Blogger outreach (sometimes called influencer marketing) is when businesses and bloggers combine to create kick-ass promotional content. The business usually provides samples of its products in return for a review or as prizes in a giveaway — sometimes both.

Isn’t blogger outreach a complicated process that only works for hipster-friendly businesses?

You might have heard bad things about working with bloggers — whether it’s because of the rise of influencer imposters or the hotel owner who called out an influencer for asking for free accommodation and banned all bloggers. The narrative in the mainstream media is that bloggers are just entitled millennials who are impossible to work with.

The reality, of course, is much more nuanced. Yes, many bloggers are quite young — which makes sense, considering how new an industry it is — but there are many people out there in their 40s and 50s with great blogs as well.

Yes, some bloggers can be difficult. But some plumbers can be difficult, some restaurant owners can be difficult, and some TV repair people can be difficult. As with anything else, it’s about finding the right people. Chosen carefully and used well, bloggers can play an important role in your outreach campaign.

The truth is…

Blogger outreach is actually quite simple. If you have a product or service that bloggers will love, you contact bloggers and ask them to write about it and include a link back to your site. If you choose relevant bloggers with a good following, this can form a valuable part of your link building strategy.

So, have you got a physical product or a great service that bloggers would love? Of course you do. Every business does. You love your product or service — that’s why you started this business in the first place — so there’s no reason why a blogger wouldn’t love it, too.

If you think bloggers wouldn’t care about your product, think again. You’d be amazed by the variety of bloggers out there — it’s much more than just food, fashion and travel. There are financial bloggers, technology bloggers, film bloggers and many, many others. Whatever your niche, there is someone out there who loves to blog about it.

In short, blogger outreach is a content marketing strategy that can work for everyone. You just need to find the right person.

Types of blogger outreach

The type of blogger outreach you do will depend on your business, and there are a few awesome options to choose from…

1. Sponsored posts

These are posts that a blogger is paid to write and publish, with mentions and links to your brand. The amount of money needed to pay for a sponsored post depends on the popularity and influence of the blogger, as well as the type of post you request. Be sure to agree on terms beforehand, making it clear what you want from the post.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) states a blogger should always declare when they’ve received money for a post, so there will usually be a disclaimer at the end of sponsored posts stating this.

2. Product reviews

Another tactic used by businesses is to send their products out to bloggers in return for a review, whether in the form of a video, blog post, or photos on social media. Everyone loves getting free stuff, so bloggers are bound to have a smile on their face before they’ve even tried your product. If they use it and love it, you can be sure they’ll tell the world.

3. Product features

A product feature is similar to a review. However, instead of a formal review, your product will be featured in a post on a broader topic. For example, a travel blogger might write about their trip to Spain and casually mention that they were using your awesome backpack at the time.

4. Giveaways

Running a giveaway is super-effective for both blogger and brand. The idea is that you, as the brand, provide the prize and the blogger or influencer hosts the competition — that might be on YouTube, their blog, or on another social media platform. Wherever they choose to do it, you can bet people will enter, giving your brand some priceless exposure.

Blogger events

For fans of real-life things, running a blogger event is the way to go. Influencers are invited to attend an event that showcases your brand in exchange for blogging about it. Getting coverage from lots of bloggers at once is a killer way of giving your brand a turbo-boost.

You could even create event hashtags to get a better idea of your ROI, or just to keep a digital record of the time your content marketing campaign absolutely crushed it. Blogger events take a considerable amount of time and effort to organise, but the reward is worth it.

Watch our podcast to find out How to Earn Links, Traffic, and Sales from Influencers.