Five keys to successful blogger outreach

My post from last Friday entitled "Your last contact cannot be your first contact" generated some really great commentary. The idealistic, best-case viewpoint I took with blogger outreach caused most of the concern so I want to use this post to touch on five keys to successful blogger outreach in the real world. I highly encourage you to add your opinions in the comment section so we can all learn and grow.

The following five steps should give you a leg up on your next outreach endeavor:

1. Use a tiered targeting approach: Let's face it. Resource and time are finite things and not all blogs are created equal. At the outset of an outreach program, companies need to identify tiers of bloggers they would like to reach. The tiers should be ranked by influence and reach (these are not the same thing) within the niche(s) you're focusing on . Tier 1 bloggers should get the most attention, tier 2 should get a bit less and so on. This will ensure that time is being allocated to achieve the best impact.

2. Build relationships over time: As you put bloggers into your tiers, you need to start developing relationships with them (this is where my last post comes into play). I'm talking about forming real, honest relationships. It's easy to spot people who are trying to manipulate you. Read the blogger's content, delve into what their interest are, see who they read and engage with them on their turf (comments, emails, etc.). Ask what you can do for them before you need anything from them. Try to add value to the community they've created. I know that's the fastest way to my heart.

3. Create relevant messages: This is, as David Berkowitz pointed out in the comments, a crucial step. You can make up for not having a previous relationship with somebody by delivering a spot-on message that is relevant to their interests. The message needs to be to the point and tailored to the blog as much as possible. You can break through the clutter just by writing clearly and focusing on the value and relevance to the blog's community. (Don't fake this either, it's crystal clear to a blogger what is relevant and what misses the mark.)

4. You only have one shot: This is another big point to make that I think newbies miss all the time. When you contact a blogger, you need to make sure that you have the right person with the right message at the right time because you only have one chance. You should never "follow up" with a blogger unless they ask you to. You have to assume they've seen your message and either ignored it or are holding it for later. Let them make the next move. Following up can be seen as annoying and pushy in this situation. It's important to note that the better your relationship with the blogger, the more flexible this rule is.

5. Be prepared for follow up: I am often amazed, when I do follow up on a PR pitch, at how unprepared the rep on the other end is. Normally I get a "it's all in the release" or "there isn't anything else available". You should be able to readily follow up with more information including pre-packaged social media content including quotes, videos, photos and logos that are blog-ready (often in a social media news release). Remember that most bloggers are pressed for time and the easier you make it for them to write about you, the more response you'll get. I've passed on relevant stories that require me to do too much leg work.
   

What would you add to this list? What is your pre-launch checklist for outreach to bloggers? Is it different from traditional media or the same? Are the two converging for you? Drop me a comment!

BONUS - Take a look at Valeria's recent post and her top four good, and bad, pitches. She echos a lot of what I mention here and adds some great insights (as usual).

Technorati Tags:
blogs, marketing, Matt Dickman, outreach, PR, smnr, social media, Techno//Marketer

Comments

[Adam Singer]

Matt, you wrote:

"You only have one shot: This is another big point to make that I think newbies miss all the time. When you send a release to a blogger, you need to make sure that you have the right person with the right message at the right time because you only have one chance."

I think there is an even potentially an even better way of doing this. Instead of a release, I would argue if you *really* want a certain blogger to cover your news, craft a message to them in the same tone as their blog. Essentially take your news and write a blog post similar to what they might right and send that off to them.

They'll change it anyway, but it shows you get their contact and that you've been reading their blog (you should be). Of course, you have to really know someone's blog and writing style anyway, but you should be subscribed to their site and reading their posts daily as it is.

[Adam Singer]

sorry for the typos, im doing too much at once today =)

[andrea useem]

I'm wondering if the words "journalist" and "blogger" could be used interchangeably here. If so, I think journalists have been thinking advising for a while about how best to approach them -- maybe we can do some cutting-and-pasting of collective wisdom....

[Matt Dickman]

Adam -- You're 100% right. That was some mis-speaking on my part. I absolutely do not think that releases should be sent, I meant to say "when you send an email to a blogger" (granted it could be a call or other form of communication). Thanks for catching that!

[Matt Dickman]

Andrea -- That is the age old debate isn't it? I agree with you about the blurring of the lines between journalist and blogger. I think that bloggers like to be contacted by email with rich media options while that may be wasted on some journalists who just want a release or to find something on the wire.

In a couple of years though I think both journalist and blogger alike will be more comfortable with social media/rich media releases and will be looking for them exclusively.

Cut and paste wisdom is always welcome, please do share!

[michelle v]

I love this topic and could talk about it for days - good post! Personally, I have always enjoyed practicing media relations and have built some great relationships over the years. But now I find myself pitching bloggers more and more - and loving it. But what I am noticing in blogger relations is a lot of what I noticed in media relations. People either get it and are good at it, or they aren't. Blogger relations takes time, a lot of time, just like its traditional counterpart. And the time is what a lot of PR people fear and end up taking the easy way out and wonder how they got on Chris Anderson's list. At its core, you wouldn't pitch a traditional reporter without really knowing them, what they have written about over the past year, if your pitch is a fit for their readers, etc. And you have to know what is newsworthy and what isn’t. And the news is not buried somewhere in a press release - in fact, don't even bother pitching anyone with a release. The same goes for bloggers. It's not rocket science but the basic principals of blogger relations, much like media relations, are what scare a lot of people away. That's why spamming is such a problem and why PR still has a bad rap - and now that has carried over to bloggers. In this business, everything is about word of mouth. Why anyone in PR wouldn’t want to take the time to do media or blogger relations right, is beyond me. It can be a very effective and powerful tool (for lack of a better word) in a campaign.

[b to b marketing]

This post really reinforces information about blogs, especially the waiting game that it involves in order to get results.

Our blog, http://writtenbyallof.us, also links our vimeo and flickr pages inhopes we can reach a smany people as possible.

Thanks again

[Valeria Maltoni]

Thank you for the link, Matt. It must be cosmic forces pulling us together. I tagged David before I knew it was his blogiversary.

I see you have met Andrea Useem. Mike Useem is one of my favorite leadership thinkers. He utilizes history and contemporary events to illustrate the principles of action in leadership - or lack thereof. Teaches at Wharton and I've had the pleasure of attending the leadership forum in Philadelphia for 4 years in a row.

[Matt Dickman]

Michelle -- Thanks for jumping in on this. It is definitely time consuming and should never be done by sending a release (although about 90% of the pitches I get are just releases). I agree that it takes a dedicated effort and too many people try to take shortcuts. Thanks again, a very valuable comment!

[Matt Dickman]

b to b marketing -- I think your alternative approach can be a really powerful model. Reaching people in non-traditional ways can help you break through the clutter and noise that is out there.

[Rachel Clarke]

I'd add - repeat as required. If a brand/agency etc gets this right they can continue to have a dialogue with the blogger for many more campaigns to come. It can work both ways, with the agency learning how to do it better next time. Which means take notice of those posts that rip into a badly done outreach!

[Matt Dickman]

Valeria -- Glad you stopped by!

[Matt Dickman]

Rachel -- Excellent point. There are so many examples of bad pitches (see Kevin Dugan's "Bad Pitch Blog") that you would think more people would learn. The best reps will learn from each relationship and contact over time to really tailor messages and eliminate wasted outreach.

[Pseudoreid]

Hi Matt,

I've got two issues with your suggested approach on how to contact/tier bloggers:

1. One chance, one shot is not right. I believe that there are multiple levels and ways to engage a blogger. Whether it's via email, a phone call, sending them free stuff, linking their page to yours, commenting on their blog, or even writing about their blog somewhere else. Bloggers listen, and although they may not respond to an initial contact, the key is persistence.

2. Tiering bloggers according to their levels of influence is a seemingly appropriate and smart tactic, however, I value each and every individual that I want to reach. I think David Armano at Logic + Emotion would agree, especially if you read this post on his blog. http://darmano.typepad.com/logic_emotion/2008/01/influence-rippl.html

Additionally, I buy into Duncan Watts' argument that trends and pop culture can arise from anywhere at anytime, and is completely unpredictable. Moral of the story, ensure that your level of enthusiasm and open communication with all bloggers is consistent.

[Matt Dickman]

Pseudoreid -- First off, thank you for commenting and sharing your opinion on this. I really value what you have to say and I want to talk this through a bit more.

To your first issue, I personally think that one outreach (email or phone) is all you have to make it through the clutter. I am speaking from the position of a blogger here. I don't want follow up over and over. If it got through to me it did on the first try. Geoff Livingston touches on this point in his book "Now is Gone".

I think you hit some really great auxiliary methods to get the message across without being a pest. This all goes to building a relationship. Comments, tagging, etc. can keep you on the radar which is what it's all about. Persistence over time is fine. Persistence with one message gets old fast.

To point number two, I think you're right in an ideal world. I agree that influence happens on many levels and this is something that we have to take into account. I am not, as I said, equating reach to influence and you have to look at your niche/industry and identify the most influential people.

Ideally we could put information out there and bloggers would find it and write about it without the outreach, but that isn't the reality. From a resource scheduling standpoint you have to group bloggers somehow to strategically get the word out. BUT, we can't do this in a vacuum, to your point, and we should adapt out plan over time as new contacts are identified along the way.

Your last point is fantastic and I couldn't agree more. You have to keep eyes and ears open and adapt over time. Thanks again for the time and thinking here. Would love to hear your follow up.

[Matt Dickman]

Pseudoreid -- Here is a real-world question based on your second point. Let's say that you had a client that was a consumer goods company and they had a new product that you were charged with doing outreach for. Say you have 100 hours to work with.

How would you go about planning your outreach to maximize the reach of your message to the potential target audience? Are all blogs equal?

Anybody else have a take on this? I suggested tiers to help with the management and resource effort. Is there another way?

[Pseudoreid]

Hi again Matt. Thanks for putting some real thought into my comment, I appreciate the responses.

First off, I agree that reaching a blogger via email/phone or comments is the fastest, more direct way to reach an individual. In the long term, garnering the attention of a blogger via a multifaceted approach will eventually get them to talk to you, however, I admit it is by no means as rapid as an email or phone call. As you point out, either way your communication must be on point and intriguing enough for the blogger to give you the time of day.

You’re completely right that going about building meaningful relationships is the smart approach. Nothing is more annoying than getting a generic template email from a company, like the one you mentioned in the “Your last contact cannot be your first contact” post. Repetitive messaging doesn’t work either.

Strategically, I think that once you have identified key influencers of all shapes and sizes, it is reasonable to begin to group them by unique characteristics, social status, outlooks, levels of interaction/participation on their blog and within their community, and by theme. Tailoring your approach for each group must be distinctive, but all groups and influencers must be treated as equal. Every opinion counts.

Chaos in the blogosphere reigns, and sometimes topics on small blogs are exposed to the world that could never have been predicted. Also, don’t forget that small blogs turn into bigger ones, and that developing a relationship with small fries can lead to a very rewarding experience. I also think it’s important to remember that there are various forms of blogging, and people prefer different ways of sharing their thoughts, hence method of approach varies (not just an email or phone call).

When I dissect the world of social media, I begin by forming groups and indicate sphere of influence for each blogger within those groups. When it comes down to execution and reaching out to the bloggers, I end up dedicating a larger part of my efforts to target more influential bloggers than less influential, but I don’t neglect the budding bloggers. I find that getting the big guys to listen can be much more challenging, but the smaller bloggers seem to love someone inspiring them to react to something (e.g. a question, a statement, a recommendation).

If I was handling a consumer goods company I’d have to know a lot more about the target and objective before I could decide how to handle the approach.

Thanks for your thoughtful input!