Blogger Spotlight: Lorre White The Luxury Guru
Behind every great luxury blog, you will find a great story. Luxury bloggers are real people, not machines, and to successfully work with them, we recommend you get to know them a little better. Through our years at LuxeInACity, our luxury travel magazine, we have talked, collaborated and exchanged ideas with dozens of great bloggers from around the world.
Since bloggers rarely talk about themselves – they tend to talk about everyone else instead – we hope to showcase their skills, expertises and opinions in this blog series.
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Today's blogger is Lorre White, often nicknamed The Luxury Guru. As you will read below, Lorre is considered an expert in luxury among her peers. She is often asked to share her opinion on TV, radio, and everywhere in digital media. Apart from rubbing shoulders with UHNWI, Lorre blogs on a regular basis to share her insider knowledge with those who seek valuable advice on how to attract and connect with luxury consumers. The Luxury Guru also provides a range of service such as consulting and marketing through White Light Consulting, her luxury consulting company.
Get to know Lorre White The Luxury Guru, learn from her and hopefully, you will find an innovative way to collaborate with her.
Every blogger has a different story on how they got started blogging. What is yours?
"I started blogging in 2004/05 when I was on consulting project for NetJets/Marquis Jets as the head of their global marketing and sales for their BBJ (Boeing Business Jet) program. (At the time, their BBJ, which commercially seats 200, was configured for 18 with 3 marble bathrooms with showers, two bedrooms, etc. Back then, just fuel was $19,000 an hour for this jet. That is not including use of the jet itself, catering, regulatory fees, taxes etc.) These were NetJets wealthiest clients. Although they had great financial resources, they often asked me where to go, where did I like to stay, my favorite restaurants, what international events like Cannes Film Festival, Monaco Ball, Grand Prix, Art Basel, etc., were most fun, and where were the insiders hot parties. Basically they wanted the inside scoop, as they do not like to travel as tourists. They need to know they will be on the right side of the velvet rope.
These are people that can afford every luxury, and have an insatiable desire for more information regarding all aspects of the luxury sector. Luxury is fun ,and these people can afford to live fully exhilarated lives. As a luxury marketing consultant, I get information about the newest luxury products, where to buy them first, etc., and so I just start blogging as a way to better serve my NetJets clients and stay in touch with them after my project was completed. From there it just grew by word of mouth to their peers, and through my new consulting clients, and international media work.
I also share luxury industry articles from other sources that are of interest to my fan base. They know that I weed through the junk and post only those articles that actually have something relevant to say. This saves them time. Because of my luxury marketing training I know how to reach the UHNW and I know what they want, so it is not really surprising that it has grown organically. As Forbes say "Lorre's followers include Billionaires and Royals"
When a company contacts me and asks how many subscribers.....I know immediately I am dealing with someone that is not experienced in the elite end of the luxury sector! In Luxury Marketing it is about WHO, not How MANY. One person that can afford your product or service is more valuable than a million that cannot. I do not seek the aspirational follower. If they want to follow me, it does not hurt me, but it does not help me either. My content stays true to my specific demographic and has now for a decade. But everyone wants to keep up with the Jones, (or in this case the Buffetts, Gates, Pinaults, Arnaults) and so not surprisingly, others started to follow. These people maybe cannot own a jet, but can afford a jet card with hours of flying time, or to charter a jet on occasion, or lower down still, only fly first class commercially. They can participate in some of the products and services and are aiming to increase their wealth to afford them all.
Also, trust is a very important factor in reaching the UHNW. Many of them know me personally, or I was recommended by one of their peers. My consistency of blogging material has proven reliable. The TRUST factor really goes back to the time factor. They do not want to waste their time on travel, stay in a hotel, eating in a restaurant, shopping at stores that were recommended by someone who perception of luxury may not match their own. I have worked extensively in the luxury sector for over two decades as an international luxury marketing expert. My followers TRUST me not to waste their TIME. Also, I have had several luxury brand recommend that their employees follow my work, as it serves as an educational source for them to learn from, and see what is relevant to their potential clients.
As the media became aware of who many of my followers were, they started wanting me to appear on TV, radio and such to speak about different luxuries to their audience. The financial means is much lower for the TV audience, so I cover lower priced luxuries that the "aspirationals" can afford, like fashion, foods, wines, some travel. As this aspect of my media work grew, the networks need a place to have information about items I covered posted, so I added it to my luxury blog that shares my name "Lorre White, "The Luxury Guru". I was dubbed this by the media, "The Luxury Guru", because they needed a title to flash on screen under my name, and each time I was at the network, it was on a different subject, one time yachts, the next time perfumes, next travel. This somewhat humorous name was all encompassing in the luxury sector, and it just stuck."
Like most successful blogger, you probably received hundreds of emails per month from luxury brands who want you to share their story. What makes you decide to work with a brand over the other?
"I simply ask myself, "Is this a match to my target UHNW followers? Is this information appropriate and of interest to my fan base, or will this seem frivolous and a waste of their time to read?" I started this blog with personal knowledge of the readers and what they requested. I just stay true to what their luxury market interests are.
Only 200,000 people control over 50% of the global wealth and there are really very few sources the serve this group. There are thousands of media sources that use the word luxury, but they target an aspirational group. The tastemakers are not interested in the lipstick du jour, how to finagle discounts, or how to dress like a celebrity. Celebrities follow these people. The motivations of the truly rich are very different than the masses. The aspirational will spend time waiting in line, cutting coupons, changing dates to try and experience things beyond their means. They are willing to spend time for money, but the uber-rich are the opposite. To them time is the single rarest commodity and they are happy to pay three times the price if they can get it fast, when and where they want. Convenience and good service is really built around saving them time. Sites that carry celebrity gossip, and the hand bag of the month, just waste the precious time of the UHNW and thus they won't follow. What they can afford to do differs from the masses, and what is only a dream for others, is their reality."
What is your take on press releases? Do you like receiving them or do you simply discard them?
"It really depends. Companies that do not understand the luxury market and are really targeting aspirational are the biggest waste of my time. But concise releases from the private, jets, yachts, and elite car industry, I do find beneficial."
What would make you choose to work with a brand on a giveaway campaign on your site?
"Lorre: Appropriateness to my UHNW client base and blog following. Does it offer something this my readers want, and distinguish me as offering something special to my base that they can't get anywhere else."
If a brand wants to reach you, what channel should they use? Do you prefer email, social media or another means of communication?
"I prefer email. I want something more than going to their website that everyone can do. Email is the most efficient way to get information; that amount of information does not fit in 140 characters tweet."
In your mind, what makes a successful blogger outreach program? Is it the incentive, the brand itself or the relationship you already have with the brand?
"Well with brands I already a good relationship with , it is easier to reach me. For brands that do not have a relationship they need to create one, and thus incentive. I have at least two full time jobs in the luxury sector besides blogging, and they need to get my attention and give me a reason to focus in their direction. They need to build the trust with me.
I think one of the largest limiting factors that luxury brands have, is that the location of the bloggers is global, and bloggers have neither the time, nor often the resources, to fly to every brands headquarters to get educated more extensively on a brand and build relationships. The smarter brands will have to learn a way around this and host cross promotional events for the bloggers much like they do for the clients, where several non-competitive brands can access specific bloggers with a particular following. If they do not, they will be stuck with the same regional bloggers over and over again. Their reach is really limited. If a brand is in Paris but wants to reach the US or UAE markets, they may need a farther blogger reach then the greater Paris area allows."
Of all the social media channels you engage on, which one do you prefer and why? Which social media channels does your audience interact with the most?
"Research shows that statistically the social media that is most active with the UHNW is FaceBook. I think that I enjoy this one the most because it is the one the does not have to stay on point. I do post my articles and blog postings there too, but it is only part of the content. My brand is a person and so those that follow me on FaceBook feel that they know me because of the more social aspects and non-business interaction that happens there. On my other social media I tend to stay on point of pure work related topics."
In your opinion, what does it take to become successful on social media?
"As a marketing consultant and blogger, I say it is consistency of content for a specific audience. Do not try to be all things to all people or you will wind up with nobody. Pick and audience and be true to them. If you are consistent you will develop a following. Be knowledgeable and trustworthy, or just entertaining depending, on the subject of the blog, and offer something different. For me there are very few sources that have a reach to this UHNW group and my competitors use a company name, there is no personality. Readers do not fall in love/trust with a building, but they do the right person. My brand is a person and so my readers feel that they know me, which cannot be said of just a magazine or newspaper name. As I said before many of my original blog followers were private jet clients that knew me. It does require the right person, I have seen some luxury brands try to adopt this, but have does so unsuccessfully. I have a proven track record of success."
Do you monitor your Klout score on a daily/weekly basis? Do you think this social ranking is of any real value to luxury brands?
"NO, I think Klout is a very poor measure. Firstly, they include only one page on a site, they do not include fan pages and/or group pages, or second profile pages on FaceBook or LinkedIn. They limit the number of social media sites that can be included in the score. They do not include the many private social media networks. They do not include your following on other sources of media. For example I had a monthly column under my name, in Portugal's number 1 rated luxury magazine with over 1.2 million subscribers, and this is not included in in Klout scores. I make TV appearances or web shows and that is not included. It does not include the number of subscribers that use RSS feed on my blog and get it sent directly to their in box. There is more, but I think your probably starting to see how very incomplete and thus irrelevant Klout is. I think it is a toy for non-professionals."
What is the main reason you blog on a daily basis? Is it for pleasure, for business or for both?
"Business, but I love the luxury business."
Do you sometime receive compensation from luxury brands, whether it's in the form of cash or incentives, to blog about them?
"Yes, appropriate brands can purchase a feature story/interview. This is something much more in-depth. Not every business/product/service/person qualifies for a feature. I maintains a very exclusive fan base by never abusing their time. If a subject is not deemed of interest to my readers, a posting will not be made.
As the only internationally recognized luxury media personality, my work is also followed by the global luxury media. Often my posts and features article get republished into luxury magazines globally. For example when Rolls-Royce chose me to do their first personal (not just cars) interview with their global CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös, it got republished both in print magazines and web based ones, multiple times in many countries! When I wrote a feature on Steve Case's (founder of AOL) Virginia Winery, it got picked up and reprinted in a UK Luxury magazine giving the Virginia wine industry their first international media exposure. That is bang for your buck! I do not just have individuals that follow my work, but a whole host of global business and luxury media that does too."
Apart from blogging, do you offer additional services to luxury brands who choose to work with you?
"Lorre: I am an internationally recognized luxury marketing expert. I own White Light Consulting. I work with luxury brands that need to reach the world's wealthiest because of the price point of their product or service, companies that sell yachts, jets, racehorses, elite properties, jewelry, watches, 5 star hotels and private banks.
I have frequently written articles about problems that I find in companies. Luxury Marketing is very different than mass marketing taught at most universities. The use of mass marketing is the number 1 cause of failure in luxury businesses. There is even a separate LUXURY MBA offered at many international Universities. There are very few real luxury marketers. I get letters all the time from people thanking me for these articles and how my luxury industry articles helped them change their way of thinking and greatly improved their business. It gives potential new consulting clients the chance to see the type of work I have done. The UHNW like to read about themselves and they enjoy it, not to mention many are investors in luxury businesses and they are looking for information both as an investor, as well as a consumer.
I also am an international keynote speaker for luxury industry events, and the only internationally recognized luxury media personality with a following of the world's wealthiest consumers. I have a recognized name in the industry, with both inside the luxury industry professionals and outside the industry to the end user. I bring credibility to brands and events through my attendance. As one journalist wrote, "If you don't know of Lorre White, you're probably not UHNW." I am also the ONLY internationally recognized luxury media personality (TV, Web, radio, magazines etc.,) and a keynote speaker for the luxury industry. It allows fans to know where I will be speaking and helps to promote those events/shows/magazines all of these are other ways I work with brands besides the obvious benefit is that when I cover luxury items that it goes out to a group of people that are very hard and expensive to reach. It I write about my personal experience with the hotel, jet, designer etc. that bring credibility to whatever I cover, because I have built trust with the UHNW. It is more important who says it, as what is said in reporting to this group because they know that their standards exceed what is the reality for most individuals. Unless someone has been trained, they are probably bring their more middle class perspectives into play. The WSJ is a trusted source, but an article written by a regular journalist, will lack the trust and not have the influence, and will cost a whole lot more."
Do you think luxury brands should understand that blogging is also a business for some?
"Absolutely, everybody has to eat, and the brands that realize that they need to help put food on the table, in order for the source to not dry up, will be the ones that more successfully move forward in the ever advancing social media world. Some bloggers rely entirely on their blogging as a means to support themselves."
What would you say is the best thing about being a luxury blogger?
"Always having a podium, a worldwide platform from which to speak, and in my particular case....to a very powerful global group that are the shapers of the globe."
Do you rub shoulders with the rich and famous through your work as a luxury blogger?
"I have often "rubbed shoulders with the rich and famous" but that is mostly through my other work. Unless, you count that daily, many of this rich and famous globally, get a direct email from me with my daily luxury blog updates."
Don’t hesitate to reach out to Lorre White The Luxury Guru on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Google + or if you want an introduction, reach out to us.
Blogger Spotlight: Regitse Cecillie Rosenvinge Of Byrosenvinge.com
Behind every great luxury blog, you will find a great story. Luxury bloggers are real people, not machines, and to successfully work with them, we recommend you get to know them a little better. Through our years at LuxeInACity, we have talked, collaborated and exchanged ideas with dozens of great bloggers from around the world.
Since bloggers rarely talk about themselves - they tend to talk about everyone else instead - we hope to showcase their skills, expertises and opinions in this blog series.
Get to know them, learn from them and hopefully you will find an innovative way to collaborate with them.
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Today's blogger is Regitse Cecillie Rosenvinge of Byrosenvinge.com, a Danish luxury blog with a focus on travel, beauty and of course, lifestyle. Apart from being a successful luxury blogger, Regitse expresses her creativity by creating lovely jewelry. A girl with many talents. Read below to get a few tips from the woman behind Byrosenvinge.com.
Like most successful bloggers, you probably receive hundreds of emails per month from luxury brands who want you to share their story. What makes you decide to work with a brand over the other?
It’s very important for me to stay true to myself and the theme of my blog, so yes, I’m quite choosy when it comes to promotion of brands and services. When I choose to write an article or a review about something, it’s because it has a little more to offer than other related products or services. I work with hotels quite a lot, and here it’s important that the hotel stands out with exquisite facilities, customer service, cuisine or whatever it might be. The reader needs to feel that this is pure luxury for all senses and not just an average review of something next door.
What would make you choose to work with a brand on a giveaway campaign on your site?
If I feel the brand can add a spark of luxury to my site or if it’s a unique product that could make a difference in the life of either myself or my readers. I’m a fan of everyday luxury, so i’m definitely keen on luxury services or products that can add value to the everyday life.
If a brand wants to reach you, what channel should they use? Do you prefer email, social media or another means of communication?
I’d prefer to communicate through e-mail, but we’re very active on the social media platforms as well.
What is the coolest gift you have received from a luxury brand in a blogger outreach program?
On the account of my blog I’ve travelled a lot through all parts of Europe. So far the most extraordinary experience has been a long weekend in Piemonte in Italy, where I went to visit several vineyards and follow the procedure from grape to finished product. We went to eat a Michelin-restaurants and I experienced true Italian culture. I couldn't help but fall even more in love with Italy!
In your opinion, what does it take to become successful on social media?
I believe it’s important to stay updated all the time and commit to social medias as it’s part of your everyday job. Don’t spam – nobody likes to receive news all the time, but select and post relevant stories and info.
What is the main reason you blog on a daily basis? Is it for pleasure, for business or for both?
Apart from Byrosenvinge.com I run a jewellery company as well, Regitse Rosenvinge Jewellery, so unfortunately I don’t get to spend as much time with my blog as I’d like, but there’s no doubt in my mind that it’s a very personal thing to me. I literally care about my blog and we’ve come a long way since the beginning. So yes – it’s for pleasure and I don’t believe one could do it if only interested in business. It shines through very quickly.
Apart from blogging, do you offer additional services to luxury brands who choose to work with you?
Yes. We offer multiple services to companies who wish to work with us. It’s all part of the experience and sometimes it’s even necessary to offer more than just an article about a brand. Especially if we have to commit to a longer collaboration and truly get to know the brand. For example, we offer advertorial space and coverage through our social medias.
Do you manage more than one blog? If so, which ones?
I used to manage a beauty blog as well, but now it’s all about luxury lifestyle at Byrosenvinge.com. Plus my jewellery webshop: www.regitserosenvinge.com.
What would you say is the best thing about being a luxury blogger?
I’ve always loved to surround myself with beautiful things and I love to be able to work with my true hobby and passion; travelling and hotels. I think luxury bloggers are a growing segment and they should stick together in order to maintain good quality content and beautiful layouts.
Have you rubbed shoulders with the rich and famous through your work as a luxury blogger?
Not in particular famous, but let’s just say that things are going in the right direction. It was never a goal for me to meet famous people, I just want to do what I love the most. But every now and then fun things happen and it’s all part of the game.
If you had to mentor a new blogger, what is your go-to advice to become successful?
Stay focused, be passionate, work hard, strive for the stars.
Don't hesitate to reach out to Regitse Cecillie Rosenvinge of Byrosenvinge.com on Facebook, Twitter, or if you want an introduction, reach out to us.
Meet Affluential.com - Infulential Affluent Customer Research
The cornerstone of any successful marketing strategy lies in the ability to reach a large customer base. One of the most powerful and influential classes of market that both the marketers and the brands cannot afford to overlook is the affluent group. This upper class has been growing exponentially over the past few years and has come to occupy a large portion of the market share – representing more than 25% of any country's top income levels. They demand attention, they are influential, and their purchasing power makes them the crème de la crème of the market.
The United States of America has the largest pool of affluent customers, followed closely by Europe. Moreover, reports suggest that, within the next decade, Asia will be home to over a billion affluent customers. This kind of market share cannot be ignored by brands and marketers. Understanding these Affluent customers - their capacity for influence and their decision-making power - is going to help in staying competitive and relevant in this changing global scenario.
Reaching out and connecting with this elite group has become a must for marketers and brands worldwide. Existing market solutions such as offline surveys are not going to be helpful, as they are lengthy, expensive and inaccurate. That is where Affluential.com comes to your aid. With a platform built by one of Asia's leading research firms - Agility Research and Strategy - the processes of research and market survey are made easier, simpler and far more accurate than ever before. The Affluential tools give brands an accurate insight into the decision-making minds of the ‘Influential Affluent’ spread across the globe. This customer group influences the market and the buying decisions of others, and defines the way a brand is going to be received in any market. Regardless of whether you are planning to sell a handbag or a sports car, Affluential gives you access to Influential Affluent customers who form a major segment for brands and markets to target.
Affluential lets you create powerful surveys and reach out to global panels of affluent customers easily. Affluential recruits these customers using various innovative methods – CEO referral campaigns, luxury publisher tie-ups, frequent flyer programs, clubs and financial services. These members then undergo a rigorous verification process to make sure that you get the right respondent profile to get accurate and quality results. This database is refreshed, updated and verified regularly so that you get high quality results from the Influential Affluent.
With access to more than 25% of any global market, every marketing manager, owner, business planner, or a consultant sitting anywhere in the world, can fine-tune their marketing strategy and approach it in a better manner. With a fast lead time, diverse global reach and efficient research methods, Affluential takes away the most cumbersome and complex market research process and provides luxury brands with fast and accurate results for better strategy-making.
With a huge database of more than 38 million affluent respondents from around the world, access to the global consumer’s mind is at your fingertips. This mammoth-sized database can easily be filtered by country and income levels. With rich charts, custom-made questionnaires, expert opinions of consultants, multi-language capabilities and easy payment modes, reaching out to Affluent customers is made easy. Affluential.com makes sure that the world is an open playing field for all businesses and brands allowing you to make sure your products reach their target customers without any hassles. Affluential brings its expertise, experience and global market insight to your fingertips.
Don't hesitate to browse Affluential 's website to learn more about their luxury consumer research services, or if you need an introduction, simply reach out to us.
Blogger Spotlight: Doron Levy Of TheTopTier.net
Behind every great luxury blog, you will find a great story. Luxury bloggers are real people, not machines. To successfully work with them, we recommend you get to know them a little better. Through our years at LuxeInACity, we have talked, collaborated and exchanged ideas with dozens if not hundreds of great bloggers from around the world.
Since bloggers rarely talk about themselves - they tend to talk about everyone else instead - we hope to showcase their skills, expertise and opinions in this blog series.
Get to know these luxury bloggers, learn from them and hopefully you will find an innovative way to collaborate with them.
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Today's blogger is Doron Levy of TheTopTier.net, a luxury lifestyle blog that aims to curate the best in luxury and affluence. Doron lives in Toronto, a great Canadian city that never sleeps. If you took the time to chat with Doron on the phone, you would soon realize how passionate he is about his blog. As you will read below, Doron stumbled into the world of luxury blogging after working in retail for several years. Since then, his blog has been a great source of information for those who love luxury. Read below to get to know the man behind TheTopTier.net.
Every blogger has a different story on how they got started blogging. What is yours?
I worked my way through the retail industry for most of my life and I was always impressed at the resilience of the luxury category. It is truly a category where the normal rules of economics don’t apply. The more exclusive an item is the more desirable it becomes. I found the whole category interesting and decided to feature content and write original work about luxury. And as an admitted gear head and watch lover, covering and writing about these subjects is truly enjoyable
Like most successful bloggers, you probably receive hundreds of emails per month from luxury brands who want you to share their story. What makes you decide to work with a brand over the other?
I look at several factors. The product itself is important. How it’s made, price and reputation all come into play. The biggest factors though are the company and brand itself. I like to learn about the history and roots of any brand that approaches us. True luxury is not just adding jewelry to an iPhone. There has to be a degree of exclusivity and equity when considering a brand to feature.
What is your take on press releases? Do you like receiving them or do you simply discard them?
We use press-releases as they come depending on the subject and time of year. Most recently was the Geneva Motor Show; so you would see a high frequency of PR coming from manufacturers during the show. While I find most press releases sterile and too wordsy, I like to add my own introduction and analysis to any press release we receive.
What would make you choose to work with a brand on a giveaway campaign on your site?
It depends on the brand, the giveaway and how they are promoting it. Ultra high net worth individuals don’t really subscribe to giveaways or contests; so we like to focus on the information they want.
If a brand wants to reach you, what channel should they use? Do you prefer email, social media or another means of communication?
I believe in being fully connected and staying connected as we work with people all over the world. We can be reached via email, Facebook, DM through twitter, SMS, Skype and will even answer smoke signals. I have to admit, I do miss having phone calls… (I have to agree).
In your mind, what makes a successful blogger outreach program? Is it the incentive, the brand itself or the relationship you already have with the brand?
It’s all about the relationship. While the incentive may be a nice perk, a solid partnership is way more valuable to me.
Of all the social media channels you engage on, which one do you prefer and why?
I really like the rapidity of twitter and the ability to reach a large group of interested people in short amount time but it can be a day to day situation where one channel is more popular than the other. During the Sochi Olympics, twitter was really the place to be but when engaging with content that is of a more creative nature, Facebook and LinkedIn become my preferred outlets.
Which social media channels does your audience interact with the most?
A lot of incoming traffic comes from Facebook and LinkedIn. The groups at LinkedIn are an invaluable source of readers as you are engaging people specifically looking for your content (as long as you post work in the appropriate groups).
In your opinion, what does it take to become successful on social media?
Someone who is adaptable and is not afraid of change! All social media outlets now have a bottom line to worry about so what was doable in social media 2 months ago will not work today. Your content will be mixed in with paid ads and sponsored articles. The key to success is constantly engaging your followers and friends with content they are interested in. You want to stand out in feeds and not be washed out by an onslaught of paid ads.
Do you monitor your Klout score on a daily/weekly basis? Do you think this social ranking is of any real value to luxury brands?
I do not but I am on their email list so I am updated when my score changes. There have been some big debates about Klout and its worthiness. My Klout score has remained constant for the last year but I have seen my hits, twitter and Facebook engagement all increasing so I’m not 100 percent sure what metrics they go by. We don’t include Klout in any of our marketing materials.
What is the main reason you blog on a daily basis? Is it for pleasure, for business or for both?
I can fully admit that it’s both. I enjoy the writing and covering the luxury category and it does provide a means to connect with organizations and individuals who would be interested in our services.
Do you sometime receive compensation from luxury brands, whether it’s in the form of cash or incentives, to blog about them?
Third party marketers will offer a small payment for a link in a sponsored post. Yes, we do offer sponsored posts just like all the big guys do. (We agree - it's common practice. RG)
Apart from blogging, do you offer additional services to luxury brands who choose to work with you?
Yes, through our ControlMedia.ca unit, we offer marketing, social media campaign setup, web design and our favorite, media creation.
Do you think luxury brands should understand that blogging is also a business for some?
I think luxury brands are starting to understand that point as blogging is becoming a vital part of their marketing campaigns. Luxury brands benefit from the ‘bespoke’ attention that bloggers can give them. Detailed reviews, real world experiences and commentary makes for more engagement with potential clients.
Do you manage more than one blog? If so, which ones?
Yes, we currently have 4 in our portfolio, TheTopTier.net, Vacayster.com, EmptyLegCentral.net and TradersNetwork.biz.
Have you rub shoulders with the rich and famous through your work as a luxury blogger?
Through our affiliation with Seven Star Global Luxury Awards, we recently landed exclusive interviews with prominent Greek and Turkish media personalities.
If you had to mentor a new blogger, what is your go-to advice to become successful?
Use a CMS that is easy to use and update such as Wordpress and maintain fresh content daily. That is the tried and true method in building an audience and SEO presence.
Don't hesitate to reach out to Doron Levy on Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, by email (info {@} thetoptier.net) or if you want an introduction, reach out to us.
How Link Building Is All About Relationships
It is commonly accepted that social media is all about building relationships with those who share similar interests. The success of your own content, whether it's a blog post, a YouTube video or a simple tweet, lies in the hands of those who share it with their fans. You might create great content but if no one pays attention to your updates, you will inevitably be at a loss.
To achieve social success, you must therefore nurture relationships with fans and other key influencers in your industry. This takes time, commitment, and above all, an honest approach.
The same is true for link building. Once overflowing with shady practices, SEO is now all about relationships and a more genuine and authentic blogger outreach program. You might be able to purchase a list of industry bloggers and send them your weekly press release, but you will quickly notice that the results yielded are lower than expected. Don't blame the bloggers, blame your approach.
Bloggers are individuals, not machines. They pride themselves on curating and creating the very best content and they tend to dedicate a lot of time to their fans. Bloggers, like social media influencers, ultimately need to know, and love, you to be willing to work with you.
So, how do you make them fall in love with you or your brand? Start by being real. Don't expect anything from them; don't push them with countless emails; and don't annoy them on social media. Reach out to them on a one-on-one basis; tell them why you have chosen them for your blogger outreach program; and be honest on whether or not you can offer them something in return. While some bloggers will only accept payments in exchange of sponsored posts, most will be more than happy to help out if asked politely.
If you need more advice on how to successfully reach a luxury blogger, read our recent post, or to plan your next blogger outreach program, reach out to us.
What Happens When Everyone Is An Influencer
The social web has created a new surge of influencers. Think of bloggers who are read by thousands of visitors each month; Twitter stars who have gathered fans in the millions; or YouTube sensations who seem to produce one viral video after the next. It seems that anyone can become an influencer with the right combination of skills.
Since influencers have a broad audience of loyal fans, sometimes surpassing even the most coveted brands in the industry, they often get approached by brands who seek new marketing opportunities. The exchange of service is often beneficial for both parties: the influencer usually gets compensated, either in the form of a complimentary gift or money, while the brand gets its message in front of a niche audience. But what happens to the consumer - the third party involved in this transaction? Will this influencer-brand synergy manipulate his/her purchasing decision?
Before someone makes a purchase, they will be "influenced" by dozens of individuals. Some recommendations will carry a lot of weight, while others will simply be pushed to the side. The importance of each recommendation depends on the nature of the relationship between the influencer, the brand and the consumer. If the influencer is a digital star, then the message will not have the same impact as if it comes from a family member or a close friend.
In Influence Marketing by Danny Brown, I recently stumbled on a great table that shows the different degrees of relationships within a person's list of personal contacts. Brown defines the nature of each relationships - Inner Circle, Social Friends, Acquaintance, Followers - Colleagues, and Followers - Competitive - then goes to explain how this new landscape creates a multitude of pathways through which brands must try to deliver their messages. Everyone is an influencer, however, not everyone has the same influential pull.
| Tier | Categorization | Description | Relationship Activity |
| First | Inner Circle | Personal contacts such as family, neighbors, friends and coworkers with whom you share frequent and personal communication both online and face-to-face. | In-person and digital gathering such as meals, social engagements, telephone and video calls, text messaging, etc. |
| Second | Social Friends | Contacts with frequent personal communications but where the relationship began and, for the most part, remains online. | Digital gathering such as social networking, video chats, etc. |
| Third | Acquaintances | Contacts formed or solidified through a one-time or infrequent meeting such as at a trade show or past friendships such as old high school contacts reconnected solely through social channels. | Infrequent contact via social networks, mainly focused on business relationships. |
| Fourth | Followers - Colleagues | Impersonal relationships where no face-to-face connections were made; where communication is limited to the consumption of digital content. | Two-way, impersonal activity including reading each other's blogs, following each other on Twitter, etc. |
| Fifth | Followers - Competitive | Impersonal relationships where no face-to-face connections were made; where communication is limited to the consumption of digital content. | One-way, impersonal activity where one monitors the actions of another such as a competitive analysis. |
Reference: Influencer Marketing by Danny Brown
When creating an influencer outreach program, brands must try to understand the various types of influencers and the nature of their relationship with the buyer. Should they focus their attention on the blogger who can get thousands of fans to share his post on Twitter and Facebook; the women who leads the local group of mommy bloggers; and/or the Twitter star who can get the message go viral. The landscape is often blurry and requires time to understand.
If you plan on creating an influencer outreach program or if want to know more about how to reach a luxury influencer, read our recent post, or simply reach out to us.
Ten Tips For Reaching A Luxury Blogger
After sending dozens or even hundreds of press releases to bloggers who are online influencers in your niche, you might wonder why you have received so few replies. Could it be that your pitch went into every one of these bloggers spam folder? Or could it be that you didn’t send anything of value to the bloggers? Wouldn’t it be nice if bloggers took the time to tell you why?
At LuxeInACity, our digital showroom, we have received thousands of press releases by luxury and luxury travel brands that hope to get exposure on our blog and social media channels. Yet we have worked with only a handful. Why? Because we felt that these PR pitches were simply not addressed to us.
To help you reach us and other bloggers like us, stand out from the mass by applying the recommendations below.
1. Don’t spam
This is probably the most important thing to remember: Never ever send a message or press release to a mass distribution list. Why? Because no one likes spam. There is absolutely no difference between receiving an unwanted press release from an agency and receiving a sales pitch by a random email marketer trying to sell you fake goods. We treat them the same. Unless you are LVMH and have major news to tell, your mass message will most likely be ignored by all. It’s just too easy to overlook. And if you keep sending weekly emails without ever actually trying to connect with us, you might just make us mad. If we have talked over the phone and you still send me emails via your distribution list, you just lost some hard-earned privileges. Simply don’t spam.
2. Engage 2-3 months in advance
Yes, you read it right. Don’t expect to build a relationship with a blogger in two days or worse in two hours. They need time to get to know you. Bloggers receive hundreds of emails a week and barely have time to reply to the most important ones. Take us for example, we are a boutique luxury agency with real life clients who want us to build their brand’s image, to create engaging content for marketing, social media and SEO and who expect us to work on tight deadlines. If you send us a press release but we don’t know who you are, what do you think we will do? That’s right; we will most likely simply skip over the request and continue working on our paying gigs. But if you are our friend, we will most likely make a last minute exception and work with you.
3. Introduce yourself or your PR/SEO agency.
Before you start talking about how great a brand, product or event is, start by telling us who you are. Makes sense doesn’t it? How can we establish your credentials if we have never heard of you? Don’t be shy to tell us about your agency and share your personal profiles on LinkedIn and Twitter. You don’t need to write a full paragraph about yourself but do give a little insight, something other than what’s in your signature.
4. Pitch to a real-life person not a robot
I never thought I would say this, but consider talking and getting to know us a little before you reach out to us. Use our name in the email instead of “dear blogger” and remember to spell the name correctly. My partner/sister’s name is Maxine yet we get so many emails written for Maxime. If you start with dear blogger or a simple hello, you tell the blogger that you don’t care about them enough to find out their name. We have even posted our names and linked our LinkedIn profile on our homepage yet few refer to us by our names or take the time to connect. No name equals no replies.
5. Pitch to a blogger not a journalist
Remember, bloggers write about what they want to, not what they have to. They don’t have to cover the news or tell your story. They do as they please and write because they are passionate about their niche. Here at LuxeInACity, we love luxury and especially luxury travel, we have writers who roam the globe, so invite us for a drink or a snack and get to know us a little. If there is no possibility for a rendezvous, show us how your brand would appeal to our audience instead of simply summarizing the content in a press release. If you are a hotel and have a new killer summer menu, invite one of our fans for a complimentary meal. Remember, we are in a new media era and our fans want us to interact with them, so we need to be able to interact with you.
6. Don’t copy/paste
Please, never do this again. You can attach the press release and all related images, .pdf and videos in a Dropbox folder but don’t include everything in the email. If you are like me, you have a smartphone linked to your emails. You get a ping and you instantly check the message. If I see that it’s a copy/paste of a press release, I simply click delete. If I see that it is a personal message with an outline of the pitch, I will keep it for a further review. Also, if you get my personal email from a reply, don’t take it as an “I want to subscribe to your mailing list for all ongoing press release distribution” sign. Unless I personally sign up to your mailing list, don’t sign me up.
7. Make it easy
Time is money and a blogger has little time to run around trying to get images to promote your brand. So make it easy for them and provide everything in a convenient Dropbox folder. Also, make yourself accessible to the blogger for questions or additional resources as needed. Bloggers have editorial calendars and if they tell you they hope to publish your article on a specific date, don’t make them chase after you! Remember that they are working for you and you want them to be on your side.
8. Don’t ask for stats
Again, do your research. If you find a blogger and have taken the time to reach out to them, it’s probably because you believe their audience is a good fit for your brand. So why do they have to prove to you that they are online influencers? If the blog ranks under 500 000 on Alexa, has thousands of social media fans, you should know they have all the influence you need.
9. Make it Win-Win
Not every blogger hopes to make money from their blog but do respect bloggers who write for a living. When you ask a blogger to write about your brand, you ask them to do the work for you. If you are a PR agency, your clients pay you to try to generate some media exposure for them. So, why is it so hard for PR reps to understand that bloggers with huge followings should get compensated for their hard work? Try getting thousands of fans to read your blog and follow your social media channels and you will see why bloggers should be compensated. It’s not easy and it is very time consuming. Think of a blog as a business because that is in fact what it is. If a brand has money to pay a PR firm to find bloggers, then they should also put money aside to pay the bloggers to actually promote them to their desired clientele. Would you work for free? I don’t think so, so explain to your clients that bloggers shouldn’t have to either.
10. Say Thank you.
So many PR reps forget to send out a simple thank you email. Everyone appreciates recognition for work well done. If you forget to thank a blogger, don’t even think of reaching out to them in the future with another pitch. If you have joined the social wave, keep in touch and join them in any interesting discussion. A little love will go a long way for your next pitch. Trust us on this.
After reading this post, try sending us your pitch at LuxeInACity and hope for a quick reply. If you get one, it means you have mastered the art of pitching to bloggers.
After reading this post, try sending us your pitch at LuxeInACity and hope for a quick reply. If you get one, it means you have mastered the art of pitching to bloggers.
How To Measure Your Social Influence
Simply put, influence matters. And if you want to persuade fellow influencers to engage with you, you should try to gain some traction yourself. Apart from building your social media communities on Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+, one of the most common challenges for brands is to measure the return-on-investment (ROI) of their social media campaigns. Let’s face it, there is no cookie-cutter answer to determine the power of social media. Otherwise, we would have people like Justin Bieber setup a campaign to become the next American Presidential candidate!
So, how to measure your social influence? Here are a few tools to help you track and build your social media influence over time.
1. Klout: Arguably the most popular social media influencing tracking tool, Klout uses a proprietary algorithm to give out a score that compares you against others. According to Klout, “Influence is the ability to drive action. When you share something on social media or in real life and people respond, that’s influence. The more influential you are, the higher your Klout score”.
Here is a screenshot of LuxeInACity’s Klout profile. Our current score of 59 sets us as an influence in our community. This scores seems to change every time we check and we don't take it too seriously.
2. PeerIndex:
By looking at the long term influence of social media users, PeerIndex tries to classify each post into the following eight categories: news & society, leisure & lifestyle, science and environment, technology and internet, health and medical, sports, business & finance and arts, media and entertainment. So, technically you only get compared with users in the same category as you.
Here is a screenshot of LuxeInACity’s PeerIndex score, putting us as influencers in the leisure and lifestyle group.
3. We Follow: As a directory of influential people organized by interests, WeFollow is a great tool to both determine your influence on a particular subject and to identify influencers to connect with. When we first set out to gain traction on social media, we aimed to become influential for #luxury. Our current score for #luxury puts us as one of the top 25 influencers for that hashtag. Pretty awesome when you achieve your goal!
Here is a screenshot of LuxeInACity’s WeFollow scores.
4. Kred : Providing a score out of 1000, Kred calculates a score by adding points to each action then normalizing it against other users. It’s a simple calculation that can be useful.
Here is a screenshot of LuxeInACity’s Kred Score, giving us a high score of 957 out of 1000 for travel!
Monitoring influence is an art more than an exact science, but analysing your brand or personal score using these useful social media tracking tools can help you determine your strengths and weaknesses and compare them with others in your community.
With LuxeInACity, we have gained influence in both the luxury and luxury travel industry. With time and the appropriate amount of resources, we have achieved our goals. Now we simply focus on making more meaningful creating more relationships with other influencers.
After reviewing your own scores, reach out to us if you think you might need a more focus and consistent approach to social media.
Who Is The Affluencer?
Not all fans are created equal. Some have the resources to support your luxury brand while others can simply admire from a distance. Some will brag about your products and services to everyone that will listens while others simply consume and stay silent. Obviously the more powerful and valuable consumer for a luxury brand is the one that is both affluent and influential. Global digital marketing agency iProspect recently released a study that reveals a new type of market influencer: the Affluent Influencer or “Affluencer”.
So who is the Affluencer? They are affluent with an annual income (HI) of $100K or more with the financial means to consume a luxury brand’s products. They are also influential in their social circle and are recognised by their “star quality”. Often sought-after by friends and family for purchasing advice, these influencers are often called “experts”, “trendsetters” and “cool”.
Therefore they have great impact on the purchasing decisions of others. The affluencers should be targeted by the very marketing effort put forward by your brand.
In its study, iProspect took great care to separate the affluencers within the Millenial, baby Boomer and Gen X generations by uncovering the characteristics of each segment. Check out this great infographic that clearly identifies who your luxury brand should target.
