Comments on: Bloggers and brands – what happens now? http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/bloggers-and-brands-what-happens-now/ If not, ask Gran Mon, 04 Aug 2014 19:15:13 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.9.1 By: Molly http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/bloggers-and-brands-what-happens-now/#comment-30596 Wed, 06 Mar 2013 18:59:37 +0000 http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/?p=3951#comment-30596 That’s the question! I expect there are lots of avenues still to be explored, it’s just a case of both brands and bloggers having a realistic expectation of any kind of working relationship.

]]> By: Liska (@NewMumOnline) http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/bloggers-and-brands-what-happens-now/#comment-30595 Wed, 06 Mar 2013 17:04:35 +0000 http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/?p=3951#comment-30595 Wow where does this leave the future? x

]]> By: Troubles Mum http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/bloggers-and-brands-what-happens-now/#comment-30594 Wed, 06 Mar 2013 14:08:50 +0000 http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/?p=3951#comment-30594 I’ll say it again – too many PRs assume that us bloggers are stupid and that us who can be classed as ‘mummy bloggers’ are the dumbest of the dumb. As I will prove in an upcoming, follow-up blog post, this is far from the case. It’s time PRs and SEOs started to recognise this. I don’t have time for lazy approaches which are of nil benefit to me. I know that ‘exposure’ through a third-party’s twitter account is next to useless anyway. Very little of any extra traffic you might get is sticky. I have found my audience through writing quality, relevant content, not through exposure guest-posting or whatever for commercial companies. And no, my brain did not fall out of my foof when I had my babies, or when I started a blog.

]]> By: Molly http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/bloggers-and-brands-what-happens-now/#comment-30593 Wed, 06 Mar 2013 12:24:57 +0000 http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/?p=3951#comment-30593 The value of writing something you’re pleased with is HUGELY important. Which is what I expect drives many of us bloggers on to keep writing and putting new content out there!

]]> By: Molly http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/bloggers-and-brands-what-happens-now/#comment-30592 Wed, 06 Mar 2013 12:23:50 +0000 http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/?p=3951#comment-30592 I think the Google PR does make a difference to what you charge. For me, I have taken 2 years to build up a decent amount of traffic and readership to this site, much of which came with me when I moved to self-hosted. Since going self-hosted I’ve worked hard to keep putting out content I care about, love creating and am happy to share. And that’s the hard work that’s gone into building my Google PR. I think, as a blogger, you need to ask yourself not just what your time is worth, but also what your blog space is worth. Companies are potentially buying your readers’ attention for a few minutes – readers who care enough to take the time to read and comment on what you write. And once that Google PR is built up, you need to question how much you’re willing to risk it by running a follow link in a commercial post, if you accept these on your site. For me, it’s about the cost of my time, my audience and my Google PR.

]]> By: Molly http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/bloggers-and-brands-what-happens-now/#comment-30591 Wed, 06 Mar 2013 12:19:01 +0000 http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/?p=3951#comment-30591 I totally agree – I rarely write about specific products unless I’m asked to review them, but if a product REALLY makes a difference to my life and catches my attention, then it gets exposure on my site for the simple reason that I love it.

]]> By: Molly http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/bloggers-and-brands-what-happens-now/#comment-30590 Wed, 06 Mar 2013 12:17:04 +0000 http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/?p=3951#comment-30590 I think openness and transparency are actually a key pull for companies to work with bloggers. If a blogger you know and trust writes nice things about a product, you’re more inclined to believe it than if it came from a TV ad, for example. Or maybe that’s just me!

]]> By: Molly http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/bloggers-and-brands-what-happens-now/#comment-30589 Wed, 06 Mar 2013 10:57:30 +0000 http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/?p=3951#comment-30589 Hi Savannah, thanks for taking the time to comment on this post. I must make it clear though (as I did in my post) that the agency wasn’t offering the opportunity for me to HOST a competition (which would, I agree, bring traffic to my site). Instead, they wanted me to write a post on my own site, linking to a competition on their client’s site.

Like many bloggers, I am already active on various social media platforms, so to offer a tweet in return for the space on my site, the traffic it brings, plus the “Google juice” of a link does not seem balanced. I think all too often the blogger’s supposed need for exposure and hits is taken for granted by agencies, who think we will be willing to offer our site space, time and influence in return for some spikes in traffic, which many of us have already.

In this situation, as far as I’m concerned, the agency wins because they get paid for placing the links with their client, the brand wins because they gain more customers and exposure – but the blogger? They may get a few extra hits on their site, but so what? Unless we’re talking thousands here (which is doubtful for a post like that) which could bump up affiliate ad income, then it seems to me the blogger is very much the loser in this situation.

Another point I think SEO’s should note if taking this tactic is looking at the TYPE of traffic they can offer the blogger. If you read my blog, you would know I tend to write about what it’s like to be a mum, relationships, family life, lifestyle themes and parenting dilemmas. My readers come here to read about my take on those things. I’m not known for running incredible competitions. Occasionally I write about a brand I love or write an advertorial post about a relatable situation etc, but these posts don’t bring me huge spikes in traffic compared to my regular hits.

To offer a post linking to a comp on another site may get me a few extra hits from a tweet from the company – but would it be the “right” kind of traffic? Would they be potential readers who are likely to stick around and read / subscribe / come back for more?

These are all things a blogger will ask themselves before accepting to host commercial content for no payment or no product in return. It’s worth keeping in mind when extolling the “little boost” an SEO agency could provide.

Thanks for your comment though, it’s really good to see the perspective from the other side of the fence.

]]> By: Eliza_Do_Lots http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/bloggers-and-brands-what-happens-now/#comment-30588 Wed, 06 Mar 2013 10:29:36 +0000 http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/?p=3951#comment-30588 I’m really fussy about what I will put on my blog – and I made a decision some time back to really limit the paid for content to things I would actually be interested in reading or services I’d actually use – and instead I tend to do reviews where I get to keep something nice – it’s not an income as such but it saves my outgoings if that makes sense.

I would love, of course, to be paid for content a lot more – but I know that as a reader of blogs I very quickly get turned off by most sponsored posts.

I think that a lot of companies are still playing catch up with what our TIME is worth – not just what they get in return for their item/cash but the time we invest in doing it – they need to consider compensating for THAT too. They wouldn’t get an advert in a national paper for a freebie in a lot of cases – and the paper certainly wouldn’t give them that space for a tweet!

I don’t really know where I’m going now – I think this whole relationship is still in flux and will be for some time – we have to encourage the newer/smaller bloggers to place value on their commodity too in order to get the same for ours.

]]> By: Mummy Barrow http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/bloggers-and-brands-what-happens-now/#comment-30587 Wed, 06 Mar 2013 08:54:35 +0000 http://www.mothersalwaysright.com/?p=3951#comment-30587 I am sick to death of these agencies thinking bloggers are stupid.

I am in dispute with one who asked me to write an article and we agreed a price. That was it.

I upheld my side of the bargain, duly labelled it as sponsored and sent them the link.

“oh could you remove the word sponsored, we absolutely cannot have that on there”.

Er no. You cannot.

They think we will fall for their blatant lies and that we don’t know what the rules that WE NEED to adhere to state. Not just what Google state (there are some that don’t care what Google say, Google is not law after all). However the ASA is law and I will not damage my reputation for some SEO who is trying to bully bloggers for their client.

Sorry, that got a bit ranty (not like me ).

Great post, Molly

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