More and more companies are putting on events. These can range from simple half-day meetings to full fledged conferences. Some are at conference centers and more and more are being run as virtual conferences.

In a world gone crazy over events, there is one challenge facing everyone, regardless of the venue or format. Namely, how to break through the clutter, get the word out and build both credibility and attendance.

And while PR, advertising, promotions and direct mail all play an important role, for more and more companies bloggers are becoming a key part of the outreach and promotions strategy. This generally involves giving a "press pass" to a blogger in return for their covering your event.

The real benefit of engaging a social media maven, blogger or industry evangelist lies in the longer term relationships you are able to form.

• stronger relationships with industry influencers and insiders
• pertinent insight and feedback
• reach, exposure and search engine credibility (over time)

Let's take an overly simplified Maslow Hierarchy of needs to highlight the opportunity a bit better.

Inspiration: Chip Conley, Founder/CEO, Joie de Vivre, Adaptive Path MX Conference 2008

The idea is that we define our relationships with bloggers around the intrinsic benefits for both parties. Each blogger outreach program would start at the bottom of the triangle. We invite a "Blogger" to our event and we work our way up to them being a respected insider and finally to a collaborator in helping us create amazing industry events. To the right of the triangle, I attempt to capture some of the outcomes or benefits that can be realized from this growing relationship.

Who to Invite?
Imagine a relationship with someone who is extremely well respected in the industry and with whom you have developed a close, two-way relationship of respect and value. Now picture this person as a blogger who attends your events and shares both insight and credibility...

Who to look for?

• industry insiders


• people with insight into the niche you are targeting


• someone you respect / trust


• those who publish sources you personally follow

A better question might be "who do we not want?"

I would suggest that paid bloggers be minimized or even avoided. Or rather, if we choose to use such services, we recognize that it is somewhat at odds with reaching the top of the pyramid.

How to Reach Out?
Do not send anything resembling a form email or letter. Odds are that the person you are approaching is already inundated with requests like these.

Start by commenting ON THEIR BLOG. Take the time to reply in context to one or more of their posts. Develop a relationship based on their writing and Test out the waters a bit. If things are going well, email them and just ask them directly if they would be interested in attending and covering your event.

Be Clear About Expectations
Everyone assumes that a blogger will make blog posts. And the odds are certainly in your favor in this regard. But a blog is only one of an almost limitless number of services available for covering an event. Which raises the challenge of how to determine which platforms to use.

A good strategy is to utilize as wide a range of platforms and tools as is appropriate for your audience. This expands your credibility with sources like Google while also greatly expanding your potential for increased exposure.

By selecting influential and established bloggers, you are gaining access to people who are familiar and experienced with communicating, sharing, and conversing within their particular communities of interest. They can identify not just what information to share, but how to frame the information and which tools to use.

Here are some of the methods that I generally find to be of value in covering an event.

• my blog


• commenting and conversing on other people's blogs


• micro blogging via twitter


• real-time chat like Skype, MSN or Facebook


• posts on community sites of interest (Ning, Wikis, etc.)


• video post on youtube, vimeo or other video service


• activity on digg.com or another news identification service

I recommend an open discussion of any expectations you have. Be sure to also ask about any expectations or special needs they may have. If you are trying to gain exposure in advance of the event, work to provide something of value to them. Can you arrange for interviews with big names who will be speaking at your event?

Maintaining Control
You have no control. In most cases, you are asking an individual to attend and publish an article on their property to their readers as they see best. At the same time, there are next to no costs for you to incur.

There is a risk that an individual will choose to publish something that is less than flattering to your organization or event. This is a risk and the reason why I recommend so strongly for building individual relationships with the invididuals you invite. It's important to note that you are not the only person at risk. Bloggers are being asked to open up access to their network, their platforms and even their properties.

A free press pass is not payment. So short of having someone removed from the facilities by security, there is little one can do to stop a bad or unexpected review. And frankly, having someone removed forcefully is likely to become fodder for publishing and lots of viral pickup online.

CAUTION: Based on a recent experience, I counsel very strongly against using a third party, professional or otherwise, to bring a number of unpaid bloggers to your event. The relationship at play is between the third party and the individual bloggers and you become quite removed from the process. This limits the long term benefits (direct relationship) while also severely removing you from contact and the opportunity for realizing the intangible benefits and also destorying any influence you may have had. When this third party is further compensated to bring unpaid bloggers to the table, a conflict of interest can develop between these parties and the results benefit no-one involved.

Measurement
What and how to measure a blogger outreach program? There are a number of instrumental value elements:

• How many stories are being written online about your event?
• How many links are there to your event?
• Authority and ranking in Google organic search
• Awareness and conversations on different channels

But as is likely clear from this article, I think there is much to be gained from the intrinsic value of stronger relationships with key insiders and leading thinkers in the field.

Wrap Up
It's media relations 101 applied to the blogosphere.

1. Identify bloggers, mavens or others whom you respect both their writing and their audience
2. Reach out and begin developing direct relationships
3. Be clear about expectations and open to input and suggestions
4. Work up the relationship triangle
5. Actively monitor and participate in conversations as they happen online