Sleeping with the frenemy?Bloggers’ attitude towards PR practitioners across the

digital divide

Catherine ArcherSupervisors: Paul Harrigan, UWA

Simone Pettigrew, Curtin

Why research blogs and bloggers?

• Blogs and social media are now seen as essential components of marketing communications campaigns (Ferguson 2008; Jensen 2011; Sullivan & Krall 2008)

• Social media and blogs are important forms of word of mouth or ‘word of mouse’ (Scott 2008)

• BUT research in word of mouth marketing within online communities is still embryonic (Brown, Broderick and Lee 2007)

Bloggers – new influencers

• The impact of blogging seen as a ‘revolution’.

• Within social media, bloggers are increasingly important ‘new influencers’ (Gillin 2008; Trammell & Keshelashvili 2005; Woods 2005).

• By the end of 2011, NMIncite, a Nielsen/McKinsey company, tracked over 181 million blogs around the world, up from 36 million only five years earlier in 2006

(see nmincite.com).

Prosumers

• Prosumers – producers who are also consumers (Tofler 1980; Kotler 1986)

• Prosumers = bloggers = empowered (Varey & McKie 2010; Pihl & Wahlqvist 2010; Macnamara 2010; Kerr, Mortimera, Dickinson-Delaporte & Waller 2012)

• Sociologists argue prosumers/bloggers not empowered – an illusion/infectious rhetoric (Beer & Burrows 2007; Beer 2008; Cammaerts 2008; Comor 2010; Chia 2011)

Bloggers are…

• Stakeholders/target publics/influencers?

• Hobbyists? Professionals? Journalists? Mums? Dads?

Public Relations Theory

• PR has been defined as the practice of relationship management (Bruning 2002; Ledingham 2003)

• Debate over dialoguic communications/two-way communication v persuasion.

Research call to action…

Macnamara (2010) says further research is recommended into levels of interactivity, the issue of control…and ethics in social media use which are shown to be topical issues, but far from clear or resolved…

“It is also recommended that future research utilise ethnographic methods and content analysis as well as surveys or interviews to validate practitioners’ claims through observation of practices and communication content.” (Macnamara 2010)

Research questions

• How do bloggers view their relationships with public relations practitioners?

• Do bloggers seek out relationships with public relations pracitioners?

Research methodology

• Qualitative, interpretive approach which recognises the existence of multiple realities (Daymon & Holloway)

• 15 “Mum” Bloggers (ie bloggers who are mothers)

• Have also done large mixed-method surveys, some of the results of which I will share with you today.

• In-depth interviews, coding…

Findings

• The uninvite brand

• Ambivalence…

Oxford Dictionary definition

• frenemy

• fren|emyPronunciation: /ˈfrɛnəmi   

• Definition of frenemy in English:

• NOUN

• (plural frenemies) informalA person with whom one is friendly despite a fundamental dislike or rivalry.

Some feel patronised…

So my tip to PR people is treat bloggers like they are keen media representatives then you’re not going to go too far wrong. But if you treat them like they just won a prize and that you’re giving them a gift then you are in for trouble because if you treat them like the receptionist then the receptionist can have a job over you pretty soon. So watch out.

Respect? Understanding?

A lot of PR people don't quite grasp it…”do you want to go to this event?”

I’m like, well can I bring my baby? “oh no”…

I’m like, well I’m a mummy blogger.

Did you read my blog?

It's a lot of the time things aren't relevant, because I've had a few, because Perth is quite small, we don't get invites to bloggers events and conferences over in Sydney and Melbourne and that's where I think the main influence is.

So the PR companies will contact us to say, "Oh we've got this gift voucher. Can you go try our restaurant or can you go to this shop or come to our event" and it's, "Well I'm in Perth. Do you not read my blog?"

You say you wanna evolution?

• Bloggers’ attitudes to PR practitioners/brand representatives (and their own motivations) evolve over time

• Many start as vulnerable consumers

• From eager newbies to…confident collaborators

• Or…just not that into you!

• Blogging to help others/personal growth/connection

Disconnect between PRs and bloggersWhereas some PR companies don’t quite grasp that concept as yet, they’ll say can you come to the toy fair, I’m like yeah I have to bring four year old and my two year old, oh no kids allowed, okay I can’t go.

And to some people that’s maybe not an issue, but if you read my blog, I’ve made a fairly conscious decision that I will stay at home with my children, and so that means, and we live in the country so we don’t have you know, grandparents round the corner.

Not everyone in it for the money

Well you see, I personally haven’t because I haven’t made any effort whatsoever to go chase that stuff. I have been one of that small group of personal parents/bloggers who have not set out to make money because well, I don’t know. You might be interested in this little side story: my former life is in advertising so for me it is a very ironic full circle conundrum.

Brand relationships..

And how it’s not necessary to be, you know, to be whoring yourself out.. there to absolutely everyone. But I kept true to what I said and that’s why I don’t have stacks and stacks of brand relationships …Like I don’t do one-off giveaways and one-off this that and the other. I’m interested in long term brand relationships in brands that I know and brands that I really think reflect the person that’s reading [my blog].

The dollar becomes more important(for some)

• So I’ve avoided it but when it comes down to it I need to put food on the table. An (academic) salary is just not going to do it for me so I’m starting to embrace the whole sell out thing. I’m thinking of doing a XXX buyers’ guide for Christmas.

PRs evolving too?

Yeah, I mean before I joined [an agency] I was doing quite a few campaigns for them, but I didn’t think that they had the bloggers best interests at heart, and with an industry – like blogging is very personal. I think that they’re sort of changing the way – they’re looking at how they’re working now.

The survey

• Only women responded to this survey (100%). The majority of Digital Parents (DP) who responded were aged between 26 and 45 (89%) and are married (80%) with children, many with two (younger) children.

• The majority of respondents strongly agreed or agreed that bloggers should receive compensation for mention of brands (81%) while 16% are neutral and only 3% disagree.

Why work with brands?

• Relevance to their blog (96%) and interest for their readers (93%) were the cited by the DP bloggers as the most important for working with brands.

• While advertising and sponsored posts were reported to be the most common ways of generating money, 58 per cent of bloggers said they did not generate any money from their blog.

Sponsored content – the disconnect

DP Survey 2012 – Have you accepted payment for sponsored content?

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Yes No - I wouldn't want to No, but I would like to.

Money talks…

DP Survey 2012 - Do you include sponsored posts on your blog/s?

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

Weekly Monthly Rarely Never No, but I wouldlike to

Influence? They got it!

• The majority of bloggers completely or somewhat agree they can influence their readers to purchase an item recommended on their blog (84%) while only 3% somewhat disagree and for 13% it does not apply to them.

• Most bloggers completely or somewhat agree that blogs are a better source of information than mainstream media (92%).

Nuances of blogging

The grey scale of blogging…

The dichotomies of

Personal professional

Wants to make money doesn’t want to be paid

Blogs with purpose blogs with passion

….ARE NOT (necessarily) RELEVANT!

Women at the Crossroads…

• Future research

Questions?