Online Fashion Marketing Blog

Style Eyes Listed in Top 30 UK Fashion Blogs

2010-03-09T03:10:00.000-08:00

Last week our blog Style Eyes Fashion Blog was included in the Wikio Top 30 Fashion blogs. The ranking for the most influential blogs in the UK and Irish blogospheres is updated on a monthly basis. A really useful list if you are interested in engaging with UK fashion bloggers (there are separate lists for other countries)

1	Face Hunter (+1)
2	Catwalk Queen (+4)
3	Style Bubble (-2)
4	Red Carpet Style Awards (=)
5	SHOWstudio (-2)
6	Disneyrollergirl (Ent.)
7	Kingdom Of Style (-2)
8	Shoewawa (=)
9	STREET STYLE: PICS BY POLKA DOT (+24)
10	My Fashion Life (-3)
11	Discotheque Confusion (+5)
12	Coco's Tea Party (+14)
13	Libertylondongirl (Ent.)
14	Happy Because (=)
15	The Bag Lady (-3)
16	Mademoiselle Robot (Ent.)
17	The Fashion Police (-4)
18	Retro Chick (Ent.)
19	Vanessa Jackman (+2)
20	THE NEVERENDING STORY ! (-9)
21	Fifi Lapin (-12)
22	Shoegal (-12)
23	Cheapskate Chic (-4)
24	Park & Cube (Ent.)
25	HiFashion (-10)
26	Fabfrocks (+3)
27	Wayne Tippetts Photography (-3)
28	Tobaccoandleather (-10)
29	Style Eyes Fashion Blog (-1)
30	PinkBow (-13)

Ranking by Wikio

Style Sample Magazine

2010-03-05T06:33:00.000-08:00

Issue 6 of Style Sample Magazine, the magazine for bloggers, is now out. It is full of fashion features, tips, advice and fashion bloggers features including coverage of fashion blogger events, fashion blogger profiles and technical discussion.

I thought I would mention it, not only as it is such a great read, but also I have an article featured in this issue. Enjoy!

Independent Fashion Bloggers Evolving Influence Conference

2010-02-27T07:21:00.000-08:00

I was going to write about the IFB Evolving influence bloggers conference today. But then I thought to myself why re invent the wheel. In addition to the IFB coverage of the event, there are so many other blogs posts about the conference, I thought that it would be easier and more interesting to provide a list of the links (copied from IFB)

Women’s Wear Daily : Fashion’s New Fever : Blogging (front page)

The Cut : Teen Blogger Tavi Wow’s Crowd at Panel Discussion

Teen Vogue : Highlight of the Week Evolving IFB Fashion Blog Conference

Fashionably Marketing Me: The Impact of Fashion Bloggers at Fashion Week

The Fashion Spot: Evolving Influence Fashion Blogger Confernece

Diane, A Shaded View on Fashion : Evolving Influence Conference

Gala Darling : Evolving Influence

Manolo’s Shoe Blog: Manolo’s Thursday Miscellany

The Clothes Horse : Evolving Influence Fashion Blog Conference

Denimology : http://www.denimology.com/2010/02/update_from_nyfw_g-star_raw.php

What I Wore : Evolving Influence

Greyest Ghost : Independent Fashion Bloggers “Evolving Influence” Conference

Sammy Davis Vintage : Independent Fashion Bloggers Conference: Life, Love, & the Pursuit of Blogging with Style, Substance &; Authenticity

Preppy with a Twist : Evolving Influence

Dandition : Thanks IFB!

Holier Than Now : In Real Life 2 – IFB Evolving Influence Conference

Style Sample : Fashion Week Wrap-Up: The IFB Evolving Influence Conference

Bobbin Talk : Fashion Bloggers Prove Their Influence is Evolving

Bobbin Talk :IFB Panel One Discussion

Roselyn (Twitvid) http://www.twitvid.com/FBF61

Delightfully Tacky : Monday Recap : IFB

Smashing Darling Blog: Evolving Influence -IFB Conference

Girl Friday : Evolving Influence Recap

StlyeIT : Live Blogging From The IFB Conference: Fashion Blog Marketing Workshop Sponsored by Windows 7

Calico : NYFW Day One IFBCON

Art of Accessories :What I’ve learned in 2010

Punky Style : IFBCon Recap

Style Amour: Bloganizing : Independent Fashion Bloggers

Nubianonsense : Independent Fashion Blogger Conference

Haute Blogger : Independent Fashion Blogger Conference

Quite Contrary : On my way to…

Chichi212 : IFB Presents : Evolving Influence

Market Publique :Market Publique at IFB’s Evolving Influence

Socially Superlative : Evolving Influence Fashion Blog Conference

Examiner.com : Evolving Influence : Fashion Blog Confernece

The Time is Tomorrow : Independent Fashion Blogger Conference : Evolving Influence

The Fashion Loving Stylist : NYFW Day 5 : Evolving Influence Conference

Wendy Brandes Jewelry : More on the Evolving Influence Ethics Panel

Style Taxi : Evolving Influence Live Fashion Blogging Conference

Ciao Chessa! Evolving Influence : Independent Fashion Bloggers

Might Like You Better : Independent Fashion Blogger Conference Evolving Influence, New York City

SF Indie Fashion : Watch Evolving Influence Conference Live

Design Wonderland : My Evolving Fashion Influence

ModCloth Blog: IFB Evolving Influence Fashion Blog Conference

Pickles & Coffee : Street Sweeper : IFB Evolving Influence Conference

Fresh Jess : IFB Evolving Influence Confernence

Artfully Awear : Evolving Influence

Stylish Kids in Riot : Evolving Influence Live from New York

Stylish Report : Evolving Influence Fashion Blog Confernece

Grit and Glamour : Watch IFB Evolving Influence Live

Jason Last : This Video Is Killing Me Evolving Influence

Kyoto Maiko : IFB Evolving Influence : The Future of Fashion Blogging

FABIOwho: IFB Evolving Influence Conference 2010

BonBonRose : New York Fashion Week & The BonBonRose girls = Like WHOA

EStyling: Evolving Influence Conference

Fashionably Marketing Me :#NYFW Belongs to Bloggers

Lili Magazine :Evolving Influence

Mediacation: Whoever Tavi’s PR person is, please raise your hand

Life Behavior : Nova Iorque sediará o EVOLVING INFLUENCE – FASHION BLOG CONFERENCE / Nueva York será sede del EVOLVING INFLUENCE – FASHION BLOG CONFERENCE

American Express: AMERICAN EXPRESS PROVIDES CARDMEMBERS WITH EXCLUSIVE ACCESS…

Fashion Mama: Evolving Influence – Fashion Blog Conference

Clutch22 : http://www.clutch22.com/2010/02/15/ifbcon-nyfw-takes-place-today/

Diane, A Shaded View on Fashion : Evolving Influence Conference Announced

Temp’d :Happening Now: Live-Blogging from the Independent Fashion Bloggers ‘Evolving Influence’ Fashion Blog Conference Sponsored by AmEx, HP, and Windows 7!

Fashion Editor at Large : Tavi Ousted by a Younger Fashion Blogger?

Crossroads Trading: Heading to New York!

And Fancy Free : #IFBcon

Skinny Love : Eternal Masquerade

The Musings of Ondo Lady : Fashionisng Friday

twentyteneightyfour: twentyteneightyfour presents: mediacation – issue 1.0

Lola Simone Style :Hello Fashion Bloggers in NYC

Odds & Ends : VIDEO: Bryanboy’s March 2010 Vogue shoot + Bloggers vs. Journalists debate

Read My Lips! : http://hauteoffthepress.wordpress.com/2010/02/18/model-behavior-nyfw-fall-2010/

Love Me Twice Today : Where to begin?

Curvatude : A New York State of Mind

Art of Accessories :What I’ve learned in 2010

Gilding the Frilly : Daily Duds

Random Fashion Coolness :Marketing, Blogging and Editors

Online Fashion Marketing Blog : Bloggers in the Spotlight

Two For Fashion : Top 5 der Woche

Signature 9 : The Future of Fashion Blogging

Fashion Pulse Daily : Independent Fashion Bloggeres LIVE BLOGGING! Sponsored by IFB and Windows 7

Current: IFBCon & NYFW Tune In Live Today

Modelina Michelle : We’re not cool, We just blog

The Next Web : The Wall Street of Fashion

On The Surface : Independent Fashion Blogger Conference

Style Baad : IFB Conference in New York

IFB

Dustin Fenstermacher

Topshop's Blogging Workshop

2010-02-24T09:38:00.000-08:00

Yesterday afternoon, Topshop held a bloggers workshop instore as part of their London Fashion Week events. The workshop entitled 'How to blog' was run by three well known bloggers Disney Roller Girl, Coco's Tea Party and Oh Elle and included advice and leaflets for anyone wanting to start their own fashion blog. Some of the advice offered by the leaflets given out included

Think carefully about the name you chose for your blog as you'll have it forever. We prefer short and sweet!
Blog about what you love, otherwise it will become a chore. Only write about what you're truly inspired by, not because you're being paid to
Stay true to your personality, opinions, likes or dislikes. Hits aren't everything.
Make sure you link back to where you get your content from.
Be patient.It takes time to develop your own blogging style

The event was of course publicised on the Topshop website, on their very own fashion blog Inside Out and through other social media including Twitter. What a great idea to pesuade all the Topshop devotees to start their own fashion blogs so that they can tell everyone about Topshop and just why they love it. Just sending out press releases to fashion bloggers and hoping that they blog about you is so last year.

Some considerations for your online fashion marketing plan

2010-02-18T06:47:00.000-08:00

Online sales are a growth area particularly in the fashion sector. For most fashion businesses that want to increase sales, online marketing is one of the best options and an area that has huge potential. If you don't already have an online marketing plan, you should write one today and start putting it into action. The focus of your online efforts will depend on what you want to achieve, how you want to achieve it and the time scales. Here are some key areas of online marketing to consider including in your online marketing plan.

Website - Almost every company with any online presence will have a website of some kind, ranging from a simple blog to a fully functional e commerce site. It is possible to have an online presence without a website by using Facebook, Twitter or ebay but the benefit of your own website or blog is that it will become the focal point of your online marketing, it can very clearly communicate your brand and key information about the company, it can be integrated with many other platforms including social media channels and is also easier to optimise on the search engines. It sends the message that you are a legitimate and established company. One of the key considerations for a fashion website is that of appearance over function. It is important to strike the right balance between how good it looks and how quickly the pages load.

Blog - a blog is a type of website but is particularly useful for online marketing for a number of reasons. It is a great way of communicating with customers and potential customers. It can be updated regularly and this combined with the huge volume of relevant content usually ensures that a blog usually ranks well on search engines for relevant keywords. A fashion company blog is easy to set up but can be time consuming to keep up to date. It is well worth the time as a well written blog is a great marketing tool and also can be automatically linked into so many other social media channels.

Newsletters - once a customer has bought from you once, they are the most likely people to buy from you again. A newsletter is the perfect way to remind them of who you are, give them updates on new collections and and keep them informed of special offers. Try and provide some useful interesting information in your newsletter that they will look forward to reading rather than just a sales pitch.

Social Media - This is an important and fast expanding area for fashion marketing and PR. The great thing about social media is that is a two way communication, sharing, commenting and voting all contribute to make social media hugely influential especially in fashion where peer influence is so important. There are so many different social media channels that it would be difficult and costly in terms of time to utilise all of them. Before embarking on a social media campaign, take a little time to research the options available and work out which best suits your target audience, the message you are trying to communicate and the way you work. The most popular are Facebook and Twitter. Google has now confirmed that social media updates are used to rank websites on search engines making your social media efforts even more worth while.

Search Engine Optimisation - SEO describes the methods used to increase the traffic sent to your website from search engines in terms of quantity or quality. In order to get both quality and quantity of traffic you will need to choose the right keywords and then optimise your website for these keywords. Whether you choose to optimise your website yourself or use an SEO professional will depend on how many of your sales you hope to get from search engine traffic and how quickly you want to improve this traffic. If using an SEO professional, it is a good idea to use one with a knowledge of the fashion industry, to ensure that SEO activities also communicate the right message for your company and brand.

Advertising - This is a great way to get traffic to your website and sales quickly. There are all sorts of options available from search engine marketing to banner advertisements on niche sites. The great thing about online advertising is that it is possible to monitor the results. You should always carefully analyse the return on investment of any advertising activity to ensure that it is profitable.

Online PR - whilst not strictly speaking advertising, there is a significant amount of overlap between online marketing and online PR. Getting your brand or products featured on fashion websites and blogs, not only results in greater brand awareness and sales, but will also generate links to your site which will also help with search engine optimisation. There has been lots of talk recently about the influence of fashion blogs and it is well worth your while considering programmes to engage with bloggers and get some coverage. More information on the influence of the fashion blogger.

Affiliate Marketing - this is another way if generating traffic to a website and sales by referrals. The affiliate marketer gets paid based on the number of clicks or a percentage of sales referred. You can set up an affiliate marketing program yourself which can be more costly but gives you more control or use a network. More information on affiliate marketing.

Fashion Marketing Opportunities with Heathcote Communications

2010-02-11T09:49:00.000-08:00

We regularly have requirements for freelance specialists that are passionate about fashion and experienced in the following:

Fashion Bloggers/ Writers - creative, a good knowledge of the latest trends and fashions, attention to detail, the ability to tailor your style, voice and tone of writing as required and write to deadlines.

Online Fashion PR - Amazing communications skills, a great knowledge of fashion blogs and websites and a the ability to engage with bloggers in creative ways.

Social Media Experts - Experience of using key social networks to create a buzz around fashion and related brands, websites and products.

SEO Professionals - Proven results in driving traffic to fashion websites. Experience in both on and offsite optimisation with a particular knowledge of link building from fashion websites.

We are currently looking for Interns and fashion marketing/ promotion students who would like work experience or to complete projects in any or all of the above areas. We can offer

A variety online fashion marketing/ writing experience
Complete flexilibilty in terms of hours and location
The benefit of our experience and knowledge and constructive feedback.
Invites to fashion events (when available)
Written references
The potential/ possibility to work with Heathcote Communications in a paid role (following a successful internship/ project).

If you are interested in any of the above, please send you C.V. to ceri@heathcotecommunications.co.uk.

Fashion Bloggers in the Spotlight

2010-02-04T13:27:00.000-08:00

It seems that everyone is talking about fashion bloggers from the recent press coverage in the Independant article Fluff flies as fashion writers pick a cat fight with bloggers to the Los Angeles Times article Crossing the Line? LOFT barters gift cards for blog coverage. Over the next few weeks, there are a number of interesting events being held including the Evolving Influence Fashion Blog Conference at New York Fashion Week arranged by Independant Fashion Bloggers and featuring some of the biggest names in fashion blogging. In the UK, the Manchester based Fashion Network will be hosting a 'Power of Blog' fashion networking event in association with Drapers.

So what does this all mean? Is fashion blogging really going to take over from traditional fashion journalism or is the whole fashion blogger thing just completely overhyped? I don't really know the answer to these questions, but I know that the very fact that fashion bloggers are getting so much attention, suggests that they have a significant influence in the fashion world and perhaps the offline publications are just a teensy weensy bit worried.

Have you considered engaging fashion bloggers as part of your PR strategy?

An Update - SEO and Social Networking for Fashion Companies

2010-01-29T05:16:00.000-08:00

A quick update on some recent developments and their relevance to fashion companies

Hitwise- Social Networks Neck and Neck with Search Engines - an interesting article about how social networks and forums took over search engines for market share over Christmas in Australia and are poised to assume the lead on a permanent basis. This may have some impact on how you allocate marketing budgets for 2010 and beyond.

Has Google Begun Changing the Way It Influences the Web - a discussion on Googles Caffeine update and it's potential implications. One of the most likely changes is thought to be penalties for slow page speed. This is a common problem of fashion websites, perhaps something worth looking at now before it starts to effect your search results.

How Google Rates Links From Facebook and Twitter - It's official links from Facebook and Twitter as they would if they were from any other site. This means that social media activity has the added bonus of optimising your sit for Google so even more worth investing in.

The Future of Online PR - a round up of tips on online PR for the future. If you are not already doing it online PR is a massive opportunity to promote your fashion business.

Trend Hunter Magazine - The Next Big Thing

2010-01-29T04:45:00.000-08:00

Everyone seems to be looking for the nex big thing, the next big trend. Companies, particularly those in the fashion industry are keen to promote their products as a new up and coming trend. Trend Hunter Magazine is an amazing resource or trend community where anyone can submit, comment, rate or read about trends. It is routinely sourced by the mediaand acts as a source of inspiration for industry professionals, aspiring entrepreneurs and the insatiably curious but has huge potential for companies looking to research the market, provide content on latest trends and promote their brand/ product as the latest trend. I know as a fashion blogger, I already use this a a place for researching fashions and finding new information.

Whilst anyone can register and use the site, the process of submitting a trend can be a little tricky. You will need adequate photos/ examples, some original content, keywords, quotations and links to the sources of information. In order for your trend to be approved you will need to get everything just right according to the sites submission guidelines. As with many online communities, the more you use the site, the better presence you will build up and the more respected and valued your input will become. Quite hard work and maybe time consuming but with 9.3 million monthly views (July 2009)and 40,000+ online references to Trend Hunter I think it is well worth the effort.

Designerhighstreet.com launches SS10 trend and online shopping guide

2010-01-28T06:46:00.000-08:00

Designerhighstreet.com has just launched the first of its SS10 trend and online shopping guides. The guides are aimed at women of all ages who want a quick and easy way to find the best of the season’s clothes. The guides highlight the key trends for the season and the pick of the best designer and high street pieces for each of the trends.

The first of the guides to be launched include jumpsuits, the shift dress, the maxi dress and the party and prom dress with further guides on flowers and the floral summer dress , shorts, neutrals, military and lots more planned for the coming weeks and months. Expert fashion editors at designerhighstreet.com sift through literally thousands of designer and high street pieces to provide a pick of the best and most desirable pieces of the season.

The shopping guide includes clothes to suit all budgets and body shapes, with a wide range of styles within each trend and clothes ranging from £20 to £500. All of the clothes and accessories featured in the designerhighstreet.com trend and shopping guides are available to buy in the UK through a large range of online retailers which include My wardrobe, Oasis, Dorothy Perkins, Boden, Miss Selfridge, Marks and Spencers, Laura Ashley and New Look. The guides also feature designer clothes by the likes of Paul Smith, By Malene Birger, Philosophy Di Alberta Ferreti and many more.

Designerhighstreet.com is just one of the fashion websites owned by Heathcote Communications. It aims to make shopping easier by giving information on the seasons fashions with a wide variety of examples and links to many different retailers.

To see the latest SS10 trend and online shopping guides visit http://www.designerhighstreet.com/.

The Fashion Buzz Launches

2010-01-15T02:49:00.000-08:00

The Fashion Buzz is a brand new fashion blog launched in January 2010. Written by established Fashion bloggers, It will provide all the latest fashion news plus offers, discounts and magazine style feature articles. Bloggers will explore all areas of men and women’s fashion and style covering mainstream fashion, up and coming designers, new brands and retailers, as well as underground and street style trends. The blog will also give comprehensive reviews of all the season’s trends including how to wear them and where to buy them.

The blog is the latest fashion website to be launched by fashion media company Heathcote Communications Ltd which also write blogs and provides online marketing services to fashion clients.

The Fashion Buzz features a couple of very stylish bees in their honeypot of style. It will bring its readers everything that is happening in fashion as it is happening. To find out more visit www.the-fashion-buzz.com or email ceri@heathotecommunications.co.uk.

Online marketing and spam - a fine line to tread

2009-12-18T03:54:00.000-08:00

Most people and companies hate spam in any way shape or form. We associate it with time wasting, computer viruses and taking space on our servers. It is a bit like someone butting in on a conversation between you and your friends and trying to sell you something completely in appropriate. It is irritating, pointless and out right rude. But have you ever considered whether your company could be guilty of the unthinkable crime of spam in some shape or form?

Spam is the abuse of messaging systems to send unsolicited messages and can take many forms including emails, forum comments and blog comments. Most of us would never knowingly send spam. But the line between online marketing and spam is a fine line to tread and occasionally it happens. Perhaps we are so keen to tell everyone about our website that we unwittingly ignore all etiquette. Perhaps we sometimes fall foul of the unwritten (or written) rules of the many complex online social networks. In some cases, we may have employed another company or individual to promote our website, only to find they have done so with unsolicited messages. As the word 'unsolicited' is subjective, there is also varying views on what does and doesn't constitute spam. Here are a few ways to help ensure your company does not get branded as a spammer.

1. Target your marketing. Make sure that you are sending the right message to the right people. They are much more likely to be receptive than if you employ a blanket approach.

2. Engage in meaningful conversations - try and engage people by instigating 2 way communications. Talk knowledgedly about subjects related to your sector. Give valid opinions.

3. Get to know online communities before joining in. This way you will be much less likely to make a faux pas.

4. Be a person - the more people can see you as a person, the less likely they will be to consider your message as spam. Add pictures of yourself to social media profiles instead of company logos. Empathise with people, reveal a bit about yourself and show your personality.

5. Don't leave your website/ blog address in blog comments. You will get a link through your name. If your comment is interesting people will click on this to see who you are.

6. Seek to become involved in communities for your own interest as well as marketing - you will seem a lot more genuine and will probably find them much more useful this way.

7. If using another company to promote your website, choose one with a knowledge of your industry sector and check out their methods first.

As with any marketing, online marketing is a solution made up of lots of parts. I believe that if you have the right marketing objectives and all of your marketing efforts work towards this goal, then you will be more likely to be perceived as ethical and not associated with unsolicited messages/ spam. For example, when you are building links to your website, each link (blog comments, forum comments, articles, guest posts) should conform to your brand direction. This way not only will you be building links to increase your search engine rankings but also marketing in general and creating positive PR. Links that are built through spam are not as productive and bad for a companies reputation.

You should ensure that any marketing you undertake is sending the right message and fits well with your company brand, mission and ethics.

Save Luella campaign goes viral

2009-12-02T06:43:00.000-08:00

Although really sad to hear about the news about Luella (I was right at the front of the queue to join in the save Luella Campaign), I was really interested to see what happened afterwards and how quickly word spread about saving Luella. This just goes to prove how quickly and effectively word can spread virally. Here is what happened in the days and weeks following the news of Luella ceasing trading.

Save Luella on Facebook with 1899 fans

The Save Luella Twibbon for Twitter

Save Luella on Twitter

Join the Save Luella Campaign on Shmotter

The Save Luella Badge by I Want You to Know

Save Luella on British Style Bloggers

Show the Luella Love by Intrinsically Florrie

We are all Luella girls by Mademoiselle Robot

Save Luella - the Neon Hive

Save Luella by Style Eyes Fashion Blog

If you love Luella by Fashionista

Save Luella by Fashion Paths

Want to save Luella on Polyvore

Save Luella by Fashionable Earth

Save Luella thread on the Student Room

Save Luella by You Were Never Lovelier

Save Luella save the world list on ThisNext

Save Luella by Style of a Fashionista

It's time to save Luella by Demi Couture

Save Luella by the Beautiful and Glammed

Luella ceases trading by Fashion Pearls of Wisdom

Saving Luella by Fashion Verbatim

Vogue Australia forum thread

Wow, this sort of free marketing is the sort of thing most fashion designers/ brands only dream of. It is just a shame the Luella brand is not in existence to get the benefits. Perhaps all this buzz will help her get a new backer though.

British Style Bloggers

2009-11-27T02:40:00.000-08:00

With the ever increasing number of fashion and style bloggers in the UK and their growing influence, it was only a matter of time before someone set up a group just for them. Whilst there are already a number of fashion blogger groups including Coutorture and Independant Style Bloggers, there was nothing that specifically catered for the growing number of UK fashion and Style Bloggers.

The website British Style Bloggers is described as a blog cataloguing site which aims not only to put your blog on a lovely long list, but also to show you the very best of the fashion industry, but I can see it growing to be quite a lot more. Already gaining quite a following the site has a blog of the month, voted for by members, a newsletter and regular contributions and posts from fashion bloggers.

British Style Bloggers was created by Lipstick Royalty Magazine and Confessions Of A Fashion Editor's Amy Claire Thompson (SaffiyaScarlett) in August 2009.

logo from http://ukstylebloggers.onsugar.com/

Shmotter.com - the lastest in social shopping

2009-11-25T06:53:00.000-08:00

Shmotter.com is the latest social shopping experience and fashion community that offers users the opportunity to create a virtual wardrobe and get input from others when choosing clothes.

Shmotter.com allows users to create outfits using clothing and accessories from a wide selection of online retailers, to browse outfits that others have created, rate the outfits and visit online retailers to purchase the clothes. It also has a handy ‘my wardrobe feature’ where users can store the details of their favourite pieces of clothing for future reference.

Shmotter.com harnesses the powerful influence of peers when clothes shopping as part of the latest online phenomena known as social shopping. Users can easily pick out the most popular outfits and find out how popular their own choices of outfit are. They can also identify the latest styles and trends.

The fashion blogger community is already adopting this tool as a way of producing clear representations of styles and trends and pictures to publish on their blogs.

The Next Posh Swaps Clothes Swap Party in Bath

2009-10-08T04:00:00.000-07:00

After the success of our last Posh Swaps clothes swap party in Chiswick, we are pleased to announce our next party in the historic city of Bath.

Where? Brunswick Room, Guild Hall, Bath

How? Just bring along 2 or 3 items of clothing that someone else would be delighted to own

Why? It’s fun, it’s frugal and it’s eco friendly, plus a great chance to refresh your wardrobe!

Cost? £10 in advance, £12 on the night including…

entrance to the swap party and our fashion and beauty market

a glass of wine and nibbles

the chance for one lucky person to be styled by Personal Stylist, Emma McDonnell of Style to Wear

a reusable goody bag with fashion and beauty goodies

Why not arrange a girls or work night out? Buy 5 tickets in advance and get the 6th Ticket free!

For further information or to buy tickets visit Posh Swaps Clothes Swap Parties or email ceri at heathcotecommunications.co.uk

7 ways to drive traffic and sales to your fashion website

2009-10-06T06:26:00.000-07:00

1. Affiliate marketing - by setting up an affiliate marketing program, affiliate marketers will drive traffic and sales to your website. Usually, you would pay a percentage of any sales. You can set up the program yourself which can be costly but gives you more control or go through an affiliate network. A good network that has a wide range of fashion brands a retailers is Affiliate Window. Webgains and Linkshare also have a good selection of fashion merchants.

2. SEO- you can get traffic to your website from the search engines by optimising it for specific key words and phrases. You can do this by using a combination of off page and on page techniques. You can find a lot of information on the internet on how to optimise your website. If you are looking for a dramatic increase in sales through organic search engine traffic, then you will probably want to employ the services of an SEO professional. Look for evidence of results and a knowledge of the fashion sector.

3. Blog - if you don't already have one a blog is a great way to drive traffic and sales on your website. This is partly because the volume of regularly updated, relevant content is great for optimising your website on search engines. A well written fashion blog also acts as inspiration to shoppers and gives additional information on styles, trends and fashion news, helping readers to make the decision to buy something. A blog is also an excellent way to tap into numerous other social media.

4. Social Media - this is one of the most fashionable ways to communicate with customers or potential customers. The difference between social media and traditional media is that it is a two way conversation making it hugely influential. There are so many different social media channels, that you are unlikely to have time to build up a presence on them all. Take a little time to research which channel is most suitable for your target market and the message you are trying to get across. Some of the most popular are Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, Bebo and Flickr.

5. Online PR - the chance are that you have put some effort into traditional PR but did you know that online PR is just as important with fashion blogs now having a huge influence on shoppers and trends. You can easily submit your press releases to online PR websites where your news may be picked up by the online community. By far the most effective way of getting coverage on fashion blogs is by approaching them individually and building a relationship with relevant bloggers. You can also employ an online PR specialist with a good knowledge of the online fashion community.

6. Advertising - this is a quick but potentially expensive way of driving traffic and sales to your website. When choosing where to advertise, the more targeted the better. For example you will probably see a better conversion and ROI on a google ad with the key word 'cocktail dresses' that leads to a page of cocktail dresses, than 'ladies clothes' that leads to a home page of a general clothing website. A website selling petite clothing may get a good ROI from adverts placed on a blog about petite clothes. Always be sure that you can monitor the effectiveness of an advertising campaign and ensure that you are getting a good ROI.

7. Newsletters - the beauty of a newsletter is that you can keep in touch with those who have already shown that they like your brand or clothing either by buying something from you in the past or signing up to your mailing list. If you are already writing a blog, why not summarise the most recent blog posts with a link to the blog for them to read the whole post. Remember to include pictures in your newsletter. There are a number of service providers that you can use to manage your list, create professional looking newsletters, by pass spam filters and monitor the effectiveness of the campaign by open and click through rates.

Heathcote Communications can help with any or all of the above areas of online fashion marketing. To find out more visit http://www.heathcotecommunications.co.uk/ or contact us.

picture from www.openlettersmonthly.com

The influence of the fashion blogger

2009-09-24T13:20:00.000-07:00

Picture - Susie Bubble, the UKs most influential fashion blogger, picture from Style Bubble

There has been plenty of talk in the press and online about the growing influence of fashion bloggers and their growing acceptance amongst both designer labels and high street retailers. A recent article in the Times explained how fashionistas are just a click away from high street acceptance and just last week there was an article in the Times on Fashion Bloggers and Tweeters.

Just recently, I have noticed an increased number of initiatives between the big fashion brands and retailers like the My Wardrobe and Kingdom of Style Fashion Week Competition. The fact that I have mentioned My Wardrobe - a leading online retailer, says it all though, the high street retailers really still have a long way to go.

If you are looking for blog coverage for your fashion brand/ retailer/ business, you might just like to consider the following?

Which blogs are your products / brand likely to appeal to?

When approaching a blog, have you actually read them first?

What can you offer a fashion blog in terms of unique content/ news/ interesting material?

What is in it for the blogger? sometimes they will write about something because they love it, other times they will want to see the product or receive a sample.

Think outside the box, rather than just expecting bloggers to write about your brand, give them something really interesting to talk about.

Posh Swaps in the Mail on Sunday

2009-09-21T05:58:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I was really excited to be featured, along with Posh-swaps.com, my clothes swap website, in an article in the Mail on Sunday about second hand clothes and clothes swapping. It is great to see that clothes swapping and second hand clothes are so popular.

Debenhams tweets from the shop floor

2009-09-08T05:33:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow for the first time Debenhams will provide customers with a direct line to shop floor staff via Twitter. The retailer is launching a trial, making its front-line staff contactable via the social network, to provide better service for bargain hunters during its hotly anticipated Megaday sale.

Selected staff members in the Oxford Street store will be provided with BlackBerrys enabling them to respond to customers’ Twitter queries during the sale. Any and all messages are encouraged; from requests for a jumper in a different size to a query for help zipping up a dress. Social networkers outside of the store will also be invited to pose questions for the assistants, encouraging them to visit the store later on in the day.

Debenhams joins a growing number of fashion retailers with a presence on Twitter but is the first to use Twitter in this way to boost it's customer service

Ed Watson, Head of PR at Debenhams, said: “Our Megaday sale on Wednesday (Sept 9) is one of the busiest times, so using Twitter in this way will be the equivalent of having a dedicated shop assistant with you for the entire time you are in our store.

“We believe it will give Debenhams a real commercial advantage too. Instant communication with our customers as they do their shopping is a tremendous asset. We intend to develop this approach for the future”.

I love this idea. Just last week I spotted a very gorgeous dress in Debenhams that I wanted for a weekend away. I was concerned that if I ordered online it would not arrive in time but did not want to travel all the way into the city centre to find that it was not available in my size. Tweeting Debenhams to check on availability would have been the perfect solution.

Customers wanting to take part in the trial can access Debenhams’ Twitter account at the following address (http://www.twitter.com/debenhamsretail). Any message including the phrase #debtwtasst will be promptly responded to.

Join our fashion partnership for regular blog coverage and text links

2009-08-20T06:35:00.000-07:00

Get monthly coverage and text links on Style Eyes Fashion Blog and more.

Lately, I have noticed a lot more enquiries for advertising on my blogs within content or a post as opposed to a site wide text links. Many bloggers, including myself may shy away from sponsored posts as they feel that they may impact on the credibility of their blog, especially if they have too many of them. Also the writing and posting can of each individual post can offer little monetary reward for the effort required.

In order to offer a solution to the both fashion bloggers and fashion companies, I have decided to set up a fashion partner scheme that will give fashion companies the opportunity to get regular blog coverage and the social media buzz that goes with it, whilst giving fashion bloggers the opportunity to make some money without impacting on the credibility of their blog. The scheme will begin in October.

This is how it will work

We will recruit fashion bloggers who will publish a monthly fashion partner round up. This will consist of update/ news of up to 25 words written by each fashion partner with a keyword link. Bloggers will be recruited on a quarterly basis and the price will be set each quarter based on the number of bloggers participating. Fashion partners can opt in and out each quarter as they like and availability allows, but those opted in each quarter will get priority over places for the next quarter.

Initially we will set a limit of 10 blog partners and 10 fashion partners to keep the blog posts and cost at a reasonable level. All bloggers will have a fashion blog with page rank of 3 or above and regularly updated, quality, fashion and beauty related content. All fashion partner updates and links should also be fashion and beauty related. Initially all blog partners will all be from the UK but fashion partners can be from any where as long as the updates are in English.

This is what we need from you

The quarterley fee for partners will be £30 multiplied by the number of bloggers participating for that quarter, to be paid before the beginning of each quarter by paypal. So, if we have the maximum number of 10 bloggers, the cost will be £300 per quarter for which you will receive monthly coverage on 10 blogs containing a total of thirty text links. Updates will need to be provided by the fashion partners before the 1st of each month and the bloggers will need to publish updates with the post title 'Fashion partners monthly update - October' by the 5th of each month.

For more information or to reserve one of the 10 places on our fashion partnership scheme for October, please email ceri@heathcotecommunications.co.uk.

Fashion Bloggers on PR

2009-08-19T03:58:00.000-07:00

I recently read a really interesting post What do companies look for in a blog by Jennine of the Coveted and IFB. I work on both sides, online PR for fashion companies and as a blogger for a number of commercial fashion blogs and my own blog Style Eyes Fashion Blog.

These discussions inspired me to write a post from the opposite point of view, about what fashion bloggers want from PR and fashion companies that approach them. I thought this would be useful for fashion companies trying to promote their brands and products through fashion blogs.

As a Fashion Blogger, I know that PR can be a source of both inspiration and also annoyance at times. From the other side I know how keen fashion companies are to get a mention from bloggers and it would really help them to know how bloggers like to be approached and therefore how they can be most successful in their PR campaigns.

From my point of view, I am looking for the following from companies that approach me:

a personal or least personal sounding and friendly email that shows they have read my blog.
something interesting that I can write about
Something a bit different, that not every other fashion blog will have posted about
fashion news / products that fit in with the overall feel of my blog and that my readers will be interested in.
anything I like the look of
freebies - but only if it is something I like

I asked some of my fellow fashion blogger their thoughts and this is what they said:

As simple as it is, I like a friendly "Hi Ashe," or "Hi Ashe Mischief" at the top of my emails. It shows that they took the time to LOOK at my blog. When I get an email that is like "Hi," but mentions my site, I'm like... my name is ALL over the site. A simple merge can do that. I like to see my sites name, a mention of a recent post, or my name on it, just to show that they HAVE actually taken a few minutes to look at my site.

Make sure you're sending me something relevant, too. If you're an indie designer wanting coverage, say, "I love your series on Etsy & Indie Designers," or say, "You don't do beauty posts often, but mentioned hating how pale you are-- you'd love our spray tan!"

Ashe Mischief, Dramatis Personnae

I hate getting emails that just say "Hello" or "Dear Blog Owner", my name is at the bottom of every post! I also dislike getting email pitching things that look nothing like anything I have on the site (I got a PR email about a very "clubwear" looking line a week or so ago).

Michelle, Decline Designs

Definitely a personal approach and some inkling they've at least been to one page of my blog is nice.
It's annoying to get emails that say "Dear Blogger" especially if they go on to pitch things that then have utterly no relevance to my blog content at all. I also like to get an email back if I reply that suggests they remember me (which lets face it isn't hard to do if you just keep a list of who you emailed).

The other day I got a pitch and when I emailed back for a bit more information the person in question sent me the info and then asked where I found the site! Err, in your email! I told them that and they never replied again, I didn't actually use the information in the end because it irritated me so much.

Retro Chick

With thanks to my fellow fashion bloggers for their contribution to this post.

Posh-swaps.com to hold it’s first ever clothes swap party in London

2009-08-17T03:26:00.000-07:00

Posh-swaps.com, the clothes swap website is holding it’s first ever clothes swap party in London. The party which will include a pamper treatment, glass of wine and goody bag for each guest will be held on 17th September from 7.30pm until 10pm at St Michaels and All Angels church in Chiswick.

Posh-swap.com is a website where users can swap, buy and sell second hand, vintage and recycled clothes for free. The latest plan to hold clothes swap parties in various locations around the UK in collaboration with Total renewal beauty and Style to Wear, Personal Styling, reflects the growing popularity of clothes swapping and second hand clothes. The website has proved a huge success, but many swappers also want to combine the clothes swapping with a social event and the opportunity to look at the clothes up close. The pampering treatments provided by Total Renewal will allow swappers to really relax and enjoy themselves.

Clothes swapping parties which are also referred to as swishing originated in the US. Their popularity has quickly grown in the UK as consumers abandon fast fashion in favour of sustainable style. This change in consumer behaviour is due to a much greater awareness of both the environmental and ethical issues surrounding fashion and the current economic conditions.
Each attendee at the Posh Swap Clothes Swap party will be asked to bring along 5 pieces of unwanted clothing that someone else would be delighted to receive. All of the clothes will be laid out so that swappers can browse and socialise while enjoying a drink before the beginning of the swap is announced. Once the swap begins, swappers can claim up to 5 pieces of clothing. Swappers will also have the opportunity to indulge themselves with either a mini manicure or neck and shoulder massage and one lucky person will receive a styling and makeover session.
Tickets for the first ever Posh Swaps clothes swap party in Chiswick are £15 by advance purchase only. Full details of Posh Swaps clothes swap parties are available on www.posh-swaps.com/blog/posh-swaps-clothes-swap-parties/.

For further information visit http://www.posh-swaps.com. For PR/ sponsorship enquiries regarding this event please contact ceir@heathcotecommunications.co.uk

Style Sample - the new mag for fashion bloggers

2009-07-07T03:04:00.000-07:00

If you haven't already discovered it, Style Sample is a great new magazine written by fashion bloggers for fashion bloggers. It is available both on and offline and gives a great insight into the different lives of fashion bloggers from those who blog to promote a business, to those for whom blogging is their business and those who blog for fun.

Each month different bloggers are selected to contribute articles covering a range of topics from blogger tips to bloggers in business and fashion features. The magazine provides inspiration, insight, useful information and general interest to bloggers and anyone considering starting a fashion blog.

For the June/ July edition, Ceri Heathcote of Heathcote Communications contributed an article on the importance of good writing for the tips and advice section. Check it out on page

Twitter for traffic to your fashion website

2009-05-06T07:18:00.000-07:00

If you have not yet signed up to Twitter and are yet to be convinced of what a useful marketing tool it can be, here is a little something that may help convince you.

An article on Emarketer describes how Etsy crafts a recession success. Matt Stinchcombe, VP of Communications at Etsy, a platform for selling handmade goods, describes their figures for February 2009 as $10.3 million of goods sold. 690,000 items sold, 132,000 new accounts added and recorded 437 million page views for the month.

And here is the interesting bit, he says "Twitter has become the third-largest referrer of traffic to our site."

Etsy sells a wide range of hand made goods including quite a lot of fashion and accessories. If Twitter can work for Etsy, perhaps it can work for you. Why not have a look at their Twitter profile to see what they are doing.