The 10 best ways to pitch a blogger

My conversations with other bloggers suggest this is the norm, meaning it is as tough to reach a blogger as it is to reach a mainstream journalist. It may be even more difficult since most of us bloggers work part-time on our blogs, and devote less time to wading through pitches as journalists.

Sadly, nearly all of the pitches I get are just plain spam. The good news is that I pay attention to things people send me, and occasionally write about them.

How do you increase your chances of getting a blogger like me to talk about you or your clients? Here are some ideas:

1. Don’t pitch your product.

This is by far the worst thing to do. I may be interested in how people solve problems with your product or service, but I don’t care about the product itself.

2. Know bloggers can give you coverage in many ways.

Don’t limit your pitch to the person’s blog. Share what you think the person will be interested in, but realize he may reward you in a different way.

In my case, I might tweet about your product. Maybe you have a story worth adding to a book I’m working on, or including in a speech. Don’t limit yourself.

3. Remember that bloggers aren‘t journalists.