I have heard snarky remarks in regards to “Mom Bloggers” that just do nothing but promote. Which in some cases is very true.
But what I wonder is this. Those that say that type of thing, did they ever stop to wonder why “Mom Bloggers” promote, promote, promote?
Hobby.
Some just need/want a hobby and it’s their niche.
Enjoyment.
They love doing it.
Just what happened.
They began their blog for their own personal corner of the blogosphere, and then the ball began rolling and here it is.
Want.
I have seen, and I’m sure you (our readers) have witnessed gross amounts of blogger greed. If you have not, then you are by many means, very fortunate.
Fad.
Look around, ’nuff said.
Necessity.
Now, that one can come with a bit of controversy. To each his/her own thoughts, reasons and feelings.
Not everyone makes a six-digit income. And creating relationships with social media networking is a wonderful way to give themselves a hand up, rather than asking for a hand out. If you think about it, wouldn’t it be a great way to benefit both the brand and the blogger?
So before you bang a bloggers head, ask yourself why they may be doing what they’re doing. I’m sure there are numerous other reasons that people blog, but in regards to this post those were the ones that was on the tip of my tongue fingertips.
I ran across a great article on TD Monthly, written by Anna M. Lewis. A wonderful article! But I was disheartened on two points of her post.
The title.
How to Use Mommy Blogs to Promote Your Products
Free Publicity Comes With a Price
Ouch Anna! That just kicked me. I’m sure you didn’t mean that the way it reads. But from my perspective it really felt like a kick. I really would have felt so much better if you would have opted to use something along the lines of “How to Work With Mommy Blogs to Promote Your Products”
There have been times I have literally had to tell a company/brand that enough was enough because they wanted absolute and total free coverage with my time to write up a giveaway. One company in particular is huge. After nearly 30 emails, I refuse to post the giveaway without a “bone” for myself. (sorry I can’t avoid sarcasm all the time, but I do put forth effort at times.) Just priceless.
Don’t ask a blogger to just post for free, we pay for our bandwidth, we build our sites and the majority of us worked ourselves up from the absolute bottom. We buy our names, and establish ourselves, our readers, our sites … I could go on and on here. Just don’t assume that a blogger is going to do it for free. Be realistic and don’t be stingy.
The 2nd aspect that made my toes curl in Anna’s article was “…this equates to free (yes, free) marketing of your product or products.”
Maybe I’m being overly emotional or just touchy. But to me it feels like it’s saying … Use Mommy Blogs! Free for all, run!
Don’t use bloggers. Many of us aren’t going to jump rings of fire for a $5 or a $50 product. As I said earlier, just throw us a bone. 🙂 Anna, if you read this, I thoroughly enjoyed your article, and as a blogger I thank you for pointing out to companies that it’s okay to reach out to bloggers, you gave some wonderful points on how to select a reputable blog to work with.
And on a final note. Don’t be mean! There is one well known lady that works with toy brands, over the course of a year I sent her a pitch (probably 4 or 5 separate occasions) for different products not realizing that she was the PR Rep. I won’t be working with her now. I found her to be rude and offensive. I’m a person too. Now a year later, and significant growth, continue to pass me by because I’m not the only one you were mean to.
