Niche Blog Research
This website, TheKnot is dedicated to finding the right dress for your body type. As far as layout, the page is separated into two columns. The bulk of the information and the pictures that have to do with the topic, are in the left column, which is actually centered on the page. The right column is toward the right side of the page, and has different wedding ads that potential customers can click on. The knot is a not run by one person, therefore there isn't an about page. Like I mentioned above, there are advertisements located on the right side of the page, and they are all wedding directed, which makes sense because the whole site is geared toward weddings. The Knot is affiliated with Macy's because they're "Shop" tab at the top of the site says it is sponsored by Macy's. The Knot has a huge following, with 1.2 million followers on Instagram, and submissions being sent in everyday to be featured on their site. Based on the content of the site, I would say a lot of younger couples go on because those are the people featured on the site. It has all races, all gender preferences, so it doesn't leave anyone out.
Zola is more of a registry site, like the form blogs we discussed. It gives you a lot of different links to other stores, and you can put them all on one registry. So it is basically home base for all of the registry sites you can think of. The layout of the site is simple to follow, just asking you to sign up for free before clicking anything. From there, you choose the stores you want to register at, choose items and place them on your Zola account. You can then do that for a lot of other sites, and then share your registry with your friends and family. This way, they have a lot of different store options to choose from when buying you a gift. There are no advertisements at all. Obviously they have a lot of links to other sites and companies because that is what Zola is, numerous sites that lead back to one. Their Facebook page doesn't have a big following, and I couldn't find them on any other social media sites, so I'm not sure who their readers would be.
Style Me Pretty is a wedding blog for the style obsessed bride. It has numerous writers, and all of them contribute different things to the site. Currently, the site has a mother's day themed blog up. It goes by season, and everything you need to click on is on the home page. There are ads for Shutterfly all over the site, and after deeper investigation, I figured out that Shutterfly is actually affiliated with Style Me Pretty. Through this site, you can find vendors, caterers, the whole 9 yards. There isn't one author, but you can receive emails from the site to be updated on their newest blogs. Style Me Pretty also has a large Instagram following (including myself) and seems to be very popular with young white women who just got engaged.
Green Wedding Shoes is another wedding blog that is really focused on style and fashion. It features all different ethnicities and types of weddings, which I really like. The layout of the site is easy to follow, with tabs on the left side of the page that you can click on to take you to strictly bridal fashion, venue styles, DIY projects for the big day, etc. The authors are a married couple who started the site together to fill the wedding gap they saw in the blog world 7 years ago. They have a whole about page where it tells you their back story along with people they've partnered with. The advertisements are things like Hollister, American Eagle, and Aerie. They partnered with these brands because their readers are the same age as people who shop there (early 20's). They are partnered with Show me Your Mumu, Mejuri, and Gorjana. These are all clothing or jewelry people who are focused on weddings.
Rock N Roll Bride is the ultimate guide for alternative brides. It purposefully strays from the "traditional bride". The site is made up of many different blogs all about different brides' experiences and why they want to share it with this site. The layout is just a vertical line of different stories you can click on. Kat is the woman who runs it and she doesn't give too much information about herself, just saying she doesn't have time to give free advice. As far as ads, she only has ads for herself, except for one that is for Mind. She is linked to other photographers, but nothing more than that. She seems to have a decent readership because people followed her to this site. She used to have a following in a personal blog she had.
The Man Registry is a site made different because its not just for brides. The Man Registry is a blog written by many different authors, and is a number of different blogs that talk about things for men when it comes to weddings. They don't have an about page, but they do have a contact page where you can email them. There are no ads on the page. They do however link to other "manly sites" if you scroll through their page. They have a pretty big following since they were the original groom's gift registry.
The Broke-Ass Bride is a website dedicated to the brides who want to save money. Their layout is easy to follow, just a bunch of stories about how people saved money. The about page is very detailed and tells you a lot about the author and the big following she had because of her book that is now her website. All the ads are wedding related, whether it be Carnival for honeymoons, or Zales ring ads. I don't see any links to other sites and companies.
Savvy Deets Bridal is for the savvy bride to be. It's all very color coordinated, and expensive tastes. There is no about page for the site, but t a lot of different blogs and stories listed. They have a side sectioned off for ads like Etsy and Target. There are many other links to sites and companies because they collaborate with a lot of them to make the site what it is today. They don't have a huge following, I couldn't find them on Facebook, but I've heard girls mention the site before.
Ruffled isn't just wedding planning, but life planning. The site also offers home decor tips for couples. The site is composed of different stories that represent different ideas or stories. There is no about or contact page located on this site. As far as advertisements, I have only seen two, one for Verizon Fios and Shutterfly. In almost every story there is a different site or company mentioned, depending on the bride. They seem to keep up with all of their social media, and have a fairly decent following.