In this post our blog PR expert Lesley Singleton looks at the ways in which bloggers and PRs can work together and enjoy a mutually beneficial relationship.

My name is Lesley, I am a PR and I want something for free from bloggers. Shock horror! Allow me to explain…

I’ve been working in PR and the media since the late nineties but never have I seen a more dramatic shift in the media landscape than over the past couple of years. Print circulations have fallen, established magazines have closed (Reader’s Digest, anyone?) and the web has never, ever, been more prolific in terms of news and opinion delivery. We no longer just consume the news; we create it, engage with it and dramatically shape other people’s opinions with it.

The purest example of this is blogging. Millions of us blog on an infinite number of topics, there are awards for every variety of blogger, which ultimately act as a clever PR tool to get more people engaging with said blogs. And we’re all consuming multiple blogs each week on topics close to us, on both a personal and business level. When something makes us smile, we blog about it. If something winds us up beyond belief, we blog about it. Our musings instantly reach our tens, hundreds or thousands of devotees… and a good PR campaign cannot afford to ignore such a fast-paced, widespread phenomenon.

But increasingly this seems to be a bone of contention and I’m often shocked by the way some bloggers seem have a ‘closed door’ policy for approaches made to them by PRs. Now, please don’t get me wrong; I know from speaking to many bloggers that there are some less scrupulous PRs out there who don’t do their research and that this is the biggest gripe – top complaints are of cold approaches by someone who hasn’t even read the blog they’re hoping to see their client featured on. I’ve even heard of some PRs not bothering to find out the name of the blog author. As with approaches to any media contact, I find this unacceptable and won’t even attempt to justify it. But I have also spoken to some bloggers who feel that PRs are callous, “only after something for free with nothing in it for me” and it is this I want to discuss further.

Firstly, as a PR, I am looking for something for free. To generalise somewhat, my clients pay me to generate editorial exposure for them – not advertising. How I achieve this means getting creative, thinking laterally and creating news which journalists feel is of enough interest to their readers to subsequently write an article. In turn, journalists are given material, products, prizes, samples and ultimately copy and content to shape accordingly for their readers. It’s no big secret that PRs and journalists have a love-hate relationship but there is an understanding from both sides that a mutually respectful relationship can reap mutual rewards. For me, I feel this should be no different for the PR/blogger union.

There are many things that a PR can offer a blogger in return for some exposure for their client, some of which you may not be aware of:

Review products – a PR can give you access to exciting new products, relevant to your blog/readers/lifestyle, which you can test out. You’ve then got at least one blog post of content for your site… ideal for one of those days when you’re perhaps facing a little writer’s  block

Competition prizes – again, although we tend not to have a cash budget to purchase space, PRs often have access to prize products. So you could run an exacting competition via your blog, giving your loyal readers even more than usual… you can tweet about the competition, promote it on your facebook page etc. and in turn attract new visitors and readers to your blog

Hardcore news and information – perhaps if you regularly blog about a specific issue, such as breastfeeding, a PR with a relevant client will be able to offer you appropriate news, research findings, statistics etc. which would make a really interesting and informative read for your subscribers. Again, this can boost your visitor figures and help you avoid that clichéd blogging pitfall of “me me me”. In addition, if you’re having an off-day on the blogging front, you have some ready-made content which will keep your site fresh, up-to-date and keyword-heavy

Feedback and comment – on occasion, you may be blogging your dismay about a certain product or service. But before you do, wouldn’t it make for a better blog post if you could actually include a response or feedback from someone representing that brand? If your supermarket delivery was below par this week and you intend blogging about it, a simple email to the press office can result in a great response which will make your post more meaningful and possibly less ‘ranty’

And in the spirit of keeping this blog post well-balanced, non-ranty and fair (!), I want to flag up the simple yet golden rule that I feel all PRs should follow (and, in fact, which I think a LOT of PRs already do): READ THE BLOG YOU’RE PITCHING TO. A PR should know the blogger’s name, what they like or dislike and have a clear idea of why their client is relevant and appropriate to this particular blog. They should be aware of what the blogger has written about in the past three months at least and whether they already have an opinion of the client/brand or any competitors.

In return, all I’d ask is for bloggers not to tar us all with the same brush. The vast majority of PRs are talented, targeted, do their research and genuinely feel they have an angle for you. I’m also aware that there are many bloggers who are open to PR pitches and some even have a helpful guide on their site for PRs who wish to pitch to them. Based on a conversation I had recently with a blogger who’d been inundated with PR pitches and felt she couldn’t keep on top of them all, here are a few pointers you may find useful when looking at pitches:

Only reply to the ones you’re interested in: PRs won’t be offended if you don’t reply to say thanks-but-no-thanks (we generally have quite thick skins!) and we understand that your time is as precious as ours

Remember that a good PR will follow-up: if the PR really thinks it’s a good opportunity for you, they will come back to you to see if you’re interested. Take a couple of moments to hear them out and if you still think it’s not for you, just say so. A good PR knows when they’re beat!

Bounce some ideas around: maybe you like the brand or product, but don’t particularly like what the PR is suggesting? Let them know and try brainstorming a few ideas together – you might have a perfect way of weaving the brand into your site that the PR hasn’t considered so turn the pitch around and see if you can get it to work even harder for your blog

Feel flattered!: the mere fact that you’re being pitched to by a PR means that your blog has been noticed and deemed influential and important enough to be featured on a PR plan somewhere

My final piece of advice to bloggers is feel free to say no, but don’t be afraid to say yes. You aren’t selling your soul; you’re simply helping to shape an ongoing relationship which really could be beneficial to you both.

To find out how Lesley can help you with your PR, please visit www.lsmedia.co.uk or email Lesley@lsmedia.co.uk

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This is the first in a series of articles about the Art of Blogging by the Queen of Blogging herself Natalie Lue. Natalie earns a living from blogging at Bambino Goodies & Nest Goodies , Style Bambino , Baggage Reclaim and Self Employed Mum

1. Add Value
Write content that supports your offering and by being informative and even providing solutions to people’s ‘problems’, they are more predisposed to buy from you, should they require what you have to offer, or even recommend you to someone else. Think bigger picture and you will add value to your business with your blog.

2. Connect directly with your users/customers/clients
Blogs, even when they’re for business, give you the ability to have that personal touch and engage directly with your customers or people who have the potential to do business. Even if you’re not chit chatting with them in the comments box, you’re actually ‘connecting’ on an intellectual or even an emotive level. I read some great blogs attached to business that make me feel passionate about what they offer, or their market, or even wider issues.

3. Fresh Regular Content
The likelihood is that if you don’t have a blog, unless you have new products to add, or service pages to update, or maybe a ‘news’ section, that your site doesn’t get updated that regularly which means that the visits from the ‘ole search engine ’spiders’ will be infrequent, which leads me to…

4. It’s Good for Search Engine Optimisation
I  don’t suggest that you blog solely with this in mind because it will all be very contrived and you’ll probably write stuff that’s annoying rather than adding value, but think of it as a Brucie Bonus. Use tags, categories, link to (relevant) pages around your site, and do link out to other relevant peeps too.

5. It Can Make Your Site Stickier
I imagine you want people to spend more time on your site and more rounded content will encourage them to hang around for longer. Writing blog posts may also encourage them to check out other relevant products or services that they may not have considered otherwise, which in turn can generate more business.

6. Demonstrate and gain authority
The wonderful thing about blogs is that by consistently writing content around subjects, you can become regarded as an ‘authority’ – someone who people trust and regard as being a thought leader or expert on a subject or market. Being able to engage people around subjects and to explain problems and provide solutions, or even create problems that people didn’t realise they had and provide solutions, makes you valuable and authoritative. People love to feel like they have gained knowledge/discovered something new.

7. Build your brand
Whether you’re building a personal or business brand, blogs give you an opportunity to put out the messaging that you want people to know, that they may not necessarily pick up from a product description or an about page. Remember, it’s all too easy to say you’re an expert, or tell them that whatever you’re offering is the ‘best’, but when you demonstrate authority, you show people which lets you build your brand.

8. Improve your writing skills
Sounds funny, but writing blog posts on a regular basis teaches you a lot about writing content that resonates with your customers. I see poor product and service pages all the time. Blogging tends to bring out more of a desire to speak in a language that appeals to your customers – being on a level – which is really what should be happening site wide. You’ll also find that you’ll get better at writing marketing and PR bumpf.

9. Your blog is like your PR person
I’m talking 21st century PR, so this doesn’t mean posting bland press releases but talking about things that are happening in your business in an exciting and engaging way. The type of ‘news’ that has traditionally been shared via press releases with a few key people in traditional press doesn’t work in the social media evolved world. You’re now writing your news to speak directly to your customers and potential customers. Get your news out there and start telling your stories and have them ranking in Google (and other search engines) on your key terms. Go easy on putting annoying words and phrases that no-one understands (or cares about.

10. Make money
All of the above can actually help you to make money. Increasingly, as small business has greater and greater impact, people buy from people. I know so many people who blog that have made more money and experienced various opportunities as a result of blogging. That authority that they demonstrated about marketing your business online, resolving tax issues, or managing your time and business through outsourcing – they picked up more clients. Think big picture.

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Up until 6 months ago I really didn’t ‘get’ blogging. Everywhere I turned I was being told that I should have a blog for my business. But in my mind a blog was just a very public diary and I had no idea how that could translate to the business world. Then in April Irene Houston, an online business trainer, came and spoke at one of our meetings about blogs. She explained that a blog, kept up to date with lots of fresh content, would drive traffic and support a more static business website, thus helping your SEO ratings. PING! The lightbulb in my head lit up – and I ‘got it’.

Days later our blog was up and running, albeit in a very basic form. Pressing the ‘Publish’ button on that first blog post was a scary moment – my ‘words’ were suddenly out there in cyberspace for anyone to read. But would anyone read it? I had no idea.

Irene had said that ideally a business blog should be updated at least 3 times a week. It seemed like a lot of work. What would we write about? But thankfully with two of us contributing to the blog, one of us has generally always got something to say! We also have lots of great members and contacts whose knowledge we can draw on to provide us with guest blogs, which helps to relieve the pressure and gets us out of a hole if we do happen to suffer from Bloggers Block!

And happily I have found the discipline of writing the business blog has unleashed the creative writer within. So much so, that I have, waiting in the wings, a personal blog, as some of these new ideas for posts don’t necessarily fit the audience or the tone of Mum’s the Blog. But the crazy thing is, I’m more nervous about writing for this second blog because a) this one will be pure, unadultered ME  and b) I’m scared that once I start, I really won’t be able to stop!

There is something really quite addictive about blogging. It is the writing equivalent of Pringles – once you pop you can’t stop! For aspiring or frustrated writers, having a blog is an immediate window for your creativity, and an opportunity to communicate directly with an audience. It gives you a platform to express your views, your frustrations, you failures and your successes. It allows you to record, for posterity, little snippets of daily life that are all too easily forgotten, to reminisce and to rant. And sometimes, along the way, you succeed in entertaining, amusing or inspiring your readers – which is both a joy and a privilege, as well as a huge incentive to do it all over again.

So, for anyone thinking of dipping their toe in the water, beware – blogging may take over your life. Everywhere you go and everything you do will be potential material for a post. So you’d better start carrying a notepad and pen around with you wherever you go!

And for those of you who are already hooked, what do you enjoy most about blogging? The fame, the freebies, the freedom or the just the fun? Do you find it easy to fit in your daily fix? And do you ever see yourself running out of inspiration?

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