Writing a sponsored post means you’ve been offered something (usually a PayPal payment, but sometimes a voucher, product or experience) in exchange for writing a post with one or more anchor words or phrases included. These anchor words will have links to the brand’s website.
The two main types of sponsored posts:
Content without the brand
The company may ask that you use the key phrase ‘insurance quotes’ as anchor text for a link to one or more links provided by the PR or brand contact.
You can usually write anything you like so long as it logically incorporates the specified keywords. In this way the sponsored post is more like a blog prompt, but with links to a brand’s website.
In this case the company is paying for the link back, not direct advertising.
Content that includes the brand
In other cases a PR or brand will request that you mention the company in a post of related content.
For example, you may write about Top Tips for beating pregnancy heartburn, and refer at least once to a specific pregnancy website, with one or more links to that site.
How to write a sponsored post
Whichever type of sponsored post you agree to write, there are several principles to follow:
1. Accept relevant material
Select brands and topics that will be relevant and interesting to your readers.
It may be difficult to turn down money but try to not accept an opportunity about gardening if your blog has nothing to do with gardening. Unless you can work it into your niche in an entertaining way—if you have a fashion blog and you want to write a feature on being fashionable whist gardening, that could work!
2. Politely decline
If you’re offered a topic that is not at all interesting or relevant, simply reply with a no thank you. If the PR is way off base, you could just ignore it, and click delete.
Writing a snarky ‘have you even looked at my blog’ reply will mean that not only will you not get bothered by that PR again, even when they have a relevant, interesting offer, but they will not recommend you to colleagues when they have relevant offers.
PRs should do their research, but we all make mistakes. The PR may be new and still learning, and it may be to your benefit if they remember you as a good connection for the future.
3. Content must stay top quality.
When composing a post, always keep in mind: Audience Aim Action.
Audience:
Don’t lose readers!
Your readers are the reason you’ve been given this opportunity. Their loyal following will help you get more opportunities. Write your post as entertaining or as informative as you write all your posts.
Aim:
Your aim with a sponsored post is to incorporate the key words/phrases in an entertaining post.
Action:
What really gets PRs and brands excited is engagement, not just how many followers you have. Encourage comments, discussion in your comment section and reTweets.
4. Catchy title
As with all blog posts, you want to catch people’s eye so they will click on your post and read it.
5. Images
You don’t need images unless the sponsor requests that you use one. If they do, they will probably have a stock image for you to use. If you use someone else’s image remember to give credit.
By the way, studies have shown that image captions are one of the most read pieces of type on a webpage. Make your captions interesting and use them to lead the reader into your main content.
6. Practice good SEO
This is good for all your posts, sponsored or not. It will increase engagement because more people will find you besides just your loyal readers.
7. Practice good ethics
Sponsored posts are considered a form of ‘promotional comments’ by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT). Therefore they fall under specific guidelines:
‘Online promotional activity, just like any other promotional activity, must clearly identify when promotions and editorial comment have been paid for, so that consumers are not misled.’
So it is really good practice to disclose the nature of the relationship between the blogger and the brand. Usually this is just done by saying ‘This is a sponsored post’ at the end of the post.
Following these tips should help you write a post just as entertaining as any of your other posts—and get paid for it!
Did you see Helen’s post on writing reviews yesterday? And check out the great list of tips for working with PRs and brands!
About Michelle Garrett
Michelle Garrett is the author of The American Resident, where she blogs about making a life overseas, raising a blended family, herding cats, chasing chickens and attempting the Good Life in Essex. Michelle is a freelance writer.
- Web |
- More Posts(36)
Ahmed Cynamix
Wednesday 18th of July 2012
I really like this post and I have a question. Some people ask to make guest posts on my blog but I do have the feeling that they should go under sponsored posts.
How do I differentiate between a normal guest post and a sponsored post.
Galina V
Tuesday 7th of February 2012
Thank you, Michelle, I guess I confused the two. I thought that if you get a freebie to review, it is a sponsored post, in which you are paid in kind, as you get a free product. I still have a lot to learn re blogging. :)
Michelloui
Tuesday 7th of February 2012
We're all learning all the time about blogging!! ;)
There's a post about writing reviews here: https://www.britmums.com/2012/02/how-to-write-a-review-post/ which may be of interest to you and for some examples of reviews you can check out this post: https://www.britmums.com/2012/02/britmums-reviews-round-up/
Joanne Mallon
Monday 6th of February 2012
Thank you for your detailed reply Michelle. I quite like "This post was paid for by X brand" - very straight forward and honest way to put it. I would love to hear a blogger who doesn't disclose where they've been paid to write about a product explain why they do it like that. I've seen sponsored opportunities which I turned down appear on other blogs, so I knew exactly what the blogger was getting, and that they hadn't mentioned this. It's not like sponsored posts are a rarity these days, so why do people try to hide it if they're doing one?
Michelloui
Tuesday 7th of February 2012
I suppose it must come down to the blogger's worry that if she/he writes a sponsored post the readers will start clicking away. In my earlier blogging days I was worried about this.
Possibly they are influenced by the brands? I don't know though. It is difficult for bloggers who really need the money. I've been in that situation and had to be really confident in what I said to brands, even though I was worried I would lose out on that money equivilent to a bag of shopping!
With experience (on my blog and through watching others) I realised that I got much more support by simply making an effort to write something as entertaining as I would normally, state that it is a sponsored post (or similar), and hope that my readers understood that 'sponsored post' doesn't mean 'blah blah blah' on my site.
Galina V
Monday 6th of February 2012
An interesting read, Michelle. I am in two minds about sponsored posts and reviews in particular. I know all about the integrity slogan on BritMums, but how many bloggers actually stick to the rule? Please do not take it as a criticism, as I do not refer to your blog, I don't think I have read any of your blog posts (and plan to remedy the situation), but quite a few of sponsored posts that I have read have been let's say misleading (in mild terms). At first I was rather enthusiastic about reviews on mummy blogs and even bought a few things that appeared brilliant in the reviews and turned out to be a total waste of money. I am less trusting now with the sponsored posts, and if I am interested in a blog review, I usually check the reviews on amazon or some other sites where people paid for the product and are more honest about its qualities. Some of the mummy bloggers are very economical with the truth. That's my issue with the sponsored posts.
Michelloui
Tuesday 7th of February 2012
Hi Galina V!
I think the difference between sponsored posts and reviews is important.
Sponsored posts are not usually based on a person's experience of a product (the post becomes a 'review' then). Sponsored posts are simply posts that have been paid for by a brand. Usually the only thing the brand has paid for is a link or two with some anchor text and it's up to the blogger to decide how to incorporate it in a post.
A review, on the other hand is the blogger's experience of a product, which of course is subjective. One way to know if you can trust a review as an honest opinion of the product is to have a look around the site to see if the blogger claims to blog with integrity or if they have any information on their disclosure policy.
Hope that helps!
Joanne Mallon
Monday 6th of February 2012
Really interesting post. How do you feel about the fact that many bloggers are now choosing to call sponsored posts "featured posts" instead? Possibly in response to brands asking them not to label sponsored posts as such? Feels a bit mealy mouthed to me - if you're going to do it, why not be honest about it? The causal reader may not even know what you mean by "This is a featured post". But I see it a lot so maybe it is just one of those things that is becoming common place.
Michelle Garrett
Monday 6th of February 2012
I agreed at first (mealy mouthed) until I had my own experience with this.
I recently worked with a PR who was adamant that 'his client' didn't want the words 'sponsored post' to appear anywhere on the post. I was equally adamant that I needed to disclose that this was a sponsored post. He told me that his company had done extensive research and found that the bounce rate for a post with 'sponsored' on it was nearly 100%.
I explained that although I knew people didn't like sponsored posts and often click away if they know it is one, I tried to give the sponsored posts the same attention as all my posts because I didn't want people clicking away either! I regularly recive comments on my sponsored posts, which suggests my sponsored post bounce rate is not 100%.
In the end we compromised on 'this post was paid for be X brand'. I feel that (especially after my poll, mentioned above) I have a tacit agreement with my readers--if I respect them by letting them know I am writing a sponsored post and doing so as transparently as possible, they won't click away too much, as evidenced by the comments they leave.
I think a lot of people use words other than 'sponsored post' because the PR asks them to and they're worried the PR won't work with them or won't return to them in the future, or because they're worried their readers will click away as soon as they see the words. I guess so long as bloggers are transparent about the post it doesn't matter too much.
In my example above I used oher words because I had already written the article and I didn't want to have to bin it.
And as Liz highlights in the comments on a previous post on BritMums, https://www.britmums.com/2012/01/top-tips-for-working-with-brands-and-prs/ bloggers are not legally obligated to reveal that it is a sponsored post, so I suppose at this stage (until it does become a legal requirement) any thing that does not leave the reader feeling tricked is ok.