Mommy Bloggers Workshop
I am not a mommy but I attended the Mommy Bloggers Workshop last April 23, which was organized by Good Housekeeping and sponsored by Elica, because the lineup of speakers and the topics ought to be discussed got me really excited! How to update my photography skills, market my blog and build my brand? I want!
The workshop started with Sheila Catilo of www.catilo.net, a photographer specializing in family portraits, travel photos, and magazine editorials. I had a lot of takeaways from her talk! The lady really knows her craft. According to her, the raw materials of photography are light, time and memory. There are a lot of things that one can do to improve the quality of your photo. Simply keeping your lens clean can be one. In terms of lighting, she says that we have to hone a sense of observation when it comes to what time of day and where the light looks best before shooting. I have also come to learn how to make a makeshift reflector and how it can improve the lighting of a photo by bouncing the light to fill in shadows and to bring out details in your subject. She also tells us to train our eyes to tell our story and to shoot with intention because these two can really make your photos stand out.
“Everyday is a chance to take better images and tell better stories.”
Next in line was the stylish Tin Dychiao whose blog, Manila Fashion Observer, I have been following for so many years now. Actually, aside from the topics to be discussed, she was one of the main reasons why I went to the workshop! I am a fan of her simple and cool getup and I want to reflect her style in my wardrobe. I am still getting there until now!
She discussed about making one's blog a brand. Before anything else, she told us to define our brand and to know what can we offer differently from the other blogs within the same genre. She also told us to envision the outcome that we want to achieve and set clearly developed objectives for what you want your brand/blog to be like. Also, for her, consistency is king but more than that, we also have to write with substance. Last but not the least, we have to be very specific in determining what we can offer to our readers that can add value to their lives.
The passionate Ginger Arboleda of www.mommyginger.com, CEO of Manila Workshops, Love Learning and Memory Crafters who is a professional blogger, brand endorser and a business, branding and marketing coach, imparted tips on how to market a personal blog and ways to make a name for yourself. It was the first time that I have known of mommy Ginger but I love her the moment that she told us what she does and how passionate she was talking about those things that she love. She pushes us to be authentic in our voice as the readers can detect if we are just faking it. Finally she closes with this:
“Choose to be happy. People choose uncertainty than unhappiness.”
The afternoon had been fun and filled with lots of freebies, yummy food and useful tips! Even those who are not mommies, like me, had a really great time. Hope to see Good Housekeeping craft another workshop like this for bloggers and those who just want to learn!
