Is there a difference between a blogger and an influencer?

What, or who, even is a blogger anymore? Likely, many of the people with beautifully created feeds on Instagram are not actually bloggers, but influencers — which are two different things. The simplest way to denote this difference is: Almost all bloggers are influencers. Not all influencers are bloggers.

Still confused? Think of it as a Venn diagram, with “blogger” and “influencer” as two concentric circles. (For the sake of simplification, let’s consider “vlogger” a subset of “bloggers.”)

There’s a much larger overlap with blogger, because most of those women have achieved influencer status through their blogs. Chiara Ferragni (The Blonde Salad), Rumi Neely (Fashion Toast), and Aimee Song (Song of Style) are some of the biggest success stories from this sphere. These are women who have parlayed their blogs into bigger businesses, raking in millions of dollars in the process. A good rule of thumb: If you know someone exclusively by the name of a website, but would be hard-pressed to give their full name, they’re a blogger.

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Matching with my flowers

A post shared by Aimee Song (@aimeesong) on Jun 24, 2020 at 8:48pm PDT

Influencers, however, don’t have to have blogs. These are the people who are often at all the best parties and front rows at shows because they have massive followings; at one time, they may have been called “It Girls,” or, depending on ancestry, “Socialites.”

There are exceptions to all of this, of course. People like Susie Bubble and Bryanboy have all but transcended the “blogger” title at this point by earning the respect of some of the top designers and editors in fashion. Outlets like Leandra Medine’s ManRepeller and Garance Doré started as personal blogs, but are now fully staffed websites.

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A moment, DTLA. . . . Lately I’ve been keeping my words to myself because I am working on a new book, and a few different projects. I wanted a different approach of space, time – and to be more conscious of where I put my energy and how I do it. And of course because I am doing this I am exploding with creativity and I miss writing here, and on @dore ! But that’s exactly the plan, I guess . So this is for those of you who have been telling me they’re missing my writing and my voice on the podcast. First thank you because it means the world to hear that. It was just in a profound need for curling up and resting, after 15 years without a breath. . Big kiss and thank you again so much – I have a millions other things to say – it’s even hard to put an end to this post. Ahah! . I’m wearing an awesome suit by @vince and my @rayban and the photo was taken by @camille.of

A post shared by Garance Doré (@garancedore) on Jan 6, 2020 at 8:25am PST

While in the early days, the term “blogger” was something of a derogatory term, often deployed by the established old guard to denote someone who hasn’t earned their spot at the table. As we have learned in recent years, bloggers and influencers have carved out a very powerful place for themselves in the digital world and now, their role in shaping trends and influencing sales has become significant. 

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Isn’t fashion fun?

What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments below!