Being a blogger, working with brands is one of the perks of the job. Not only is that a way that you can earn money, but it is a way that you can build up relationships with PRs and brands, as well as boost your following and interaction. If the brands are ones that you really enjoy and are passionate about, then it can mean some great content for your readership too, as well as sharing some useful products and giving tips for use or advice (as well as things that you can be honest about if they weren’t that good).
But what are the best ways to work with brands? With blogging being such a relatively new thing, it does change and we are all learning. I am someone that has been a professional blogger for three years now (though I cringe at that term ‘professional’), I thought I would share a few blogging tips and some of the things that have worked for me. Hopefully, it will help you get some great collaborations, work with the brands that you love, and importantly, generate an income. The sky is the limit!
Increase Your Domain Authority
When I started out blogging I had no idea what ‘domain authority’ was, or DA as you might see it in blogger forums and groups. But looking for ways to increase your domain authority is part and parcel of getting paid work. In short, your domain authority shows just that, how much of an authority it is on the internet. Out of 100, sites like YouTube and Facebook have a DA of 100. To get regular work as a blogger, most people will want it to be above 20 (mine is currently 41).
You can increase your rating by getting backlinks to your site (internal links, as well as links from commenting or guest posting). You can also increase your ranking by getting rid of broken links, and making sure that your SEO (search engine optimisation) for each post, is on point. So think keywords, titles, and meta data.
Have a Stellar Pitch
As someone that pays the bills through blogging, it has to be said that there is nothing wrong with pitching to a brand that you’d love to work with. While I don’t do it too much, and find most work comes to me, it can be a good thing to do, especially if you’re working on something in particular that would work well for a certain brand.
I’m sure many of us saw the unprofessional way that Elle Darby was exposed after she pitched to a brand (a hotel). While it wasn’t dealt with well by the hotel, the pitch also wasn’t the best.
You need to state what you can do for the brand, whether that be suggesting ways to work together, as well as what you can do in exchange; how many times will you share on social media? Could you do a live video at an event or attraction? Talk about the blog post or video that you can create and go into detail. Research the brand too. One thing that Elle didn’t do was to look up the hotel and see that it is a place that likes to stand out and be controversial, so pitching to them might not have been the best move. At the end of the day, though, they can only say no. But be professional and be clear about what you’re after, but also in detail about what they can expect in return.
Use Online Platforms To Look For Work
With blogging getting bigger and better, and more and more brands and businesses getting on board with it and seeing the value in it, there are more and more platforms online that you can look for paid work. Take content marketing company, Content Mother, as an example. It has just launched its services of affordable Blogger Outreach for small businesses. So more and more businesses can stay what they are after, but sites like that can take care of it and find the bloggers. Other places to look for work are places like Bloggers Required, Get Blogger, and The Blogger Programme, to name just a few.
Be Social (Especially Twitter)
Getting on social media is really important for any blogger, but if you want to work with brands, it is even more important. I find that most brands are active on Twitter the most, especially small businesses. Follow, interact, and learn more about them. Then if an email comes from you, they can connect the dots. Plus, many PRs that do the outreach for the brands are online too. So it is a good thing in a lot of ways.
How have you got paid work as a blogger before? Hope this helps!
*collaborative post – all opinions are my own.
All fab tips. A stealer pitch is a must and defo something I need to improve on. Being social is also a must x
Thanks!
I agree that a pitch can be a make or break thing. You really need to sell yourself. Great tips
Defo, thank you!
These are some great tips, especially for beginners. I find I have had more opportunities come through from Instagram recently, the joys of direct contact from a Business account.
Ashleigh-Jayne O’Connell recently posted…Things to do on a weekend in Prague
Instagram is fantastic for this sort of thing!
Such great tips. Having a good pitch is important . I’ve not sent a pitch in a while though so need to rewrite one.
Joanna Bayford recently posted…Green Dragon Eco Farm | #TacticalTuesdays
Glad you found these helpful!
Fab tips here, I definitely need to work on my pitching skills. Jo x
Thanks!
It’s all about the pitch! Couldn’t agree with you more 🙂
I’ve not really done much pitching and it’s something I’m looking into . My work tends to come direct. The longer you blog the better relationships you build and the more work you tend to get. It’s all about hanging in there.
Linda Hobbis recently posted…How To Transform Your Family Kitchen On A Budget
The pitch is really important, you need to grab the attention of the brand within the first couple of sentences. These are some excellent tips.
These are really great tips, Rebecca 🙂 I think the whole Elle Darby fiasco was awful. I know her pitch wasn’t great, but how overboard did the hotel go?!
Louise x
Great advice! I’m working on building my DA, but find my presence on social media had really helped me most so far 😊