PR Training

Building Relationships with the Digerati

Bloggers are talent, not journalists – But, that does not mean they should not get the same respect as journalists. Enjoyment, not product reviews, are drive for bloggers – Do not belittle their passion or opinions.

This PRSA conference session was packed! With good reason. All of us have seen the countless examples of blogger relations gone bad. This panel wanted to set the record straight about how to build mutually beneficial relationships within social media.

The panel consisted of:

  • Kami Watson Huyse, APR, principal, My PR Pro
  • Matthew Henry, blogger, Childsplayx2
  • Jason Avant, blogger, Dad Centric
  • Fran Stephenson, director, corporate communications, Rackspace Hosting
  • If you want to see the back channel chatter of this session, research #digit.

    Key Take-Aways:

    1. Bloggers are talent, not journalists – But, that does not mean they should not get the same respect as journalists.
    2. Enjoyment, not product reviews, are drive for bloggers – Do not belittle their passion or opinions.
    3. Bloggers want PR people to know them before contacting them – This is good ole’ fashioned public relations requiring one to do their homework before making contact and be personal.
    4. Venture is akin to the dating process … you must be willing to do a bit of give and take.�

    By Lauren Vargas is a community manager at Radian6, based in Boston, Mass. She is a well-known public relations blogger and speaker who specializes in integrating social media tools into communications/marketing and business strategy. Vargas is a multi-faceted communications professional with experience in internal and external corporate communications, governmental affairs and community relations. Connect with Lauren on LinkedIn and Twitter.

    For coverage of the PRSA 2009 International Conference: Delivering Value, visit our Conference blog or follow the conversation on Twitter at hashtag #prsa09.

    About the author

    Lauren Vargas