PR Opportunities for Bloggers

This past summer, I submitted my first pitch to Romper, a popular mom blog that boasts over 350K likes on Facebook alone. A writer for Romper sent out a pitch, looking for stories from moms who realized the moment they were more than just a mother. The story was a part of a series posts sponsored by Baby Dove. I instantly jumped on the opportunity to respond. To my surprise, I was chosen!  Although it was an unpaid mention, which publicity sometimes is, it made me realize just how important it was to pitch to brands. Although I did not pursue pitching for a few months afterward, I kept my eye open for how I could turn those pitching opportunities into more publicity for myself. Keep reading to find out how to gain PR opportunities for bloggers.

Why You Should Pitch

Although pitches are generally going to be unpaid, you should still pursue the opportunity.

Pitching gives you the opportunity to increase your SEO and traffic if you have a mention of your blog and name on the publication’s website.

It increases your SEO by giving you a backlink. A backlink is a link from one website to another. The more backlinks you have, the more Google thinks your site is worthy, and your blog will show up higher in search results. This is why PR opportunities for bloggers are important and worth the extra effort.

The more media mentions you gain, the more you have to add to your media kit when you are ready to get paid to work with brands. It also shows that you have experience in working with journalists/brands.

Tips On How to Find Pitches

The easiest way to find PR opportunities for bloggers is to use databases. There are databases and websites that exist to help journalists find sources for their stories. Those that can respond to pitches are experts, bloggers/influencers, and even businesses. Depending on the site, you will either get multiple emails with pitches, or you can actively search through the database until you find a pitch that you are interested in.

The ones I have included in this list are free.

My favorite database to use is called HARO (Help a Reporter Out).

HARO

HARO sends out three emails a day. The pitches are separated by category, and the pitches are called “queries.” Whenever you come across a query that is relevant to your niche, the link will take you to a description of what the journalist is looking for. Here are a few things that I have learned about HARO:

1. Deadlines are generally the end of that day or one to two days after. Therefore, they come around quickly, and you need to have a pitch submitted ASAP.
2. Follow all of the journalist’s rules carefully. If the journalist specifically asks for an expert, do not pitch, unless you are an expert.
3. Your response to a query will not be sent to the journalist’s email, but instead, an automated email set up by HARO. HARO will then forward the query to the journalist.
4. The queries will usually have the publications name in the query. If it says “anonymous,” it could potentially be a huge publication.

The two pitches I recently completed are for Forbes and Cosmopolitan, and they both are courtesy of HARO.

SourceBottle

SourceBottle is my second favorite site because they send emails, and you can actively search their database on their website. The emails are sent out once or twice a day and will include a few pitches that are relevant to your niche. However, I like to go straight to the website and comb through the pitches.

The one thing that I have noticed about SourceBottle is that they are based in Australia. However, they are open to international sources. If they aren’t open to international sources, then they will specify. SourceBottle is a new database for me, but so far, I have been able to submit a few pitches.

The deadlines for SourceBottle seem to be a little further out than HARO, and they are broken down by category. You simply select the category you are interested in writing about, and look through the requests. When you’ve found one you are interested in, you will be able to read the description, see who the publication is, and respond.

MediaKitty

MediaKitty is great because it’s not simply a place to pitch to publications.

This site gives users the options to respond to pitches, request for guest blogging, respond to invites to events, and apply for jobs. If you are looking for guest bloggers or information for your blog, you can also request other bloggers.

The pitches and requests are up to date and cover a variety of niches. From the looks of it, MediaKitty is the perfect spot for travel bloggers and professional development bloggers.

To make combing through everything easier, you can search for keywords in your niche, like “family,” “parenting,” or “fashion.” The results that are related will show up.

After The Pitch

Once your pitch is chosen, and you have given the journalist any additional information that is needed, ask if your name and URL to your blog can be mentioned in the article as well. The worst that the journalist can say is no. Also, it would be a perfect time to start a media list with the journalist’s name, title, and email address. Having a running media list will make it easier to pitch in the future.

Do Not Get Discouraged

The one thing that I have noticed as a novice blogger is that it’s not all about numbers. Micro-influencers are becoming increasingly popular in the eyes of brands and publications.

Why?

Because micro-influencers are highly engaged with their audience. Sure, macro-influencers get thousands of likes on a photo but check the stats. Micro-influencers are averaging over 10% engagement rates while macro-influencers are gaining about 2-4%. Therefore, micro-influencers have an advantage. An advantage that we can mention when we are pitching to publications. When it comes to finding PR opportunities for bloggers, you can go about it many ways. This is just one of many.

Want More?

To gain access to multiple templates and worksheets that will help you boss up in the new year, head on over to my facebook group where I will be dropping new freebies weekly, along with advice on how to monetize your blog, turn it into a business, and connect with brands!