tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post7634975032780146946..comments2023-12-21T17:45:14.194+00:00Comments on HOM...HOM...HOM....: Schizophrenia - I am a PR person and a mummy bloggerHome Office Mumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18248456622235889204noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-43643008862038862612009-07-28T23:16:01.660+01:002009-07-28T23:16:01.660+01:00Hi Melissa
Great to come across you here, having m...Hi Melissa<br />Great to come across you here, having met you on email for Baby Genie!<br />Also being PR by day, blogger by any other unsociable hours, it's been a real eye opener to be on the receiving end of press releases! I think your post is great and really sums up the nuts and bolts of the PR/blogger relationship, thanks for a really good read!Catherine Warrilowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17290455608212372509noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-73755019784711493262009-06-20T21:03:47.186+01:002009-06-20T21:03:47.186+01:00as a fellow PR by day Blogger by night - I know ex...as a fellow PR by day Blogger by night - I know exactly what you mean. I think that it is thought that we (PR's) have budgets to play with to pay for things like blog posts.<br />If only they knew.<br />But as a blogger - I want my blog to remain true. I want it to be about the things that I want to write about.<br />There is a very difficult balance to be had.<br />As a member of British Mummy Bloggers, I think that it would help if they started a database of which blogs are open to contacts from PR's. This may stop some people feeling that they have to write such articles.<br />Sian.<br />http://www.yummymummytips.comSian Tohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15728757009873598576noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-1414800880096048922009-06-16T08:53:59.304+01:002009-06-16T08:53:59.304+01:00Great post that balances out both sides evenly. I...Great post that balances out both sides evenly. I have to admit that most of the PR companies that I have dealt with are brilliant and are very helpful and appreciative of what you can do and can't.bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17093353316834741465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-61213164462345327142009-06-15T17:08:46.172+01:002009-06-15T17:08:46.172+01:00Thank you for this post, I thoroughly enjoyed it a...Thank you for this post, I thoroughly enjoyed it and found it really useful. I've not had the problems that you are describing, but I suspect that I'm just not the 'right' sort of person that those PR people would be looking for as I don't review stuff - it's more a blog to add extra info related to my work site. It's great to have a better understanding of the problems that the Mummy/PR girl that I've just employed will be facing.<br />Cheers!Mummy Whispererhttp://mummywhisperer.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-20606731283306397722009-06-14T23:18:57.324+01:002009-06-14T23:18:57.324+01:00Hi Melissa!
Nice to meet you today at the lunch -...Hi Melissa!<br /><br />Nice to meet you today at the lunch - and I really enjoyed this, I thought you put it all very clearly. I'm endlessly surprised at how different the blogging community is now to even the short years ago when I started out and it's good to see someone who knows what they're talking about who also sits on 'our' side of the fence if that makes sense.Sparxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04075991922896922279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-78063583288774277592009-06-13T03:08:54.853+01:002009-06-13T03:08:54.853+01:00Great post. I learnt so much.
I've been blog...Great post. I learnt so much. <br /><br />I've been blogging for 2 years, and the UK scene really has changed a lot in that time.Iota https://www.blogger.com/profile/08507184283437057648noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-78057222920356511982009-06-12T20:41:58.547+01:002009-06-12T20:41:58.547+01:00A fasinating post and so topical. I used to read s...A fasinating post and so topical. I used to read several large US parenting blogs but in the last year they have become completely commercial so I no longer read the. It would be s shame if that happened to blogs over here. <br /><br />A lovely balanced viewpoint.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-60988068744159708222009-06-12T19:51:42.998+01:002009-06-12T19:51:42.998+01:00An extremely intelligent post, Melissa. I'm a ...An extremely intelligent post, Melissa. I'm a journalist who writes a parenting/shopping blog, and I've also worked for countless magazines and newspapers over the years and been offered every conceivable product/PR story under the sun. The No 1 question I always ask myself is - is this relevant to the readers? If it isn't, I don't feature it, simple as. I also don't accept the sample/holiday/free lunch (however gorgeous and tempting it is) and I always tell the PR why it isn't relevant. My only gripe with PRs is when they send you emails which show they have absolutely no idea what it is you write about. Would a little bit of research be too much to ask?Liznoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-58257578944645563032009-06-12T19:06:20.775+01:002009-06-12T19:06:20.775+01:00Excellent post, and very sensible advice.
I'v...Excellent post, and very sensible advice.<br /><br />I've been on all three sides of the equation - a blogger, a journalist for 15 years, and recently, I worked for a short while for a PR agency.<br /><br />Being targeted by PRs as a blogger is a lot like being targeted as a journalist - and with my journo hat on, my automatic response is to ignore most of the emails that drop into my box unless they particularly catch my eye or look particularly relevant for me. My PR experience tells me that the pitches that work are those that are truly targeted, understand the target audience and publication and have made the effort to make some personal contact with the journalist. <br /><br />I guess the major difference is that journalists (or most journalists, anyway) need good PRs in order to help them to do their job- although bad ones are purely an irritation. Bloggers don't need PRs, however - unless they are in it to get freebies or want to make a living from it. So that must make the PR's job far harder.nappy valley girlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10788949037047084412noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-65657756751034620672009-06-12T15:53:08.894+01:002009-06-12T15:53:08.894+01:00This is a really interesting balanced post, and it...This is a really interesting balanced post, and it is great to hear a side from an actual PR person that understands both sides of the issue. A great read, thank you.Kellyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11848203901556742390noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-14074787313136830202009-06-12T14:28:14.080+01:002009-06-12T14:28:14.080+01:00Applause! Applause! Refreshing black on white, or ...Applause! Applause! Refreshing black on white, or as we say here in Brazil: dots on the 'i's! Very well written and easily understandable even for your audience who may not be so well versed in these subjects.Helenhttp://helen-ramblingthoughts.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-5711714680264501672009-06-12T14:02:01.869+01:002009-06-12T14:02:01.869+01:00This is a great post. Came over here thanks to Ta...This is a great post. Came over here thanks to Tasha's tweet on Twitter. I've been approached by a whole range of companies and these days have become very focused on the kind of things that I am happy to promote. When I started blogging about two years ago, I must admit I was won over by flattery. <br /><br />If I get approached about something that does not interest me I usually reply specifying the details. <br /><br />Thanks for a brilliant blogpost - it's brilliant to see it from the other side.Almost Mrs Averagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03566374419318255177noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-52164281416533316542009-06-12T13:43:46.418+01:002009-06-12T13:43:46.418+01:00Interesting post. I really liked the Me Time compe...Interesting post. I really liked the Me Time competition that you set up, actually (and not just because I won!), and think writing competitions of that kind are quite good, especially if all you're asked to do is provide a mention and a link. <br /><br />For the most part, I just ignore badly targetted PR emails, though if they're just slightly off I'll respond with details about the sorts of thing I would be interested in reviewing. And most press releases get dumped immediately, unless it's a subject matter of particular interest to me (and that has happened), so it's probably still worth sending them out, just in case. <br /><br />I did a few months of PR for a publishing company, so I know all about phoning round/writing to people who are thoroughly sick of random PR offers. The ones I was most successful with were always the ones where I'd been able to find out something about the contact or the show/publication, rather than just phoning the next name in the giant media listing I had on my desk. <br /><br />I think the difficulty from a PR stand-point is that it's all still quite new and therefore very hit and miss, whereas, with the established media, there are at least conventions to be followed. <br /><br />It's good advice to get some parenting bloggers on the payroll, as they'll be in a better position to know who's interested in what.<br /><br />And... as Susanna said, where on earth did you find the time to write it?!Coding Mamma (Tasha)https://www.blogger.com/profile/17374751246656722167noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-67258884804791483552009-06-12T13:27:07.657+01:002009-06-12T13:27:07.657+01:00EXCELLENT post (so when did you find time to write...EXCELLENT post (so when did you find time to write this one?)<br /><br />You really nailed it. It's a delicate balance, but it is do-able.<br /><br />Agree that bad PR is hated and good PR is appreciated.A Modern Motherhttp://www.amodernmother.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-69116694622683794102009-06-12T13:21:38.190+01:002009-06-12T13:21:38.190+01:00This was an excellent, balanced read. For me perso...This was an excellent, balanced read. For me personally, I don't want to be paid to write about a product as it lacks editorial integrity. I am happy to review products, but I only have so much time, energy, plus I state that me taking a product doesn't mean it gets top marks. My concern with some PR people is not that they want to be featured or written about, it's that they want to control what's written or force competitions upon you and expect you to be 'grateful'. <br /><br />The other peeve which I was glad you mentioned was not understanding the target audience or blog, but still trying to push an irrelevant product. <br /><br />I have however met some really lovely PR people - even if they didn't 'get' it initially, they've taken the time to, so not all prs are bad.Nataliehttp://www.bambinogoodies.co.uknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-36198153545004126422009-06-12T12:38:00.294+01:002009-06-12T12:38:00.294+01:00Great post Melissa. As a PR working with bloggers ...Great post Melissa. As a PR working with bloggers of all kinds, not just mummies, it's interesting to hear both sides of the story! Look forward to seeing you at the meet up on Sunday!Amy Johnstonhttp://www.wolfstarconsultancy.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2133786582796275869.post-19139306118576457422009-06-12T12:27:57.952+01:002009-06-12T12:27:57.952+01:00A great article Melissa, and I enjoyed the two you...A great article Melissa, and I enjoyed the two you referred to. As a publisher I am happy to run competitions for free only if the prize is worth it and only if the sponsor lets me do it my templated way. I also come across those who think customising it is easy, and asking for lists of entrants is expected. Basically you should get what you pay for.<br /><br />Oh, and PRs aren't hated. Bad PR is hated, informative PR is good.<br /><br />Steve<br />www.ukparentslounge.comSteve Mastershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16950445233417639827noreply@blogger.com