I can’t believe I actually forgot my own blog birthday, but I did; BBB turned three on January 31st. I was all prepared to share a little virtual champagne and give a sobbing Gwynneth style speech, but since I missed it, the party poppers will have to go away again til next year.
I will say though, that the face of blogging has changed beyond measure since I started three years ago – and, it’s almost all good. Back in the day when I was almost apologetically trying to persuade PRs (and anyone who’d listen actually!) that blogs really were going to have an imeasurable impact on the face of beauty, I’d be almost red-faced with impatience that very few took it seriously. But, there were some who supported BBB right from the very beginning, didn’t question or doubt and were uncompromisingly helpful and supportive. And I remember to this very day who they are.
Bloggers continue to be supportive of each other on the whole and are becoming much more savvy to those trying to take advantage (i.e. no, really, the content we made especially for you will be of massive interest to your readers..we know it looks like an ad, but really it’s our special gift to you that we want you to promote for free). Beauty blogs provide so many of us bloggers an outlet to say what we really think and feel about beauty, no matter whether we are industry, media, consumer or just fascinated by the world of glossiness, and I think we’d all say we’ve made new friends through our interest. Who knew?
Two years ago at an industry event I listened to a magazine editor dismiss blogs with the words, ‘we don’t have to take any notice of them; they’re just there’, and yet only a couple of weeks ago another editor was in print decreeing that magazine beauty blogs were by far superior. Well, there is nothing like using defence as a form of attack to show you are worried.
Twitter has allowed bloggers to promote their writing and work to others in a way that is unparalleled and the beauty blogosphere continues to provide a measurable knock-on effect in the form of sales. If we love something, others want to know about it. If we loathe something, others avoid. Beauty products are under scrunity like never before; gone are the days when brands can shovel out inferior products and hope nobody notices. We notice.
So, that’s kind of it for my bloggy-sobby speech.. not a dry eye in the house, I’ll bet ;-). Please tuck into some virtual calorie free cake – go ahead, you can have as many slices as you want.
Lastly though, I’ve got to say the biggest thank you to BBB readers…and there’s no way to say this without going a bit luvvie and Gwynnethy, but seriously, what would be the point without you? *picks up hanky*
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