It’s time to talk of all things fashion. Well, this topic was not left behind during the just concluded Digital Camp Kenya. Who is better placed to tackle this subject than a fashion blogger? You guessed right, none. Silvia Njoki is an award winning fashion blogger who won the best fashion blog and the best overall Kenyan blog during this year’s BAKE awards.
She has always loved fashion from the time she was a small girl. “I shaved my eyebrows with my dad’s shaving kit, drew them back with a felt pen and I thought I looked pretty”, she shared. She started her blog Style by Silvia in 2013 as a creative outlet for her DIY activities in pursuit of dressing her infant daughter, born that year, but gradually evolved into a more fashion oriented vehicle for sharing her personal style on the social media scene.
“Find your niche and your voice”, Silvia advised. “I have always been passionate about fashion, so that was my niche”, she added.
Research is something that all bloggers must do. Even fashion bloggers do a lot of research, as reiterated by Silvia, “Fashion bloggers spend hours researching on trends, before putting together new posts.” Fashion magazines, TV shows and other blogs are among the sources of research that may be helpful to fashion bloggers.
One does not have to have a large budget to run a fashion blog. “You can live within your resources and start from somewhere”, she said. “Some people have a million to invest, others as little as 3000 shillings”, she added. “You never know how much you can do with a stylish mtumba outfit”, she gave a tip.
“Bloggers should have a content calendar for consistency” she said. “You should be loyal to your readers who expect fresh content regularly”, she advised. “The other thing a blogger must have is a dream list of clients”, she added. “Having a dream list helps you to tailor your message around those brands”, she said. Silvia told us that she started keeping her dream list long before her blog was commercial. “Nowadays corporates approach me to endorse their products”, she mentioned.
“Attending industry events has been very useful for Fashion blogger in terms of networking”, Silvia advised. “It’s important to build relationships and not be obsessed with followers”, she advised. “Followers will come when you have the right content and connections”, she concluded.
Well, the short presentation was surely informative not only for fashion bloggers but to all the bloggers who were in attendance.
You can connect to Silvia at @silvianjoki