Sponsored posts are the best way to make money blogging. At least that’s the case for me so far. I am often asked how to go about getting sponsored posts. I created a mnemonic (I had to google that) to help remember these tips. STRIVE.
Get More Sponsored Posts – STRIVE
Story – Your post should tell a story. Relate it to your personal life. Get creative and write something that entertains your readers.
Teach – Posts that teach your readers or solve a problem are useful and tend to be shared more often.
Reach – Like it or not, numbers matter. If a company is going to invest in your work, they want to have some sort of way to gauge their ROI. Subscribers and followers count. Try to build them up a bit before applying for sponsored posts.
Images – Great pictures are key. It’s ideal to have at least one vertical image for Pinterest, and depending on the post, a few others that add to your overall message.
Voice – Be unique, be funny, be YOU. This is a tough one, and one of my biggest personal struggles. When you put yourself out there, you open yourself up for criticism. However, it’s also what sets you aside from everyone else.
Engagement – Sponsors like evidence that your posts are being seen. Comments, shares, and click-thrus will matter. Most likely you will have to work for this. You can’t usually just hit the publish button and run. You need to actively promote that post. Share your post on all of your social media channels, join blogger groups to cross-promote, etc. Do not ask for clicks. Seriously. Instead, include a clear call to action for your readers. Ask a question or draw their attention to something intriguing on the site to encourage clicks.
I am sure I can think of many more tips, but then I couldn’t use my fun mnemonic, and I got pretty excited about that. One more tip I will say right now is to make sure your contact email is easy to find on your blog. Not just a contact form, but an email for PR companies to copy and paste. The easier you make it to work with you, the more likely you will be pitched.
Do you have any tips to get more sponsored posts?