By Shelby HIll for Wayfair Photos by: Brooke Dennis
At Wayfair.com we work with lots of bloggers (more than 250 last year!) and along the way we’ve had some individuals who stand out from the pack. These bloggers are the whole package, and we love to work with them again and again. We’re spilling the beans on what makes these bloggers so great (sorry guys!) to help you build your business and grab a brand’s attention. Here are three simple, yet highly effective tips that will help you get an inbox full of partnership requests:
1. We’re Business People and You Are Too, Right?
Show a brand partner you take these opportunities seriously. Make sure to be professional in all communication, whether you’re meeting a brand team in person or corresponding over email. When you’re working on a project for a company, no matter how big or small, respond to emails in a timely manner (within 48 hours) and always deliver edited and complete work on-time or ahead of deadline.
Brands expect content that’s ready to go. Make sure there are no spelling errors, the deliverable is in the correct format (for a guest post, PDF or Word Document is preferable), and your images are high-quality, especially if you’re working with brands in a visual field, like ecommerce.
Finally, a professional headshot says a lot about you. It’s how you present yourself and your brand to the world. Since we don’t always get to meet you in person before working together, consider this your all-important first impression. It’s not as difficult as it used to be to get a great headshot. Grab a friend, a digital camera, head outside for some beautiful natural light, and snap some high-resolution photos.
2. Ask the Right Questions to Ensure Success
Coming to the table with thoughtful questions will signal to the brand that you’re knowledgeable and ready to work. When partnering with brands, ask about best practices for communication, preferred asset delivery methods, and, of course, make sure you understand the goals of the campaign. All brand teams are more than happy to answer your questions to ensure quality content.
Here are some examples of questions to ask:
- What is on your editorial calendar? Knowing what type of content a brand is planning to produce will help you respond with a strong guest post/project pitch they’ll be excited about.
- Who is your target customer/audience? Knowing the answer to this question ensures you’ll create content that will resonate with the brand’s audience. The first question many brands ask themselves when assessing a partnership is whether or not it’s a good fit for their target audience.
- Are there any holes in your content offering you’re looking to fill? Often bloggers are better positioned to cover certain topics than the brands themselves. By asking this question, you could create content the brand has a need for, possibly leading to regular partnership opportunities.
3. Think of a Brand Partner as a Customer
It may sound strange to think about a partnership this way, but it makes sense. A positive experience on both sides is what keeps brands coming back to work with a blogger again and again. After your post or campaign has gone live, proactively reach out to the brand. Ask about performance and what could be improved upon for next time. If you agree the partnership is in line with both brands, stay in the loop by finding out what your brand partner is working on next. Interest in the performance and the status of your collaboration speaks volumes about how seriously you take your business and partnership opportunities.
Thought your last collaboration was successful? Don’t be afraid to pitch a brand another idea! Present a well-thought-out proposal citing key learnings from your prior collaboration, and you’ll blow them away.
It takes practice, but by focusing efforts in these three areas, you will boost your appeal to brands looking for blogger partnerships and grow your business.
This post was sponsored by Wayfair.
