One of the biggest hurdles to overcome as a blogger is getting your content in front of the right audience. While social promotion and word of mouth are great starting points, sometimes you need a little help. Partnering with other bloggers can be a great way to expose your blog to a new audience, drive visits to your site, and build relationships with new readers.
Unfortunately, not all partnerships are created equally. That is why it’s imperative for both bloggers to establish mutual goals and put forth mutual effort. Here are a few key steps to make that happen:
1. Research
Before reaching out to a blogger to gauge interest, it is important to research him or her to ensure this is a good match. Elements to consider when deciding are:
-
Engagement: if the goal of this partnership is to open both bloggers to a new audience, you will want to make sure your partner’s audience is engaged. Look at the social shares and comments on some of his or her posts to see if readers are joining the conversation. You can also look at the blogger’s social following to see if he or she has built a large readership.
-
Quality Content: make sure your partner can write content that meets your standards to the point that you would be proud to share it on your own blog. If not, it’s probably time to look elsewhere.
-
Blog Theme: while sometimes it’s good to venture into different areas of interest, you will want to make sure the subject matter, ideals, values, and opinions of the blogger align with your own. This will ensure the readers your partner draws to your blog will be qualified and interested in what you have to say.
2. Reach Out
Once you have found your perfect match, it’s time to see if your dream blog partner is interested in working with you. Just like asking someone on a date, this request should be handled with care. The example below (written for a fashion blogger I would love to partner with) is one example of how to approach your desired blog mate.
Hi [Blogger Name],
I was reading through your blog and just love the way you help your readers find their own personal style without breaking the bank. I especially loved your most recent post, “Dress to Impress” because I always have a tough time finding office attire on my budget.
Are you currently open to the idea with partnering with other bloggers? As a food blogger that focuses on budget-friendly meals, I thought it could be fun to partner together to promote our money-saving tips for clothes and cooking. I know my readers would love your blog and your readers may get some good tips from mine!
I would love to discuss this opportunity with you if you would be interested!
Thanks,
Sarah
I did my research and made sure to create the foundation of an equally beneficial partnership. After that, all I could do was hope this person felt the same way.
3. Plan
Now that you’ve found your blogger soulmate, it’s time to make sure you are on the same page every step of the way. You already know writing a blog requires a ton of work. So, if you plan on writing a joint blog post or a series of blog posts with your new partner, prepare for the long haul. To stay organized, both bloggers involved should work to create a Plan of Action (or “POA”). This POA should include the following:
-
A Timeline: this will outline everything from planned meetings, check-ins, publication dates, social promotion, and follow up.
-
Blogger Brand Guidelines: if you don’t have these already, check out this easy guide to get the ball rolling. Both bloggers should share their guidelines to ensure each brand is appropriately represented.
-
An Outline: determine who will be providing what, who will be responsible for what, and when these “whats” will be delivered.
You’ll want to communicate with each other at least once a week to check in and make sure each person is hitting his or her deadlines. This is also a good time to clear up any questions or holdups.
4. Execute and Monitor
Once your post or posts are live, check in with your blog-mate once more to make sure nothing was missed or overlooked. Catching issues from the start will help ensure you do not damage the relationship by spelling the blogger’s name wrong or including a broken link.
5. Create a Post-Mortem Report
This doesn’t need to be anything formal but it is important to look back and measure the ROI of that partnership. Some questions you can ask are:
-
Did I receive any referral traffic from this partnership?
-
Did my partner’s blog get social shares? Are there any comments?
-
What was the sentiment of readers sharing and commenting?
-
Did I reciprocate with referral traffic and brand awareness?
-
Was this worth the effort, time, and/or money?
I hope, these questions will be answered with a resounding “YES,” but if not, don’t fret. Each experience is a growing opportunity. Whether a wild success or a groundbreaking failure, your blog relationship is what you make of it. You just have to take the leap to find out.
