Having a popular blogger talk about your products or services can have a huge impact on your bottom line. Here’s how to find the right bloggers and successfully get on their radar.
The first issue is finding the right blogs to feature your stuff. This is going to take a little research starting with Google. Type your keywords into the search box and select blogs under the more tab. This will show you the most recent results for blogs within your market. If you serve mostly local clients, add your city and state to the keywords you use in the search box.
But how do you know if a blog is worth approaching?
Ask yourself if the blogger writes mostly about things in your market. Use some common sense to determine if the readers of the blog would value your products or services. This is not the same as “I think they would benefit if they just bought something and tried it out.”
Now take a look at how often the blogger writes, how large their social-media influence is, and how many comments their blog posts receive. Ideally they will blog at least once a week, have over 1,000 followers on Facebook or Twitter and each post will have a couple of comments.
This week I am at Pubcon in Las Vegas with 2,500 fellow online marketing geek heads. While here I had the opportunity to interview Cathy Benavides, a local fashion blogger in the Austin area, about what exactly it takes to get her to blog about your products.
“First thing people need to do is actually read my blog.”
Local
Cathy said this with a twinge of frustration. The best way for you to figure out whether you'd be worth showcasing to her readers, she explains? Familiarize yourself with what she writes about.
As a plus-sized blogger, she is amazed at how many companies that don’t even carry plus sized clothing send her products to feature. This mistake is easily avoided by taking a little time to get to know the content on the blog.
The next step should be reaching out on social media before approaching a blogger about featuring your stuff.
“I don’t know you and you are just going to send me a product with a note that I should write about you … really?!," scoffs Cathy.
Take some time to build a relationship and at least introduce yourself before asking for a favor. Commenting on the blog is another great way to introduce yourself to someone. This will help your communication when you approach the blogger.
Finally, put together a nice package. If you are going to sell 500 units by getting on this persons blog put in the effort to create a custom package. Add some items the blogger may like or has mentioned liking. Add a nice handwritten card, maybe some chocolate or a Starbucks gift card, and make sure to follow up in about a week.
Jabez LeBret has authored three books and is a managing partner for Get Noticed Get Found. Over the last nine years he has delivered over 700 keynote addresses in five countries. His main area of expertise is managing Gen Y in the workplace, advanced Facebook strategies, LinkedIn strategies, Google+, SEO, local directory optimization, and online marketing. He recently relocated to Chicago.
