Introduction
Royal clothes, hand-crafted jewelry, private villas, and luxury restaurants. That’s the image of successful travel bloggers and influencers. Not everything is true on social media. You don’t need a full bag of golden nuggets to invest in a dress code that fits your niche and personal brand. Read this blog post to learn how to improve your dress code as a travel blogger.
Personal brand
Did you read the book by Simon Sinek? When you start a business it’s important to define your WHY. That means the same for a travel blog. Why do you want to put so many hours to create content? Who do you serve? What do you want to achieve as a travel blogger? Figure first out why you create content, who you want to help, and what your niche industry is. Now you can design your personal brand that fits like a well-polished suit, bohemian hood, or traditional silk dress. Every piece of wardrobe is a way to communicate with your audience. Now grab a pen and paper and design your outfit!
Viral dress code
How can you go viral with your dress code? It’s more important to stick to the vision of your travel blog. That’s more important in the long term. You don’t want to upset your readers by wearing something silly to just get more views. In the long term it’s more valuable to build a loyal connection with your followers. But if you want to go viral with your ‘outfit’ try to be unique. That means that people will be impressed, amused, or shocked. That’s how you get comments, likes, shares, and gossip. Think about Mayan fashion in Tulum, extreme outfits of Berlin, snobby Italian suits, local traditional Indian sari, or bohemian Balinese finary.
What to wear for travel blog photos?
Ask yourself: “How can I improve my storytelling with a dress code?” Your readers want to taste the coffee beans, smell the local dishes, touch the ancient temples, hear the nightlife, and see the colors of the local culture. You can use your wardrobe to trigger senses, emotions, and fantasy of your loyal readers. As a woman try to think about an Indonesian royal dress, plumeria flower in the hair, and holding a glass of red wine in your hand while enjoying the sunset surrounded by rice fields in the green city of Ubud. As a man you can imagine that you sit in a Mezcalaria in the heart of Oaxaca. You just bought your leather hat and a local newspaper to prepare for the Dia de Muertos. I will give you some ideas what to wear as a travel blogger.
Cinematic clothes
A well-chosen dress code can improve your cinematic video shots. Think about a red dress in the rice fields for contrast, traditional clothes for visiting Angkor Watt, or Indiana Jones outfit for your safari adventure. Different details on your wardrobe can be used for travel video shots as well. You can zoom in on rings, bracelets, necklaces, silk material, patterns, buttons, and even some travel bloggers choose to take a real tattoo.
Add addons to your outfit!
You found your clothes but jewelry, hand-crafted items, traditional tools, cultural instruments, and other ‘bling blings’ can add so much to your outfit. Especially if you dress like a local to take the reader all the way to your magical destination. Don’t hesitate to support the locals by buying some products to snap a couple of pictures for your travel blog. You will support the local micro-businesses and will come back with cinematic content. Your camera lens loves to take close-ups from detailed addons.
Some viral ideas
If you still don’t know how to decide your personal brand for your travel blog you can check out what other influencers use as their dress code. Here I will share with you some examples of viral photography. The perfect outfit is a combination of the location, clothes, and addons. Let’s explore some ideas!
Contrast
On the picture you can see a woman walking in an orange dress. It gives a contrast with the green canvas behind her. She has also put a hat behind her bag that gives the impression she can be in Asia. Her hand is touching the leaves so you are almost invited to go inside the jungle.
Action
On this picture you can see a girl on a longboard full of adrenaline. She wears long socks, and shoes that are a popular dress code inside the skaters & longboarders community. Her expression gives you almost endorfins to also get on the board to cruise on empty roads surrounded by palm trees.
Tradition
On the picture you see a man in the middle of the desert. His face is covered in a scarf what makes the portrait mysterious. A cultural dress code promotes the local culture and lifestyle. Remember to be always respectful to the local residents, cultural objects and rituals. Sometimes just one cultural item can make a big difference!
Landscape
On this picture you see a person standing in a black t-shirt with a bandana, tattoos, and bracelets. However the landscape of Nusa Penida catches more the attention. If he had a big brand name on his t-shirt the attention would be disturbed by the logo. That’s why many travel bloggers try to mask the brand names from their clothes or just promote specific clothes for an affiliate share of the revenue.
Travel Blogging Academy
Do you want to learn more about travel photography? Define your niche, and monetize your travel blog? Check out The Travel Blogging Academy to grow together with other travel bloggers inside a like-minded community.
Travel Blogging Academy 
Absolutely true, be true to ur nature, be urself, relatable and on the same level with everyone, there will always be sides to anything and most likely not everyone will have the same opinion, although by staying true to ur nature u will likely attract same kind of people and those will be ur support in the long run. Stay positive and build your dream đđ.
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Thank you Casian for your inspirational words. It’s true that it’s important to connect with like-minded people to be able to grow as a travel blogger! A dress code can help sometimes to find the right tribe of individuals and to promote your travel blog.
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