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7 Insider Tips for Befriending Top Bloggers (Or Anyone Online)
By Tiffany Monhollon | February 22, 2008
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Wanna become friends with the big guys?
1. Leave insightful comments on their blog. It’s probably not going to make you BFF, but it’s a step toward a relationship. You’ve got to get on a blogger’s radar screen before friendship can happen. And becoming a member of their community, adding value to their conversations, and engaging with their content is a great start. So leave some great comments on their blog first, and see what happens. Sometimes, this is all you need to get a personal interaction with the blogger.
2. Write great content and link to them. Linking is the next logical step in forming a relationship with a blogger. Bloggers love links. They can enhance their authority, show your support, and spread their ideas. But don’t link to just anything. On the chance that they’ll follow your links back to your blog, make sure you’re linking to the good stuff. (Or just always write good stuff.) That way, if they do find your blog, they’ll know it’s worth coming back for more or better yet, recommending to others. You’ll probably find that once the company you keep online starts to elevate, so will your standards for what and how you write.
3. Befriend them in their social networks. If they’re in your networks (and they know who you are because you already completed tips 1 and 2), that’s great. Add them to your LinkedIn network, befriend them on Facebook, join their MyBlogLog community, or follow them on Twitter. But if you’re there and they’re not? Find them wherever they are (hint: many bloggers link to their favorite social networks from their blogs), grab an account, and let the friendships begin. There are so many social networks out there, and most bloggers have their own personal favorites and ways of using them. But social networks can be powerful in building relationships - just look at how one woman, Twitter, and a bag of frozen peas started a revolution. Social networks take blogging relationships to the next level and offer another context and opportunities for real, powerful connections to form.
4. Communicate with them personally. Make sure you’ve started the relationship-building process before you step to this level (you don’t want to get written off as weird stalker fan), but don’t be afraid to e-mail or IM a blogger you’re getting to know. Who knows, your friendship may blossom into one where a phone call or in-person meetup is in order. Real-time conversations can help acquaintances become true friends, even business partners.
5. Nominate them for awards (and tell them about it). Here’s a tip: If you ever find an award you’re really dying to be nominated for, chances are, someone else is too. So instead of worrying about whether or not someone will add you to a list of top blogs or put the buzz in someone’s ear that you’d be a great candidate for a best-of feature, go ahead and be proactive on someone else’s behalf. Then, take it an extra step and e-mail them to let them know how much you enjoy their work and that you were honored to nominate them for an award.(Hint: don’t do this with the hope or expectation that they’ll return the favor. Who knows, they might. But if not, you’re no worse off, and you’ve probably just added a valuable addition to your network.)
6. Offer to work or write for them for free. For those really big-fish bloggers who have a need you can fill, why not offer to help them out - for free? Hey, why not do if for the little-fish bloggers, too? Write for their blog while they’re on vacation, or help them add a valuable feature to their site. This technique can lead to actual paid work, but more importantly, it can help you build powerful personal advocates who can enhance your network and broaden your horizons.
7. Follow their advice (especially on relationship building.) Bloggers blog for many different reasons, and some will just be out of reach, so don’t worry if your efforts to befriend certain bloggers seem ineffective. There are a great many bloggers you’re going to be able to form relationships with - and they’re the type for whom seeing their ideas implemented is one of their greatest sources of satisfaction. Because they’re going to pay attention to the actions of their readers. They’re also usually more the type who can become personal advocates and partners in your success. So follow the tips or try the advice, an d then tell the blogger (back to strategies 1-3 on this one). Go one better and tell them what happened when you did, what you learned from the experience, and how it will help you.
The truth is, bloggers are people too. And most of us realize that we can’t be successful without relationship, especially in our current media landscape online. So get out there and start building friendships.
It may surprise you just how simple and effective these tips can be when you use a thoughtful, respectful approach, even with some of the web’s most popular people.
So: Friends on. It starts with you.
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Topics: Communicating, Community, Networking, Personal PR, Relationships, Writing/Blogging |
February 22nd, 2008 at 6:17 pm
This is great advice, and I have to personally say that Tiffany lives it! We had a great time when she was in my fair town a few weeks ago - all because we initially met in the blogosphere.
February 22nd, 2008 at 8:16 pm
Thanks, Sam! It’s an amazing process to see unfold. Thank you for your friendship and support
February 22nd, 2008 at 10:50 pm
Groups(I personally like Facebook)are a great way to make friends online. I’ve found some of my best online friends this way.
The relationships blossom because it’s a group of people with similar interests, but different life experiences. So, we are equally able to contribute to the conversation, offering info, support and advice.
February 23rd, 2008 at 1:27 am
@ Towanda - You’re right on the money. Social networks add a more personal touch to the relationship-building process, making them more dynamic and real.
February 23rd, 2008 at 11:06 am
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February 23rd, 2008 at 11:07 am
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February 24th, 2008 at 9:07 am
wow this is great. I hadn’t thought of many of these ideas. I am going to link to this post.
February 24th, 2008 at 11:15 am
@ Analaura, Glad you found it helpful!
February 24th, 2008 at 10:47 pm
As many others have said, this is great advice. A few months ago Timothy Ferriss of The 4-Hour Workweek did a similar spot on networking with people who are at the top of their game — he actually issues a challenge to students whenever he guest-lectures at Princeton to find the contact information for some chosen bigshot, be it the a high-ranking government official or the heads at a major tech company.
I haven’t quite reached the likes of Sergey Brin or Larry Page, but my few attempts at contacting authors and professors have proven remarkably successful. Asking questions, requesting pieces of advice… the folks at the top seem very responsive to offering some kind words or an inspiring email reply. And now, with the rapid spread of Web 2.0 and the tremendous blogging community, everyone is that much closer to one another.
February 25th, 2008 at 2:58 am
[…] pursued making connections with folks throughout the year, it was Tiffany Monhollon’s ‘7 Insider Tips for Befriending Top Bloggers (Or Anyone Online)‘ which prompted me to reflect on the past few […]
February 26th, 2008 at 9:33 pm
I’m not really familiar with the blog community, although I think it is a good place for us to build a relationship between blogger. Can anyone mention some blog community which I can join?
February 27th, 2008 at 12:29 am
@ Sayz Lim - there are a lot of great social networks you can join to network with other bloggers. One popular one is MyBlogLog, which tracks where you visit online - you can see my profile linked from the sidebar.
But other networks like stumbleupon.com, del.icio.us, twitter.com, are made up of both readers and bloggers. Twitter is becoming a really popular network where bloggers can communicate with each other outside of the traditional blogging format.
February 27th, 2008 at 9:13 pm
This is such a helpful post. My blog recently started and we are trying to find where we belong in the blogosphere. We are in the process of networking and linking with other blog sites and your 7 ways will definitely be a guide for what we do. Thanks for the great tips and we look forward to reading more!
February 29th, 2008 at 9:14 pm
[…] networking online any different from networking in the real world? 7 tips for befriending top bloggers will tell you the […]
March 10th, 2008 at 10:43 pm
[…] need to be proactive about contact, but at a new level. Now you will be able to more successfully contact bloggers at the Rockstar level because you have demonstrated your thought-leadership and persistence. You’ll also grow a large […]
March 18th, 2008 at 11:41 pm
Darren Rowse wrote a helpful article about pitching to top bloggers:
http://www.problogger.net/archives/2007/10/30/how-to-pitch-to-bloggers-21-tips/
At the risk of self-promoting, I’d like to share some additional ideas in this same vein:
http://broadcasting-brain.com/2008/03/12/can-i-speak-to-the-proprietor-of-the-island-blog/
May 13th, 2008 at 12:21 pm
Thank you Tiffany - I’m just learning about blogs and your tips are very helpful.
I especially liked your suggestion to contibute content, which is something I would enjoy doing.
Are there any good networks where I can discover folks looking for someone interested in writing for them?
Thank you,
Darrell
May 20th, 2008 at 9:43 am
[…] enough ideas, or trying to find a creative way to cover them. It’s not building a network or forming relationships with rockstar bloggers. It’s not building authority or linking strategically or becoming the […]
June 14th, 2008 at 8:43 pm
[…] and work, so create a small working network of five to fifteen professionals, because these are the relationships hat will really help your […]
July 18th, 2008 at 8:15 pm
[…] Befriending top bloggers […]