Pitch to Influential Bloggers... Carefully
Bloggers have a different set of needs than traditional journalists. Here's why:
Typical print journalists have a love-hate relationship with email press releases. On one hand, largely irrelevant press releases overstuff their email boxes. On the other hand, journalists need this constant supply of story ideas because they work under tight deadlines and have a quota to fill.
In contrast, most bloggers have a largely hate relationship with press releases, because they have no mandated article quota or deadline (other than those they set for themselves). So, the impersonal press releases that overstuff a blogger's mailbox are just a nuisance.
The formal pitches that work with print journalists may backfire when sent to bloggers, who may not want form letters and lengthy press releases sent to their inbox. Instead, many bloggers prefer truly personal, friendly notes with offers of help. This requires more of your effort than dealing with traditional journalists, so pitching to bloggers should be limited to the most popular and influential for your cause.
Use the popular blog search engine http://Technorati.com to identify the bloggers you want to target. This website can search by tags, blog topics, or blog posts. Technorati also gives each blog an authority ranking, which makes it easy for you to discover with bloggers are worth pitching. Select blogs that are relevant to your topic, have a high authority rating in comparison to other blogs on the topic, and receive a relatively large number of incoming links from many different blogs. Do not rely solely on the number of incoming links, as some shady bloggers manipulate the results by creating massive amounts of links to and from websites they own.
As an example, a search for "global warming" in Technorati's blog directory yields the following results page:
The 446 blogs that use "global warming" as a description tag are sorted by authority. Since the Real Climate blog has the highest authority rank, has the most incoming links, and was recently updated, a successful pitch to this blogger would likely have the highest impact. A quick look at the blog itself will help you make sure that its content and advertising are in line with the message you want to convey. Go back to the results page and use the provided information to select several additional highly ranked bloggers you want to contact.
Before you start drafting a pitch letter to a blogger, work on forming the foundation for a relationship. To start, simply join the conversation at his blog. After a few weeks, send the blogger a friendly email letting him know that you enjoy his blog and that you would like to be a resource for him. Supply him with links to some helpful resources related to his content. Then, suggest that he subscribe to your RSS feed, where you'll provide even more useful links related to his topic.
Once you've established a relationship, it's usually okay to send your pitch by email. The pitch should be personal, friendly, and down-to-earth. Address the blogger by his first name. Remind him of your interaction with the blog and relate your pitch to a recent post.
Then, provide a brief summary (50 words or less) of what your press release covers and why it should matter to him and his audience. Tailor this section specifically for each blogger. Don't flaunt the general virtues of your organization; tell the blogger why this information is personally relevant to him or his readers. Does it answer one of his questions? Is it on a topic the blog has regularly or recently discussed? Will it help him connect with his audience? After reading the blogger's posts for at least a few weeks, you should have a good idea of what sort of facts will be relevant.
Include a link early in your pitch email. Don't assume that bloggers will take the time to read through your entire press release to find your website. The summary should give all the information bloggers to promote your cause. You can paste your press release below the summary, but assume that bloggers won't get to it.
If possible, offer bloggers a token of appreciation. Since blogging is most often a job of passion and not a salaried position, bloggers often appreciate a little recognition for their hard work. Can you send tickets to your annual charity ball, an autographed book written by your organization's founder, a free t-shirt? Make sure your token of appreciation is offered as a gift and is not contingent on the receipt of publicity. Not only will these tokens get the blogger's attention, they will serve as a constant reminder of your organization and cause.
Note: Keep in mind that many traditional journalists write personal blogs in addition to their newspaper or magazine columns. When reporters are unresponsive at their offices, try pitching them through their blogs. You may be surprised to find that a journalist who is unreachable at his "day job" will be more than happy to talk to you when you use the contact information found on his personal blog.
