A Blogger’s Guide to Working with Brands
Welcome to the final day of blog week! We have had so much fun sharing a behind-the-scenes look at the blog and all that goes into making content for you guys each and every day. Todayโs topic? Working with brands!
Weโve been fortunate to build great relationships with our favorite brands over the years, and this has led to lots of amazing opportunities for us. Weโve done 2 room makeovers for deserving recipients with Loweโs Home Improvement (patio makeover, bedroom makeover), weโve been a part of the Michaels Makers program for over 2 years, and weโve worked with home dรฉcor sites like HomeGoods, Marshalls, Article, and Wayfairโฆjust to name a few. These brand relationships have helped our business in so many ways, allowing us to gain exposure, make money, and experience some fun events and opportunities along the way.
If youโre a blogger and want to create these partnerships, we are here to help!
Securing the Relationship
First up, how do you actually secure these partnerships? Our answer is that sometimes brands come to us, and sometimes we go to them.
Letโs start with the former. We get a lot of emails each day, and often times itโs a company (or their PR company) reaching out to inquire if we can team up for a new campaign. We turn down A LOT of these inquiries (like 98% of them), but for the ones that really interest us weโll usually respond and ask for more details, deadlines, and their budget for the sponsored post. We will then email back and forth a few times just to make sure itโs the perfect fit for us both before moving forward.
If youโre looking to work with a particular brand, then you will have to be the one who does the reach out. Hereโs how we tackle those partnershipsโฆ
Find the Right Person to Contact
If you are really eager to work with a particular company, youโll first need to find the right person to contact. Most company websites have a โpress relationsโ or โmediaโ tab at the bottom. Go there and see if you can find an email address for their social media manager or PR person. Itโs always best to email an actual person and use their name in your emailโฆinstead of just blindly emailing the generic address. Also, search for press releases from that particular company. Those will always have contact information for the right person to contact for that brand.
Send a Killer Email
Once youโve found the right person to contact (see above), itโs time to craft the perfect email. Our main advice? Keep it short, sweet, and informative. Greet the person by name, explain why you love their company, tell them a few things about your site, and then get right to the goodsโฆtell them why youโre emailing them.
This is all about what YOU can do for them. Not the other way around. Tell them how your blog can bring awareness to their product, or how your social media followers would love to learn more about their company. Thank them for their time and give them information on how they can contact you to discuss more. Itโs also a good idea to attach your media kit so they have all of the information they will need to make a decision about moving forward.
Respond to PR Emails
Another way to make connections is to respond to PR emails. If youโre a blogger, you may receive press releases and invites to random events in your city. While you may not be able to attend all of these events, it may be a good idea to shoot a friendly email back. If youโre looking to work with more brands, find out what companies those PR firms represent and email them saying youโd love to be considered for their next campaign.
Rocking the Relationship
So youโve secured a partnershipโฆnow what? Well, there is still plenty to do to make sure you create a lasting partnership.
Outline the Deliverables
When working with brands, itโs always best to be upfront about what everyone is getting from the deal. You want it to be a mutually beneficial relationship, so make sure you clearly outline what everyone is getting out of the partnership: the number of blog posts and socials shares for them, and the money and amount of product for you. Making this very clear from the start is crucial to keep everyone on the same page.
Set Expectations
Itโs also crucial that both sides set expectations for how the content creation will go. Whenever weโre presented with a sponsored post, we always brainstorm how to authentically weave it into our content and editorial calendar. We want to make sure itโs an organic fit and our readers will greatly benefit from the brand relationship. Right from the start, we tell the brand that we want creative control and luckily most brands are totally on board with that. For those that aren’t, we politely explain why this partnership is not a great fit for us and go our separate ways.
However, sometimes companies will want to review blog posts and social shares prior to publishing. This isnโt always ideal, but sometimes itโs a necessary part of the job. We set clear expectations that we only allow for one round of revisions and wonโt make any major changes to the post content. Ask the brand how they typically handle this so youโre on the same page.
Consult the Contract
Sponsored posts often come with contracts, and (as always) itโs important to thoroughly review this document. We always keep these contracts on hand when creating the post and social shares, just to make sure we hit everything on our end and deliver exactly what the client wants.
Communication is Key
As with most relationships, itโs all about communication. We have a policy that we respond to every email within 24-48 hours. And when it comes to working with brands, we try to always be prompt during our correspondence. Sometimes hopping on the phone saves time (less back and forth via email), so that is always a smart way to maintain a good relationship.
It never hurts to be friendly and nice! Weโve made some lasting friendships with some of the brand managers and PR firms weโve worked with over the years. At the end of the day, theyโre a person just like you, doing their job. So be nice, make friends, and enjoy the perks of a mutually beneficial brand relationship. After a successful campaign or sponsored post, a thank you email (or snail mail!) can go a long way to maintain that partnership.
So there you have it…everything you ever wanted (or probably didn’t even care) to know about working with brands as a blogger. At the end of the day, it’s all about treating your blog like a business and making the most out of every opportunity that comes your way and relationships with brands is a significant part of that.
Catch up on Blog Week
- Survey: We Want to Hear from You!
- Money & Blogging: Our Most Asked Questions
- The Importance of Stepping in Front of the Camera
- Tools to Stay Organized & Efficient
More Blogging Tips
- Blog Finances 101
- How to Be an Efficient Blogger
- Our Best Tips to Be a Successful Blogger
- Rookie Mistakes from your Favorite Bloggers
- Making Money as a Blogger
- Our Favorite Photography Equipment
- The Awkward Side of Blogging
- Being Married to a Blogger (our hubbies spill the beans!)
Bridget&Casey