10 Things Bloggers Need to Consider When Partnering With A Brand
With the help from the largest blogging conference in the world, BlogHER, we’ve come up with a list of things bloggers need to consider before partnering with a brand or product.
Be authentic
When you first started writing your blog, you developed a writing style that only YOU can authenticate. Your readers follow your blog and engage in your post because they like YOU, the content you put out, the pictures you take, and how you inspire others. Stay true to that! Just because a brand is being talked about throughout your blog post, doesn’t mean you have to change the style of your posts. The brand chose you because they like your message, your content and your readers. Take that and run with it!
Does the product appeal to your readers?
If your readers are moms, ages 24-35, know that writing a sponsored post about grass fertilizer is not going to appeal to them. UNLESS you have a “Gardening Section” on your blog 🙂 If your readers are moms, ages 35-45 (along with a few grandmas) and they take a lot of pictures, then a sponsored post about “How to Store and Share Your Pictures” would benefit them and appeal to them!
Know your readers
Know your readers! If you see more engagement on a personal picture with your children than you do a “giveaway graphic”, use that to your advantage! If your readers respond better to “30% Off” than they do to “$15 Off”, KNOW that and don’t be afraid to negotiate that with the brand!
Know how to understand analytics
Knowing how to understand analytics for your blog is more than just knowing your readers. It gives you more detail by narrowing your readers down by their location, the device they use, what social media platform brought them to your post, and more. It’s a way to see that 65% of your readers use an iPhone and 35% use an Android. It’s a way to know that more people are likely to click on your Twitter Ad linking to your post rather than a Facebook Ad. Knowing your analytics will help you understand what attracts them the most.
Be more than a product review
Many times when a blogger partners with a brand, it’s easy to lose your voice and sound robotic. “This is what I like and this is what I don’t like” is good if that’s what the Brand is looking for- but your readers want to see how you use the product in your everyday life. Paint a picture, tell a story and bring the brand to life!
What would make YOU buy it?
Your readers follow you because they see you as an inspiration. If you’re trying out a techy product but you are not very familiar with “tech lingo”, describe the product in your own voice so that your readers will understand. If the product is a Flash Drive that plugs into your smartphone (and your readers are ages 45+) then you may want to refer to it as “an easy tool that plugs directly into your cellphone”! Word the content in a way that would make YOU interested.
Will the brand blend well in your photography theme?
It’s so easy to take a product picture off of the company website and call it a day. But is that what will really appeal to your readers? Often times, bloggers have a specific theme, angle, and filter that they like to take photographs in. If your website it branded with a unique set of images that you created, represent the brand/product in that way, too!
What is the goal (other than getting paid)?
You need to know your personal goal before you agree to partner with a brand. While the brand is paying you to run a sponsored ad, you need to take advantage of the product and potential engagement and set your own goals. It could be anything from email opt-ins, social media engagement, social media followers or reaching a new demographic. The options are endless and the ball is in your court- use it!
Would there be a long term outcome?
When working with a brand, it’s so easy to label them as a one-and-done (meaning you write the post and then you never have anything to do with that brand again). Take a look at the brand’s social media platforms, demographics and engagement. If your blog and your readers could benefit from seeing more, then let them see more! Retweet an occasional brand post, like their social media posts, make comments on their pictures and even refer readers to other products. We’re all friends here! Chances are, the brand will do the same for you!
Would it be easy to measure the success rate?
Putting aside the paid aspect of a sponsored post, it’s best to know if the campaign was successful, for the sake of your readers. If your readers were engaged, like, sharing and commenting on the post- then the brand would be a good partner to work with again. Know your numbers and calculate the success rate according to how much the brand paid you for the post. You need to know if your readers benefited from it, too!
