We're on Twitter now. Yay for me!
I need to get them small, fancy icons ready for easy following and such. But at my advanced age all new technologies can be a bit intimidating.
My week on Twitter was spent diving head first into the beauty twittersphere, or whatever that place is called, where prominent bloggers feel the need to retwit over and over links to their old blog posts. It's boring, it's tiring and frankly, it reeks of desperation. But I guess the struggle to stay relevant and stay on top is real out there. There are only so many press samples and PR events to go around, right?
I am no stranger to beauty blogs, featuring both Asian and western perspective. Though in all fairness and honesty, I've always tried to avoid the heavily sponsored, "I'm a full time blogger" sites, as I feel their opinions are heavily compromised by the fact they make money touting new products and companies.
Of course, there are exceptions, but they are far and few between.
Add to that the fact that many top tier bloggers (or those who delude themselves into believing they are top tier) don't provide clear disclaimers that what they are posting are paid advertorials (yes, most reasonably intelligent readers know it already, but it's the principle and basic honesty that matter) and the waters get even more murky.
The Asian beauty blogosphere is starting to swim in the same murky waters, and as Asian cosmetic companies and retailers are waking up to the PR potential of English language bloggers, the waters are bound to get even muddier. Watch this space.
What caught my attention was a blogger (British mid-tier by the looks of it), who had the balls to actually speak up about the situation. But whether it is a genuine concern and effort to make the British blogosphere a better place, or just an attempt to stay relevant, well, that's anyone's guess.
Though since I'm linking to the post here, clearly, the ploy is working.
I actually found that blog to be quite pleasant. Yes, the products are sponsored, but the content is fun and fluffy, and if I weren't driving to work, it would be something I'd like to read during my morning commute. You know, just to see what's happening on the other side of the world.
Tonight I ended up reading it in the bath instead of my usual materials:
(Yes, I know, I know... smartphones in the bathtub are a really dumb idea.)
It's also interesting to me as a non-Asian beauty blog. And the author did say that:
"Technically speaking tanning is a bad thing and a sign of damage, even though we associated a sunkissed glow with health and radiance."Love at first read!
Anyway, where was I?
Ah yes, the popularity contest of pro beauty bloggers...
On that blog, I also noticed this:
Blogger Ads and Promotional Packages
Holy mother of Batman! Bloggers actually advertise on popular blogs? And popular bloggers charge money for this service?
Sorry, but to me, this is just against the spirit of blogging (though if I were blogging for a living, I'm sure my opinion would be very different). And it made me appreciate those heavy hitters, who very kindly linked to me without financial strings attached.
On the other hand, I am really curious if such paid services really deliver.
And on the other (third?) hand, if I had 25 or 50 pounds lying around in my paypal account, I'd rather order me some more Whamisa or Cremorlab. Or books.
So yes, my week on Twitter turned into a crash course into the ugly reality of trying to stay on top in a very competitive blogging marketplace.
It also made me glad that I am just a small time blogger blogging about small time things with no real aspirations of becoming an Asian beauty powerhouse.
Have a great week everybody!
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