10 things I've learnt about bloggers

Over the last 18 months, I've worked very closely with Mum bloggers and Fashion bloggers in the UK and the US and here is what I found out about them (and before you say anything, I know I'm writing this on a blog):


1. Getting Mum or Fashion bloggers to do stuff is like herding cats. Bloggers are not easy to organise, by definition they are (often egotistical) individuals who like doing their own thing but if you want to do anything meaningful with them, you need them to come together and act as a collective. It can be done if you know how and I'll be doing a blog on this.


2. There are some very weird bloggers out there. There are some seriously destructive and unpleasant bloggers out there who shall we say, have personal issues - if you get wrapped up with these you're in serious trouble.

3. 99.99% of bloggers want to make money. Many people believe that bloggers are out there because they just want to experience the joys of blogging and creative writing. In my experience most want to make money out of it.


4. 0.01% of any bloggers make any real money. Despite what you might read about millionaire bloggers, I can probably name on both my hands  the ones out there who have made any real money  - most bloggers make either peanuts from ad revenue, or nothing, or get freebies.


5. PR agencies and media agencies really don't know how to deal with bloggers. The agencies which seem to have most dealings with bloggers are PR agencies (and some media agencies who have set up 'social departments') - I have had meetings with most of the big ones in the last 18 months and in general they are really crap at it. I know this deserves more of an explanation and I will do a follow-up on this.


6. Most bloggers are obsessed by numbers. The thing which drives bloggers to get up and post in the morning (apart from wishing they could make money) is how many people are reading their blog and any tool, social device or service which can help them do that will be used to the max. It's why companies like Klout and Peer Index are good ideas because it's a way bloggers can measure and rank themselves - although these businesses need to understand how they make these rankings relevant to brands because at the moment they are utterly useless.


7. Aggregated blogging sites are exploiting other people's talents. Aggregated blogging sites (which give the bloggers a micro-social network) usually based around a theme such as sport, cooking, parenting, or fashion for example, are simply exploiting the bloggers talents, without really giving back much - at least there is quid pro quo with Facebook.  (see www.yardbarker.com - sports aggregated blogging site which sold out to Fox Sports - many unhappy blogging contributors at the time).


8. Brands are desperate to influence bloggers but have no idea how to do it. There are very few brands out there who don't recognise that influencing bloggers is important to them but even fewer of them, or their agencies, who have any idea of how to go about it - I'm going to write a separate blog on this. But in short: they dip in and out, they don't develop long term relationships, they don't reward the bloggers properly and they don't speak the language of bloggers.


9. The insult of a £20 Spa voucher.  "We are one of the world's leading oil companies 
[I better not say who], could you come to Manchester on Thursday where we are having a press launch of our new fuel economy for families campaign and could you bring any of your Mum blogger friends and children, and there will be a famous driver there who can show you how to drive economically, and there will be free food, and we'll give you a £20 Spa voucher and could you write about it please".   STOP IT!  If only I had 20 quid for every time I have seen a stupid request from a major telecoms company, energy provider, supermarket chain, FMCG brand, or their PR agency, just like this.  And it's usually the day before the event. There is a much better way and this deserves a blog, which I will do in the next couple of weeks.

10. A few superstars. I have met quite a few superstar bloggers (because there aren't that many) - some are dedicated professionals, who have really outstanding writing skills (they are not journalists, who on the whole are rubbish bloggers). They have an innate, digital-native skill in understanding how to fully utilise every aspect of the social web and a complete empathy with their followers. Ok, a few of the superstars are painful, prima donnas (and huomos), who you don't want your brand going anywhere near.


Don't agree with anything I've said here - well let me know!