Blogger outreach is when a brand collaborates with a blogger to promote a product, brand or company.
This is done by the creation of a blog post, either by the brand or the blogger, which is then published on the blogger’s site and shared across their social channels. In some cases you will be receive a backlink to your website, which can help improve your search engine optimisation (SEO).
According to Orbit Media’s blogger survey, 64% of bloggers publish their content on other sites in the form of a guest post, creating a backlink to their own site. Backlinks act as votes of authority from one site to another and help improve that page’s Google ranking.
If you are looking to increase your business’s online presence by working with bloggers, here are a few dos and don’ts:
DO
Build relationships / Personalisation
Building relationships with bloggers is vital for maintaining an ongoing working relationship. Always remember to use their name when emailing or calling, keep them up to date on all timescales, advise them of any changes and ask them for guidance on what their blog audience might like.
Create relevant content
You should always ensure all content created is relevant to the site you are going to publish on, and that it’s suitable for its readers. If a business is writing the content, for instance, you should read a few of the blog posts already published on its site to get a feel for the tone of voice used – ask the blogger for input on style if you are unsure. If the blogger themselves is writing it, make sure you give clear guidelines on the content you want in the article and how you would like it to be structured – and don’t forget to ask to approve the content before it gets published.
Create a database of contacts
Creating a database of contacts is an easy way for you to be able to monitor the bloggers you have worked with in the past. Here you can categorise them by the niche of their site, the Domain Authority of the site and the amount of social interaction they receive.
Having a database in place is useful for time management; with all of your contacts in one place, you can also keep a record of bloggers you would like to work with in the future and also those who may not want to work with your brand.
Use tools
There are plenty of tools out there to help with blogger outreach – some of the best are:
CRM: NinjaOutreach, Buzzstream, Traackr and GroupHigh.
Link analysis: Quora, Moz Pro and SEMrush.
Trend ideation tools: SEMrush, Google Ads Keyword Planner and Answerthepublic.
Ask for social sharing
It is good practice to check the blogger’s social reach and activity. If the blogger has a well-engaged social audience, it’s well worth asking them to not only publish the blog on their site but to also share it across their social channels for further exposure.
Ask for backlinks
As simple as it sounds – just send out an email and ask the blogger for a link to your page. You are not offering anything in return (such as a guest post), but just some camaraderie between bloggers to try to boost your rankings.
Monitor and measure
This is a vital step to link-building, as there is no point in a marketing campaign if you are not going to monitor its progress and measure the impact it has had on your rankings. You can monitor your campaign through Mention – this site will show you your mentions across social channels, blog posts and forums. To measure your campaign’s ROI (Return On Investment) you can use Google Analytics – this is also a good tool to measure what your audience is searching your site for, to identify your worst-performing pages and also your best.
DON’T
Be unrealistic
Remember that many bloggers have full-time jobs and are also parents, as well as running their blog. Be realistic with your timeframes, both for replies to your emails and for content to be published.
Many bloggers will have publication schedules done on a monthly basis due to their workload.
Fail to do your research
Always read a blogger’s advertising guidelines before contacting them. The majority will have strict rules on the type of collaborations they accept on their site. Many bloggers may not accept guest posts and prefer to create their own content; others will not accept dofollow links in accordance with Google guidelines. Ensuring you consider this will give you a higher reply rate.
Mass Email
By personalising your email rather than bulk sending, not only are you able to personalise your approach for each blogger, but you will also avoid cross-referencing data. Your emails with each blogger should be personal to them and the campaign/article you are looking to run with them.
When done correctly, blogger outreach is a great way for businesses and brands to reach highly engaged audiences. If you do not have the resources in-house for blogger outreach, you can always seek external help by the way of a copywriting agency – this is what we specialise in here at WooContent!
In need of high-quality copywriting services to bolster your content strategy? Get in touch with our experts for advice or a personalised quote.