These tips for working with brands come from the mouths of those who can hire you! I interviewed PR and brand reps to get their top 5 tips for bloggers. Insightful? Yes. Funny? Oh yes. Real talk? You have no idea.
Tips for Working with Brands (A Different Take)
I’ve worked with many clients to begin or grow their brand work and for years and I’ve successfully pitched and built relationships with brand reps all over the world. Now listen, I know that tips for working with brands are all over the blogosphere, but while creating my blogger monetization course, I had an “in.” I asked PR reps what they really wanted to share with the blogging community and share they did!
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1. Style, Story, and Savvy
Style: If a brand sends you clothes, iron them, dry clean them, or style them as if you were being paid to style a photo shoot. ‘Cuz you are. Taking it in front of power lines or in bad lighting doesn’t impress. Neither does pulling it out of the box and throwing it on.
Story: If a product is sent to you, tell a story. Neither readers nor brands want you reiterate the bullet points on the package. Get creative – even when the product isn’t creative.
If you’re writing about a toilet bowl cleaning brush, tell that story about that one time, at band camp, when Tommy Twiners thought it was a brush to clean out his tuba. #goodtimes
Savvy: Always include the requirements of the job, even if it’s a ‘hard sell’ requirement. If the brand wants you to put a link with the words, “Click Here to Buy Now,” do so or negotiate it out before accepting the work. This is one of the most valuable tips for working with brands.
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2. Change It Up
If everything in your feed is sponsored, even if you are a review blog, it might be a sticking point with a brand. You see many examples for this, easily found on some bloggers’ favorite dumping ground: Twitter.
No less than 3 managers mentioned this. One said, “Even if your site caters strictly to reviews, it is unsettling to see nothing but paid advertisements on an entire social feed. How will the blogger help our brand stand out from that?”
If you’re looking for ways to supplement your income, try affiliate programs like Share-A-Sale. I use it and highly recommend it to clients because it has so many partners, every blogger can find something that will resonate with their audience.
3. Product Placement
Images should display product in an appropriate setting. If you are sent a toilet cleaning product, be sure to use that product to actually clean your toilet before taking pictures.
I’m sad to report this actually happens – in fact, no less than 5 different brand reps told me they have had bloggers put their product next to a competitor’s, in an inappropriate setting, or just in a setting that was dirty and unappealing.
One rep told me she actually had to justify her job to her boss after one such post went live. You can bet she’ll never hire that blogger again.
4. Persistent vs Annoying
When you are waiting on a reply back from a PR professional, look at the calendar and take a long, deep breath. A PR rep shared this email chain with me and we laughed so hard, we ended up snorting. I couldn’t use the actual images (internal communications), so I will sum it up based on memory. This tip for working with brands needed to be shared.
- 11/8/2015, [SUNDAY] 9:11 am From Blogger, to Brand: “…let me know if you’re interested in this opportunity.”
- 11/8/2015, [SUNDAY] 7:27 pm From Blogger, to Brand: “…haven’t heard back from you on this and I’d really like to get a decision.”
- 11/9/2015, [MONDAY] 6:31 am From Blogger, to Brand: “… and because I haven’t heard back, I’m going to pitch this to {competitor}”
We laughed hard about this and although this is extreme, the message is: send a succinct pitch letter with a desired communication date. Send one follow-up email about a week (or two) later. If the brand reaches out after that, sell them another great idea (if you pitched yours elsewhere).
5. Keep It Clean
A Negative Review: There should never be a negative review – this isn’t Yelp, this is your brand. There is always something you can find about the product that will work for someone. This is one of the most important tips for working with brands, especially to get hired by future ones!
This is an actual example: A processed sports drink brand contacted a blogger (a natural foods evangelist) and the rate was negotiated for a post write up. The blogger bashed the additives, coloring, and even noted a “chemical taste” in her review. Instead of positioning it as a great option for those concerned with convenience, she chose to advertise that she was a risky bet with all future partners.
Write a favorable review by finding out what group a product would be good for. Side note: don’t accept work that isn’t going to align with your ideal reader.
A Bad Situation: Bad things happen, some intentionally, some just because of the slow processes of corporations. It doesn’t matter if a brand was late in invoicing, or even paying you, always keep it clean, respectful, and professional. Keep it private or seek out legal assistance.
DO NOT BROADCAST your business (and theirs) all over social media. Professionalism is a choice and one you should make for your brand.
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Takeaway
Working with brands is an effective way to add a revenue stream to your blog while developing valuable sales, marketing, and positioning skills as a business owner. Above all else, these tips for working with brands can be summed up as: maintain a professional demeanor, have a strong desire to satisfy your clients, and always respect the relationship.
I sincerely appreciate your time and would be grateful if you shared this to your favorite, “Make Money Blogging” board on Pinterest or with your sharing group on Facebook.
Very well written article! I have always wondered what was going on behind the scenes. The fact that a person will accept product for review and then bash the product relentlessly is baffling. Why not just contact the brand directly and tell them, “This particular item did not align with me, my blog, my followers, etc.”? Off line – not behaving like some troll on the internet.
It makes zero sense, I know, but it happens with more frequency than I ever thought possible. I received example after example of it – so sad because it really only hurts the content creators in the long run. Thanks for commenting!