360PR Blog

The personal nature of blogs was a recurring theme at BlogHer Business in New York this week. The conference opened with results of the 2008 Compass/BlogHer Social Media Study, presented by Susan Wright, Managing Director, Compass Partners.

According to research presented, more than 36 million women (Millennials, GenY, GenX, Boomers and Matures) in the US are involved in the blogosphere weekly – either as readers, reading blogs at least 2x weekly, or as publishers, publishing their own blog or posting. They’re looking for “advice, reviews and recommendations,” Wright said.

But if you can’t guarantee a positive review, why should companies venture in? “Getting bloggers to talk about your product or brand has a huge value and a balanced review is a win,” BlogHer’s Jory Des Jardins said.

So how do you join the conversation? First you have to find it, said Des Jardins. “Look at who’s out there doing what. Find the conversations already happening. The conversations are happening with or without you – you have the opportunity to participate.”

A theme underscored by several bloggers who spoke at the conference, such as Liz Gumbinner of Cool Mom Picks, is that a blog is much more personal than traditional media and calls for a more tailored approach, rather than broadcasting one message to a group of bloggers. And, “just because you can reach out to bloggers doesn’t mean you should,” cautioned Gumbinner. “It has to be relevant.” For instance, Gumbinner publishes product reviews on Cool Mom Picks, but does not review products on her personal blog, Mom-101.

Gumbinner was one of 21 bloggers recently interviewed about the role of photography in her life as a mom and blogger for Hewlitt Packard’s “Photographic Memories” campaign. “The interviews were used to underscore the value proposition of HP’s photo book products,” according to Susan Getgood, who worked with HP on the blogger outreach. The campaign, which put sample photo books in 5,000 moms’ hands, in addition to dozens of bloggers, help drove word-of-mouth and exceeded the sales goal for HP photo books by 10%.

Filed under: Blogger Relations |