Our clients are continually approached by beauty bloggers— some credible, others… not so much. While many larger cosmetic companies have established social media programs, several are just beginning to explore beauty blogs and social media as an opportunity to connect with consumers. We’re thrilled to have beauty blogger Shannon Nelson of A Girl’s Gotta Spa! offer her insight into the world of beauty blogs and share her advice for selecting a blog that’s right for your brand.
 

How do you decide which products you will review? When I first started my blog, it was solely based on products I already used and was interested in. However, over the last 6 years things have evolved and now I choose not only what I use and love, but other products based on beauty trends or from intriguing pitches from publicists. I also receive email from readers asking me about products that sometimes prompt me to try them out.

What if you don’t like a product? I honestly get so many products to review, that if a product doesn’t wow me, it will be forgotten and not written about. There have only been a handful of times that I have written a negative review, but that only happens if I’ve had a really bad experience with a product while the media has touted it as the next great miracle product. I factually explain my experience and invite readers to share theirs as well. Additionally, gently used products that I don’t like are donated to my local domestic violence shelter. (Along with the extras I get when brands send entire collections.)

In your opinion, what kind of traffic should a blog have to be considered worthy of consideration? Consideration should not be based on traffic alone. Quantity of traffic doesn’t always equal quality. However, I do have a rule of thumb when it comes to working with other bloggers for
the brands I handle social media for.

• Alexa Ranking
  A ranking of 300,000 or less is a good indication that the blog is getting consistent traffic and is updated regularly.
• Google Page Rank
  Between 3-6 is average for a blog; obviously the closer to 10 the more importance the blog has in the search engines. If a blog has less than a ranking of 3, I put them on my list to check back on in 6 months.
• Blog Age
  Blogs should have a minimum age of 2 years of consistent posting. You can find this out by clicking on the archives link.
• Traffic
  I personally use Compete.com to get a snapshot idea of a blog’s traffic. 7K or more readers is usually a good indication of a loyal readership. However, Compete will show you in graph form how those numbers have changed in the last year, that way you can visualize growth or a blog on the decline.
• Niche
  I always tell brands to stay away from blogs that are solely giveaway blogs, as their traffic is fleeting and their readers are only there to win something and have no interest in purchasing your product. Stick with blogs that align with your niche as their audience, as they will be most interested in your products.

Honorable mentions are the blogger’s Twitter and Facebook fan pages. Is their Twitter profile simply an aggregate of their RSS feed? Or is it a combination of conversation, RT’s and their feed? What is the ratio of followers vs. following? On Facebook, are there daily updates to the page? Is there an ebb and flow of interaction between the blogger and their fans? You can get a pretty good idea of a blogger’s influence by looking at their Twitter and Facebook activity.

How do blogs help support online marketing initiatives?Well, technically blogs aren’t in the business of supporting online marketing initiatives. We exist for our readers. However, through relationships with publicists and brands we’re often pitched story ideas and made aware of various campaigns going on. If it fits in with either our schedule or editorial content, we may write about it. Most brands know that not only does a favorable review help generate sales, it also helps with SEO. But don’t be so quick to assume a blogger will want to write about your product simply because you are offering it for free, which is commonplace these days. Your pitch will need to stand out and you will have to make a concerted effort to get to know the blogger beyond, “Hi Shannon, we’d love to send you free product in exchange for writing a review about us.” Help us understand the value and why you think it would be a good fit for our blog and readership.

Your article, Communication 2.0: Bloggers Speak Out on the Dos and Don'ts of Pitching, contains a lot of great tips, but I’m guessing you come across a rogue publicist (or marketer) every now and then. What is your biggest pet peeve?Not being addressed by name or being sent a pitch that has nothing to do with my blog. For example, I receive pitches that begin: “Dear Blogger,” “Dear A Girl’s Gotta Spa!,” or “Hi blogger.” This tells me that they have spent no time on my blog understanding who I am (just click “About”) or even as simple as knowing my name. Would you contact a producer or magazine editor that way? Probably not. Aside from the greeting, I have received pitches for HUD housing laws, iPhones and electronics, fitness products and restaurants. It is a waste of their time for putting it together and sending it to me...and a waste of space in my inbox.

Do you feel it is important for a beauty brand to maintain an internal corporate blog, for example, Clarisonic’s Sonic Chatter? Absolutely! From a customer perspective, it helps me feel like I have a direct relationship with the brand because I can interact with them in their comments section and receive immediate feedback. It also educates me and keeps me up to date on their products. As a social media consultant, I always advise maintaining a blog for customer conversation, SEO and bringing a different voice to the company that is not “corporate” in nature.

Do you feel beauty bloggers are more influential than beauty editors? I feel like this is a trick question! Here is my opinion—print magazines still outsell over blogger reviews/mentions of a product, however, a review from a beauty blogger will outlast the print review. Why? Because with print, once you get your next issue, you toss the other one away. With online reviews, they are there for life—no matter the season, month or date the review was originally written. So you want to make sure you are getting coverage in both print and on blogs.

There has been much debate about blog reviews being biased as a result of advertising and free products. How do you respond to these comments?Magazine editors and show producers/hosts are getting free products and advertising from brands. Are they biased? Some would argue yes, simply because their paycheck depends on it. For bloggers, we are only accountable ourselves. No one can fire us if we write a negative review. Additionally, most veteran bloggers adhere to an unwritten code of ethics—we write with integrity and honesty regardless of receiving an item for free or if the brand has placed an ad with us. I speak only for myself and of the other bloggers I have known for years. Yet, there is a new breed of bloggers out there that are simply writing positive reviews to garner more free products, unfortunately. I will also write about clients’ products as well, but only if I 110% absolutely LOVE that product. I make it very clear in my review that I work with that brand so that I am upfront about my relationship with the company. The clients I work with are also told upfront that coverage on my blog is not a given. Again, that is something I am always straightforward about so that it is crystal clear that there is no bias involved.

Shannon Nelson’s blog, A Girl’s Gotta Spa! is a Top 50 Beauty Blog. Follow her on Twitter @agirlsgottaspa and find her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/agirlsgottaspa.