I attended the largest blogging conference in the world, Blog World and New Media Expo, in September, 2008. I want to publicly thank my generous sponsors:
- BSM Media/NewBaby.com
- Adoptic
- Posh Mama
Each of these sponsors has graciously agreed to help defray my costs
for attending this conference. In exchange I volunteered to introduce
you to their products and services. Let me clarify that I only
contacted vendors and requested their help if I thought we would both
benefit from the relationship. I chose vendors that provide services to
you as you build your blogs. In the coming days and after the
conference I will be discussing their products more and letting you
know how they can help you.
- BSM Media/NewBaby.com
- Adoptic
- Posh Mama
BSM Media: Marketing to Moms
BSM Media
specializes in marketing to moms. This interests me because 1) I’m a
mom and 2) I like working with marketers and find those relationships
to be rewarding for me, the marketer, and most importantly, my readers.
It may come as no surprise to those of you who have received form
e-mails from marketers pushing their products or press releases that
many bloggers are offended that PR firms don’t take blogging more
seriously. At least one of the panels I attended at BlogHer ’08 came
down very hard on marketers who send out blanket e-mails or expect
bloggers to post press releases for unknown products or didn’t read
enough of the blog to know it doesn’t match the the product’s targeted
audience. The consensus is "it’s my blog and if you want to advertise,
give me and my readers something in return." I think this is a valid
concern. Receiving form e-mails and irrelevant product endorsements is
frustrating.
There is another side to that relationship, though, if you’re
willing to work at it. What I’ve found is that most marketers and PR
reps want positive relationships with bloggers, and especially mommy
bloggers. Depending on the product, moms hold the purse strings of .80
of every $1. If you want a family to be interested in your product and
buy it or review it positively, market to the mom. When I receive a
form e-mail or press release, I reply to the sender that I appreciate
that they’re reaching out, but that there may be a better way. I then
explain that I don’t post press releases, but I would be happy to sell
them ad space. Or I explain that I would be happy to review their
product if they can supply an additional product for my readers as a
giveaway. I think of how I want to be marketed to, then I let them
know. Opening up communication can only lead to good things. That has
been my experience so far.
BSM Media
is a cutting-edge company that has recognized the current flaws in
marketer/blogger relationships. BSM is owned and operated by Maria
Bailey. She is an award-winning author, radio talk show host,
nationally known speaker and the foremost marketing authority on
marketing to moms. And she knows what she’s doing.
I first discovered BSM Media this summer when I attended BlogHer ’08.
I had heard some buzz about how this company was helping marketers and
bloggers come together in non-threatening and positive ways. I was immediately interested.
BSM Media has several resources worth checking out:
- Marketing to Moms blog offers advice on developing marketing relationships with bloggers.
- Mom Select is a platform that allows mothers to choose to participate
in marketing programs. You can find information about the various programs Mom Select offers at their web site. - NewBaby.com is the newest addition to the BSM Media family. NewBaby.com
offers information and advice for moms during pregnancy through the
preschool years. This site is a community of moms who are interested in
connecting with other moms. What sets it apart from other online
communities, though, is that members upload video to the site. You can
find video on everything from demonstrations of positions to burp a baby to how to determine if your baby needs glasses (information from Dr. Ranya Habash) to dental product recommendations for children from a pediatric dentist. NewBaby.com has really taken the idea of an online mom community to the next level.
Promoting Your Blog: Adoptic
Adoptic
is a free widget that allows you to promote your best posts. When you
sign up for your free membership, you may choose up to four communities
to be part of. Then you install a simple widget on your sidebar. Other
blogs in the same communities you have joined will also have the widget
installed on their blogs. Your content will show up in their widget;
their content will show up in your widget. You do have the option of
rejecting content or a user.
A little more about Adoptic:
- Adoptic allows you create and promote snippets of your best blog content. This is unique because Adoptic allows you to
promote only the posts you want (vs RSS).
Also, snippets are context-rich (including text, headlines and
images) so you can convey more about your post. - Adoptic is based on a credit system: you earn credits when people
post snippets on your site (and when you invite others to join
Adoptic), and you can spend those credits publishing your snippets on
other people’s sites. The Adoptic system makes this transparent, so you
get the biggest ‘bang’ for your credits. You will never run out of credits. - Adoptic is also a social network for bloggers. You can join
communities of interest, and build a network of friends who write about
the topics that interest you. It also provides a nice dashboard to let
you see what your friends/communities are writing about. - Adoptic is FREE!
- Adoptic supports all major blog platforms, including WordPress.
I have been using Adoptic on Blogging Basics 101 and my personal blog, Don’t Try This at Home since July when I met the Adoptic representative at BlogHer. I have been happy with the traffic I’ve received and I like that Adoptic is community. I am able to participate in the community by sharing my content and promoting others’ content.
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