What To Remember When Working With Brands

Working with brands is all fun and games when you are a blogger but you have to remember these important factors too…

I have been blogging fro over three and a half years now. Never did I think it would get to the point where I am working with some of the large names in the industry. I remember I got gifted my first products about 8 months after starting this blog. And when I got a few more items through the post I would keep asking myself ‘Why are brands sending me stuff?’. I think even my Mum was quite amazed by it all. Especially as at the time I didn’t have a huge following. Neither do I now but micro influencers is actually one of the most targeted forms of influencer marketing. Why? Simply because micro influencers actually have a higher rate of engagement than bloggers with bigger following. And micro influencers charge a significantly lower amount for their posts. – yep no £8000 ADs being done here unfortunately.

I am very grateful that I am and have worked with some of the brands that I have. I also know that this is from the hard work that I have put in with my blog. However if you don’t remember some of these factors I will be talking about, then working with brands will be a bit of a challenge. Effectively when you start working with brands you are building up your own business. So you have to have some control. So here are my tips… 

Only Work With Brands You Genuinely Want To Promote And Use

Its always exciting getting an email pop into your inbox with ‘Collaboration Opportunity’ in the subject line. I still get a little giddy about it. However I probably turn down more opportunities than I take. For a start, if you were to accept every single opportunity then you feed will be flooded with promotions. This is a big thing to avoid because you will actually lose followers for that. But also you have to be so careful of what you promote. With a following comes a level of influence and responsibility. You aren’t just doing this for you, you have to think about others too. 

Make Sure You Don’t Undercut Yourself Price Wise

I had an interesting conversation with Sophie from @stylesofsophie_ back at a blogger event we both attended in the summer. We both use similar influencer platforms and they all recommend prices that you should charge for ADs. However they are very brief and at the end of the day you chose what you want to charge. Obviously don’t charge so much that brands won’t work with you. However don’t go undercutting your own worth. You have to work out the amount of time and effort you put into creating the content. Whether you had to pay for the product you are promoting or whether that product fits in with your niche. 

Be Persistent And Stay Firm

Okay, you don’t want to sound like a bitch in emails. You won’t get anywhere with that. However when doing an AD with a company, you have to have a firm hold of the content you are making. Its best to make sure you get your payment on time too. I have had a few struggles trying to get payment off brands (something I am still struggling with *SIGH*) but don’t give up. If you are owed payment then don’t back down. You got this girl!

Sometimes You Have To Reach Out To Brands

Even though a large majority of collaborations are made through brands contacting bloggers it is also one of the most unsuccessful. If you think about it, it is a bit like cold calling. I get several spam emails a day and you can tell when companies just copy and paste or insert your name into an email. Often in my case my name is spelt wrong too. But you can, as the blogger, go an contact companies yourself. This does involve finding the right PR email address, pitching yourself to this brand. There will be a lot of disappointment when they don’t reply to you.

However some of the best collaborations I have done have been through this method. I have written out my own email template for brands, and I have a little word document with PR emails on. Don’t hear back? Try again in a month or so time. Chasing down the email address can sometimes be a little tricky too, however I sometimes DM the brand on Instagram and I will get a reply giving me the correct contact address. Just get your research on! 

Don’t Underestimate The Power Of Influencer Networks

I would say about 60% of the ADs I post, if not more, is done via an influencer program. The big ones? Tribe, Takumi, Zine.Co and The Blogger Programme are all high on the list. You can apply to campaigns, create the content and then you have a chance to be accepted for the AD. You have to be patient because you won’t always be accepted for campaigns, and campaigns that suit you don’t always pop up. But the more you apply to, the more chance you have at being accepted to one. 

You can always have a scroll over on my INSTAGRAM or if you wanna tweet me then find me at @EMILYCBEAUTY!

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