My research question is “Are fashion blogs the You Tube of the fashion world?” In earlier times, the only ways for people to get fashion information was either from newsreels seen in movie theatres or from magazines like Vogue or Harper’s Bazaar. But today in the digital age, that information is instantly available online. Runway coverage is now up on the Internet minutes after a fashion show ends and some shows are even streamed live. The latest phenomenon of fashion blogging is here to stay!
My research journey till now includes a literature review on the book “Six Thinking Hats” by Edward de Bono, research strategy on “Why does the color “black” constitute a major part of the wardrobe of the people in UK?” and lastly my research on the big question “Are fashion blogs the You Tube of the fashion world?”
I did my literature review on Six Thinking Hats as I was reading it during that time, so I decided to share the rather appealing concept of thinking with my batch. After studying and analyzing the Six Thinking hats method in depth, I found this method quite attention-grabbing and captivating as a thinking tool for group discussion and individual thinking. I learned that the most salient benefits of this method are seen in group discussions or conversations. In effect, there are many organizations in which the symbolism of the hats has, indeed, become a part of everyday language as a means to direct thinking more effectively. Since every thinker at every moment is looking at the same direction, the thoughts are laid out in parallel and in the end, the subject is fully explored. This method helped me a lot to improve my way of thinking as I now address every issue from a variety of angles.
After my literature review, I started looking for my research question in relation to my field, that is fashion. I was quite intrigued seeing people on the streets wearing a lot of dark colors, mostly black. While walking down the streets of London every single time, I observed that every second person on the street was wearing black as opposed to so many other colors available in the retail stores in UK. It was very fascinating for me to stand at a single place on the street and see huge groups of people wearing nothing else but black. Hence, I formulated my research question to “Why does the color “black” constitute a major part of the wardrobe of the people in UK?” I started with brainstorming all the factors that I could further investigate in order to develop my research in this area. Some of the factors I thought because of which black is the most apparent choice for people to wear are- black is a heat absorbent color, can be combined easily with any color, is available readily in all the retail stores across UK, suits every body type, doesn’t get soiled easily, is considered a classic color which can be teamed up with any colored accessory and last but not the least, black makes one look good at all times, therefore is the safest color to wear for all occasions.
Considering all these factors, I started developing my research strategy. My process for research started with preparing questionnaires and conducting online surveys through the questionnaires to know people’s view on my subject of research. The research strategy also included browsing through websites in order to find the historical and current research on the origin of black colored clothes, importance of black in the past and now in the present. Websites also aided research on cultural analysis and psychology of people who like to wear black. The strategically approached method also incorporated reading different books on color psychology, fashion trends, historical research on fashion, taking photographs of people at various places in London, recording people walking on the streets and observing their clothes. The research strategy also included an experiment in which people would be given a varied selection of garments to choose from in order to test their wardrobe choices. My approach to answering this question also included visiting various fashion blogs in order to find out what fashion trends are people following and what factors are influencing fashion on the streets.
While I was doing my research, I observed that most of the people wear black or dark and dull colored outfits is because of the simple reason of the climate in the UK. The weather here remains extremely low most of the times in the winter season that people commonly tend to choose black as the color of their outfits, outerwear being the most common; as black is the only color that lasts clean for long and also absorbs a lot of heat, hence keeping the person warm at all times.
Consequently this makes the classic color the most chosen by the people of UK. I figured out whilst my research process that there wasn’t much scope in going further in researching in this topic as there was very little I could do in finding out more about black seeing that the obvious answer- the weather was right in front of me.
As a part of my research on black, I went through a lot of fashion blogs checking out various fashion trends and found myself having a very keen interest in going through the blogs. As I have interest in fashion promotion, I went deep and tried to find out more about fashion blogs and their significance. There were a lot of questions about fashion blogs in general hovering my mind, like, “Is fashion blogging the “in” thing these days?”; “Do Fashion blogs actually spread trends?”; “What role do Fashion Blogs play in spreading trend awareness?”; “How authentic are fashion blogs?”; “Is the growing popularity of Fashion Blogs giving rise to competition between fashion magazine editors and fashion bloggers?” In order to answer all these questions I further developed my research question to “Are fashion blogs the You Tube of the fashion world?”
I started developing my research strategy, which mainly included reading and commenting on different fashion blogs to know people’s take on fashion blogging, conducting online surveys by sending out questionnaires to check how popular fashion blogging is among masses, finding out what fashion journalists and editors have to say about fashion blogs, to find the historical background behind fashion blogs, how did they start, evolve and eventually gain popularity, to interview people on the streets to find out how popular are fashion blogs among the masses and which of the fashion blogs are the most popular, to study books on blogging as a general habit and how often do people blog, to interview fashion blog owners so as to know their take on fashion blogging.
My research process started with interviewing people on the streets and collecting first-hand information on fashion blogging. I was quite amazed to find out how uninformed people are about the concept of fashion blogs. To my surprise, not many people knew about what fashion blogging is and I discovered that the concept of fashion blogs is relatively a new phenomenon. So I moved on to research more on the theory of fashion blogging.
According to Wikipedia, a fashion blog covers topics such as the latest fashion trends, fashion items like shoes, handbags, celebrity fashion, runway trends and street style outfits worn by regular people. As fashion is trend-driven and fashion blogs provide a new way to follow these trends, it is likely they will have a considerable long-term influence on the industry. Fashion blogs are a comparatively new experience, so there are no detailed published accounts of their history yet. Fashion blogs first appeared in the blogosphere prior to 2002. Both the number of fashion blogs and the number of media mentions of fashion blogs has grown considerably since then.
Once snubbed by the insular fashion world for their now and again snide reviews and tiny audiences, fashion bloggers are currently attracting the attention of the fashion industry. As the blogs claim bigger followings, and advertisers shift more spending to them, designers see these independent web publishers as a new marketing opportunity. Many small designers, in particular, now realize they can get valuable exposure on blogs that they might not get in mainstream media. (Dodes, R., 2006) Blogger Bryanboy reveals how fashion blogging has changed the fashion industry. He says, “Bloggers are taking centre stage in the fashion industry at the moment, which has to do with the tough economic times. I think a lot of designers are really embracing the Internet movement. Times are very tough with the print industry so the next frontier is the Internet and the online world.” Steve, who writes for selectism.com says, “People have started to appreciate the blogger’s medium of communication, which is not just credible, but its definitely going to be the future. As a result, magazines seemingly are becoming obsolete at the moment.”
Ten years ago there might have been just a handful of fashion sites on the Internet, but today, there are millions of blogs focus on fashion per se. Blogs have opened the door for anyone, no matter where they reside. Everyone is free to share the latest fashion news, trends and more so to publicize their personal style, thereby getting opinions of other people.
"Fashion moves so fast, " Ms. Holley, the new editor in chief of Jane, the young women's style magazine, said, "that readers find the blogs keep up better than even the tabloids like US Weekly."
Tommye Fitzpatrick, who runs fashionologie.com, says the big appeal of blogs is that they can “move quickly and respond to news and new designer collections and brands within days or even hours”. Kelly Cook and Tina Craig run bagsnob.com, a site devoted to handbags. “Blogs can publish in an instant,” says Cook. “It’s the biggest advantage over traditional media, which can take months to compile. Sometimes, by the time magazines get to it, the trend might be over.” (Soo, C., 2007) Colin Mc Dowell, who writes for The Sunday times, mentions “The Sunday Times, is a weekly, which means there’s always a gap of at least 10 days from seeing it to writing it. What I love is, I go back, I write about it straight away, its all fresh in my mind and I love that.”
“Labels and readers need to be careful about wrong or misleading information about products,” Kelly Cook of bagsnob.com says. “Many blogs don’t fact check. There’s no standard practice for blogging as there is for traditional news media.” Although established designer labels may be reluctant to collaborate with bloggers, blogs can be a boon for up-and-coming designers. Even magazines such as Vogue are turning to blogs, and labels such as Chanel and Yves Saint Laurent use the Internet to supplement their marketing campaigns. (Soo, C., 2007) The traditional media cannot deny the perpetual effectiveness of the fashion blogs in connecting with the millions of people who love fashion.
But do bloggers help the fashion dialogue in anyway? Some of the bloggers appear to be more focused on themselves and on the celebrities in the front row than on the fashion on the runway. Unique opinions are few and far between. Fashion bloggers must offer unique perspectives and insights not available in the traditional media in order to attract and build a loyal following. Merely adding to the information overload is just noise. (Amed, I., 2008)
For designers, a mere mention of them on a popular blog proves to be very helpful in the enhancement of their ego. After a show, which lasts around 20 minutes and costs a bomb, many designers may feel their money has been wasted, especially if the popular editors and writers don't turn up. Then they Google themselves and the more mentions they find of their show, the more contented they get.
Malcolm Harris, fashion designer has taken risks not often seen in the fashion industry by being the first designer to build his entire business plan around the use of the Internet, by means of creating his blog called Cut, Sew & Blog. To the contrary, many young designers are the product of carefully crafted PR images. Instead, Malcolm has taken a completely different approach, going straight to his end consumer, bypassing the filtering roles of gatekeepers, fashion critics and the mass media. According to Harris, for a start-up, an online presence can lower, if not cut out, the initial cost of hiring a public relations firm that for the most part still sticks to antiquated forms of generating buzz/press. He says, ”No longer do designers have to feel as if they are at the mercy of editors and/or buyers, we now have the power to do one single thing that has made all the difference – UPLOAD.” (Amed, I., 2007)
“Blogs get a wider audience which is very helpful and desirable to a brand that is trying to get itself known.” says Suzy Menkes, the highly regarded fashion editor of the International Herald Tribune. She also thinks that it is smart of companies to look to bloggers who are universally young and form a younger generation.
Apparently, the speed at which blogs can gather photos, post both them and commentary, and hit publish is a big threat to the majors of the front row. Some editors might have been scoffing at the amount of success that some bloggers have achieved in the fashion industry by merely publishing a blog. They had to go through a lot harder of a process to get their front row seat at the fashion weeks. A blogger writes, “As a blogger and aspiring fashion editor myself, I use my blog as a creative outlet, and as a social networking tool to connect with other people who appreciate fashion on the level that I do. I do not intend to use my blog as a way to "get me an in" with the industry. I plan on interning and starting at the bottom, and working my way up just like every other editor out there. There can be a healthy balance between magazines and blogs!” (Akhtar, A., 2009) When asked, Suzy Menkes, fashion editor, International Herald tribune said” To be honest, I don’t feel threatened at all.”
With everyone from the NY times to fashion students blogging, it can be hard to tell who’s a credible source of these blogs. Infact, the sheer number of blogs is overwhelming with estimates saying there are over 2 million blogs devoted to fashion alone. Lorynn Divita, assistant professor at Baylor University says, “There are a lot of downsides to the phenomenon of fashion blogging. The first downside would be the lack of good criticism and despitefulness. A lot of times since these bloggers are anonymous, they can be just mean as opposed to being constructive or creative in their analysis.”
Tierra Wilson writes in her article 2010: The Future Of Fashion Blogging, that fashion bloggers have a unique situation that other bloggers will never truly understand. We have to be full out techies like the “tech bloggers” and we have to stay up to date on the latest trends and news in the fashion industry like the “fashion writers”. We are passionate about the two fastest changing industries in the world…fashion and technology; which is exactly why we have to stay one step ahead of the competition to make sure our blogs survive the future. She reveals the fashion blogging trends for the year 2010 to look forward to:
· Fashion Blog Turned Social Network- For fashion bloggers, sharing is the key to success. Experts say fashion blogs will become social networks.
· Video, Video, and More Video- Implementing video on a fashion blog will not only increase the number of readers, but it would also connect to the readers on a more personal level and keep them engaged.
· What’s A Desktop? Laptop Who? Give Me My Mobile! - Turning the RSS feed into an iPhone Application is the new way to upgrade fashion blogs.
· Click and Point- For fashion bloggers, affiliate programs are essential for 2010. Writing about a product or brand and informing that brand exactly where the sales come from, a nominal fee is generated.
· The Death of Magazines- Magazines are dropping like flies. A real online magazine with better layout and high-resolution pictures is what is “in”.
The cream of the British blogosphere has been recognized in the Metro/Ask.com Best Of Brit Blog Awards. The awards aimed to recognize the best online writing talent across eight categories – with shortlists drawn from over a thousand nominations by Ask.com and Metro readers.
Style Bubble sashayed away with the Fashion prize. Style Bubble's writer, Susie Bubble said: “I'm very happy indeed to have won! I wanted to write a blog that was a little different from the average fashion blog, putting a lot of myself and how I interact with fashion out on the net.” (Cook, A., 2007)
By looking at what various fashion editors, journalists and bloggers have to say about fashion blogs, I would like to conclude that though fashion blogging is reasonably a new development in the fashion industry, It has become highly valuable and lucrative, both as a trend setter and fashion business. As Wikipedia says, Fashion blogging is now developing from an interesting hobby to a viable new media business. I believe that the most successful fashion bloggers are those who understand both the fashion world and the tech world, and keep up with both. Stefano Gabbana of Dolce & Gabbana believes the Internet is the only way to reach people in their 20s. "It's the future. How many young customers don't read newspapers—they read blogs!" What's more, Mr. Gabbana feels the Internet offers the possibility of talking directly to customers.
I also feel that there shouldn't be any competition between fashion editors and bloggers. Bloggers write about fashion and give their own opinion about it. In a way, fashion blogs allow other fashion people to see fashion from a different light altogether, and that can be used in conjunction to what fashion editors write. It can be a good mix of opinion and facts. Moreover, if one compares fashion blogging with the traditional media, the advantages of blogging are quite obvious. It is so much more flexible; it is a media that can change its content almost right away depending on what’s happening; something that is impossible with newsprint.
“The world has changed. When fashion instead of becoming a monologue has become a conversation. Instead of it being something that was received, there’s now a rapport, people can make comment on shows instantly, and they can exchange views with other people of the same field. Everything now is integrated and there is a backwards and forwards and that’s never going to stop now. Now that, that has started, that’s it forever.” says Suzy Menkes, fashion editor, International Herald Tribune.
With all the above findings, I would like to deepen my research and take it forward in order to learn more about the impact and significance of fashions blogs in the fashion industry. I would continue to follow the above mentioned research strategy and gain more insight on the concept of fashion blogging emerging as a new phenomenon.
