Blogging || 5 Tips To Get Started Working With Brands As A Blogger.

I still remember my very first brand collaboration on the blog like it was yesterday. It was for a scarf brand that wasn’t even based in Nigeria and I remember being so excited that my blog was finally getting noticed by brands. And especially non – Nigerian ones at that! I’ve definitely evolved and gotten to work with more awesome companies since then.

I know that working with brands is one thing that almost every blogger desires. It’s also top on the list of things I get asked all the time – asides from how to start a blog or grow a blog. So I decided to put together a post sharing a few tips on how to get started with working with brands.

 

When I first started my blog, I didn’t even know that I could make money by working with brands, I was basically doing it for fun. Blogging right now has changed and I know that a couple of people open blogs hoping to start earning and working with brands immediately.
I’m starting with this because I also know that people get frustrated when that doesn’t happen, so I’m here to reiterate that it might take a while but if you focus on building your blog and creating good content, at some point working with brands will come.
P.S – There’s really no set length of time before you’re qualified to work with brands.

If you’re serious about working with brands, then your blog has to look the part – clean and with a professional feel. Brands definitely do their research and you don’t want them coming to a cluttered site that makes you look like you don’t know what you’re doing.
Whether you are blogging as a hobby or as a business, having a site with a clean and professional feel is important. This also makes it easy for these brands to navigate through your blog easily and find any information they might need, so pay attention to the little details.

I shared some things in this post that you might be doing wrong as regards your blog design and which can ultimately sabotage your opportunities Check it out here.

You might think that branding is just for big companies but if you’re active in the digital space, you have a personal brand and how it is perceived by people is defined by you! What are you putting out on social media? Does it go in line with your blog/brand manifesto, what you want to be known for and also show your expertise?

Working With Brands As A Blogger. Five Tips To Get You Started. Click to tweet!

I talked about what a media kit is in this post. If you’re really serious about working with brands and you don’t have a media kit yet, drop what you’re doing right now and go put one together! A media kit doesn’t only make you look more professional but it also makes it easier for brands to see at a glance everything they need to know about sponsorship with you and why they should work with you.

What to include in your media kit?

– Blog Logo
– Picture of you
– Contact Email
– Brief Blog Bio/Your audience demographic
– Social links
– The Stats! – Blog’s pageviews, unique visits, email subscriber counts and social media followers.
– Services offered
– Notable press you’ve gotten and a few brands you’ve worked with (optional)
– Your rates (optional)

If you feel you’re still a small blog without huge numbers. You can mention in your kit how you’re a relatively new blog but a fast growing one and talk about your engagement if you have high engagement.

Did you know that you really don’t have to wait for brands to contact you? You can totally reach out to them! What’s that thing about the mountain going to Mohammed again?
I’m putting this last because before you reach out to any brand, you must have the other things I’ve listed in place so it makes turning you down harder and increase your chances of them saying yes to you.

How do you pitch to brands?
Its as easy as shooting them a short sweet email introducing yourself/your blog and asking if they are open to collaborations.
Make a list of companies or products you love and that for your blog’s theme, find out their contact info and pitch! This is exactly why I included a brand collaboration page complete with brand name and contact info in the Cassie Daves Blog Planner to make this process easier for you. The 2017 edition of the blog planner will be out soon, sign up here to get notified and preorder!