So like I was saying....I was at an Ad Club event last night in the 6th Avenue offices of Yahoo.
It was my first one of these that I've attended outside of the tech community but two of my clients are in the marketing space so I thought I'd go along to see what there was to be seen.
There were a couple of interesting things at the end of the night but this isn't what this post is about - this post is about one of the worst ideas I think I've heard in a long time.
So I actually took a few pictures of the various competitors but they all look pretty much the same....guys giving powerpoints about their new startups (and some well funded startups too with some excellent boards/management ex Google people etc).
So what these guys are doing is providing an infrastructure where you as a brand manager can go and select the amount of money you are willing to pay someone to blog about your product on a paid basis.
The average amount paid per post is between $3 to $20
WTF!!!
So basically you have just spent a kazillion dollars in R&D to produce the latest titanium razors, spent a whole heap in wholesale education and delivery channels etc. Probably spent a boatload of advertising dollars in 'old school' media in print and tv campaigns.....and now you are going to pay someone $3 to write about your product in which you have no control over the content, tone, positioning or message.
In addition as a blogger what does this say about your reputation that you are willing to whore yourself out for $3.
This isn't like you have a long term sponsorship by dell to review their products or apple to use their laptops - this is a one off relationship that you are putting your name to....for $3-$20
Send me your address with a self stamped return envelope and I'll send you some spare change if you're that hard up.
Cheers,
Dean
bloggers that take $3 are flushing their reputation down the can. I was approached to blog for an eTicket company. I politely said "No" - I had already blogged about them, and wasn't going to rehash old ground, for free or for money. I did a search a few weeks later to see who HAD accepted the "invitation" (read: money). Made a note of those blogs. Other bloggers will "out" them eventually as Pay Per Post - particularly if there is no disclaimer. I will however blog if I'm invited to drinkypoos. :P
ReplyDeleteA friend of mine is in a wheelchair and blogs about technology/disabilities. Leader in the area. Sony/PR company sent him an email to blog about a new TV with disability accessibility. No offer of money, no gift, just a standard Press Release. This is not relationship building.
He said to me: I want to blog about the TV. But I hate that the PR company is being paid a fortune and I - living below the breadline - am meant to do it for free. I don't want sh!tty little presents either. But I don't want the assumption that as I'm a leading blogger on technology/disability, I should automatically do it for free.
I didn't know what to tell him. I don't think bombarding PR to bloggers is the way to do it. Why not cultivate a relationship with some key influencers, sponsoring them, building trust and maximise their social networks that way? 3 bucks a post sounds like a room of people who have run out of ideas...
>sounds like a room of people who
ReplyDelete>have run out of ideas...
Lol - love this comment.