In The News & The Influence of Blogs

The skies are blue and the sun is shining in San Diego.

The flowers are blooming.

And I am powering through the day:

I knocked out a 20 Minute At Home Workout

I am grooving on the coffee and mango butter finds that I picked up at TJ’s yesterday

I love TJ’s Coffees and did a big Coffee Review Post comparing many of their coffees as well as others, like Smores Coffee

From my last post on Mango Recipes, thanks for letting me know you like your mangoes just as much as I do.  Well, most of you do. Some people are allergic.

As a sidebar, mango allergies are a pretty common allergy.  It’s in the latex family so if you’re allergic to mango, then bananas, papaya, pineapple, avocado and others could be culprits, too.  I have plenty of food allergies so can spout off food allergy trivia all day long.

Today I made a batch of Raw Taco Nut “Meat”

I bring this taco “meat” to parties and always impress the meat eaters because it’s hearty, dense, full of flavor, and filling.  And takes about 45 seconds to make.

And plated that over a bed of greens because a Raw Taco Salad was the perfect lunch on a spring day when I’m slamming and jamming.

And I baked some Lemon & Dill Roasted Potato Sticks (mostly for Scott) but munched on a few of those.

I prefer to munch on fresh berries and…

…Chocolate!

Like Special K Bars with Chocolate Frosting

I am also really excited because I was featured in a National Fox News Story about the power of blogs and bloggers.  The piece, written by Hollie McKay, is about a study that showed that bloggers have more influence than celebrities when it comes to influencing consumer purchasing decisions and I was interviewed for and quoted in the story.  Check it out if you have a second!

Questions:

1. Have you ever been interviewed for a story or been on the radio, TV, or in the media in some way?

Other than writing my blog and being in the Movie, A Walk to Remember, that I discussed here and here, I can’t recall any other media features or brushes with fame.  Other than doing yoga next to Gwyneth Paltrow and Katie Holmes on separate instances, years ago, which was very cool!

However, I’d like to do more interviews.  It’s been fun!

2. How much influence do you think blogs and bloggers have over purchasing decisions?

I personally think they have an enormous influence!

I have done many, many posts over the years on things I’ve purchased or tried because I’ve read about them in the blogosphere.  Everything from chia seeds to nutritional yeast as I discussed here, recently.

I’ve tried some gems, and some duds, but because of blogs and the recommendations of fellow bloggers, I tried products that I otherwise wouldn’t have known about or bothered to try.  Their endorsement, review, and simply featuring the product or item on their blog did alter my purchasing decisions.

3. Have you bought anything or tried anything new because a blogger mentioned it or featured it on his/her blog?

I also have discussed that I went through a phase where I tried and bought just about anything that I saw floating around, but I have since reigned in my impulse purchases and don’t race out to buy everything I see anymore, either.

It’s fun to try new things and products but I don’t have the budget, or the need, to try everything.  Sometimes I know that what I have works well for me and I don’t need to keep trying and trying every latest thing, i.e. certain yoga clothes or protein powders and I don’t need to race out and buy the “latest and greatest”.

It’s a balancing act, for sure, trying new things but also not breaking the bank or buying things you just don’t need or won’t really have much long term use for.

What do you think about the power and influence of blogs/bloggers featuring products?  Have you bought or tried things you’ve seen in the ‘sphere?

Enjoy your day!