Sometimes, an attempt to connect with an influential blogger can backfire for different reasons. If you’ve had trouble finding niche bloggers for your blogger outreach program, or if you have no idea how to go about this seemingly difficult task, here is a step-by-step guide that will give you a heads up.
Find the right bloggers online
This sounds simple. You google “running shoes bloggers” and you will be inundated with search results that list the top bloggers that write about and review running shoes. There is no dearth of bloggers today, right!
However, it is the next step that needs your full attention. Filtering the enormous search results for blogging sites that are a good fit for your brand and that have the target audience you want—this is where most business owners and their online marketing executives feel completely overwhelmed.
You need to shortlist the right people, see if they have the influence (following) you expect from your bloggers, make them an offer they won’t be able to refuse, and then go about coordinating content publication and promotion with them.
If you have an in-house digital marketing expert, they’ll know how to use Google’s advanced search operators and other sophisticated research tools when looking for specialty bloggers with expertise in writing on a particular subject. If not, we recommend that you outsource the entire task to a digital agency that specializes in blogger outreach and guest blogging.
Establish a personal connection at the very outset
In most cases, leading bloggers won’t care to reply to a generalized email or a newsletter that’s been sent to fifty other bloggers. If you wish to associate with a high-authority blog site, send a personalized yet professional email with an attention-grabbing subject.
The way you communicate with a successful blogger in your industry should send them a clear signal that you mean business and that they have much to gain from this association.
Pay attention to the content of your communication
If you did choose to go the email way, you have already taken the first step to get the blogger’s attention. The next important step is to draft an email that lets the blogger know the following key aspects of your offer:
Brief intro about your business; the brand and product you’d like featured and why; benefits for the blogger if they agree to publish your guest post or to review your product/service; some topic suggestions; and of course your contact details.
Lastly, follow up but don’t be pushy
There is always chance that the blog owner did not read your email. Or maybe they read it and were occupied or uninterested at the time. You’ll never know! The best thing is to send a gentle reminder and request for a response. The worst is to keep sending reminders until the receiver blocks you out.
If a blogger agrees to come on board, work out a content marketing strategy that benefits your brand as well as the blogger.
To conclude, blogger outreach is a process that requires patience, sophistication and respect for others’ time. If you do it right, you can have your content published on the A-list blogs and websites. Just avoid coming across as overly enthusiastic or forceful. Similarly, you can have top bloggers in a particular industry niche guest-posting on your site if they find that you value high-quality content and have something to offer that’s worth their time and effort.
Kidal Delonix is a contributor to Mr. Hoffman's blog. The views and opinions are entirely his/her own and may not reflect Mr Hoffman's views.
