Last week I wrote a post about how to get press for your blog. After publishing it I got an email from a blogger who was curious about how you pitch a story.  What does a pitch look like?

When my blog was mentioned on the New York Times I had sent Lisa Belkin an email that said something along the lines of:

“Hi Lisa,
I started a project on my blog and asked women to write letters to their twenty-something selves. I have received letters from women across the country including letters from well-known bloggers Maggie Masonand Jessica Gottlieb. I thought this might be something you would be interested in featuring on The Motherlode.”

I never heard a response but two weeks later I got a notification that my blog had been mentioned on NewYorkTimes.com. There are a few things to keep in mind when pitching a story:

 

Read the rest over at She Posts. 

“A few months ago The New York Times announced that KJ Dell’Antonia would be joining them as the new blogger for Motherlode. Last week I had the opportunity to chat with KJ about her new position, her writing background and what aspiring writers need to do to take their career to the next level.

KJ began her career in the legal field but said that she has always been a writer and was always meant to be a writer. ‘I like to say that writers are born not made.’”

Continue Reading….

Fashion bloggers were trying to figure out the best way to monetize their blogs. They were making sense of campaigns in which they took part and were never compensated for and now they are discussing widget campaigns and the issues that come along with them.

Each blogging community as well as each specific blogger holds their own desires, values, and ways in which they will work with brands. Mom bloggers and Fashion bloggers share quite a few similarities however, their backgrounds and situations are often quite different.

Most (please realize I have stated most not all) mom bloggers began blogging as a hobby. A way to record their child’s moments and connect with other mothers that hopefully share the same challenges, emotions, and fears that they have. The mom blogging space began as a way to connect with other mothers for the purpose of community and support. Most (again, I said most) did not begin their blog with the intention of starting a business. The problem we found was that when brands first began reaching out to work with mom bloggers neither party knew what to expect. After a couple of years of a very delicate dance (and many failed campaigns) mom bloggers and brands have now found methods that work extremely well and other methods that don’t.

Most fashion bloggers seem to have a background or long history in fashion. Having either worked in the fashion industry or a deep desire to work in the industry. Most fashion bloggers began their websites with intention of starting a business and monetizing. Most fashion bloggers began blogging assuming they would monetize their blogs in the same way that Fashion magazines monetize.

The problem is that most mom bloggers and fashion bloggers do not run in the same circles. They do not manage their websites in the same ways and they do not always hold the same interests. So, often messages get lost.

Recently, Stephanie wrote a great post about how we could take the model that we have used when working with mom bloggers in the past and apply that to the fashion blogging space. To any fashion bloggers looking to monetize I would highly suggest looking into the ways that mom bloggers have chosen to monetize and figuring out what might work for you.

The most important thing for brands to remember when working with bloggers of any type is to forge good relationships and to find ways to accomplish your campaign goals that align with their values and desires.

I am so glad that this conversation is starting to happen. As the internet continues to grow I think we will see more and more genres joining the ranks and many of these conversations taking place. This is a good space to be.

Please excuse my over use of the word Old Media. It was the best way to distinguish between traditional and digital.

The business insider quoted Obama saying:

“I am concerned that if the direction of the news is all blogosphere, all opinions, with no serious fact-checking, no serious attempts to put stories in context, that what you will end up getting is people shouting at each other across the void but not a lot of mutual understanding”

According to The Hill.com:

“Obama said that good journalism is “critical to the health of our democracy”

So here are my issues in nice organized bullet points for your enjoyment.

1. Old Media is not mistake proof

The quotes above gives the illusion that journalists supply fact and truth while bloggers are shouting out their opinions effortlessly. How many times in our history have reporters made mistakes? Sometimes they don’t get the exact facts. Sometimes they spin a story in a negative light in order to attract more readers.  No article in ANY media is written without leaning towards some sort of conclusion. Supporting some kind of opinion. We are humans. Even history books can be distorted.

2. Old Media is censored information

How many times has old media been behind in reporting information? There is only so much room in a newspaper for stories. There is only so much time within a news segment to deliver information. Often, stories get un-told. Often content is censored for political or financial reasons. Journalism is a business like any other. They have editors and publishers and advertisers.

3. Arguments exsist. And that is ok.

I have seen enough criticisms of news channels for being “too conservative” or “too liberal.” I have looked at enough comic strips filled with donkeys and elephants to know it is not just bloggers yelling at each other. Since when is having an argument considered bad? How many philosophers argued about the meaning of life and the purpose of humanity? How many religious leaders have argued for their beliefs? It is in these “arguments,” these discussions that we find truth and answers.

4. Bailout because new technology exists

Imagine if  letter couriers asked for a government bailout when the telegraph machine was created. Would it have happended? I am not trying to say that old media is as outdated as letter couriers. Journalists are still extremely important and extremely valuable.  However, people are choosing to access information in different ways. Journalism is not dead. Journalists do not need to be bailed out. There will always be space and NEED for journalism. However, traditional print media is in need of a makeover. Can we said digital?

5. When will the bloggers get bailed out?

Magazines and Newspapers are hugely profitable corporations. Well, they used to be. The government is offering to bail out an industry because they went from being work millions upon millions to millions less.  Most blogs are a one man show. Few blogs could pull in a million dollars in a year. When is the government going to bail out bloggers?

I would love to hear your thoughts/concerns. This is not to meant to talk badly about journalism and old media. I read magazines consistently. I love holding a crisp newspaper in my hands. I think that journalists are needed. That fact checking is important. But a bailout? Bad Idea.

I am a philosophy major. I believe it is the philosopher in me that forces me ask a million questions about the simplest idea. However, I am presenting these questions to you today because I am really perplexed.

I love country music. (no giggling please) Recently, this song came on the radio and it is a really beautiful song. Until the end…and this is where it loses me. They start talking about Bill Gates and Microsoft. Please listen to the song. Then answer me these questions.

-Do you think Microsoft paid for this placement?

-How does he know that Bill Gates loved like crazy to become successful? Did he interview him?

-In what way is a man with six children who can barely pay his bills correlate with a millionaire?

-Would this song be better off without the mention?

I told you this would make me sound crazy. But, seriously? Is it just me or does this not fit together well??

According to Geek Sugar:

“Carrie may still have her trusty Mac on hand for the Sex and the City sequel, but the rest of the ladies will be strictly PC. HP just announced their partnership with Warner Bros. as well as their supporting role in the latest film this morning, which means the ladies of Sex will be wired with TouchSmart PCs, netbooks, and the TouchSmart tm2.”

So my question is….does this really matter?

I think that the buzz around this product replacement switch proves that television product placements may be going extinct. Don’t get me wrong a small business or start-up getting featured on a television show can be HUGE. It can make or break a company. However, am I more likely to buy an HP because I saw one on Sex and The City? hmmmm.

We notice product placements.

The buzz surrounding this movie isn’t about raving about the computer they will be using. It seems to be much more about the business decision. WHY are they using this new computer? Apple dropped its product placement and is getting major press because of it. Am I less likely to buy Apple products because they dropped this placement? No. They are genius. They saved money AND got press. That my friend is im-press-ive.

Get it?

Im-PRESS-ive.

Anyways, I don’t see how this product placement is helping either company. Seeing a computer on a movie doesn’t make me want to buy a new computer. It doesn’t make me want to switch brands. It doesn’t make me anything. However, if they are trying the remind them we exist and maybe they will think of us approach. That may be a benefit.

However, I suggest that HP take a look at this speech from Seth Godin. They may realize that this is going out. And it is going out fast.

What do you think?

‘“Collaboration” in the modern office means a lot more than just exchanging e-mail. Recently, we told you how to microblog within your organization to enhance productivity, and it’s not surprising that companies are discovering the power of sharing documents, collaborating online, and keeping a rich web of easily searched and browsed information in the cloud.

Looking to join the action? Here’s a free collaboration tool you should check out.

Flowr is an online collaboration tool with a wealth of ways to share and interact. You get Twitter-like microblogging, of course, so team members can stay in touch and up-to-date. It has the best aspects of Twitter without the sill”

Read more here…

Posted via web from Cassie Boorn