Link Building with Bloggers: What 'Relationship' Actually Means
If you want to build a relationship with bloggers, you need to show them some love first. Here are a few places to start.
If you want to build a relationship with bloggers, you need to show them some love first. Here are a few places to start.
Here’s a common situation: a link builder finds a blogger they’re sure will be interested in their client or company. So what do they do next? E-mail the blogger and ask for a product review? Ask for a link?
Most link builders have heard the mantra “link building is relationship building,” and nowhere is that more true than with bloggers. But what does that mean in practical terms?
The good news is that humans have been building relationships for thousands of years, and the bad news is we’ve been doing it for thousands of years. Online networking tools like Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook may be new, but the way our brains perceive relationships remains the same.
Thom Singer, networking expert and author of “Some Assembly Required,” poses this challenge:
“Think about who’s in your network. Is it someone you exchanged email with once or twice, or someone you know from a college that you went on ski trip with? We’re wired for relationships that are built on experiential relationships.”
Following, friending, and connecting with bloggers online is only the first step (and definitely not enough to ask for a favor like a link). A real relationship requires creating shared experience and consistent, genuine effort to help others achieve their goals.
Give to Get
According to Singer, relationship building isn’t give and take; “it’s give, give, give first,” before ever asking for something. So if you want to build a relationship with bloggers, you need to show them some love first. Here are a few places you can start:
Slow and Steady Wins the Race
Obviously you can’t instantly do all of the above (unless you don’t mind being a stalker). This process naturally takes weeks or months.
The biggest challenge with blogger relations isn’t the actual work, it’s having the patience and restraint to build a solid foundation before asking for something. According to Singer, “Online, it’s like everyone is a teenage boy, trying to move the relationship forward too fast.” There may be no formula to determine when the time is right to ask for a favor, but Singer suggests, “you know when it’s right.”
Link building with bloggers demands relationship fundamentals — help others first, go slow, build a legitimate foundation via shared experiences (online, mostly this means participation and dialogue), selflessly help others, and ask for a favor when you know it’s the right thing. If you take this approach, you will attain maximum success, and also create quality relationships that will permanently enhance your link building efforts.
The bottom line, according to Singer, is that people want to support people who give. If you find ways to help move a blogger toward their goals, it will come back to you.