The Key to Working with Bloggers: Read Them First

They could probably create their own blogging software from scratch if they put their minds to it, yet for years many deep-technology industry players were reluctant to seriously join the blogging fray. At least as compared to the bevy of blogs maintained by mothers, politics junkies, music fans and even peers in the arguably less technical Web development world.

In fact, when McBru started our deep tech marketing blog in 2005, there were many written by software developers and professionals in certain sectors of IT, but only a handful by those in the semiconductor industry.

Finally, the feet dragging is letting up: Hundreds of active blogs focused on deep technologies (e.g., semiconductors, capital equipment, servers and storage) are sprouting up like never before. Surely, you've already noticed many deep technology trade journalists are regularly posting on their publisher's sites and elsewhere. What's more, several deep-tech corporate Web sites now feature blogs, too. And I'd be surprised if you haven't stumbled upon a couple of colleagues who are blogging about issues facing your industry.

So, how do you take the leap and start conversing with bloggers to support your communications objectives?

What's that? You'd rather not? You've heard a litany of horror stories about people who've pitched a blog, like they might a journalist, yet have only been met with silence? Or, even worse, their pitch was shredded to pieces all over the blogosphere.

Lucky for you, you can search for "blogger relations tips" on the Web and find more advice on how to improve your communications with bloggers than on how to change a tire. The experts will tell you to be "authentic," "transparent," "conversational," and so on. Thing is, this is good, albeit abstract, advice for any communications.

I've got a simpler recommendation: Do your homework. Just read the blogs you'd like to engage. The rest should be intuitive—like how you'd chat up a stranger you'd like to meet in line at the bank or store.

Regularly following the blogs impacting your industry will tell you a lot. Who is writing the blog? A competitor, customer, prospect, journalist or an angry investor? What does he cover? Is she a big fan of consumer technology who once wrote about enterprise security or chips as a one-off, but generally doesn't cover deep technology? Do they regularly blog about marketers as wasting their time? Check out their comments: Do they allow self-serving comments that are clearly from marketers? If not, perhaps you should try emailing them directly? What other bloggers do they respect? Peers in the industry or only those on the A-List?

In following a blogger's work, you'll help ensure that you're approaching him in a way he likes to communicate with relevant information that fits what he covers. And you're demonstrating that that you respect him and aren't simply focused on the hard sell.

The above advice probably sounds familiar to those of you who've worked with journalists. Indeed, you should be regularly reading any journalist that you pitch, too.

The difference is that if you've slacked on following a journalist's coverage and, not noticed that they've switched beats from IP to green technology, for example, chances are they won't write an op-ed slamming you. Journalists have been trained (or are unfortunately numb through repeated exposure) to respond to an off-target pitch by simply deleting it. But a blogger just might write a 500-word screed castigating you for even inputting their address in your e-mail tool.

Why? Most bloggers aren't journalists. Bloggers have no incentive to tolerate off-target communications. The bloggers covering your industry could be a customer's database administrator, a design engineer right out of college, or even a ex-journalist fed up with politely dealing with incosiderate marketers. They blog simply because they're passionate about their subjects.

Once you decide to converse with a blogger, you should demonstrate earnestly that same level of passion for their subject, before you ever persuade them to consider writing about your company.

Perhaps the best way to illustrate the importance of diligently following blogs to help build respectful relationships with the writers behind them is by offering you a personal example.

In 2003, I started handling communications for a technology client who had released an application programming interface (API) that allowed software developers to have "front door" access to their database in order to create innovations (early Web 2.0 stuff) such as today's "widgets."

Our research indicated that these software developers turned to their peers and friends before mainstream media, tradeshows and other standard communications channels. Admittedly, by 2003, I had only been seriously following technology blogs for about a year, so I was still very fascinated with how the content could be so delightfully loose and free, opinionated, personal, and often very technical. These folks were passionate and not self-aggrandizing; they were geeks writing for geeks. There were few dreams of securing book deals from their tech blogs, getting paid much, or swaying the elections.

It was at a conference speaking opportunity for the client's API evangelist that year that I really started to notice that these bloggers could be the most eager people to hear the client's product. Nearly half the room blogged the talks, offering approval and criticism alike. If they liked what they heard, they'd sing it from the rooftops (or desk chair). And now, with blogs, these software developers had an easy way to share their thoughts.

Researching reactions to the client's talk after the event, I happened upon one young developer and new blogger, Rory, who had attended the event and was mulling over my client's talk. We started conversing via email and, soon, over beers about everything from music to college. And, of course, we discussed the API. He planned to create a set of RSS feeds that would drive traffic back to the client's site and, in return, generate affiliate-marketing income (i.e., money for referrals). With the affiliate-marketing revenue, Rory would "adopt" a child through Children International.

Since RSS feeds were used mainly by early adopters at the time, Rory generated little affiliate marketing revenue, but the API implementation was novel. I was able to garner hits about his use of the API in newspapers such as The New York Times, trades such as Esther Dyson's Release 1.0—which Rory joked he couldn't even afford—along with many a blog.

So, how did all that time spent working with bloggers such as Rory help the client achieve its business goals? Within one year, the client's API went from 19,000 to more than 60,000 users.

And it all started with reading a few blogs.

Thanks for reading,
Jeff Hardison
McClenahan Bruer Communications