Mark Hinkle has been the editor in chief of two industry trade publications and a blogger for nearly five years. He recently posted an amazingly comprehensive guide for PR people who want to reach out to influential blogs called PR Tip: How to Pitch a Blogger.
I agree with all of Mark's suggestions. Like Mark, I also get hundreds of unsolicited press releases and PR pitches each week and I can say that 99 percent of them suck. Worse, some are so poorly written as to harm the reputation of the company (or agency) that sent it. Unfortunately, most are just spam.
I would add a tip of my own to Mark's list: Don't tell us what your product does (that’s boring and usually just goes down a rat hole of gobbledygook). Instead, tell us how your company solves problems for your customers.
If you're in PR and are trying to get your company (or your clients) noticed by bloggers, read Mark's post.
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That's a post, David. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. In my own business, I'm finding that I'm spending a lot more time educating my clients about this very topic.
Posted by: Dave | September 09, 2007 at 11:43 PM
This is critical right now. Ogilvy just posted their Blogger Outreach
Code of Ethics, which is a must-read. http://blog.ogilvypr.com/?p=238
Of course, it might help if they get the blogger's name right too. http://www.scottmonty.com/2007/09/they-almost-had-me.html
Posted by: Scott Monty | September 10, 2007 at 12:43 AM
David,
All I can say, is thank you!!! This is great information.
Posted by: Christine | September 10, 2007 at 12:23 PM
Dave, Scott, and Christine:
It is my pleasure. I'm glad this is helpful!
Cheers, David
Posted by: David Meerman Scott | September 10, 2007 at 04:28 PM
Great post. I am new to social media marketing with no formal training and of course I have made numerous mistakes. But the best part is...I learn from each one and am able to move on with more knowledge than before. Tips like these really help!
Posted by: Kristen | September 14, 2007 at 10:57 AM
David thanks for pointing me to these posts and others in answer to my blogger outreach question on the Pragmatic Marketing site. All very helpful as we develop our launch plan.
Your webinar (found here http://www.pragmaticmarketing.com/resources/archived-webinars/webinar_archive )
was really helpful as well.
Posted by: Sally Felkai | January 08, 2008 at 02:23 PM
I am a blogger and I respond to press release inquiries that sound smart, innovative, and professional. Spelling errors usually get me to stop reading the email and ignore the emailer.
Posted by: Bobby Roberts | August 13, 2008 at 02:35 PM
this is interesting.
Posted by: Social Media Marketing | January 29, 2009 at 01:30 PM