NEW BLOGGER TIPS
When I started blogging three years ago, one main tip I discovered was to invest in your blog domain. Every tip post for beginners highly recommended website ownership in order to work with brands. Why? Because companies view owned blog domains as more professional and equate the publisher as someone who is serious about the content they produced. In other words, when they see you investing in yourself, brands are not afraid to invest in you.
Here’s the thing, you actually don’t need to own a blog domain to earn brand collaborations, just make sure your free blog website appears owned!
If you’re in the early stages of your dream career, paying a monthly or yearly fee for a blog domain may seem out of reach. Does this mean you should forgo the idea of working with brands if you run a free blog website? Absolutely not! Let me share my tips to how I collaborated with brands even though my blog is not owned…yet.
5 Tips to Working with Brands When You Have A Free Blog Website
Depending on how you present your work, a free website has the potential to stand out like the ones you see from professional bloggers. I’ve been blogging for three years and had the pleasure of working with different companies on my blog such as Banish Acne Scars, Amalise Beauty, Ever-Pretty and Bare & Free Beauty. I also received several gifted items through my Influenster account from popular brands like Jimmy Choo, Lancome, Shea Moisture, Mele Skincare, Partake Foods, bareMinerals, Dove and plenty more.
I believe the time and energy I invested into my blog from the early stages paid off. I continue to treat my free blog as a professional domain, which means I’m running it like a business. Over the course of three years, I built an online presence and that helped companies find my blog. I never reached out to companies, with the exception of Influenster, they all found me through my blog. Curious how to land brand collaborations with a free blog? Keep reading.
Use A Clean & Attractive Blog Theme
When it comes to pulling brand partnerships, a clean and easy-to-navigate blog theme makes a huge difference. If a brand has to search too long for contact information, the about page or latest posts, they’ll quickly click off. However, you want your theme to appear modern and grasp their attention so it doesn’t look like a “free blog”. An attractive theme will easily have users overlook the fact your blog is free, which makes you look more professional.
Post Consistently!
Uploading fresh content regularly keeps your audience interested and circulates you through Google’s search engine. When you have a familiar face, brand or style of content people will begin to follow. Uploading content consistently shows that you’re innovative, responsible and creative, which makes you appear professional to brands. Also, posting valuable content all the time makes you seem more like an expert in the field, which is something brands appreciate because it shows you’re knowledgeable and business oriented.
Need a cute and inspiring planner or journal to jot down your ideas? Check out CGD London! Their girl boss planners are designed to help you get things down and stay organized.
Join Blogging Programs that Connect with Brands
Most of my gifted items I received over the past year all came from Influenster. If you never heard of Influenster, it’s a site where you find honest product reviews. They also offer the opportunity for influencers and content creators to test free products in exchange for a transparent review and/or social media post. Not everyone on the platform is guaranteed free products but with a steady online presence from social media, sharing product reviews from things you purchased and filling out your snap information you’ll be in the forefront for a VoxBox of free goodies.
Influenster benefits my blog because when I share a gifted product review from a well-known brand, it “adds to my resume”. It makes my free blog look even more professional because it shows I’ve worked with top brands, which in turn makes other companies want to work with me more.
This site is perfect for those who are starting out and need different content to boost their blog in Google’s Search Engine. Readers are always curious about how things work before actually buying and will never get tired of product reviews. A few of my product reviews gone viral such as Fresh Sugar Face Polish Review on Sensitive Skin, Trying Versed Products for the First Time and One-Step Gel that Finally Defined My Type 4 Curls.
Promote Your Content Over & Over
If someone told me that googling, “fresh sugar face polish review” pulls my post as the first review on the list, I wouldn’t believe them! I believe this happened because I frequently shared this post on Pinterest and Twitter. I shared it so much, it went viral. So now my post pops up on the first page of Google and Google Images.
RELATED READING:
FRESH SUGAR FACE POLISH REVIEW ON SENSITIVE SKIN
You can’t promote your content once and it expect thousands to see, especially when you’re new. You have to promote your posts over and over. Don’t feel like you’re being annoying to your followers. Think about it, only a fraction of your audience sees a portion of your content at time. Promoting something more that one isn’t repetitive, it’s strategic. Be sure to share different images and concepts of the post so it doesn’t appear the same or boring.
Create New Article Concepts
Seems pretty easy to write blog posts on the same ideas that everyone is talking about because it’s trendy right? While that’s an excellent way to stay relevant, it’s also an easy way to get lost in the crowd. Don’t be afraid to draft new concepts and share them on your blog. Creating unique topics that others aren’t thinking about is a one of the best ways to draw attention to your site. I actually have a few posts that gone viral on Pinterest such as How to Pose Curvy like Iskra Lawrence, Inexpensive Ways to Get a Snatch Waist Like Beyonce, and 7 Uplifting Reasons Why Women Should Wear Lingerie.
Thinking About Owning Your Domain?
Discount on WordPress Blog
However, if you’re making enough extra cash and you’re ready to take your free blog to the next level by purchasing a domain. I have a WordPress discount link if you’re interested!
Like my mother told me, “there’s always room at the top, never think there isn’t room for you”. I never knew I could work with those top brands without owning my blog but with a positive attitude and hard worth ethic, things felled into place.
Landing a brand partnership isn’t something that happens overnight; however, it’s not difficult to do. I managed to work with different brands and magazines for testing products all because I treated my free blog as professionally owned. With dedication and consistency, you too can land brand collaborations without rushing to buy your blog domain.
What are your tips for working with brands as a new blogger? What do you recommend for someone who doesn’t own their blog domain?
*This post contains affiliate links but cost you nothing extra.
Let’s Connect
Amazon Shop | Shop SHEICONIC | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | Bloglovin’ | URSTYLE
JustNatonya 