But back to the point - blogs and sponsorship. When I published a sponsored Wedding Wednesday post about Phase Eight, Dad asked why my followers would read something I'd been compensated for writing. They knew I'd been paid for it, so why would they trust what I said? I told him that my relationship with my readers is my first priority; I don't do many sponsored posts because I want my blog to be dominated by me, as narcissistic as that sounds, and when I do accept compensation it's only from brands or companies or shops that match my aesthetic or outlook so that they enhance the Betsyness of this blog. Because my readers know that - at least, I think you do! - they know that they can trust my reviews and endorsements.
Being asked to consider my father's very basic and very sensible questions about this strange voyeristic world has actually been incredibly productive for me - I've been forced to articulate why I blog the way I do, which has encouraged me to start thinking about blogging slightly differently. So, when I went to Target last weekend and wanted to buy all the things, I decided to create an outfit for today's Frock Fridays entirely from there to demonstrate to Dad that... well, you can't always buy love or trust. Sometimes we bloggers love and trust for free!
I didn't see all of these items in the Target that I went to, but I did buy exactly that bag and exactly that belt and exactly those tights and a different cardigan and a different dress (though I couldn't find either online) and these earrings. Man, I love Target. Although, when we need to feel fancy about things, my mother and I call it Targé. It's just a bit more sophisticated in French, don't you think?
