So you’ve got your tech blog up and running, you started to promote your content and now you want to land some review units. There’s a lot of theories when it comes to finding review units for a blog, but regardless of which method you choose you must be ready for some level of [...]
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So you’ve got your tech blog up and running, you started to promote your content and now you want to land some review units. There’s a lot of theories when it comes to finding review units for a blog, but regardless of which method you choose you must be ready for some level of rejection. The reality is that there are hundreds if not thousands of other tech blogs all lining up to review that latest gadget and as the newcomer on the block you will be starting at the bottom of the barrel. Because of this realization you must accept that you’ll have to review some products that aren’t necessarily the gadget you were looking for, but by getting your foot in the door and proving you are willing to pay your dues – the future will be bright.
You Need Quality Content
Before you start requesting review units I believe that you should have created a solid body of work – no less than a hundred posts. Some of those posts should be reviews of products you own personally or you’ve tried/borrowed from a friend. If you have a local retailer with a generous return policy you could start off there by buying, reviewing and then returning some of the more popular gadgets in your niche. Once you have a substantial amount of quality content it’s time to start sending out emails.
Behind every company is a PR agency which handles the company image and more importantly distributes review units. These companies are very easy to find if you know where to look. Go to the vendor or manufacturer who produces the product you want to review and visit their Press Release section. In every Press Release there will be a “Media Contact” – a person responsible for distributing that particular press release and ultimately the person who will distribute review units. As I said earlier you must be willing to accept rejection so what I recommend is that you create an Excel spreadsheet and begin creating a list of media contacts starting with their Name / Agency / Company Affiliation / Product(s). A single PR agency will have dozens of Media Contacts who will be responsible for a variety of Press Releases so be sure to add several to your Excel Spreadsheet.
Create The Email
Now it’s time to compose a formal email which you will send out to each of these Media Contacts. It’s a good idea to include a Response column in your spreadsheet that way you can keep track of who has responded and whether or not they were interesting in working with your blog. In the first email I send out to Media Contacts I do not ask for a review unit, I am simply breaking the ice and explain a little bit about my blog including stats, subscribers and why I feel that working with their agency would benefit the exposure of their product as well as my readers. However, I will mention which products I am interested in reviewing from the company they represent even if I do not ask for a product initially. Once I have received a positive response I record this in my Excel spreadsheet and then reference the list when it comes time to ask for a review unit. If you are looking to land your review unit immediately then by all means request the unit you are looking for in that second email. The more willing and open you are to reviewing related products, the better chance you have of being placed higher on that waiting list when it comes time to review something huge.
Dear <Media Contact>,
My name is <Your Name> and I currently run <Your Site>, a tech blog focused on <Your Niche>. <Your Site> is focused on delivering the latest, news, reviews and tutorials with daily visitors of <Number> and monthly views over <Number>. As an influential tech blog I feel that both <Company They Represent> and the readers of <Your Site> would benefit from a solid relationship. Please consider my site when it comes time to distributing review units. Some of the products from <Company They Represent> that are generating the highest interest on <Your Site> are <Product>, <Product>, <Product> and <Product>.
To see some of the products we recently reviewed please visit <URL>, <URL> or <URL>. I believe in honesty and sharing my personal insight through product reviews. I cannot guarantee that I will love a product, but I will provide all of the facts and evaluate the device with the utmost respect and patience.
Sincerely,
<Your Name>
<URL>
<Phone> / <Email> / <Twitter>
Some Final Tips
Follow the example email above and replace the fields to reflect your tech blog and the media contact you are trying to establish a relationship with. Do not be alarmed if the first email you receive shows a bit of skepticism on their part. Remember you are selling your site and if they request additional information be as prompt and straightforward as possible – honesty is key. Explain your passion for the field and provide as much supporting evidence as possible. Some Media Contacts will respond with generalized messages, others will flat out say no and some will request to see some sort of analytics from your blog to prove your claims on visitors – stay strong. Just remember that a yes is a yes, if you have to send off 30 emails and you have a 3% success rate that still means you’ve landed one more review unit than you started with. I hope that you’ve found this information helpful and I encourage you to leave comments below – if you have additional ideas share what’s working for your tech blog.
