How to Find and Pitch Beauty Health and Style Influencers

If you are running a small business, chances are that publicity and marketing for your brand and product line are on your mind. Without a dedicated publicist, contact emails, editorial calendars and the all-too-important relationship with your chosen print or broadcast editor, this type of media may be out of reach. Or maybe you simply want to increase awareness faster than the 3-4 month lead time that magazine editors require and are looking to work with bloggers and influencers.

Many businesses understand the value of partnering with influencers such as bloggers, YouTube creators and Instagram influencers to endorse their particular brands, but they don’t know where to begin and what criteria should be put into place to discern between someone of influence and someone who is a hobbyist. Not to mention, what are the rules of engagement? How do you approach them and maintain a positive relationship?

As bloggers ourselves at Top Tier Media, we have a few tips you will find helpful.

Where to Find Influential Influencers:

1. Pinterest
   Pinterest is a blogger’s dream. It is the place where blogs get pinned and re-pinned with very little effort. Pinterest overflows with millions of professional pictures of blog-worthy outfits, delectable recipes and brag-worthy adventures. Behind many of these pictures are bloggers. Many have enormous followings and earn regular incomes because of this. Take a look at their Pinterest statistics. Their number of followers, pins and likes will show how influential they are in the marketplace and how often they are active on the site. Strategically partnering with a blogger with a large enough following can send loads of traffic back to a site with eager customers.
2. Instagram
   Hashtags are the best ways to find beauty bloggers on Instagram. Try searching hashtags such as #beautyblogger, #lifestyleblogger, styleblogger #fashionblogger, etc. Want to find a beauty blogger in your specific niche? Try #crueltyfreeblogger, #veganbeauty, #over40style, #greenbeauty, #drugstoremakeup, etc. The hashtags can help point to a particular authority in that field. Look for Instagram users who post regularly, stay within a theme and have true engagement in the form of likes and comments. While follower numbers are important, if the engagement doesn’t jive with the follower count, then it is likely that the Instagrammer may have “bought” fake fans. If the influencer doesn’t have a physical blog linked to in their bio, they typically have their direct contact information listed.
3. YouTube
   YouTube is the ultimate tool for finding influencers to endorse a product. With any given topic featured on YouTube, the most popular content creators show up at the top of the search results. Try searching keywords like you would on Instagram.

Remember – microinfluencers, celebrity influencers, and those with large followings will likely charge a fee for their services. You must not only be willing to send free product, but (oftentimes) have the budget to pay their fees for promotion.

What to Avoid When Pitching Bloggers:

1. Leaving a comment on a blog post/video/social media post regarding your brand, product and that you’d like the blogger to write about it. Some brands have even posted entire press releases in the comments – that’s a HUGE no-no and a big turn off.
2. Tagging a blogger telling them they must try your product with a link to it. (And more so, doing this incessantly when the blogger does not respond.)
3. Ignoring how they want to be pitched (which is usually found in their About/Contact section.)

How to Pitch Influential Beauty and Health Influencers:

1. Send relevant press kits. Of course you wouldn’t send pitches for beauty products to a food blogger. But, go one step further and read the “About” section and a few posts before contacting – for example – don’t make the mistake of pitching a product with animal ingredients to a vegan beauty blogger!
2. Perfect your pitch. Address the blogger by name – make it seem personal and not like a mass email (even if it is – but we don’t recommend mass pitches in general.) Don’t forget to include information about your product, small photos or pdfs (don’t clog up in-boxes without asking; “Photos available upon request” works beautifully), a link to your product’s website (you won’t believe how many people forget the link), your contact information, when the product will be released, prices, etc.
3. Use the magic words. Include the phrase “press samples available” instead of asking to send products for review. This is a subtle way to encourage bloggers to ask YOU for the product. While there is no obligation for bloggers to review your product (unless you have a written agreement to pay for an “advertorial”), they will be more likely to do so if they have requested the product samples.

Need help pitching influencers? To start a conversation with Top Tier Media regarding blogger outreach and your social media strategy, contact us today!

How to Host a Successful Influencer Event for Your Brand

While media events have been a staple for many decades, the rise of influencers has created an entirely new approach to this brand-building activity. However, it is important to understand the potential pitfalls and take care of the basics if you want to have a positive experience with any influencer or blogger event. If there is any time you want your brand and company to shine, it’s in front of those who will be writing about it to deliver your brand message to their captive audience.

Define Your Objectives and Deliver Substance

As influencers play an increasingly important role in how your prospects and customers view your brand, they are more demanding in what they expect from brands. In other words, bloggers understand their value and know that they don’t just serve as a conduit to bring attention to your new product or service.

Start your planning for a blogger event with the perspective of an influencer.

Ask, as if you were a blogger, “What are you going to find out by attending the event that will enhance your position as an authority and industry insider with your readers and base of followers?”

With that approach, you will shape the event to provide information that is useful and significant. This might include unveiling a new product (letting the influencers be the first to try it) or providing a unique experience that influencers will want to participate in. The essential goal is to provide something the influencer or blogger couldn’t have simply picked up from an email or press release.

Take Care of the Details

To avoid a blogger disaster such as that experienced by ConAgra Foods, translate your goal into an event that fits the influencer culture. For example, provide your key information to the attendees in digital form, not just a bag full of old school printed materials.

Other such details include:

• Using a hashtag that will help track media mentions across all platforms (not every blogger uses all the same platforms to channel information.) Remember, your hashtag serves as a keyword that allows you to track comments concerning your event.

• Capture your event with a stellar video and post it as quickly as possible after it closes. Also, create a microsite for the event if it fits your objectives. Consider filming a live stream of the event via Facebook or Instagram.

• Make sure to hand out goodie bags with product for influencers to take with them, as well as a printed card with your brand’s social media handles and hashtag for the event.

Planning is the key to a successful event, and it’s very helpful to review some of the more successful events that got a lot of subsequent mentions on the right channels. Vet the influencers in your niche and review their coverage of past events to make sure you’re inviting the right people.

Top Tier Media specializes in planning influencer events. Contact us if you need help setting up a stellar event!

How to Pitch Beauty, Health and Style Influencers and Bloggers

Got a great beauty, fashion, health or lifestyle product to share with the world? Beauty, health and style bloggers can be a great way to reach your target audience. Influencers can get the word out! But how do you reach them? What are the unspoken rules? Not sure how to craft your pitch? Read on!

Here are some tips:

• Send relevant press kits. Of course you wouldn’t send pitches for auto parts to a food blogger. But, go one stop further and read the “About” section and a few blog posts before contacting – don’t make the mistake of sending a cheese product to a vegan blogger!
• Perfect your pitch. Address the blogger by name – make it seem personal and not like a mass email (even if it is – but we don’t recommend mass pitches in general). Don’t forget to include information about your product, small photos or pdfs (don’t clog up in-boxes without asking; “Photos available upon request” works beautifully), a link to your product’s website (you won’t believe how many people forget the link), your contact information, when the product will be released, prices, etc.
• Use the magic words. Include the phrase “press samples available” instead of asking to send products for review. This is a subtle way to encourage bloggers to ask YOU for the product. While there is no obligation for bloggers to review your product (unless you have a written agreement to pay for an “advertorial”), they will be more likely to do so if they have requested the product samples.
• Be professional and courteous at all times. You should cultivate relationships with bloggers the same way you would with traditional editors and press staff. Remember, when you submit a product for review, you are not paying a copywriter to write glowing words about your product – you are asking for an unbiased review. Many bloggers have a wide sphere of influence on the web through blog readership and social media channels. It’s best to keep relationships friendly and mutually beneficial!
• Follow Up. If you have sent a product, but not received a review or an ETA, follow up. You are much more likely to get a review if you maintain communication with the editor. Be careful not to be pushy or demanding, or you may sever future relationships.
• Don’t call. Phone calls are a thing of the past in the online world. Many bloggers see phone calls as negative and intrusive. Send your pitch via email and feel free to follow up, but don’t call unless you have permission.
• Never demand a write-up in exchange for a promotional event invitation. It is implied that bloggers will do their best to write about events they attend, event sponsors, etc. It is considered poor form to demand a blog post, just as it would be considered tacky to invite a TV or newspaper editor to an event on conditional terms. Relax. Even if you don’t get a write-up, you’ve made a connection. Never discount the power of networking!

Need help finding and pitching influencers in your niche? Top Tier Media can help!