PR To Blog Communications: Best Practices
I've been blogging for a long time - so it's only natural that I get a lot of e-mails asking for links. Most of the time, these are bulk e-mails from "marketing" companies looking to boost their companies SEO, but in the last six months - PR Firms have started to send me press releases, and sometimes - when they really want to get in front of one of my blogs - they send me personal notes.
I won't dwell on the bad ones - there are plenty of examples of poor PR to Blog communications, but I did want to give props to one firm and one individual who took the time to read my blog, send me a hand-crafted note, and respond with questions.
Derek Karchner of Rosenberg Communications works with the Hitachi Foundation, a non-profit initiative that works with local communities to help train workers on the skills needed to keep good jobs. Derek had a story about a partnership with Minneapolis that was bearing fruit, and so he passed the story on to me at a blog I write with Harry Joiner over at Duct Tape Marketing on employment.
Derek took time to hand craft the message, personalize it, tell me why he thought the content would be useful, and left his contact information should I have follow-up questions. When I did respond, he put me in touch with the people at the Hitachi Foundation when I had some extra questions, and followed up with me to make sure I had everything I needed.
That took time - real effort - and I reciprocated with a post on his story, because it made sense in the content of my blog. The personal effort is the best practice I want to showcase. It made a difference for me in responding.
So the question, is why PR folks don't do more of this. Time is often cited as a reason. How are busy PR folks supposed to take the time to make friends with all of these bloggers? Are they supposed to suck up to these people who prior to their blogs had no real influence? Not at all. Derek didn't prostrate himself in front of me and beg for a link. He took the time to understand my community (the one he was trying to reach), and in return, I did my best to introduce his content to the community he wanted to reach.
Thank you, Derek. I would recommend you and your firm to anyone who asked. And if you have more content, I'll be happy to work with you on getting that message out.
I won't dwell on the bad ones - there are plenty of examples of poor PR to Blog communications, but I did want to give props to one firm and one individual who took the time to read my blog, send me a hand-crafted note, and respond with questions.
Derek Karchner of Rosenberg Communications works with the Hitachi Foundation, a non-profit initiative that works with local communities to help train workers on the skills needed to keep good jobs. Derek had a story about a partnership with Minneapolis that was bearing fruit, and so he passed the story on to me at a blog I write with Harry Joiner over at Duct Tape Marketing on employment.
Derek took time to hand craft the message, personalize it, tell me why he thought the content would be useful, and left his contact information should I have follow-up questions. When I did respond, he put me in touch with the people at the Hitachi Foundation when I had some extra questions, and followed up with me to make sure I had everything I needed.
That took time - real effort - and I reciprocated with a post on his story, because it made sense in the content of my blog. The personal effort is the best practice I want to showcase. It made a difference for me in responding.
So the question, is why PR folks don't do more of this. Time is often cited as a reason. How are busy PR folks supposed to take the time to make friends with all of these bloggers? Are they supposed to suck up to these people who prior to their blogs had no real influence? Not at all. Derek didn't prostrate himself in front of me and beg for a link. He took the time to understand my community (the one he was trying to reach), and in return, I did my best to introduce his content to the community he wanted to reach.
Thank you, Derek. I would recommend you and your firm to anyone who asked. And if you have more content, I'll be happy to work with you on getting that message out.
posted by James Durbin @ 5:35 AM PERMALINK
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