How to Make Your Blog Stand Out to Brands!

The world of blogging has long been over-crowded, especially now that many bloggers have a common goal; to work with brands. Although it’s obviously not the only thing on every blog owners mind, an overwhelming number of you would no doubt love to have a career that relates to your blog- or even turn your blog itself into that very career. The reality is, if you want to make either of the latter happen, you’re going to have to get serious about working with brands. It’s not something that will happen overnight, and it’s going to take a lot of work and plenty of patience. The brands out there that work with bloggers are going to have a sea of blogs to choose from, so you’re going to need to work on standing out. Here are a few areas that you’ll need to focus on in order to start turning heads……

Design

I would never go as far as to say that brands are wholly superficial, but considering all the blogs that PRs and Editors will get sent- appearance does matter! You need to make sure you have a clear and easy to navigate blog layout so people looking at your blog will be able to quickly and easily find what they need- including brand reps. Making sure you have a really good homepage is particularly important- first impressions and everything!

Aside from being easy to use, your blog just needs to look great! If you are serious about blogging but don’t know where to start with blog design it’s 100% worth investing in one. You can get really lovely blog layouts from around £50, and it’s so worth it. It really is a great investment; a good blog design will serve you well for your entire blogging career!

(Tip: Tweeting out and asking your followers can help you find some really lovely independent blog designers with moderate price ranges)

Consistent Branding and Tone

I’ve spoken about this before in previous posts so I’m not going to go on too long about this one, but being consistent in both branding and tone across your blog and all social media profiles is really important.

If you want to be able to vent anger, be very emotional or use profanities on social media then go for it- on your personal account!! Keep your blog’s social media channels focused and professional. This isn’t to say you should be void of any personality, just remember that if you want your blog to become a business or brand you’re going to need to think like one!

When it comes to branding, make sure you’re name is the same across all social media channels so people can easily find and follow you if they love your blog. Creating a logo to use on your blog and social media channels is equally as useful. If you want to read more about branding there is another post on that here: http://bloggers-lounge.co.uk/blogging-tips/turning-blog-brand/

Honest Reviews

I really think that brands appreciate honest reviews. Obviously they want the review to be on the whole positive, but recommending something whilst pointing out one or two small flaws makes for a really natural positive review. While I don’t think you should actively look for flaws in products you review, never be afraid to them in a post should you feel something could be improved. Not only will honest reviews help you build a loyal readership that really trust your opinion, brands will respect that if they give you something you’re actually going to test, use and review it properly!

Network

It’s tough for some, but it does have to be done. Whether you prefer networking online or attending blogger events, you need to find your feet in the world of blogger networking. Having a great contact list of fellow bloggers and people relevant to your industry will show brands that you’re an important figure within your niche. Here are a few very brief networking tips to get you going:

• Get in touch with an influencer in your niche (magazine editor, company owner etc.) and ask if you can send them just a few interview questions so you can feature them on your blog.
• Don’t just get involved in blogger chats on twitter, get involved in industry chats.
• If you’re a shy networker, set goals for when you attend an event- for example ‘swap business cards with 3 people’. This will help you slowly build confidence.
• Similar to the twitter chats, find general industry relevant events to go to as well as blogger events.
• Leave meaningful comments on other peoples blogs posts-show them you’ve actually read what you’re commenting on and they’ll no doubt comment back.

What do you think makes a blog stand out? Have you been contacted by brands?! Tell us about your experience in the comments below!