Well congratulations mommybloggers:
We are all officially known as the Best Free Advertising Resource of the Marketing World.
Whoo-hoo!
It’s a big title, I know. Maybe too big to fit on a sash, when we walk down the aisle at our next mommyblogger pageant (brought to you by Piggly Wiggly and the makers of Turtle Wax). But I’m sure with a skillful hand, it can be cross-stitched in teeny lettering on a nice throw pillow and given away in a blog contest. Six extra entries if you Twitter it.
How do I know about this coveted accolade we’ve earned? Because yesterday, the advertising team at Cool Mom Picks (a small and worthy mom-run business if I ever knew one) spent a good deal of time putting together a proposal for a four-month advertising program for a major brand that was rejected because *gasp* we had the audacity to ask for actual money to run their banners.
Not giveaways for our readers.
Not “a link on our microsite” or “access to our event” or “gift cards for your readers” which is in fact what they were hoping to compensate us with.
Money. As in, that stuff we use to pay our writers and designers and tech guys and the US Postal Service and the fine discount hotels of Las Vegas during trade show season.
I think the actual response from the marketer was something like: Oh, we don’t need to pay for this. The mommyblogs are so great, they’re excited to help and do it in exchange for a link!
Here is the specific “help” they are referring to:
-Promotion on your website and all social media outlets (blog, Facebok, Twitter, etc)
-Placement of promotional banner ads on your blog with hyperlink
-Dedicated email blasts and/or inclusion in newsletter highlighting the promotion
-Promotional links on existing promotional material (ie on emails you send to your readers)
Now stop and think about that for a sec:
“Help.”
In exchange for a link.
Wow.
And it’s not even the first time I’ve heard that moms are lining up for this kind of exchange.
Now let’s be generous (very generous) and assume that their microsite sends you a whole 10 visits a day with that big ol’ promised link. That’s 300 visits a month. That’s 1200 visits over the length of this 4-month campaign. If you’re normally earning a $10 cpm on your banner ads (again, being generous here) and you’ve agreed to post their banner in your sidebar, you’ve just offered up 4 months of graphical banner advertising on your site (plus twittering, Facebook updates, emails, and so on) to a huge company for a whopping $12.
Why, I do believe their marketing agency is getting a bonus this year!
For a long term I’ve been writing about this stuff. (Hey, I’m in advertising and it’s on my mind. It’s a disease, really.) I’ve written about what you’re worth as a blogger. About why women in particular tend to undervalue ourselves. About self-promoting with class and dignity. About the difference between advertising and editorial, and understanding why we don’t ask PR agencies for money when they pitch us a story, but why we do ask for it when they want us to place their video widgets in our sidebars and stick a BRAND AMBASSADOR badge on our home pages right next to that photo of our children, you know, the cute one at the swimming pool.
I’ve said over and over that yes, what you do with your blog does affect the rest of us. And that just because a six year-old in the Guangdong Province is willing to build injection molded plastic toys for $.10 an hour doesn’t make it okay.
And just a few weeks ago, I got into an interesting discussion on Twitter, about why, if we’re signing a contract with a big marketer for a one year spokesperson gig, something some mommybloggers are angling to do right now, we need to stand up together and say–politely–why, thank you ever so much for the opportunity, Big Marketer, I can’t wait to get to work and do the greatest job ever. Now let’s talk fee…
Of course those marketers will get what they pay for. They always do.
But ack, it’s getting so frustrating to those of us who really care about this kind of stuff.
Let me stop here and assure you, I’m not actually upset at all about losing the proposal. Happens all the time. Let me also say I can’t blame the mommybloggers completely (although I think it’s wildly naive to imagine that we’d somehow get the long end of the stick on this one). I do understand that a major appliance or a Visa gift card or a trip to scenic Cincinatti is a dandy trade for the seemingly small task of promoting something, especially in a tough economy. Even the promise of “publicity”can be pretty darn appealing.
Really, I’m less annoyed about moms who are willing to work for coffee makers than I am about a big brand that is willing to pay a mom in coffee makers.
Or worse–links.
Simply because they can.
Because they know a mom will accept.
But here’s the thing, it won’t stop until we all say no. Until we all say, this isn’t good enough. And we send that marketing consultancy right back to their client, forced to confess that maybe this word of mouth campaign, this asking of the mommybloggers to do all of our advertising for no pay wasn’t such a great idea after all.
Wouldn’t it be nice if, just once, someone was forced to say, we underestimated the moms.
Even if you’re just starting out, even if you have 10 readers and two of them are your toddler twins, your time and effort and endorsement are worth something.
I believe in you. Can’t we all believe in ourselves?
—-
Edited to add: As always, I want to make it realllllly clear that I don’t believe in being paid for product reviews. That is not advertising, although I’ve seen it referred to as such by bloggers. That’s editorial. There’s some good clarification in comments, especially from Susan Getgood.
195 shards of brilliance… read them below or add one
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Amen!
Word.
Great post
Well said.
I love this post, but I have to say that it's easy to write about once you are “successful”(at least it seems to me that you are)-If I am wrong, I apologize. I am not going to lie. I want to make money, but just how do you get yourself “noticed” if you don't take the crappy smaller deals first? I actually know I am worth more, but convincing a big company of that is difficult….
That's a very good post. I completely agree.
I consider myself a pretty smart lady, but everything you said was kind of an “a ha” for me. I'm not sure why it never dawned on me before! Of course, I've never been asked to pimp someone's products, but I've seen other Mom blogs do it and have wondered how I could get in on it. And seriously, some freebie would have seemed like a cool trade to me. I can honestly say I would have never thought to ask for actual moolah in return. It bugs me now to think big marketers wouldn't be willing to fork over real dough for advertising.
That said, I'm also part of the handmade community that is trying to market my own stuff and in the spirit of “sharing the love”, I'm more than willing to promote someone else's craft/artwork for free. I do that hoping someone will return the kindness. Of course, if I flat out approached someone to promote my store, I'd fully expect to be asked to pay for that promotion…and I'm small beans compared to these big companies looking for freebie promotion.
As always, well put, Liz.
Every now and then a company surprises me and approaches me with a true paid advertising campaign (not advertorial, I don't go there as you know), but for the most part, I find myself responding with my rates. Come to think of it, I do that with a lot of those old “friends” who crawl out of the woodwork via Facebook who want me to help work my design or business consulting magic for them too. Hmm…
Anyway, my point is this. I keep banging this drum. Because companies need to know the ethical standard and “friends” need to know that I do, in fact, run a business and don't just sit around all day waiting for requests for free consulting. And though a large proportion of companies/people balk or just never respond back, the ones that do have the vision to see that get what they pay for, and usually even a little more. Because when I'm properly compensated for my time, I basically kick ass.
And yes, all moms deserve to believe in themselves enough to kick some ass too… when appropriately compensated for their work.
-Christine
I probably have less than 10 readers and I still don't to do any giveaways and reviews. Despite the knowledge that it will bring me readers. It's not why I blog.
Don't bloggers notice that when they write a post about their two-year old potty training they get maybe 5 comments, but when they do a giveaway they get 205?
And they're ok with that? It annoys me.
Everyone else can get paid in real money – the advertisers, marketers, brand employees, journalists, etc. – but not the mom bloggers who have worked hard to create their corner of the web with real, live communities of interested, participating followers? Pulease.
@Cathy — I understand this perspective but everyone starts from square one at some point. And I would venture to guess that the people who have found the most success are the ones who have maintained high standards and otherwise remain focused on creating great content that resonates with them. -Christine
FABULOUS! YES!
Companies who are interested in *gasp* quality over quantity will pay. Every time I get money for anything blog-related, it's from a company who gets it. You can't place all the blame on the second-rate bloggers, the brands need to understand that indeed, you do get what you pay for.
To the second-rate bloggers I'm referring to: WHORE!!
I had this big thing, but the reality is that I just want to say “Right On!”
Everyone repeat after me, “We have value. We have value”
You are brave to be the one to point out the elephant i the room. Needs to be acknowledged, debated, sorted out.
I am a new blogger, just started a few months ago. I know that free advertising will hurt the industry that we are building. But like Cathy said, Where do we start? Do we start on those crappy small deals to build a name for ourselves? Then have we made a name that we want to stand by? If we accept crappy deals, is that all we are going to be offered? I have yet to be approached but am trying to prepare for it when the time comes.
Hear, hear!! Thanks for a great post.
@Cathy I agree with Boston Mamas
One thing you can do is ask for say a fixed CPM for a banner which means the rate an advertiser pays per 1000 page views. A small blog won't earn the same as a blog with more traffic, but you'll be earning at the same rate.
Not everyone can charge Dooce rates (or Cool Mom Picks rates for that matter) but everyone can charge something, right?
And to clarify–as always–I don't mean charging for product “review” which I've always thought is a bad idea. But when you're asked to commit to a marketing program, like the one I outlined in this post? That's worth cash.
Fantastic, Liz. It is so important that you are out there saying this.
I have to say, this is why I do not accept money or gifts or anything from any company on my blog, nor do I do any advertising of any kind. I'm not suggesting other people should do this, but I consider my blog a marketing “expense” for my job as a professional writer. People see my work, hire me, I get paid. It is my platform, not my money maker.
Because of this, I feel beholden to no one, except my husband who thinks I write about him too much.
Anyway, thanks for this. You make me proud to be a blogger. Well done.
Kim
Hell yes.
Because you've enlightened me so, over the past year and a bit, I have begun returning those PR emails – asking for me to “share with my readers” – replies with my fees for such a post.
Not one has accepted.
And I'm NOT surprised.
I did do a campaign last summer for Leap Frog through an amazing PR firm in Toronto. They provided me with toys, toys for my friends' children, toys to donate to our daycare and a cheque for compensation. They were a blast to work with… but the thing that stuck with me most? The fact that they actually realized that I have better things to do with my time than just peddle their stuff for nothing. They made an attractive offer that we both benefitted from and it was a win-win for everyone!
So, all-in-all (sorry for the long-windedness) Amen! And thank you!!
The thing that I find most frustrating about this whole dynamic is that it has established a culture wherein so many marketers/companies/whomever seem to really and truly believe that they're doing bloggers a favor by offering 'the opportunity' to promote their products, wherein many of them are *aghast* when one responds with a fee structure or advertising proposal.
Too many companies don't see mom bloggers/parent bloggers as professionals of any sort – we're just people milling about in a public square, happy to have something to talk about (oh, hey, did you know that Victoria Beckham was spotted wearing a THIS AWESOME COMPANY tee? FASCINATING, isn't it? Want some free yogurt?), and NOT actual 'writers' or 'publishers'. And they seem uninterested in hearing about it.
@Cathy — If you have a prominent blog the ability to get noticed is that much greater, that can't be denied…but it doesn't make you any more successful.
Taking the free stuff is not going to get you “up the ladder” any faster. Taking that extra time to pitch yourself to the PR companies and ad agencies will leave a better impression that being one of the million mommy bloggers who are doing the PR companies work for free!
Just my two cents.
Blogger ate my comment (I think)-
this makes me nauseated! I have had a great experience with advertisers willing to pay my rate. I don't know why, but I still find it shocking that companies (and I assume a reputable one if you sent them a proposal) would even admit to that. SAD SAD
SAD FACE
Steph
Great post, Liz. My opinion is probably not in line with that of the majority here but I think that sometimes (and certainly not all the time) there can be value in working for free. How many of us had internships in college? You gain valuable experience, make important connections and can maybe leverage those opportunities into something that for you, is worth the investment of your time.
I do, however, agree wholeheartedly with the points you've made here because no matter what the value in working for “free” there is such a thing as exploitation and many companies are toeing the line (or have crossed the line) of taking advantage of us (us = bloggers; I'm not a mom and my inbox sees plenty of “we'll-link -back-to-you-it's-great-exposure!” emails).Don't get me wrong here – I agree with everything you said and as a marketer/PR pro always recommend compensating spokespeople (because blogger or not, a spokesperson/ambassador is the same thing. No one would ask a celebrity to rep a brand for free).
My advice to any blogger would be to think carefully about the opportunity- it might be worth it to you if you'll enjoy the experience, it's a campaign that somehow benefits a good cause, is a good networking op, whatever…but those are few and far between.
Word. I've crafted a few integrated campaigns for companies and bloggers in the last year, and consulted on others. I've helped companies select bloggers, and I've pitched others to companies. I firmly believe that you climb DOWN the ladder when you do cheesy, cheap or free PR, and believing otherwise is believing a myth or being tricked. Hold out for quality clients, campaigns and fair exchanges. When the marketers who do pay well 9or at least fairly) for good campaign work or ad spots — because they want to be seen in the context of quality — they will scan your site and see how cheap you've worked in the past. If you've done a bunch of free PR or cheesy work, they will pass on you, or use you cheap and contract with someone else who will get bank. They don't want to compete with the “noise” of PR-laden sites, and they understandably don't want to pay for the exact level of promotion you gave away for a giftcard the week before. Would you? They want to know that you respect your site, your words and the creative potential of online publishing. THAT's the ladder up.
Bravo!
I'd rewrite the title to say “except, it seems, bloggers.” PR people expect all but the top, top tier bloggers to promote them for free, or maybe a link. Y'all have certainly acquired a reputation for being easier to influence and work with since so many of you have been willing to do PR, etc, for nothing or maybe for something for your readers. But it's really an all-blogger problem.
The Washington Post was recently shocked to discover that area bloggers would NOT provide them free news and politics posts. Personal Finance bloggers like me get asked a lot to pitch a lot of products with no compensation.
I've always been of the opinion that since it's my website, I should either write what I want (which might be about a product if I like it) or be well-compensated.
I subscribed for an extra entry! Great giveaway!
Great post. As an attorney, I don't expect someone to pay me in “the chance to win a $25 gift card” for writing a Will. So why would I expect less in my online life? But, that said, if someone chooses to write a product review, I like knowing it is because they liked it themselves and wanted to share. Not just because they got free coupons to share with their readers. Therein-is the difference re: integrity/high standards that @bostonmamas mentioned.
It's not just big companies who do it – the truth is moms do it to each other too.
From my understanding, most mom companies + consultants take the same approach as agencies – meaning, they only ask for enough money to cover their own services and the bloggers doing the actual promotional work are expected to work for products or experiences.
The truth is most brands don't want to buy advertising space directly on a blog. It's a lot of work to go out and strike deals with individual sites and rates vary dramatically from person to person. Instead, if they're working with bloggers they want to have an integrated campaign that involves links, Twitter, Facebook, posts, and traditional ad space. And I can't blame them since I rarely click on banner ads myself, but regularly click on links in blog posts or links in tweets.
The challenge is for mom bloggers to know what that is all worth.
It amazes me that with the dozens of conferences aimed at mom bloggers that none seem to take the practical approach of actually helping women build a rate sheet and create a proposal.
Well said! I am so tired of those promotional emails asking to “pass this great info to my readers!” I must get at least 4 a day. It gets on my nerves. My “delete” key is getting worn out…
I have been blogging for two years which pretty much makes me a successful Hollywood marriage and I never heard of this kind of link exchange nonsense.
I'm hoping that bloggers realize that there are much more pleasant ways to get hosed.
And I totally agree with you– what others do affects us all. For whom the bell tolls and all that.
As a marketing consultant with a background in advertising, I am so right there with you. Herein lies the difference between people who regard themselves as writers and business owners versus “mommy bloggers;” I want to get paid in real money, not freebies. Big brands can keep their canned goods and soap pumps. The value I offer is more than a giveaway. The companies are missing the mark on building long term brand affinity and are too short sighted. And you are so right about how the ripple effect hurts us all. I've been battling this as a blogger, writer, and marketer.
Happens in real life, too. I've been working my ass off for “the man” running “his business” for the last 6 months, only to learn that he is closing his doors and had no intention of remaining open passed the end of this month?
Aaaand, allowed me to hire 2 more people in the interim?
How many ways can you spell, “I am SUCH an asshole,” anyway?
Lesson learned. It's time we “moms” quit undervaluing ourselves – online AND irl, too!
[Ignore emailed comment - stupid Blogger!]
@Maris
I agree completely. I've written before (in one of those links up there) that we often put out our creative product for free–articles, gigs at open mic nights, stand up routines, a post on HuffPo, an op ed–because we're proving our creative merits early in our careers.
It's not the same thing as running a sponsor's ads for free.
Bravo!
Okay, trying again to leave another comment. Blogger has been giving me some funky errors. Thank you so much for the comments responding to mine. I love this type of conversation when I can learn and grow!!
*standing ovation*
Now will everyone please pass this post on to others?!
I have such mixed opinions on this. It used to feel like a great perk to get stuff all the time but once you start learning more about the business of marketing, it does feel like whoring yourself out.
I love being able to offer giveaways and incentives to my readers but I have to weigh it against my own criteria which is admittedly very arbitrary: do I have enough time to write about this? do I want to write about this? is this something I would use/wear/watch/eat?
If you're in the central flyover region, you're not necessarily a hot sell for marketers. I know bloggers in major metro areas are flooded with offers but, uh, not so much in Kansas. Local businesses are not as social media friendly and when big companies take an interest, it's flattering.
I'm curious to see how the field changes as bloggers become more educated. And empowered.
Thank you for this. If one more “agent” writes me “expecting” me to go out and buy detergent and then write about it – and send them the mink when it's up – I don't know what I'll do.
Sorry that happened to Cool Mom Pick. I know first hand what Cool Mom Picks can do for a company. Your link on their site!? A total insult.
Thank you.
(back to seething)
Of course, I meant “link”, not “mink” (this is exactly why I don't usually leave comments via blackberry – but couldn't resist after reading this post)
*claps wildly*
BRAVO!
I was a freelance writer for a decade before I started blogging, so I was accustomed to getting paid for my writing- and didn't change that concept when I started blogging. Some days I feel like I need a “Will Work for Money!” badge on my blog.
What we need here is a Union to ensure bloggers are getting fair deals- are you accepting nominations for Prez?!
excellent piece- thank you!
Great post Liz.
There's so much I'd like to add but I am editing the chapter in my book that advises bloggers NOT to sell themselves too cheaply
For now I'll leave it at: the value has to be balanced for both company and blogger. When it's not, someone is getting screwed and it's probably not the big brand.
The other thing that seems to have gotten mixed up in the muddle is the difference between PR and Promotion. Just because they have some of the same letters doesn't mean they are the same thing.
Public relations SHOULD BE enticing stories that are relevant to what the blogger writes about and add value to the blog.
Promotion is about selling. Usually, the advertiser wants some control over the message. When the advertiser wants to exert control, it's advertising, NOT PR, and bloggers should be compensated fairly.
Back to editing.
Amen!
Okay, the eloquence of my original (error-rejected) post is gone, so I'll just say: Preach it, sister. Why oh why is this so hard for folks to get? Love having you fighting the good fight.
So here's my question…some of you know me as a blogger and some know me as a marketing pest (Liz…you know me!) for a small clothing company. So I wear both hats. But my blog reaches a small niche of people and what I promote on my site I do as a resource to other moms. I want it to be genuine and I don't want my readers to think I've been paid to write. Which I haven't.
But now that I'm on the “other side” I see how the investment is hard to make. We are happy to pay for posts. Do you know why? Because posts get people to your site. Banner ads, people? Don't! We are so happy to pay for writers to write about how they love our product and you can throw in the buttons and banners, but I will tell you, yes, it gets us MAYBE 10 clicks a month IF we are super lucky. So to pay 100 a month for 10 clicks just doesn't cut it. IF you roll it into a fabulous package with all kinds of Tweets and FB posts, we will surely pay. It's amazing what word of mouth will get you. But then are you compromising your own integrity? This is where it all gets so confusing.
Would love to hear more on this from people.
I can't even begin to comment on this, because I am bombarded with this exact situation daily in my line of work.
I listen to how mom bloggers are being auctioned off to the fastest bidders by “clever” marketing men in suits. We're being peddled behind podiums in conferences and we're being traded behind closed doors. It's horrifying to me, mostly because it is a situation we've created for ourselves.
And it's not going to do anything but get worse. These marketers have found a very well-stocked street corner, and they're shopping on it. And we keep lining up to stand there.
I saw your tweet yesterday about this and I yelled at the ceiling for over an hour about it. I really don't know who else will listen.
**applause**
This post should be required reading for every mom with a blog.
Linda, totally understand. For very small businesses, banners may not be the best way to go if you're counting on conversions – although for the right thing, I've seen banners on blogs perform wildly. Banners are often better for branding or promoting news for big brands.
Sponsored posts are definitely a way to go, and respected reviewers giving a shout-out to your product is great too. Still, an integrated campaign, like the one we were pitched here, is advertising, not PR.
Really it comes down to building relationships so that bloggers can authentically and enthusiastically cover you, right? And I think that starts with brands showing respect for the blogs they work with. (Which I know you do!)
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