Getting the Insiders Onside - Communicating with Bloggers and Influencers

Getting the Insiders OnsideCommunicating with Bloggers and InfluencersDave Fleet – Vice President, Edelman 1

Why are we here? 2

Why are we here?For years, the media environment was clear & structured.We knew who the media influencers were. We knew wherethey worked. We knew how to reach them.Then social media came along, and the game changed. 3

• 207,000 followers• 100-200K monthly visitors 4

• 1.1 million YouTube subscribers• 228K Facebook fans 5

How Not To Work With A Blogger Step 1: Blogger receives irrelevant pitch.  “The Kardashian’s once again show they are right on trend, and this is on (sic) Mommy’s are all going to want to follow.” 7

How Not To Work With A Blogger Step 1: Blogger receives irrelevant pitch. Step 2: Blogger sends polite response humorous blowoff.  “And here’s a picture of Wil Wheaton collating.” 8

How Not To Work With A Blogger Step 1: Blogger receives irrelevant pitch. Step 2: Blogger sends humorous blowoff. Step 3: PR rep’s boss mis-clicks Reply All.  ”What a f***ing b***h!” 9

How Not To Work With A Blogger Step 1: Blogger receives irrelevant pitch. Step 2: Blogger sends humorous blowoff. Step 3: PR rep’s boss mis-clicks Reply All. Step 4: Blogger is… less than impressed.  “If you’ve read my blog you would know [… the importance of] public relations companies doing research before sending form letters to bloggers. […] So much so that I made that actual Wil Wheaton collating paper page to combat this very sort of thing in a quick and painless way. My blog has nothing to do with fashion, the Kardashians or pantyhose… 10

How Not To Work With A Blogger Step 1: Blogger receives irrelevant pitch. Step 2: Blogger sends humorous blowoff. Step 3: PR rep’s boss mis-clicks Reply All. Step 4: Blogger is… less than impressed. Step 5: Boss stands by his words.  “…maybe you should be flattered that you are even viewed relevant enough to be pitched at all…” 11

How Not To Work With A Blogger Step 1: Blogger receives irrelevant pitch. Step 2: Blogger sends humorous blowoff. Step 3: PR rep’s boss mis-clicks Reply All. Step 4: Blogger is… less than impressed. Step 5: Boss stands by his words. Step 6: Village burning ensues. 12

Seriously. 13

Lessons to Learn Think twice when targeting your pitches. Do your research before sending... or better yet, get to know the blogger. They’re not “just a blogger” – they’re influencers. Don’t go tit for tat with influencers.  BONUS: “Reply All” is bad. We need to get better at this. 14

Our Agenda 15

Our Agenda PROBLEM: What’s wrong with blogger relations SOLUTION: A better model for interaction THE FLIP SIDE: From the blogger’s perspective BONUS: The Paid/Unpaid Blogger Conundrum 16

Whats Wrong with Blogger Relations 17

How Blogger Relations Often “Works”1. Plan calls for program or product pitches2. Company pulls list from database3. Manager hands list to entry-level person and says “pitch this”4. Blogger gets bcc’d or unpersonalized pitch 18

Problems With “The Norm” The most inexperienced people do the outreach No relationships built with the influencers Irrelevant pitches irritate recipients Standard pitch lists often out-of-date and generic Poor results; irritated bloggers 19

Doing it Wrong Pitch Pre Pitch Pitch Post 20

RelationshipsA Better Model for Interaction 21

LEAF: A Better Model for Interactions Listen Follow- Engage up Activate 22

Relationships Are Key Know the blogger’s interests Know the triggers and the pain points Know how (and if) they like to be approached Know how to tailor the pitch 23

Value of Relationships Poorly-Handled Blogger Relations True Relationship Value Growth 24

LEAF: A New Model for Interactions Listen Follow- Engage up Activate 25

Authority The degree to which an individual is an accepted or trustedsource of information. 26

Context The significance of the individual inrelation to the issue, product or stakeholder group. 27

Engagement The degree and depth to which the individual and their audience interact with one another.Source: xkcd.com 28

Reach The highest number of people thatreasonably could seethe content produced by the individual. 29

Identifying the Right People Reach Relevance Resonance 30

Building Relationships “Hi, I’m Dave” Comment on posts Events – yours and others Sharing interesting news Conversation Do things that aren’t just work 32

Objectives Generate awareness  Form or change an opinion  Product launch  Drive action  Education  Establish or regain trust  Influence the  Community or channel influencers growth Establish need/want Create a positive association Product or service comparison 34

Audience Selection Risky Consider these too! Influencers / People who advocates the client really care about wants to reach your topic Sweet spot 35

Preparing Perfect Pitches Know what they write about Know where they live Remember their name Write to them personally Think about what’s in it for them Forget that “BCC” exists 36

Following-up with Bloggers Engage with them and their readers  Answer questions  Correct mis-information  Get feedback Say “thank you” Amplify their posts Syndicate (with permission) Rinse and repeat, i.e. KEEP building a relationship, not just when you need it 38

Investing in the RelationshipTips for Bloggers 39

Challenges for Bloggers Why should I bother to build a relationship with PR agencies? Who should I build relationships with? How should I go about building those relationships? 40

Why to strive to add value Everyone looks good – win/win! People want to work with you Life is easier for everyone before/during/after campaign Agencies more likely promote you organically to other connections 41

Don’t Press the Big Red Button Don’t waste your time trying to educate every agency that reaches out When an agency does it right, take baby steps to be human as well When an agency tries to do it right, take the time to begin investing in the relationship 42

6 Tips for Working With Agencies1. Be proactive if you want to receive outreach2. Consider publishing pitching guidelines3. Make connections in your area of interest4. Think creatively, beyond the initial ask5. Show the return6. Be nice, professional, courteous even when things don’t go your way 43

Putting LEAF into Action (get it?) Set-up Resourcing Maintenance 44

Questions? @davefleet dave.fleet@edelman.com 45

BONUS: The Paid/Unpaid Conundrum “Journalists get paid to write stories. I have an audience too, so why shouldn’t I get paid?” 46

Should PR Agencies Pay Bloggers? Remember: PR agencies don’t pay journalists; the outlet does Earned media/paid media – there’s a difference Going after money is a slippery slope Maybe we need a new model – of more than transactions (sound familiar?) 47

THANK YOU!@davefleet // dave.fleet@edelman.com 48

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Getting the Insiders Onside - Communicating with Bloggers and Influencers

by Dave Fleet on Jan 29, 2012

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Getting the Insiders Onside - Communicating with Bloggers and Influencers — Presentation Transcript