Even in this Twitter-killed-the-blogging star age, the humble weblog is proving to be a handy source of information for brides-to-be.
Madhulika Mathur, founder, WeddingSutra (http://weddingsutra.com), thinks that personalisation and immediacy works for bridal blogs. "So many bridal magazines have folded in India and abroad in the last couple of years and the big reason is the emergence of wedding websites and well-established bridal blogs,” she says. “Magazines cannot provide the immediacy that blogs can and blogs tend to go deeper into a certain style that's reflective of the blogger than do cookie-cutter ideas for all and sundry."
That is exactly why Preeti Moberg (thebigfatindianwedding.com) started her blog. She found tons of American Christian wedding websites but none catering to the NRI brides.
"I grew up in the US but my dad is Marathi and mom is Gujrati and I was getting married to a Swedish guy,” she says. “In wanting to incorporate all the customs, I was also curious about why certain customs were followed, so as I discovered new stuff I started blogging about it."
While Moberg's need to blog stemmed from curiosity about the customs, Sneha Chandrasekaran (http://myshaadiobsession.com/
"Initially I started my blog to record my experiences -- about meeting with photographers, to candy buffet ideas, to steps to get a marriage license and changing one's maiden name, but I also started blogging about the emotional aspect of marriage because not only is it a happy occasion to marry the love of your life and add a new family to your life, but also at the same time you lose a part of the life you have known as a single woman." Mumbai's celebrity blogger and columnist Miss Malini (www.missmailini.com) drew quite a few awwwwws when she blogged about her boyfriend's romantic proposal to her. She continues to document her life as a bride-to-be on her blog. "I generally blog about everything that happens in my life and the wedding is a pretty big deal so it had to happen!” she says. “I think blogging about it not only creates empathy and a support system but often provides very real and useful help like finding a good make-up artist, videographer, camera crew -- in fact, another friend of ours recently got married and took our advice on which videographer and DJ to use!" Be it home or abroad, tips and advice as to where to shop and what to buy does come quite handy. "When I was getting married I had just two days in India where I needed to get my shopping done and we couldn't waste time dilly-dallying so my mom spoke to family and friends and had a list of shops and a checklist of major items we needed,” says Moberg, who got married a year ago, but continues to blog about the big fat Indian wedding. “I made this list available to my readers because it is immensely helpful." It is this first-hand recommendation of vendors and products that makes bridal blogs great resources for others. However, it also makes blogs a great vehicle for vendors to find new leads and hence an interesting opportunity to monetise their blogs. "Blogs tend to be local in nature just like wedding businesses,” says Mathur. “Hence, vendor recommendations fit right into the structure and makes commercial sense for vendors to use blogs to get more targeted leads. What works in wedding vendor booking is word of mouth. If you want to replicate that online, use testimonials and showcase of your work for other clients to create trust and bring verifiability.” However, if a blogger puts up a paid-for post, there is always a risk of losing credibility. Miss Malini, whose blog could well be a case-study in monetising blogs, also has tie-ups with various businesses for her wedding-related posts. “I've got a lot of great alliances going and in turn am helping promote them because I do believe they are the best.” Considering that the time running up to a wedding can be stressful and hectic for brides, blogging provides a welcome relief. “During my wedding planning, it helped keep me sane during all of the madness and tension occasionally caused by differences in opinion between families,” says Chandrasekaran. Moberg thinks that carefully planning and maintaining a regular schedule goes a long way. "If your readers get in tune with your schedule they don't want to feel let down when they make a weekly visit to the blog to find no new posts!" she says. Even after the wedding, the brides don't stop blogging. While Chandrasekaran continues to blog about weddings, ideas, and advice and life as a married woman, Moberg plans to start writing about married life and issues surrounding mental health and other issues brides face as they ease into the role of a wife. Either way if Miss Malini is to be believed, brides may soon be seen blogging right until they are due for their pheras!
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