Johnson How to (NOT) Pitch a Blogger July 22, 2010 Liz Pope, Media and Research Manager When I first started learning about social media and “pitching” bloggers, the words that stayed with me the longest were from a colleague who, when asked how to pitch a blogger , responded, “You don’t.” You should never “pitch” a blogger, it’s like “walking into their living room uninvited. You should never “pitch” a blogger. Engaging with bloggers, or anyone else in the social media realm, is about having a two-way conversation. NEVER blind copy bloggers on emails. MORE >>

An essential part of social media management is blogger outreach. It might sound obvious but make sure that the bloggers you contact are actually relevant for your message. If you’re not sure whether something will fit, it’s probably sensible to err on the side of caution and not bother (most bloggers will probably hate emails that start “I know you never write about X, but I’ve got this product…”). And where do you find relevant bloggers? Get to know your bloggers and build relationships. Don’t just send a blogger a press release and hope for the best. MORE >>

She’s fairly new to the social/blogosphere scene, in terms of commenting and connecting with the crazy Spin Sucks community (yes, you!) She asks, How do you decide who to feature as a guest blogger every week? How do you determine how you use guest bloggers? Using Guest Bloggers originally appeared on Spin Sucks on August 4, 2011. Blog Social Media erin feldman facebook question of the week factotum guest bloggersIt’s Facebook question of the week time (clap, clap, clap!). Hey Danny Brown and Nancy Davis ? You’re no longer banned. MORE >>

We’re very excited to be kicking off a regular series of Open Community case studies, in which intrepid association blogger and freelance writer  Deirdre Reid will be digging into associations (and other kinds of organizations when relevant) who are living and breathing their open communities in the ways we describe in the book. Community: Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina. Their Flickr page and YouTube channel are used to support Food Bank activities, for example, displaying photos taken at community events. Nurture small niche groups. MORE >>

We urgently need to rethink how we hire community managers. At the moment too many organizations, with little idea of what makes a great community manager, are hiring people who are either great at technology, have irrelevant community or social media experience, or have far too much free time.    This is a tragedy that's sabotaging their community efforts.   How are community managers being hired? Knowledge and experience might be more tangible to assess, but they have little impact upon the community being a success. Attitude. MORE >>