blog and the posts. It allowed me to begin content planning and gathering materials with a focus. I also had a look at the best food and travel blogs which I analysed the strengths and weaknesses of. One of the top ones was Legal Nomads. The layout was not at all what I wanted and from looking at competitors I learned I was doing something others were not in my design. Now I knew what length to be aiming for, the travel industry, market research and competitor analysis I could get on with content.
