A Media Kit is a document which outlines the key facts and statistics about your blog. It’s a quick way to show your value, your skills, interests and experience. You can send your Media Kit to PR companies, potential brand partners or potential advertisers. There’s often debate around whether bloggers need a media kit. If you want to monetise your blog, then it’s a good idea to have one. You won’t always be asked for it, but having one ready will benefit you (as it can take a while to put together and you don’t want to keep people waiting). It shows a potential advertiser why they should work with you and can they make you feel a bit more pukka too!
By creating one you will become more aware of your stats, which can only be a good thing. Knowing your numbers can make conversations with possible partners much easier. Brands and PR companies are busy people, so I always advise people to keep their Media Kit as concise as possible (ideally one page). Make sure you’re regularly updating yours, pop it in the diary to update it on the first or the last day of the month.
Then, when a brand or PR agency contact you you can respond and include your media kit, even if they haven’t asked for it. This will show you’re serious and help to create a really great first impression.
What can your blog Media Kit do for you?
A Media Kit can be a really useful document to have. Not only does it;
- Showcase your writing and your achievements
- Provide a snapshot of your stats
- Highlight your niche and important previous partnerships
- Show a brand how you could work with them in a collaboration
It also helps you shift your mindset and encourage you to think of your blog as a business; helping it feel more ‘legit’.
Now, I’ve convinced you that you should have one. How do you go about creating one? Media Kits are personal and one persons preferred style might not suit another. There are, however, certain sections that should be included across the board.
What should you include in your blog Media Kit?
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Your blog’s logo or header
Your blog name/header, tag line, your name, contact details and blog url. It’s a good idea to include a recent professional picture of you (ideally the one used on your social profiles for consistency), as it helps to make your kit personal. Show your face, don’t hide behind the kids or the dog. People are considering a collaboration with you, not them. It will help to “put a face to the name” when people want to work with you. Include another visual to showcase your photography skills, as brands want their products to be shown in the best way possible.
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Your details
Don’t share everything, just a few sentences about you, pertinent to your blog. Where you’re from? What you write about? Why? Does your blog have a niche? Why does your blog stand out? Awards, achievements? Make sure your email address is clear.
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Social media links/stats
Provide the links to all your social media platforms, plus the number of followers/likes on each (n.b. this will have to be regularly updated – remember this when you’re formatting your document). Don’t forget to include the number of email subscribers. I use Canva for my Media Kit, as it can be easily updated.
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Blog stats
Your stats section should include your monthly page views (or impressions) and your unique visitors (I take the average from the last 12 months to allow for shorter months and quieter ones like August. Rather than just the stats from the most recent full month). There are various analytic platforms, but the most used (and most reliable) is Google Analytics. Jetpack (plugin for WP) gives you some stats, but it is not as accurate as Google analytics.
Highlight your blog’s strengths. Include stats that are very good and gloss over the weaker ones. If your bounce rate is less than 50%, you have a community who comment on most of your posts, a Domain Authority of over 40, these types of things are well worth highlighting.
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Demographics
Are most of your readers male or female? Which country do the majority live in? Their age range? This will help brands to decide whether the audience they want to reach matches yours. You can find this information from Google Analytics. For example, a company in the USA with a 20-40 female target market will be attracted to your brand if you can show these are your readers. Include your audience’s age, sex, geography and other relevant interests.
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What do you offer?
Do you offer sidebar/header advertising? Will you provide reviews? Will you host a competition? Social promotion? Do you accept guest posts or sponsored posts? I don’t put my rates on my media kit, as I prefer to find out the specific deliverables of each campaign and quote accordingly. You may choose to put yours on or even have one with and one without (more on the pros and cons later!). This is where you can list what sort of partnerships you’re after: sponsored posts, social media campaigns, product reviews, guest speaking, event hosting, brand ambassadorships, etc. It helps brands decide how they want to work with you and may help them decide to work with you in a way they hadn’t thought of before.
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Brands you have worked with
It’s a great idea to highlight the most well know brands you have partnered with. You could use their logos to make it visually appealing.
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Testimonials
If you have a great relationship with a brand or agency you could ask them for a short testimonial to include. This is an example of social proof, we are more likely to (for example) trust someone if someone else has stated that they trust them. We are more likely to follow someone with a large following than someone with no followers, as we think well all those people can’t be wrong. We gain confidence from the positive feedback of others. Adding all or part of a testimonial can work wonders on your media kit.
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Evidence of your influence
Brands collaborate with bloggers as bloggers have influence over their audience. How can you demonstrate your influence? This might be tweets, Instagram, blog posts and any other platform saying how someone acted on your recommendation, maybe to purchase something or attend an event/venue you have promoted.
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Your USPs (Unique Selling Points)
Why are you different? What makes you stand out? Try to summarise your USPs, so a brand can see what sets you apart.
Should you write it in 1st or 3rd person?
The choice between 1st and 3rd person if personal. However, I feel we are personal brands and should strive to connect with our audience and brands. With this in mind, to my mind it should be written in the 1st person. However, go with the one you’re most comfortable with.
Do you want to include fees in my blog media kit?
As mentioned, I prefer to negotiate with each brand and provide a bespoke quote depending on the specific deliverables. However, you might include them, it’s up to you.
Including fees in your Media Kit:
- You will save time, as they will have all the information they need. You will cut out some back and forth via emails.
- Your rates are very clear and so people will realise you don’t work for free (or peanuts!).
Excluding fees from your Media Kit:
- Means you can sound the brand out about the budget and deliverables BEFORE you quote.
- You can adjust your pricing quicker if they aren’t committed in writing somewhere public.
How to create a blog Media Kit
There are a few ways you can make your Media Kit and a few decisions to make. You ideally want your Media Kit to reflect the aesthetic of your blog, so keep this in mind.
Then think about how you’re physically going to put this document together.
Start from scratch
Use any programme you’re familiar with and just get cracking. You can make it fancy or keep it simple, whatever fits with your style.
Canva
Canva has a free media kit templates that you can use as they are or perhaps customise one to better suit your needs.
Purchase a template
Design sites such as Creative Market (affiliate link) have so many gorgeous templates that will make the whole job so much quicker. If you’ve got limited design skills, then this might be the best option for you.
Make sure, however you create it, that you can update it quickly and easily. Send it as a PDF, but have an editable file too.
Now you have a great blog media kit that shows off your blog’s highlights. Remember to send it out, it’s no good stuck on your computer! Have you created your blog media kit yet? What programme do you prefer?
