A PR Consultant's Top 5 Tips to Scoring Sponsored Posts:

Making money from blogs. We all want to do it. It's the ideal - the holy grail - the "if only" when we begin, yet not all of us know how to go about it.

Fear not! As a PR Consultant who has done extensive work with bloggers and influencers on behalf of brands, I have put together my TOP 5 TIPS to set your site up for sponsorship! 

Full disclaimer:
I have not done any sponsored posts in my blogging career, nor have I been approached - for the simple reason that I am new to the blogging world. I have, however, sat on the other side and been a key consultant when it comes to evaluating blogs and 'grams to approach for sponsored content. So this is my very personal, specific advise to you about what some PR agencies and brands look for when determining who to sponsor. 

​1) STATS STATS STATS
Statistics, ladies and gentleman, is KEY and that is why it is first on this list. 
Before you even think about approaching brands for sponsorship deals, remember that your stats have to be good. 

If you've only been blogging for a month and your page views are at 1,000 then I am sorry - you are not there yet. Keep blogging, keep promoting and slowly you will be on your way to having a site that brands will be keen to work with. 

Now I'm not saying you need to have 100,000 unique visitors per month or bust. I am saying that please don't approach any agencies or brands offering your blog as a platform for them if your stats cannot reflect your promises. 

What do I mean by Stats? Easy:
- Your average monthly Page Views
- Your average monthly Unique Visitors
- Your social media following & engagement (percentage of followers that interact with your content)

Once you are more established with a more consistent amount of views and visitors, consider putting together a media kit ready to reach out to brands you identify as fitting your genre and keep writing and working on your blog to increase your visibility and thus your opportunity.

NB - Please DO NOT BUY FOLLOWERS AND LIKES. Many brands have coined on to this and can recognise when stats have been fudged. 

2) IT'S ALL ABOUT THE MONEY 
When starting out, make sure you MANAGE YOUR EXPECTATIONS with regards to how much you can initially charge. 

How much you charge per post is directly linked to the Reach your brand has - inclusive of followers on social media and visitors on your blog.

For example, if you are a new blog with stats below 5,000 page views and less than 5,000 followers on Insta, please don't request a fee of $5000. You will not be considered a valuable investment on the part of the brand, and will not be taken seriously. 

Brands may even have their own in house contra-evaluaton formula that they will use to calculate the monetary value that your platform provides them. They will not offer anything to you that is above this pre-calculated amount.

​The most important thing is to do some research into what you are worth with your current stats and pitch your rates accordingly. 

The best thing to do while starting out is show a willingness to work with the brand to come up with something that benefits both of you - while understanding that just because you aren't earning much now does not mean you won't earn much in the near future. 

In a nutshell:
If you are a new travel blog do not approach a 5-star luxury hotel requesting 3 free nights + $1000  in exchange for a review. They will not take you up on that offer (unless you are very lucky). Rather, let them know you are coming to stay and review, provide your media kit and ask them if there is anything they would like you to promote while you are there. They will either offer you the night free or put together some things for you to try while staying with them based on your contra value. 

3) SHOW WHAT YOU CAN DO
Should you review products if you haven't been paid to do so?

YES. YES. YES. 

As you are growing and aiming to achieve a certain level of income from your blog, you need to be able to provide examples of your writing and build a foundation of reliability for your readers. 

Pick any products you like from around your house and write a review - pay particular attention to products you would be keen on being sponsored to promote in the future , that befit your lifestyle and brand. 

The benefit of this is two fold:
a) It will set the groundwork for your readers believing in you and your opinions. This is crucial as once you start posting sponsored content your readers will be more inclined to believe that you have a personal belief in the product you are sharing, rather than just sharing it for money;

and b) This will provide clear examples for brands and PR's to compare when determining who to offer sponsored content to. Brands like to see that you have a history with certain categories of products, while having examples can show them whether your style of review suits their purposes. 

Not all brands are keen to be the "first" so by being able to demonstrate a history of product reviews, you are more likely in with a chance to scored that coveted sponsorship. 

4) SMALL IS NOT ALWAYS A BAD THING
As you are starting out on your sponsorship journey, be sure to think carefully about the brands you will approach.

Being small is not always a bad thing - my advice is to target smaller brands in your favored niche offering them your services. These smaller brands may not have the influencer budget of the larger ones, making you an asset to them and their books. 

Offer your platform for giveaways, free reviews in exchange for product and cost-effective reviews and slowly your relationships will build as will your stats, and your sponsorship abilities. 

For example, if you are a new beauty blogger, consider smaller make up and skin care brands that may not have the budget to sponsor the larger influencers.

5) BE PROFESSIONAL
Be professional at all costs, people.

The more professional and helpful you are, the more likely brands will approach you a second time. 

Be confident in what you can offer, be willing to be flexible if necessary and be as helpful as you can when answering any questions a brand may put to you. 

By showing a respect for the brand and the brand representative you are speaking to, the more likely they will think of you the next time they have an opportunity. 


So there you have it, my 5 tips from the perspective of a PR professional who has worked with plenty of bloggers and influencers in her time. 

If you have any more questions, feel free to email me by clicking on the PR SERVICES tab in the footer. 

And don't forget to comment below with any of your tips, tricks or sponsorship stories below - and let me know if you disagree with anything I have said! 

xxx Rivka