I am sitting down at the computer to write an article which is not about fashion at all, but is very topical and follows on from the activity of the Czech Elite Bloggers and their August project #MesicTransparentnosti. To explain, it is about clearly labelling advertising on a blog by means of a special hashtag #spoluprace. With this article I decided to express my stance, since questions closely related to this topic have recently been piling up, so I will answer them in the following lines.
If you are interested in the topic of blogging in general, be sure to read my older article On blogging where I cover several areas. Today's article is only about collaborations and advertising. Right at the start I would like to say that opinions differ and every blogger has it set up completely differently. In their head and on their blog. I write only about myself and for myself.
What is my stance on labelling advertising?
What kind of doctor of philosophy would I be if I didn't "poke around" in this right at the start, so I will state the fact that a blog in itself is one big advertisement, whether anyone likes it or not. In my opinion it makes no difference whether it is the clothes we bloggers wear, the restaurant where we photograph our food, or the lipstick we wear, or even the thoughts we spread and the values we profess; all of it together works perfectly, so at the end of every post I can safely use the hashtag #AD. Because everything you see, smell and perceive on a blog is subliminally advertising. Labelling advertising is a completely honourable and beautiful act, but it interests primarily the competition and the audience that is curious or prudent. On the contrary, I think that when someone likes the dress I am wearing, or the pram Bruno rides in, they mainly care about where they can buy it and how much it costs. They may not care at all whether I bought the pram, inherited it, received it, or whether it was a paid post. I follow several foreign domestic and commercial blogs and on all of them I am interested in one single thing, and that is inspiration. Nothing more and nothing less is what I look for there. Honestly, I have never thought about whether it is barter (advertising for a product) or a paid collaboration. I only have the criterion like-dislike, nothing more. If I dislike it for a long time I simply unfollow, or I don't return to that content any more. By that I of course don't mean that everyone perceives it as I do, and I am very happy to label posts. After all, if it helps even one person, it makes me happy. But let's face the truth.
For me, as the number of followers grows, so does the responsibility for what I pass on to the audience, but on the other hand I am very glad that my audience grew up long ago and that I am not influencing small children or teenagers, where the risks and impacts are of course several times greater and where it is no longer just about consumption and inspiration, but rather about values and education.
How do I choose collaborations?
My blog came into being for the purpose of a "creative" outlet alongside the children, and I do not try to monetise it in any way. Of course I don't turn away good offers, but I refuse 9 out of 10 proposed. Why? Because I have no desire to promote what I don't use and therefore don't actually need. It sounds like a cliché, but it isn't, and I simply don't know how to put it better or more simply.
I try to choose collaborations so that they are beneficial not only for me but, logically, for you too. Let me give an example: dozens of cosmetic brands approached me directly and I didn't agree with a single one, and do you know why? Because I don't use their products, full stop. As for cosmetics, I have always shopped at Marionnaud for the top-class advice and the top make-up artists, most of whom I know personally. After some time they approached me for a paid collaboration, and thanks to the fact that they have a broad portfolio of global brands, it is up to me what I promote. It is therefore the only cosmetics collaboration that makes sense to me. That way I get the chance to try dozens of things before I publish and promote something. I regularly arrange discounts, competitions or coupons with the code FashionSpy for you there. That is what you call a collaboration that is meaningful for everyone. It pleases me, entertains me, feeds me, and saves you a ton of money while you look for the "right" make-up, when I tell you that I have tried almost all of them and the best are Estée Lauder Double Wear and those by YSL. Yes, I miss out on interesting offers directly from brands and various "alternative" cosmetics, but I don't mind at all, and above all, the greatest value in life for me is time, and thanks to one collaboration instead of ten I save it.
With cosmetics as an example I am only explaining how I operate, and it is actually the same in all areas. Since I have also been collaborating with CCC Shoes&bags for several years (I am their media face, ambassador, blogger and I don't know what else), I likewise won't accept a collaboration with anyone competing. And there have again been several offers. I dress over and over in the same clothing brands, which my loyal followers have certainly noticed, and these are: GANT, Karl Lagerfeld, Reserved, or H&M and Zara. My children are dressed by Littlehipster.sk and occasionally shod by Gugenio.sk. They basically wear nothing else, and not only on the blog.
As a matter of principle I turn down collaboration offers for various detergents, cleaning products, household appliances and similar products unrelated to fashion and beauty. Of course even a master carpenter slips up once in a while, and I too was lured in the past onto a path outside the focus of my blog. The three biggest hypermarket chain brands approached me and downright bid against each other over who would "get" me. I signed a one-year contract with one of them and did an occasional post for another. Why would I lie to you, the money was lovely, but I didn't enjoy it at all and it was "outside" fashion and beauty. I didn't want to continue this collaboration, even though I think that money would convince most bloggers and they would continue. You know, a blog is not free. It comes at the expense of free time and family and costs an incredible amount of money. Keeping pace with the times, technology and trends takes considerable effort, and that's why I don't condemn paid collaborations or bloggers who would like to have a full-time job from their blog, it's just a hard and thorny road. For me personally a blog is primarily fun and a distraction, and I laugh terribly if someone thinks it's a gold mine. Making a living and earning decent money is much easier. Maybe one day it will be different, and when it happens I will be the first to shout it to the world, believe me!
Btw. these beautiful photos were taken at the Summer Garden Party at Ala Palla, and of course I will test this cosmetics, and if by chance it pleases my critical eye and spoiled skin, you will certainly hear about it. And you see, it is already advertising now, and I haven't even written the soft F for that cosmetics yet.
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Outfit: Pink top with ruffles: Sandro, White 3/4 trousers: Max Mara, White belt bag: Stradivarius, Pink pumps with rhinestones: Cosmo Paris, White sunglasses: Marc Jacobs, Fokus Optika. I thank my fellow blogger @sweetladylollipop for the beautiful photos
