One of the hardest things you have to do when launching (or revamping) your fashion blog is to determine your niche. You’re inspired by so many things, but when it comes time to narrow down what you actually want to write about, it can be frustrating. You want to be consistent with your postings, but you’re either a) too burnt out from trying to cover everything under the sun related to fashion, b) want to shift gears and restructure your site to create richer content but aren’t sure what to weed out, or c) want to start a blog but don’t have a clue on where to begin. This can cause you to keep putting it off and the next thing you know, it’s 6 months later and nothing has changed. Whether you’re looking to add your unique voice to this crazy world of blogging or a fashion brand that needs a digital counterpart to help spread the word, here are four REAL steps that will help you find your fashion blog’s niche. Define your keywords What do you want your blog to be known for? Will it be covering fashion news? The latest trends? Are you combining your love of food and clothing? If someone was searching for blogs to follow, what would they look for? Write out 5-7 keywords/phrases you want your blog to be known for. It doesn’t have to just be fashion (many of us cross over into lifestyle) but it should be specific. Defining your keywords not only helps you with figuring out your blog’s content, but it will also assist you with determining who you want your readers to be. I’m a Memphis-based fashion blogger and stylist, so “Memphis Fashion Blogger” is one of the keywords I use when tagging my blog. This also helps me when brands are looking to work with bloggers in my area (a post for another day). Outline Your Categories + Subcategories Once you define your keywords, the next step is determining what categories your content will fall under. You can keep it simple with just 3-5 general categories, but this little exercise will help you figure out what you want to write about within each one as well. I like to cover local boutiques (because I’m a Memphis Fashion Blogger), so that naturally falls under fashion. Build an Idea Bank Once you have your categories (and subcategories) outlined, take a moment to brainstorm on 2-3 posts you could do under each one. Taking time to build an idea bank will help you on those days when you have writer’s block and stop you from throwing up a random, badly written post just for the hell of it. If you want to give budget shopping tips, for example, you can do a post on “splurge vs steal”, “the look for less”, or even a roundup of “______ under $________”. Create an Editorial Calendar (or Not) How often do you want posts to go live on your blog? Do you want certain categories to go up on certain days? When do you have time to write and take pictures? Having an editorial calendar of some sort will help you balance out your schedule. You don’t have to be rigid with it, but being consistent with your posts is the only real way to gain traffic to your site. Readers can’t come back for content that isn’t there. Whether I do 1 or 3 posts a day, my goal is to have fresh content daily M-F. I don’t always achieve it but it’s doable (and I saw a nice increase in traffic last month because of it). FUN FACT: I recently helped one of my friends restructure the content on her site. She’s an entrepreneur first so her blog is secondary, HOWEVER, in this digital age, a brand has to deliver content that ties into their product in some capacity so that they will be viewed as an expert in their field. She knew she needed to make a few changes but wasn’t sure where to begin. We went over a few key elements related to her overall brand and during that process, we narrowed down her blog’s niche and it’s helped her immensely with creating content. Her blog posts are more focused and consistent, and everything she posts still ties back to her products in some way, so as she expands her reach, she also gains a few customers in the process. Her blog now has a better ROI (Return on Investment), and she actually enjoys doing it even more. She’s already reported seeing an increase in her traffic, so these easy little tips do work. You already know to be true to yourself and to have a unique voice so that you will stand out, so once you’re done with these exercises, you should have quite a few topics to cover and can now begin the fun part: creating! What steps did you use to determine your blog’s niche? Summer Cocktails for a Crowd Snapshots | Black Cherries x Graphic Eyeliner