Basically I'd say 2016 was a very good year for me
when it comes to working with Brands.
I worked with JiJi, Obi Worldphones, GearBest, Invicta
Africa, etc. 2017 is starting off with a partnership with
Romoss. Here's the question you may ask
How did you do that?
I'll explain the basics of working with brands and tips to
make the partnership a success.
Working with brands is one of the smartest ways to
monetize your blog while you're generating new readers.
Creating powerful brand partnerships is the holy grail of
the blogosphere.
But there's one thing: it needs a bit of work and unless
you’re very lucky, you'll have to put in a whole lot of
effort on yourself.
The right approach and attitude can make it quite easy.
Here are my tips :
Tip #1: Build Your Brand & Reputation
I don't see my blog as just another blog, I see it as a
brand.
The most important fact you should acknowledge is
that not every blog in the world is in a position to
partner up with high end brands. The Competition is
very high and brands are very limited in the amount of
bloggers they can work with.
Build Highly-Engaged Followers
You don't have to have lots of followers to work with
brands, it's not a requirement. Although a few brands
may need this.
However, brands are more interested in the quality of
your followers over the quantity. That means having
loyal followers, engaged comments on your posts and
authentic communication over social media is very
important. Your relationship with your followers and
readers is very valuable to brands, so start off by really
building that rather than simply trying to boost numbers.
Create A Strong Presence Online
Brands will also want to see a strong presence on
social media: one of the most effective forms of
advertising, it’s very important that you are on top of it.
Again – quality over quantity reigns supreme
Tip #2: Create An Attractive Media Kit
A media kit is quite necessary in giving brands a quick
and easy snapshot of what your blog is about. There are
a few recommended things that you should add to it.
An introduction about yourself: give them a quick
insight into your personality, why you started your blog
and what is important to you. Let them get to know the
face behind your brand. They want to work with you as
a person not just your blog.
About your blog: Is it a tech blog? Entertainment?
Sports? Define what your blog is
Blog statistics: Include your monthly page views,
monthly unique visitors, how often you post, and social
media stats. You can include your all time page views,
average time on site and bounce rates if possible.
Your accomplishments: It's more like a CV, list any
accomplishments you are particularly proud of. This can
be events you covered, awards you've won etc. You can
add list of brands, you've worked with or even have a
section of its own for this with all the brand logos and a
snippet of the work you carried out with them. You can
check my blog page partner page at the bottom of this
blog to see a sample.
If this is all in place, you now have to consider if your
blog is a right fit for the brands you want to work with.
This is important, and could save you a lot of time.
Ask yourself: is your blog relevant to their marketing
needs? Can you offer them something different from
other bloggers; a special insight on their products or
personal experience relating to them?
If the answer to these questions is YES… well, you’re
ready to go
Tip #3: Creating An Effective Email
In this part self confidence and optimism is the key rule
here.
So let’s start off specific with the things you need to
add to the email.
A clear subject line : Your title needs to be snappy and
straight to the point. Give them the information they
need so they know exactly what to expect from your
email.
Don't start asking brands or their reps questions like -
How are you doing?,How is work going?. Try to be
professional.
Your email needs to be professional but enticing.
Brands get a lot of emails per day asking for
collaboration, so make their life a little easier by being
transparent.
An introduction : Tell them all about yourself and what
your blog is about (including your audience
demographic and reach), as well as what you are
looking for out of a collaboration. Also add what you
love about their brand and why you want to work with
them… try to keep this as unique as possible.
Benefits of working with you : Now you can go into
even more detail. Let them know what they will gain as
a company from the partnership.
You can add examples of previous successful
partnerships you have taken part in to give an idea of
how it could also work for them.
How you plan to market their product:
Try to be specific. Give them actual examples of what
you could do for their brand, giving as many details as
possible so that they don’t have to ask more questions.
What type of advertising will you provide:
Let them now how you will advertise your post,
including individual statistics of all social media
channels you plan to share it on.
Contact info and media kit: These two are compulsory.
Make sure to include all relevant details for them to
contact you on as well as your media kit in an
attachment.
Show your true personality. Have fun with your email.
Let them know what they can expect from you, and
what you would expect from them.
.
Have a predefined idea of the brands you want to work
with. Every email will need to be tailored directly for
that brand. People can easily detect a blanket email a
mile off!
Above all, show confidence and knowledge throughout
all confidence. If you don’t believe in yourself, neither
will the brand.
Tip #4: Build A Long Lasting Relationship
When you’ve finally secured the collaboration.
Now you want to turn that into a long lasting
partnership. There are a few things you can do to help
make this a reality, many simply based around a good
workmanship.
First of all, stay engaged with the brand.
Throughout the first collaboration, keep in touch every
now and again to ensure they stay in the loop about
your progress. Try to be an active communicator. Any
positive feedback along the way should also be sent to
them as soon as it comes in.
Next: Over deliver! Stick with what you have promised
them and then go an extra mile to show them how
dedicated you are to providing the best work possible.
That could be through the simple inclusion of personally
designed graphics, professional looking photography or
an increased social media promotion.
NEVER BE LATE. There is nothing more unattractive to
a brand than tardiness!
Also remember: building strong relationships such as this
can take time. Do not be deterred and never put all your
eggs in one basket. Be prepared to reach out to many
different brands before you get a bite. It will be so very
worth it.
