Marc's Voice

Transparency and sponsorship in the blogosphere

So I’ve been working on a new program - which I’ve been shopping around to a few peeps - which will pay bloggers to blog. I’ve gotten lots of great feedback and we’re about to announce the program, so I’ve noticed a few posts recently which surround this topic.

How do we get money into blogger’s pockets?

One thing we DON’T want to do is hide the fact or pretend like it’s anything other than income for bloggers. The particular product we’re going to ‘flog’ is not something a blogger would use for blogging or even use at all. But it’s coolio and has something to offer the world that’s unqiue. And that’s worth talking about.

The fact that we found them and give them money - just means that THIS particular meme gets spread (as opposed to any other one) and I believe that’s called marketing.

There’s lots of money available for marketing, some of it going to advertising. But wouldn’t it be coolio if some of it went directly into blogger’s pockets? I like the feel of it it my pocket!

We designed this program to tap into the pure state of what (as I see it) a blogger is - somebody who, off on their own, has something to say.

If through paying this blogger to blog about a particular product, the company can have it’s agenda achieved - then why not?

Why is sponsorship or advertising not as good?

The way I see it - an ad or sponsor link does nothing to involve the blogger in the process of marketing the product. I’d much rather say something and participate in the process, then have a static, lame-ass banner ad or emblem on my page.

So when I read John Battelle’s post on Kottke Counts Ads: The Revolution Will Be Advertised which lead me to his excellent post on Toward the Endemic: What’s missing in PPC/Behavioral/Contextual Ad Nets I realized that advertisers DON’T partake in a conversation with their audience. Ads are a one-way thing. That’s not a conversation.

By getting bloggers to blog about a product - at least a conversation is possible. The human in involved in the process of marketing the product. That’s the key aspect of this program I want people to think about.

Our blogger’s program involves humans in the marketing process. It spreads money out to the ultimate, virtual Amway army there is - the blogsphere.

Battelle is eloquent in his argument of the inherent relationship bewteeen reader, publisher/editor ande advertiser and the evolution of an implicit community:

What’s inherent in this interaction is the intention of all parties to be in relationship with each other. This creates and fosters a sense of community - the best publications always have what are called “endemic” advertisers - those that “belong” to the publication’s community, that “fit” with the publication’s voice and point of view. I’ve found that in the magazines and sites I’ve helped create, my readers enjoyed the ads nearly as much as the editorial, because the ads served them, seemed to understand who they were in relation to the community the publication created.
[searchblog]

John’s post goes on to point out that AdSense in fact provides none of the implicit community created at - for instance Wired - which John was instrumental in building. It’s that magic juju - the balance between ads, content and the brand - that we’re all looking for.

John notes that most people got off on the ads in Wired just a smuch as the content. The magical balance of editorial and publishing really made Wired hum. You’d pick up a new issue and you could lietrally feel the buzz.

But meanwhile - how does the blogger get involved in all this?

Humans are a good thing and if we can figure out how to get humans money fo particiapting in marketing - that’s a wonderful thing. Some bloggers ask for PayPal contributions or ’sponsorship’.
Humans need to eat and live somewhere - so they need jobs. Who’s gonna pay a blogger to blog?

It’s the PR industry that we’re most encroaching on

Another article that set me off is something JD pointed to called ‘PR Bloggers enter the story’ - which made me realize PR flacks are what we’re replacing.

I’ve been approached by many a PR maven over the past 2-3 years - trying to figure out how to tap into the blogosphere. I’ve told them all the same thing - “start a blog” (that’s something Dave EWienr taught me to say.)
“We all want to hear what it’s like to deal with your clients, to have to put out fires, spin the news, handle a crisis,” I’d tell them. The best PR folks are experts at all this.

Needless to say - they all hate the idea of airing their dirty laundry and revealing their trade secrests - but that’s the deal. If they want to use the blogosphere - they have to be in the blogosphere.

I was talking to Mike Sigal from BlogOn last night and I realized just how much I hated the of buying your way onto a panel. We ended up with a panel on “the Future” with folks from AOL, CNet, Yahoo and Microsoft.

I’m sorry - they don’t have anything to say about the future. They’re the past.

Sponsorships are good (and honest) but trying to get your people onto a panel is not. We’re all faced with a ton of money which now wants to pour it’s way into the blogosphere to buy influence.

Saying that you’re paying bloggers to blog at least is going about it honestly. The next time I see a panel which has participants on it - that bought their way into the panel - I at least want to be informed of that fact. It’s not that I’ll get up and leave, it’s that I want honesty and transaprency.

Money breeds corruption - so we gotta vet out this shit - upfront.

Tracking what’s going on is important - and establishing guidelines and open policies will also be important as all this cash is abosrbed.

We’re talking ’bout 100’s of millions of dollars in potential absorption

The bloggers program we’re working on will post all the terms and conditions of our program, who’s particiapting and how much they’re receiving. Each contract will be for three months minimum and our bloggers will get to say whatever they want to say… about the product. No exceptions.

If we can pull this off - it’ll change the blogosphere. It’ll show corporations that they CAN influence bloggers - and it’s called paying bloggers UPFRONT and let them do their thang - regardless of what they’re gonna say. Don’t hide the fact or try to buy your way onto a panel.

That’s trying to trick us.

The only way this can be acceptable - is to upfront, honest and transparent about it. Accept thet fact that not everyone will say something ncie or complemntary - but at leats they’ll mention you. Accept the fact that to hire bloggers - means you have to live with what they’re gonna say.

HELLO! That’s why we’re bloggers. You CAN’T influence us.

But we can mention your name and feel warm and fuzzy about those greenbacks in our pocket. But everyone knows you’re paying me. Everyone knows you’re paying for influence. So how is an ad any different?

So we’re looking for ‘business oriented’ bloggers - especially folks who track the dissemination of technology into business.

Phil Windley?

John Patrick?