The Blogging Industry is rapidly growing and now there are millions of blogs being set up around the world. Many more opportunities are being opened up to both small and large influencers and it goes without saying that there have been huge debates over social media about whether the change to the blogging industry has been a good one or not.
' In October 2009, there were 127.04 million online blogs across various platforms such as Livejournal, Wordpress or Blogger. ' - quote from statista
I love the blogging industry and it's crazy to see how much it's changed even over the course of 2017. I have met some amazing bloggers online and it's truly an industry I am so proud to be a part of. I've had incredible opportunities already and reading other peoples blog posts has really opened up my eyes to a variety of different topics.
When I first started blogging I never imagined it would become such an important part of my life and I know you might think that's an exaggeration but trust me, it's not.
Now, the blogging industry isn't always a pot of sunshine. Along with supportive comments comes hate and jealousy. I can't even begin to tell you all of the times I've come across indirect (or even direct) tweets about certain bloggers on Twitter.
What once was a platform to share your love for certain topics has now become an open door to hate and competitiveness. So many brands are looking to work with bloggers that have a high following that it often leads to 'cheating' within the blogging industry. I'm sure so many of you already know what I mean by this. Surely, somebody with 8K followers and 60% engagement is more beneficial to a brand than somebody with 20K followers but only 10% engagement. Now, I'm not saying that people with low engagement don't deserve certain opportunities because that's definitely not the case.
I mean, how can 'smaller' bloggers grow when they're not given the chance to?
I'm just talking about the bloggers that buy thousands of followers to look 'better' to brands.
Unfortunately, to some 'bloggers' their blog is only there as a source of income and that's quite upsetting really. It's so obvious when a blogger enjoys what they do as you can tell by their writing.
I thought I would get a few other blogger's opinions on this as I didn't want to bore you with just my opinion. So here are two bloggers that I've chosen to feature on my blog:
Chloe over at ChloeAliceLily:
' I think it's such a shame that people feel the need to buy followers and buy fake likes in order to get ahead. However, I do think that now the industry has caught onto it and it's so obvious when someone's following isn't genuine. I think it will be happening less and less! Brands now are looking less at your following and more at your followers: if they relate to you, engage with you etc '
Hannah over at Everydayhannah:
' I think there’s a lot more competition, people want it to be a community but there’s underlying competition - good or bad I’m unsure. There has been a spike in people buying followers but I think those people get shut down very quickly so it doesn’t make an impact! '
Chloe over at ChloeAliceLily:
' I think it's such a shame that people feel the need to buy followers and buy fake likes in order to get ahead. However, I do think that now the industry has caught onto it and it's so obvious when someone's following isn't genuine. I think it will be happening less and less! Brands now are looking less at your following and more at your followers: if they relate to you, engage with you etc '
Hannah over at Everydayhannah:
' I think there’s a lot more competition, people want it to be a community but there’s underlying competition - good or bad I’m unsure. There has been a spike in people buying followers but I think those people get shut down very quickly so it doesn’t make an impact! '
Blogging has so many benefits but also comes with a few negatives too, which is similar to almost all hobbies/jobs really.
What do you think about the blogging industry changing? Is it a good thing?
I honestly don’t understand the people who feel the need to engage in the whole follow/unfollow and buying likes/followers mess. I know so many famous bloggers whose followers are fake, but people still engage with them. I don’t remember seeing the community like this. But nowadays it’s easy to catch who’s cheating and who’s not! But I think there’s still some real, authentic bloggers out there and it’s best to stay engaged with these people rather than dig into the drama. Xx
ReplyDeleteamerzwithlove.com
I can understand the frustration if someone really loves blogging and puts a lot of effort in it, but doesn‘t get recognition at all. Though, I don‘t think that buying followers will ever increase their support and engagement, since these followers are, if you can say so, ghost-followers. The real reward is seeing people who like and read you blog for what they are. And I‘ve been there, too: I‘ve had those „Should I stop blogging?“ thoughts so many times. But being patient is everything it needs.
ReplyDeletexx Hilal
Love this post, it's so insightful. I've never understood the whole buying followers and all that malarky, it's like people can't give their blog a chance to grow! x
ReplyDeleteSophie | https://sophieschoice.co.uk
I see indirect tweets at people all the time, it’s awful. We should all be supportive of each other not out to get one another xx
ReplyDeleteExactly! Thanks for reading xx
DeleteI’ve never understood anyone buying followers, I’d feel so dishonest and pathetic if I felt the need to buy them haha!- https://sophiehearts.net x
ReplyDeleteI can't believe how cheap it is to buy followers, after I read your post I Googled how much it costs, and it's literally like $5 for thousands of fake followers. I can see why people do it, but in the long run it really hurts when you have no engagement
ReplyDeleteyes to this!! I started blogging in 2015 and for a year it was kind of an online diary and I didn't really know you could make a career out of it or get all these amazing opportunities. It's unfair now when I think of people who have just started, bought a couple of thousand followers and are getting all these amazing brand deals! But I guess in the long run being true to yourself and doing your own thing is what counts x
ReplyDeleteG
http://www.teawithgi.com
Having been on Instagram, and blogging for over 4 years now I've seen a lot of changes. The main thing I've noticed is a lot of people have left the blogging sphere since the new Instagram algorithms. I tried changing to a business account and it showed that Instagram only showed my posts to around 300 people! This is really frustrating as you then have to promote every post on stories, Twitter etc. And even then post likes are so much less than before. It can feel like a lot of effort and not much return. I've decided to continue to post purely for the love of what I do and not worrying so much about likes etc. Thanks for the interesting read!
ReplyDeleteLovely little post, ive been blogging for a little while and can see the changes. It's all about numbers now and it so upsetting that it is!
ReplyDeletewww.thediaryofellie.com
I couldn’t agree more!
DeleteMy blog is still new and I am absolutely loving it! It is only recently that I have seen a few bits of negativity regarding bloggers and it goes against what I think the blogging community should be about. I had no idea that followers could be bought and I don’t see the point as I would much rather have a low number of genuine followers who appreciate what I write about!
ReplyDeleteMelanie | www.frasersfunhouse.com
I 100% agree! But as a whole I love the blogging community! xx
DeleteMy blog is UK specific & niche but I love that those who engage with me enjoy what I write about you can really tell by the comments. I’ve never understood the follow/unfollow or the need to buy followers unfortunately every industry has an ugly side. Great post Lauren you can tell it’s something you’ve given thought too x
ReplyDeleteLisa
https://TVAddict2017.blog
I hate the follow unfollow game! 🙄 but thank you so much, I loved writing it! xx
DeleteI have never got the buy followers I love my followers and have lots of chats makes my day
ReplyDeleteMy blog has an international audience. What I find hard to understand is why anyone would need to buy followers. Those people are almost always found out and then any hard work they may have done initially is ruined and meaningless.
ReplyDeleteI think buying followers is just crazy x
ReplyDeleteI don't understand the whole buying followers or the follow/unfollow games. Then again I do wonder if I'm in a little bubble sometimes as I've only met/ connected with utterly supportive, genuinely lovely people through my blog. I hope that never changes!
ReplyDeleteI really like the blogging community but I totally understand this. I think it's more important to have genuine followers and people who really want to read your content. Sometimes it's hard to grow your blog too so sometimes people need the opportunity.
ReplyDelete