Sunday, September 27, 2015

10 Essential Things To Include In Your Media Kit

what to include in media kit


Last week, I published about why every blogger should have a media kit. However, the creation of a media kit is certainly not the easiest thing in the world. As a blogger, your media kit needs to explain the value that you contribute to a business, and why you are worthy of their time, effort, or money. Creating a media kit can seem like an overwhelming and daunting task, which is why today I am going to break down all of the essential items to include, and how they help to establish you as a professional to the marketer or company you are pitching! Of course, this is created with a blogger in mind- but it can be applicable to any business!

Don't worry, you are off to a great start. You have decided to make a media kit. What should you include in the media kit? I've broken it down nice and easy, with the ten most essential items to include in any media kit!



1. Your business name & your name. This should be the first and foremost aspect of your media kit. Who are you, and what is your blog? What do you focus on and write about? This is different for every blogger, and this will also be known as your niche. Even within the travel blogging industry, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of different niches. What differentiates you?

2. Your URL. You are a blogger- what is your site name? I know tons of bloggers who have a slightly different site name than their URL. Make sure to include your URL so that companies can easily access your site and check out your work!

3. Your value-added proposition. What specifically can you offer the company you are pitching? Companies want to know that whatever investment they make in you will be returned. Explain to the company you are pitching what value you will add to their business in order to hook them in. While you are explaining how they will benefit by working with you, make sure to explain...

4. Various ways in which you are willing to work with companies. Lay it all out for the company you are pitching- what are you willing to do for them? Whether it is a sponsored post, an advertisement on your sidebar, or social media exposure- companies want to know exactly what you will be offering them.

5. Previous companies or partnerships you have had. Companies want to see that you have a proven record of success. Who have you worked with before? If you are just starting out, this might be a terrific time to begin working with companies- even if you are working for free- if only to have the names of a few companies. Wow them, and then ask for a recommendation. These recommendations can take your media kit one step further. If you have a proven history of impressing companies that you work with, other companies will be more willing to work with you.

6. Relevant site statistics and social media information. Even if you are just starting out, include your relevant statistics! Perhaps you've only been blogging a few months, but you have a huge (and established!) social media following. Include this- it helps companies to know exactly how large of an audience they will be reaching simply by working with you.

7. The date of your media kit. Marketers want to know how recent - or ancient - your media kit is. Have you updated it within the last several months, or are you reflecting old (and likely inaccurate) information? Personally, I update my media kit every single month and include the month and year of my media kit at the bottom of each page. This communicates to the marketer that I am reflecting accurate information. On top of that, it tells the marketer how hard I will work for them- they want to know that you are continuously working to improve and update information!

8. Pictures! Of course, this depends on what you offer companies. The longer I have been blogging and taking it seriously, I have spent more and more time working on taking excellent pictures. Between my newly found skills and a great camera, one of the things that I can offer to companies is beautiful, realistic pictures of the product they are offering. As a travel and lifestyle blogger, it is essential that my media kit includes pictures. I'll be honest, I do feature more recognizable destinations in my media kit- Paris & the Eiffel Tower, Berlin & Brandenburg Gate, Big Buddha in Thailand.

9. Frequently asked questions. The longer you have a media kit, the more you will learn what companies are inquiring about. If you frequently are asked the same question by different companies, perhaps it is time to include this tidbit of information in your media kit.

10. Contact information. This is one of, if not the, most important aspect of your media kit. How can the company you are pitching get in contact with you? Your contact information should be highlighted, and ideally have several different methods of contact. I list my e-mail in addition to my twitter and Instagram handles. Because these are my main accounts, they are the methods I am most comfortable communicating with companies through. Make it as easy as possible for companies to contact you and begin working with you!

Overall, the creation of a media kit is much easier said than done. Personally, one of the things that I struggled with when creating my kit was writing about myself and acknowledging all of my accomplishments. For this part, I reached out to family and friends to receive help. It can be hard to brag about yourself- but essentially, that is exactly what a media kit is for! Who are you, what have you accomplished, and why should every company want to work with you?

One important thing to remember when creating and sending out your media kit is that just sending it out doesn't mean your job is done. Research the company you are pitching, and make sure your media kit is relevant to them. When pitching the company, custom tailor your pitch to that company and exactly why you can benefit them. Once the initial pitch is done, absolutely do not forget to follow up! Following up a few days or a week after you send out your initial pitch is absolutely essential.

For other bloggers, do you have a media kit? How have you seen it benefit you, and are there any elements of the media kit that I have missed? If you liked this post, please pin it!

2 comments:

  1. Such great advice! I really need to make a media kit one of these days!!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. This reminds me- I need to get on making an updated media kit! Great tips!

    ReplyDelete

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