Even if you’re well versed in mainstream media outreach, learning to work with bloggers can take some adjustment.
With bloggers, the basic rules of pitching remain the same. That is, as you would with any members of the media, take time to learn a people’s interests and audiences before you pitch them, and be respectful of their time. But bloggers may or may not have an editorial calendar. They may or may not be operating independently. Their scope of influence may be different than what you would expect from a print publication or broadcast program.
A few things to consider when pitching bloggers are their reach and audience; the professionalism of the website and likely strength of a clip there; and how well this piece will work to further your overall media strategy.
A high-quality blog post can mean as much for your business as a traditional media hit, and possibly more.
Photo by Rogers Cadenhead
Reach, audience and publishing schedule
Blogs tend to reach a tightly-focused audience. This is sometimes based on location, much like a newspaper, but more often it’s based on a common interest, career or personal attribute, more like a magazine. This can allow you to pinpoint specific communities you want to reach, but can also mean that your news won’t travel outside of that community without further action.
As you would when planning traditional media outreach or a full social media strategy, first determine if your desired audience overlaps with that of a blog. Then, take a look at the number of people the blog reaches. Tools like CisionPoint keep data on the unique visitors per month that a site receives. Understand the context of these numbers. A lab seeking clinical trial participants with a rare disease might find that the most-visited blogs in the field have only a few thousand readers. But a maker of educational workbooks that wants to reach K-12 teachers across the U.S. probably wants to aim for a blog with at least 10,000 visitors per month.
Site and clip
Blogs are often informal, which is fine. Rampant typos are not. Before you reach out to a blogger, take the time to make sure the site is polished and updated regularly. Will a clip from this page be something you want to represent your business? Will it be something you want to link to from your website?
Remember when we told you to imagine the headlines you want to read about your business? Consider whether a clip from a given blogger will help you realize your overall media goals.
Based on the current media landscape, blogger outreach is an important part of your public relations strategy. By approaching your outreach in an organized and focused way, you can find and pitch the best blogs for your business.
