1. Running Blogger Relations Campaigns

2. Outline Project Scope A critical first step in a blogger relations campaign is to establish scope: Ensure that all roles and responsibilities are put in writing before the engagement begins Assess the clients existing multimedia and creative assets/capabilities to determine the level of contribution from designers and other outside resources Define what would constitute as scope creep from the beginning and identify it as soon as it arises in the blogger relations engagement Discuss a process for the project going out of scope during business development phase (i.e. how will this affect pricing, project duration, launch date, etc.) Identify how the blogger relations team will coordinate with the clients existing social and/or traditional media teams, if any 3. Onboarding The onboarding process is an important step to get all parties on the same page. Steps for initial onboarding include: 1. Internal kickoff meeting to determine materials needed from the client 2. Ensure that all Beekeeper staff have a clear understanding of the clients involvement and their individual roles on the project 3. Provide the team with sufficient background information on the client, their industry or policy issue, and their reasons for engaging in blogger relations 4. Ensure that the client provides the overarching campaign narrative 5. Beekeeper team crafts a messaging memo to highlight angles to communicate that narrative through the blogger relations campaign 4. Identify Roles and Responsibilities The following pages list typical roles and responsibilities for a blogger relations campaign. Keep in mind that these may vary from project to project. The client will: Provide understanding of overarching campaign narrative Identify and share existing multimedia, data, news articles, etc. Please note that data should not be in raw form, but should be complied in a way that is easily communicable in the pitch. Any research needed to compile this information is also tasked to the client. Provide creative as is agreed upon in the discovery process (will the client be preparing all creative content, some, or none?) Collaborate with project manager on early pitch language Provide final sign-offs on blogger list(s), pitch language, social media news release (SMNR) language, and creative content. Prepare and select a spokesperson for potential main-stream pickup 5. Identify Roles and Responsibilities Project managers at Beekeeper Group will: Draft pitch language Work with client to develop angle to communicate overarching narrative Identify whether the clients existing assets will be sufficient before the campaign begins Build a Social Media News Release page to host pitch content (if necessary) Write content for the Social Media News Release page Provide the blogger with guidelines for reporting Provide the client with reports at designated intervals Schedule weekly internal meetings, as well as weekly calls with both the client and the blogger 6. Identify Roles and Responsibilities The blogger will: Compile the list of targeted bloggers Give final review of pitch language Send pitches to designated bloggers and a designated number of follow- up emails Provide reporting on blogger outreach results Additional Resources: In some cases, additional resources including researchers, experts, and graphic designers will be used and should be assigned roles, responsibilities, and deliverables accordingly. 7. Assign Tasks and Deliverables Though the specific tasks below may vary, these are generally expected during a blogger relations campaign and would likely be covered by one member of the team. Specific deliverables during a blogger relations campaign typically include: The blogger list An overarching campaign narrative and plan for communicating that narrative in writing Multimedia and/or creative content from the bloggers A designated number of email pitches A built-out social media news release page If agreed upon, research updates and creative content, such as infographics or videos Comprehensive reports at designated intervals (weekly, after each pitch, at the end of the campaign, etc) 8. Prepare for Failure and Success Though we should always be prepared to communicate with a client about reasons why a campaign was not successful at achieving stated goals, it is equally important to be prepared in the case that a campaign reaches high levels of success. When blog posts are picked up by highly-visible blog or social channels: Decide on a strategy for communicating with those outside influencers If your client has active social channels, ensure they have resources or a plan to handle an influx of engagement When blog content if picked up by the mainstream media: Find out who would the spokesperson be if news outlets were looking to interview someone from your organization/campaign Have a response prepared if you do not want to speak with the press, and if this is the case, explain the implications of not communicating with them In some cases, preparing a press kit ahead of time may be useful 9. Helpful Tools and Processes The importance of outlining project scope cannot be overstated. Check and then double check that all parties involved understand their role and how they define scope creep on each campaign. Setting agendas for weekly meetings (internal, with the blogger, and with the client) and sending them to the team ahead of time is an easy way to stay on-task and cover all necessary discussion points Use Basecamp calendar to show project deliverables and milestones in a way that can be viewed internally Use Basecamp text documents to write notes from weekly meetings for reference across the team