When I first began developing my digital product, I had a few different directions I could take. I knew I wanted to create something that could help creators, especially beginners, because I understand how overwhelming it can be to figure out different digital tools on your own.
I’m definitely not an expert, but after being chronically online for half my life and choosing to pursue it as a career, I am willing to share my knowledge with anyone who may not know how to get started.
As I continued researching and thinking about my own experiences, two concepts became my strongest contenders: a Lightroom preset and editing guide and a fashion influencer guide/calendar.
The Lightroom concept stood out because it connects directly to a skill I have developed through years of working with Lightroom. I was never taught how to use Lightroom, but I have used virtually every feature the application has to offer, whether it was completely by accident or just intentionally playing around with my photos.
Looking at products such as 123 Presets’ Canon G7X Lightroom presets helped me recognize that there is already a market for presets, but I also saw an opportunity to make mine more educational. Rather than simply giving users a preset, I would explain why certain adjustments work and show them how to change exposure, contrast, warmth, and other settings depending on the photograph. I would also include variations for different skin tones and lighting conditions. This would give beginners a starting point while still teaching them how to develop their own editing style.
As someone who is also very interested in understanding the history of photography, I have experienced my photographs being edited poorly because the presets being used were meant for lighter skin tones. I felt this was a smart element I could include to market my product to photographers or people who may not know how to enhance certain features without washing them out or making them look too orange. It could also appeal to people who simply want a filter that works with their skin tone rather than changing it.
My other concept developed from my interest in fashion and content creation. I regularly keep up with fashion trends, collections, launches, and social media, so creating a product around something I already enjoy researching felt natural. I envision a monthly fashion influencer guide/calendar designed specifically for beginner influencers who may not know where to find reliable fashion information or how to turn trends into content.
Researching platforms such as Later showed me how valuable organization and content planning can be for creators, but I wanted to make my product more specialized rather than creating another general social media tool.
The biggest difference would be the information included in each monthly guide. It could feature upcoming fashion events like NYFW, current and predicted trends, alternatives if you’re not loving them, links to useful sources, content ideas, and suggestions for different posts throughout the month. I also want the guide to help beginners understand why something is trending and how they can make it their own.
While I haven’t seen my feedback just yet, based on others’ feedback, I think it would be essential for me to make my concept more specific instead of trying to appeal to every creator.
I am choosing the fashion influencer guide/calendar because it combines my interest in fashion with my interest in digital media and content creation. As someone who posts on Instagram regularly and has “underground” fashion influencers that I think the world needs to know about, along with outfit ideas and ways to plan social media content, I think it would be amazing to finally lay out all of my knowledge in one place.
The Lightroom guide is still a strong alternative because I have the experience to make it valuable, but the fashion concept feels like the opportunity that feels the most me. My next step is determining exactly what information and resources should be included each month so that the guide feels useful rather than overwhelming.
XIOMIDIA 