Start A Beauty Blog: Advice from a Pro...

If you’re a beauty fan, you’re already in the best possible place to start a blog because writing about what you know and love is essential. Passion and enthusiasm shines through and it’s always a wonderful experience for a reader to feel that through your words.

Never be afraid that your writing isn’t good enough – blogs aren’t about skilled writing and immaculate spelling; the origins of the word ‘blog’ come from web-log, an on-line diary. It’s your place to be you. However, if you know your spelling isn’t your strongest point, always run a spell-check.

There are many beauty blogs now; thousands, in fact, and yet new bloggers can still shine through. If you want to blog about beauty and be noticed, you’ll need to use Twitter to help spread the word. Find your favourite bloggers and follow who they follow – hopefully, you’ll get a follow back and in time, you’ll start to become known. You can also join in discussions on the #bbloggers hashtag which runs on Twitter on a Sunday evening between 8pm and 9pm, or pop in to just say hello.

Always look for a niche that isn’t already filled – there aren’t enough hair bloggers, for example, or blogs specifically aimed at older women. Make up blogging is very crowded, and brands are crying out for hair bloggers to work with! If you do decide to opt for a common theme, try and make your posts a little bit different. Always look out for unusual products to test and talk about and give honest and fair feedback.

There aren’t enough samples for all beauty bloggers so being inventive is crucial if you’re on a budget. Borrow your friends’ make-up to test on yourself – even if it’s not yours, it won’t matter – readers will want to read how the product lasted, smelled and looked and won’t care whose make up it actually is. The same with fragrance reviews – you can review from one sniff! Pinch a spritz of friends and family favourites and review those – you can find images all over the internet to illustrate your post.

Magazines are great for giving away samples on their front covers – some months are better than others, but it’s a very easy way to get a product to review – or better still, that’s two posts! First a post about the magazine give-away, because that’s great information that others will want to know about, and then a second one reviewing the product. Always look out for samples in department stores, between magazine pages, and also, while you’re out and about if someone offers you an in-store fragrance spritz or make-over, take them, and then blog the experience.

These days, you have to think outside the box to grab an audience share of beauty fans, but ultimately you have to want to share your passion and want to work hard at regular posts. Readers expect almost daily updates now, so it really will be a labour of love!

British Beauty Blogger is a beauty writer for both online and offline publications. She is an author of 4 books and started Britishbeautyblogger to provide a place to talk honestly about products. She felt consumers had a right to know if they were buying something that didn't work as well as promised and her many fans thank her for her authenticity.