Should you pay a travel blogger?
Lots of travel companies, hotels and airlines get approached by bloggers offering to write about their product in exchange for a free trip. Some even go so far as to ask for a fee. So should you accommodate them and should you even go so far as to pay them for their services?
Yes to both, says professional travel blogger Jaillan Yehia. But then she would say that, wouldn’t she? However, what can companies gain from engaging bloggers?
Yehia told this week’s WTM Connect Ski conference in Oztal, Austria that consumers trust other consumers, so when a blogger writes about your brand, it creates trust. A key difference between bloggers and other forms of advertising and PR is that they always put themselves at the heart of the story, so they become a conduit for the message you want to portray, said Yehia. As blogs often post articles and tweet on the spot, you can also use them to get messages out very quickly.
If you’ve got spare inventory then it might be worth hosting a blogger for the social media coverage you’ll get. "That’s worth a lot to your brands," said Yehia.
However, there’s a difference between pro bloggers and hobby bloggers. While hobby bloggers, who are travelling and writing in their spare time, will write about their trip for free, pro bloggers will expect a fee on top of the free trip.
The advantage of paying a blogger is that they will – or should – treat it as a job. They will, said Yehia, work with the company to promote their brand and ‘deliver its goals’. Whereas a hobby blogger might write only one piece from their trip based on their own experience, a pro blogger will agree with the company beforehand how much coverage they will get and they’ll write and tweet about the company before, during and after their visit.
"If you pay a fee, you will get a lot more value. You don’t think twice about paying for advertising or PR, so why not pay bloggers?" she said.
When hiring a blogger, it’s important to have a contract and agree how much coverage you’ll get and whether you’ll have the copyright for all of the content and photos they produce, added Yehia.
So how do you find a good one?
Look for someone who is passionate in your field, so ski operators should engage people already writing about winter sports. Also, engage someone who would spend their own money on the trip so that you get an honest review, said Yehia. Also, find out how experienced they are so that you can make sure they’ve honed their craft. You can check how many followers they have on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook but, as Yehia said, these numbers can give a false impression so it’s also important to read their blogs and choose someone you find engaging and writes well.
To get the most out of a professional blogger, make sure you plan their itinerary and include everything you want them to blog about. "If you want them to write about a ski resort, please give them a ski lesson," she said. "If you want them to include a restaurant, make sure they eat there."
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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