PR Blackout Week & Value Exchange
by Virginia Miracle
Category: Best Practices, Digital Influence
We are 10 days away from PR Blackout Week - a week for mom bloggers to get back to the basics of blogging and temporarily ignore PR folks and brands - being organized by mom blog aggregator MomDot. Opinions have varied as to whether or not this is necessary or is a PR tactic in its own right. Regardless of your position, it is a wonderful invitation to discuss the state of union and give current practices a good sniff test.We see PR Blackout Week is a timely call to refocus all of us who love blogs on the value exchange that must take place in order for them to maintain their magic. This sounds soft, but it is very real - the whole notion of “Digital Influence” is the changing sources and forces of influence around us. If blogs went the way of infomercials, we would start blocking them with our Personal Message Shield(TM) along with the rest of the noise that bombards us daily. Absolutely everyone in that scenario loses.
I participate at all levels of this particular food chain - I’m a mom, a PR professional, a blogger, and a blog reader. When I think about this value exchange issue, I ask myself a few questions in front of the mirror in harsh flourescent light:
- Am I, as a PR professional, providing something of true value to the bloggers I would like to work with?
- Are bloggers, by working with me, in turn empowered to share something of value with their readers (insights, a new experience, media, meaningful pass alongs, etc)
- Am I acting in the best interests of the ultimate blog readers when I work to craft a blogger experience?
- Am I as a blogger delivering great content to my readership?
- Am I actively supporting the bloggers who provide me with great content, ideas, experiences, and laughter?
While PR Blackout week may not be for you, there’s no time like the present to look at your own RSS reader, your blog, or your blogger engagement programs to reassess whether or not you pass the test on adding value to every link in the chain.
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[...] (Note: Cross posted on the Ogilvy Fresh Influence blog) [...]
August 1st, 2009 at 8:51 am
Thank you for an intelligent perspective on this. I strongly believe that without a re-evaluation we will eventually become like infomercials. Sure someone might be watching in the middle of the night and order that fantastic new cleaning cloth, but the vast majority will make a joke about it and turn the channel.
It is not about alienating PR or even blaming them for anything. It is about returning to our roots in order to IMPROVE our blogs, our relationships with PR and learn how to find our real voices again so people don’t turn the channel.
Thank you!
August 5th, 2009 at 11:20 am
What a refreshing look at the issue. I’m participating in the blackout because I believe it’s opened up an important conversation. You’re absolutely right - it’s all about value. What value does PR offer the blogger? If it’s just cheap products that don’t reflect my brand or my theme then in taking them, I’m not providing any value to my readers. In reverse, if it’s adding value to my readers, I’m more than happy to hear and write about it. I’ll be using this blackout week to really connect with my readership and evaluate some goals. There’s nothing wrong with that!
August 6th, 2009 at 8:21 am
It’s so nice to see this topic discussed with a level head. You’re right. No matter where a person falls on this issue, it never hurts to take a step back periodically and reflect on our direction and goals.
August 10th, 2009 at 9:37 am
It is definitely a chance to stop and reflect on what it was that inspired you to start a blog in the first place. What were the topics that you felt worthy of sharing your unique perspective on and discussing with others? Have those been supplanted by more “commercially-oriented content,” for lack of a better, trademarked phrase?
If the answer is yes, then jumping off the gravy train for a week seems like a really good idea.