A few weeks ago, while conducting blogger outreach for a client, I ran up against an interesting dilemma. Several of the bloggers I reached out to had agreed to write about my client’s event, but requested money in the form of a “sponsored post” to do so. Generally the fee was $100-150 a post, which doesn’t sound like much, but coming from a world where “earned media” is the name of the game, I was a little taken aback.
Not exactly sure how sponsored posts play into my position as a PR counselor, I wanted to see what others in the industry had to say about sponsored posts and their value. I found a fascinating article on DaveFleet.com called “Why Paying Bloggers For Posts Changes The Game.”
In the article, Dave discusses three ways that sponsored posts are changing the game:
- Earned media has more credibility. According to Dave, “PR has traditionally played in the ‘earned media’ space,” and “earned media brings with it lots of advantages.” The main advantage is simply that earned media has more credibility thanks to third-party endorsement. Even though bloggers ultimately have the ability to decline a story idea or write on something totally different than what you suggest, I agree with Dave. Speaking from personal experience, when I see sponsored posts I question if the product is REALLY good or not. Says Dave: “You earn coverage; you pay for ads. You can’t have things both ways.”
- The roles change. According to the article, “On the earned media side, the PR person is looking for a win-win situation – they’re looking to win through favorable coverage; meanwhile, they’re looking to provide value to the blogger through content opportunities that fit their needs.” Once a blogger accepts payment for a post, Dave contends, they become a service provider and the PR person is the client. This puts a lot of pressure on the blogger as now there is a real expectation of quality service (i.e., positive coverage of your client organization).
- Bloggers need to compete for budget. With a lagging economy there is competition for marketing expense budgets. As such, PR pros and marketers have found creative ways to maximize the value and results they can earn on a limited budget. Paying for placements in a budget-conscious environment may be difficult.
After reading this article, I can see both the benefits and drawbacks of paid blog posts. However, because earned media has more credibility, I believe in most instances it’s best to develop compelling story ideas and work closely with the bloggers to create a mutually beneficial story without paying them.