Instagram Influencer Spotlight On: Any Galván @marvelintravel

1) Tell us a little about yourself. What are you doing now and where do you come from?

I’m a 22 year old Mexican girl, currently studying communication sciences, and working on community management through my recently founded social media agency. I have a deep love for travel and photography, which is why about a year ago, I decided to record my adventures, and share my experiences online through my Blog. I come from one of Mexico’s industrial cities, a place I love to call home that has also been the setting for both my small and big moments. Today, besides attending classes, and working on my agency or Blog, I write, photograph, videotape, read, eat, and adore getting inspired by others, and the little things. I believe all details matter, because every single one of them helps form the big picture. So I choose to live everyday in appreciation for them, working hard, learning, listening, and creating.

2) What are your topics of interest? What do you post on Instagram the most?

My topics of interest are travel, lifestyle, fashion, and food. Although on my Instagram Blog, I post mainly about travel. From landscapes to cities, to museums, hotels, and cute coffee venues, and restaurants I stumble upon my way. To add that fashion stamp I like, as a detail to my Blog, I like to wear cute outfits on my travel shots. As a travel blogger, my topic-related content possibilities widens because through travel you can see and learn many things. So I get to post about anything that catches my eye when I travel; art, architecture, nature, and food to name a few. I can also share my thoughts about peace and tolerance, and share my own quotes on motivation and self-improvement.

3) How did your Instagram name come about?

My instagram name is @marvelintravel. I was on the road when I came up with it, somehow I got caught up in the music I was listening to, and the world in motion as I saw it from the car window that it hit me. I wanted the name to include the world “travel” to let others know about the main topic just by reading the name, so that part was always already there. Thinking about what other word or words I could use, I thought to search for rhymes, and that’s how I came up with “marvel”, which I loved because traveling you get to marvel at many wonderful things. Our world really is that marvellous. So, through my Blog you can see the marvel there is in travel, and that’s the meaning behind the name: Marvel in Travel. Further along the blogging journey I added the slogan: Life in our marvellous world to kind of glue the concept together.

4) What are some apps you use to edit your photos? Share with us your photo-editing routine!

I almost never use an app directly on my phone, but when I do, I use Snapseed. I love it because you can fix nearly everything on a photo. What I regularly do is shot with my Cannon in CR2 to be able to edit all details on Photoshop, I then export to JPG, and transfer to my phone though Dropbox or Google Drive. When I do post a photo I took with my phone, I would edit the brightness, contrast, or shadows straight from Instagram.

5) Any Instagrammers whom you really like? Which Instagrammer inspires you the most?

There really are so many to choose from! The very first Instagrammer to inspire me was Brooke Saward from World of Wanderlust. I then discovered Nicola Easterly’s blog Polkadot Passport, and fell in love with her spirit and photography skills, and just recently I stumbled upon Polina’s blog Polabur. She posts about travel and lifestyle as well, and has a cute style I really like.

6) If there’s one thing your fellow Instagrammers just gotta try now, what’s it gonna be?

Live photos! I’ve seen many are using boomerang to get that motion or GIF kind of effect, but live photos are amazing! And they are so easy to take and transfer into gifs or videos.

7) What’s your favorite part about being an influencer?

My favorite part about being an influencer has got to be the voice to promote positive change or to direct attention to what the media is not saying. Being an influencer means my voice is being heard–or in this case–my words are being read, and this to me, has so much power. I also love the relationships I get to build, not just with brands, but with people out there I wouldn’t get to talk to otherwise. I love the sense of community, and the support there is among us all.

8) What are some of your top tips to brands for running campaigns? How do you maintain authenticity?

Keeping authenticity has everything to do with being loyal to their branding, identity and overall style. My top tip for them in running their campaigns is to be creative in the form of their ads, and the platforms they use to reach their targets. Nowadays, information and publicity is everywhere, so finding a way to stand out is key. Interactive campaigns with strong visuals are really effective. Just add a little personality, something extra, and that’ll result in a pretty amazing campaign. But respect your brand, don’t copy styles from others that don’t really go with yours. Authenticity can get a brand far.

9) What would your advice be on the importance of quality and original content?

My advice is keep it original, and pay close attention to quality because it matters. Creating your own content is what will give you authenticity. Downloading free stock photography can be easier but there are many other brands and websites displaying that same photograph. So if you really wish to stand out, and offer something different to look at, having original content is an absolute must. As is quality because, I believe, with easy access to technology people can always easily find an alternative that offers quality in their content. Many potential customers will build an anticipated opinion on your brand’s quality based on the quality of a brand’s content, and this is why it’s so important.

10) What do you like best about partnering with brands?

I like the fact that I can get my community close to brands they’ll love. It’s like having someone direct ads tailored to your interests straight to you, as opposed to been bombarded with ads about products you may not be interested in. It’s a new and fun way to advertise, and I love been the one to connect brand and customer.

Topics:

• Fashion
• Food & Drink
• Photography
• Travel

Country:

Mexico