Only eight days until I leave for BlogHer09 in my GM sponsored Chevy Traverse as part of the BlogHer09 Carpool. On the way, we’ll be staying at Best Western, one of my BlogHer09 Sponsors. When I get to the conference, I’ll be speaking at Room of Your Own 2 Session: Sponsored v. Unsponsored - Blogging for $$ Where Do You Stand? I’m also one of the hostesses at the BowlHer09 Party.
I’ll also be handing out coupons for free pancake syrup from my other sponsor, Log Cabin syrup. Did you know that Log Cabin is no longer made with HFCS (high fructose corn syrup)? And that they’re selling real maple syrup at selected Sam’s Clubs across the US?
Thank you to my sponsors, now back to our regularly scheduled programming
Conference sponsorships are a new thing among mom bloggers (see Kim Moldofsky’s post at Hormone-colored Days, Marketing to Moms: Announcing my BlogHer sponsor!). While I knew of one mom blogger at BlogHer08 who was paid to work at a booth by a company, I didn’t notice the phenomenon until the WalMart ElevenMoms went to SXSW09. I was aware that WalMart had sent them to the conference, but was surprised to learn that several of the moms had additional sponsors - everything from diapers to chocolate.
Then at the last Mile High Mamas’ blogger meet up, a few people asked me, “So, who is your BlogHer sponsor?” To which I replied, “No one.” I hadn’t thought about recruiting a sponsor though the idea of having one intrigued me. Hmmmm...
Sponsorships make conferences affordable and accessible
Even when I’ve had a roommate, got a cheap flight, had a free pass because I was a speaker, and took advantage of the free food at parties, most conferences ended up costing me around $300-600. For a freelancer, that’s a lot of dough, especially when you multiply it by the number of conferences you want to go to like SXSW, SOBCon, Chicks Who Click, WordCamp, BlogHer, BlogWorldExpo, and IzeaFest. I’m sure it’s the main reason why so many mom bloggers and other independent bloggers without corporate expense accounts seek sponsors.
In the past, I have been given a stipend or reimbursed for a conference ticket in exchange for reporting back to a client on industry trends and conference goers and events. I don’t consider that a sponsorship as much as consulting work. Semantics aside, having someone help you pay your expenses seemed like a good thing.
Getting recruited
I was first approached by a Stonyfield Farm organic yogurt back in March to represent their Oikos Organic Greek yogurt at BlogHer09. I had worked with the company and their PR people previously on a review and giveaway, and even contributed a recipe to the Stonyfield website. Plus it was a product I LOVED, so I felt honored to represent them.
During negotiations, BlogHer posted their informative FAQ about sponsored attendees, which restricted what I could do for Oikos on my main food/health blog, This Mama Cooks! On a Diet. They were unwilling to work around the restrictions. I was unwilling to take the BlogHer Ad Network (BHA) banner from my blog, since I would have lost more money before the conference than I would have made from Stonyfield. We amicably parted ways and I bemoned my loss on Twitter.
Elisa Camahort at BlogHer was nice enough to respond to make sure I knew about the workaround. (I did.) I also told her staying with BHA was worth it to me than a one time sponsorship.
Then I got a tweet from my contact at the Bender Hammerling Group saying they’d like to help. After I made sure they were cool with the BHA restrictions and they were positive about my promotional ideas, I got the Log Cabin sponsorship.
BlogHer09 Roadtrip
While I was wrestling with the food companies, I snapped up the chance to drive to Blogher in a GM car in the BlogHer09 Carpool. As a shareholder (along with the rest of the US tax paying population thanks to Mr. Obama) I was interested in test driving their cars and helping GM sell them, so maybe they could pay us taxpayers back.
More importantly, I was looking forward to hanging out with some fellow bloggers, and saw driving cross country as an adventure. Something like Thelma & Louise but without the rape, guns, and driving off the cliff part. (Though the Brad Pritt part? Hmmmm...)
Meanwhile, I was looking for a company to cover lodging since I knew that it would help not only me but the other ladies I was driving with. After Best Western pitched me about their Jonas Brothers contest, I asked them if the would sponsor us, and they graciously agreed.
As part of the sponsorship, I was able do an interview with Troy Rutman, Director of External Communications at Best Western. In it, we covered covered everything from how Best Western is making travel affordable for families and small business people to how they help you stay healthy and safe on the road.
Best Western and I go way back and has always been a clean, comfortable and affordable place for my family to stay at when we travel. I’m happy to represent them and have them as a sponsor.
Finding balance between the personal and the promotional
Working with the publicists and companies sponsoring me has been very positive. We’ve developed good working relationships and I’ve enjoyed doing pre-conference promotional activities for them.
My only concern is the conference itself. No it’s not taking time to post that we enjoyed our stay at Best Western or tweeting that I wish I had some sugar free Log Cabin syrup to drizzle on my breakfast. It’s more about how other conference attendees will interpret my sponsorships. Will they be cool with it and happily accept a free sample coupon? Or will I find a bunch of coupons littering the floor after I pass them out?
I know I have to find a balance between what my sponsor wants (pass out oodles of coupons) to what I feel is proper (give them out to people I personally connect with). And I know not everyone will be cool with it because either they don’t like pancake syrup (what?!?) or they think I’m being too promotional.
Yes, there are women in the mom blogging community who are against “working your business.” Some of them feel that making money with your blog is demeaning, that it “pimps your kids” and that only blogs with beautiful/funny/heart wrenching stories and writing should be recognized as successful or influential.
To that I say...let’s discuss it at my Room of Your Own 2 Session: Sponsored v. Unsponsored - Blogging for $$ Where Do You Stand?. Lucretia Pruitt of GeekMommy and I will be talking about conference sponsorships, sponsored conversations and reviews, the impending FTC regulations, and what WOMMA (the Word of Mouth Marketing Association) is proposing. Feel free to ask questions and discuss your concerns.
We hope to see you there and don’t be afraid to ask me for a free sample coupon of Log Cabin syrup, too! ;-)
