IT WASN’T ONLINE SO IT DIDN’T HAPPEN 

This is a misconception I’ve been privy to a lot more since I started bi-weekly vlogging on my YouTube. Lots of people asked if I could make some of my videos more personal and perhaps throw in some vlogs, so I did just that and I’ve had so much fun putting memories down on film twice a week. However some of the assumptions go from upsetting (I may have grown a thick skin but I am still human) to downright entertaining. This includes a comment on a vlog recently that covered a 4 day period in which someone said they couldn’t believe I didn’t shower during that time frame. I don’t think anyone needs to be subjected to me showering half asleep in a morning before I’ve had my coffee and I’m also certain that Youtube would see that as offensive content!

IT’S AN AD SO IT MUST BE A LIE

This is a common one that all bloggers seem to have experienced in one way or another. As a blogger I don’t accept any and every offer I get (in fact I wish I could show you the amount of collabs I turn down) and the ones I do accept are certainly not created without thought, effort and a lot of love. I’m extremely proud to have collaborated with each and every brand that has shown an interest in my work. Weeks if not months of work go into the initial concept, the research and the development of the collab to ensure only the most trustworthy, boundary pushing content has the backing of my brand. The #ad or ‘ad’ that you see on a post, is infact a proud reminder that a brand loved my previous work so much that they reached out to work with me and believe that my hard work will benefit us both.

THIS MUST BE AN AD

Following on from people thinking a declared #ad isn’t to be trusted, is the belief that an unsponsored post may well be sponsored but undeclared. I can promise you right now that I follow and adhere to all laws and regulations regarding sponsored and collaborated content. It riles me every time that I see a reality TV star or a well known blogger sharing hashtagged content that is blatantly an advertisement, with no mention of a payment. There are 2 reasons for this: 1. I am truthful and refuse to be seen otherwise. 2. It’s the advertising law and something I take very seriously. It’s not a recommendation to declare when you are working with a company or brand; it’s just the rules. And why would you not want to shout about the fact that a brand loves your work so much that they’ve paid you to create more?! We must all ensure we’re on the same page and as readers too we must realise that not all content is sponsored. If it doesn’t say ‘ad,’ I wasn’t paid.

YOU CAN SAY WHAT YOU WANT ONLINE 

This is a 2 way street and always will be. We have to show respect for each other and for each others opinions but there is, as with everything, a limit. I completely respect people who take the time to offer me feedback in a positive and creative way and always try to reply to them respectfully too. Recently I had an amazing comment on my YouTube channel from someone who told me they had unfollowed me last year as they no longer related to my content. However they had recently stumbled across my channel again and had subscribed as she loved my current content and wanted to show her support for me. This is the sort of comment I love. Honest, well thought out and I can use it to carry on improving and bettering myself for both our sakes. However, I have a no tolerance policy for hate. I don’t accept abuse, and similarly you will never find me patronising anyone who takes time from their day to view/comment on my content even if they disagree with my opinion or don’t love what I’ve done. Each to their own!

YOU WON’T REPLY TO ME SO I WON’T BOTHER

This is a personal one for me that I spend hours every week trying to disprove. It used to be very easy for me to reply to each and every comment across all of my platforms, but at this point it’s really difficult to reply to everyone. However I pride myself on replying to the majority that I receive. I spend hours on YouTube and my blog posts especially and am also trying to keep up with Twitter and Instagram more recently too, especially if the comment is a question I can answer! Obviously I am not awake 24 hours a day, but I will 100% continue to set aside time every week just to chat and reply to comments where I can.

BLOGGING IS SO EASY

Now to a certain extent I bring this upon myself. I publish 3 blog posts and 3 videos most weeks but on top of working around a schedule that’s booked out until 2018, drowning in my never ending inbox (please send help!) and the constant travelling, it must look easy from the outside because I am keeping up, just. Seeing me smiling on beaches or hanging out of helicopters may look like I’m having a barrel of laughs at all times, but it doesn’t show the late hours at my laptop afterwards, the moments of upset at missed photo opportunities or the stress when I’m struggling to edit a video for 7pm. This is a 16 hours a day, 7 days a week job for me. It’s certainly easy to find the motivation when you have a job you love but that doesn’t mean creating all the content you see online also comes easily to me. Anyone can find a job they are passionate about and that enjoyment will always reflect positively in their work, but it is definitely not easy to push myself and my content to be better with every new opportunity I accept.

YOU’RE ALWAYS ON HOLIDAY

Being out of the country and on holiday are 2 wildly different things in my career and it’s something I realised early on. Yes I travel a lot, more than I should do to be perfectly honest, but holidays these trips are not. If a brand decides to take me on trip, the key for me is to decide whether I can produce content of a good enough quality and quantity whilst I’m there. Not only do I want my content to be of the highest standard I want it to be varied too. If there will be no opportunity to gather beautiful imagery or exciting vlog content, I don’t tend to go on the trips. I just happened to have been invited on a lot of incredible opportunities to a variety of places, but I don’t rest or relax at any point. But I still love every minute.

YOUR LIFE IS PERFECT

I can assure you it is not. I do live a life I love and like so many of us I curate social channels like Instagram to show the wonderful things I get to do and the people I love. We are all guilty of showing the best bits of our life whether to inspire people, to snapshot incredible memories or to show our creativity. I use all my different platforms as places to be positive but they do all vary and I share different topics on each. On my blog you’ll find more personal heartfelt writing, on my Instagram you’ll find a collection of curated real time images and on twitter you’ll find a more chatty me who interacts more casually. I too have bad days, moments of overwhelming doubt, crying sessions, family upsets, arguments, horrific hair days and bad skin days. No one is perfect I promise.

BLOGGERS NEED TO GET A REAL JOB

This was mentioned in that Vogue article a while back and I’ll infrequently get someone commenting on my Youtube to say, ‘What else does she do?! What’s her real job?’ Well this is my real job. It’s a full-time, 16 hours a day, intensive career. More on this above, but I also wanted to comment on the fact that a lot of bloggers are seen as opportunists and inexperienced. In some cases yes, a lot of Youtubers and bloggers may have literally started a blog or channel at 16 and grown their audience to great proportions and hats off to them for that! Everyone has their own unique pathway. But there are some of us who studied for years, were living out a great career and decided to swap to a blogging future. Myself included. I got my fashion degree and fashion PhD by 24, worked as a Fashion Marketing lecturer for 18 months and then I went full-time on my blog. It’s a shame that some people see blogging as this easy, throw away career that anyone can do. When in fact that could not be further from the truth and a lot of bloggers are extremely intelligent, switched on, career driven Girl Bosses.

I CAN PLEASE EVERYONE

And finally number 10, a misconception of my own I want to throw into the ring. Now I have to admit this was a lesson I learned early on but often one that rears it’s head so often it needed to be said. You cannot please everyone. When I created Inthefrow, I did so with the items and products I had around me. I didn’t have the means to do anything more than lust over certain designers and wish that they were hung in my wardrobe. Yet as my career has grown so to has my access to a variety of designer items, just as any career would as you progress. It wasn’t to everyones taste but then it appealed to the tastes of lots of others. But it was a learning curve and a change that I loved. I received feedback on this in abundance, but I also gather feedback daily on my vlogs, my lifestyle, my clothing choices and whilst many will love you, many will choose to dislike you. I will always listen to productive feedback on my content but I will always put my passion and loves first and I have to realise they may not be someone else’s passion and loves.

I’d love to know if you’ve dealt with and seen any misconceptions online about blogging or social media in general! Let me know below perhaps if you’ve ever had an misconceptions yourself and even if I might have dismissed any for you!

Photographs taken in Varadero, Cuba with Virgin Holidays. Just go here if you’d like to know more about a Virgin Holidays trip to Cuba!