1. Pay to Play: Crafting
Compelling Campaigns
Amie O’Shaughnessy, @ciaobambino
Jyl Johnson Pattee, @momitforward and @jylmomIF
Mara Gorman, @motherofalltrip
Caroline Michaud, @iPrefer

2. What are
campaigns?
What’s the
difference between
participating in &
driving them?
Bloggers who run campaigns do it all!

3. Is what you’re pitching valuable?
(And how do you know?)

4. How much money
can you make?

5. What defines success?
How can you use
that success
to get repeat
business?

7. Addendum
• The Pros and Cons of Being a Campaign Participant
• The Pros and Cons of Being a Campaign Driver
• Keys to Campaign Participant Success
• Tips for Pitching a Campaign
• Compensated Partnership Ideas
• Case Studies of Successful Campaigns
• Tips for Getting Repeat Business

8. The Pros and Cons of Being a
Campaign Participant
Cons
•Campaign expectations may
not always be clear.
•Your involvement with the
brand may be a one-off as
opposed to an ongoing
partnership.
•You have less
creativity/flexibility since the
direction is already set.
Pros
•The campaign direction is
already set.
•You do not need to pitch
campaign ideas.
•It’s easier to manage the time
spent on the campaign.
•You may enjoy higher
earnings per hour for less
amount of work.

9. The Pros and Cons of Being a
Campaign Driver
Pros
•You have more control over
and involvement in
determining campaign
ideas/expectations.
•You have the opportunity to
create community/network by
hiring others.
•Your overall income potential
is higher.
Cons
•You need to hone your business
mgt and sales skills.
•You must be on top of trends to
propose campaign ideas.
•You need to pitch constantly.
•The pay can be lower due to the
high amount of work.
•You need to master account mgt
skills to manage people and
campaigns.

10. Keys to Campaign Participant Success
• Know who you are as a
blog/brand and what you
will and won’t represent.
• Capture your influence in
an easily accessible media
kit, incl reach & rates.
• Identify brands that are a
perfect fit for your blog.
• Discover those brands’
needs and pitch them
ideas that meet their
objectives.
• Be professional: Provide
quality work and exceed
expectations.
• If you have an issue mid
campaign, deal with it
directly, not publicly/online.
• Be in the relationship for the
long term. Be generous,
sometimes without pay.
• Show your worth with a solid
metrics report or email.

11. Tips for Pitching a Campaign
• Identify what your potential clients’ core objectives are and
craft your pitch based on their needs.
• Grab their interest with a catchy subject line and easily
accessible information in the body copy (e.g., bullet lists).
• Be clear about what you have to offer and why it’s valuable to
potential clients.
• Be upfront about costs for clients.
• Engage with potential clients – listen to their needs and offer
customization.
• Don’t be afraid to follow up.
• For a sample campaign deck, email Mara Gorman at
maragorman@backtoski.com

12. Compensated Partnership Ideas I
• Affiliate marketing: Adding links in your posts for passive revenue
opportunities
• Ambassador programs: Long-term brand partnerships, involving one
or more campaign type (e.g., blog post, social media amplification,
Instagram contest, etc.)
• Articles: Organic travel-related content published on a brand’s blog,
website, or newsletter or in a magazine or newspaper
• Blog tours: Sponsored content, reviews, and giveaways, including a
brand’s key words/search terms and “no follow” links
• Dedication day: Dedicated content on your blog/social media
accounts and ad space for 1 day
• Display advertising: Banner ads, in-post “sponsored by” ads

13. Compensated Partnership Ideas II
• eNewsletter marketing: Content or display advertising options in your
eNewsletters
• Facebook/Google+ campaigns: Chats/hangouts, dedicated posts,
branded photo albums, including hashtags and tagging
• Instagram contests/take overs: Giveaways, posting on a brand’s
account, and embedding IG videos into your blog posts
• Live events: Hosting brand-focused events, being sponsored to
events/conferences, representing the brand at events, etc.
• Media/spokesperson opportunities: Radio, TV, etc.
• Podcasting: Having a podcast “brought to you by” a brand, dedicating
the theme/topic to a brand, involving brand representatives as
panelists/co-hosts on your podcast, or participating in someone else’s
podcast by sharing your travel expertise and tips

14. Compensated Partnership Ideas III
• Pinterest campaigns: Creating brand-sponsored Pinterest
boards, contributing to or promoting a brands’ Pinterest board
• Social media amplification: Generating buzz for campaigns via
social media updates, images (IG or Vine), tweets, etc.
• Twitter Parties: Hosting or being a panelist on a Twitter chat
that is dedicated to a travel-related brand and that focuses on a
travel-related theme
• Video: Creating and sharing video on your blog or YouTube
channel, having a segment “brought to you by” a brand,
participating as a travel expert on someone else’s YouTube or
video-based show

15. Annual Back to Ski Week
(#backtoski) campaign
www.backtoski.com
• 5.29 million timeline deliveries on Twitter on the
#backtoski hashtag between 9/12/13 and
9/22/13, reaching 1.01 million people.
• The Back to Ski Facebook presence reached
about 12,000 unique people during the
campaign.
• During September 2013 all of the participating
Back to Ski blogs received a combined total of
approximately 260,000 page views and
114,400 unique visitors.
• All 2013 sponsors returned for 2014
For more information see:
http://backtoski.com/about-ski-2013/
Goal: Get families thinking about
purchasing passes & planning ski
vacations before the season begins.
Tactic: Find ski industry sponsors at
3 tiers to purchase sponsorships. Pay
bloggers to create content,
participate in a Twitter chat, and
spread the word about giveaways.
Total Campaign Sponsorships:
2012: zero (crowd-sourced)
2013: 3 sponsors, $10,000
2014: 4 sponsors, $9500
2013 Results

16. Annual #FamilyForward
Retreat in Partnership with
Universal Orlando Resort
• 60MM total social media
impressions
• 30 Blog posts to date
• 1,200 Instagram pictures
• 4,100 Tweets
• 52MM Twitter Impressions
For more information, see:
http://familyforward.com
Goal: Drive massive online buzz
about Universal Orlando Resort at
a key travel decision-making time.
Tactic: Host an annual 4-day
retreat on property for 71 bloggers
and their families, giving them
access to new attractions, VIP
experiences, and content.
Results for #FamilyForward
(Event Took Place August 28 to
September 1, 2014)

17. Preferred Hotel Group’s
2013 Preferred Family
Sponsored Blog Campaign • 93% increase in unique visitors
– Visitors spent more time on
site, viewing an average of 6
pages before leaving
• 100% increase in bookings
• 121% increase in Twitter followers
• 350 new “likes” on Facebook
• Social channels
referred 30% increase
in unique traffic
• 14 strong editorial
endorsements
Goal: Increase exposure for
PreferredFamily.com
Tactic: Work with existing team of
“Preferred Family Certified”
bloggers to generate stories,
supported by social media efforts,
that position PreferredFamily.com
as a premier family travel planning
tool
Total Campaign Budget: $4,000
Results of 11-Week Campaign

18. Tips for Getting Repeat Business
• Send clients a metrics report with the following information:
– Screen shots of & original links for blog & social media posts.
– Dashboard info from your tracking tool (e.g., NUVI, Radian6),
sharing campaign hashtag reach/impressions, etc.
– If the campaign included multiple bloggers, include their:
• Original blog (UVMs) and social media reach.
• Blog post traffic and social shares.
• Ask your clients for testimonials.
• Create case studies of successful campaigns, including metrics
and testimonials, and add them to your website/media kit.
• Send your clients a thank-you email or gift.
• For a sample metrics report, email Jyl at jyl@momitforward.com.