By Cindy Stevens, Sr. Director of Publications, CEA

Being a mother myself, I found the session “How to Work with Mom Bloggers” interesting. The panel, moderated by Suzanne Kantra of Techlicious.com, included Rebecca Levey (beccarama.com), Amy Oztan (selfishmom.com) and Nancy Friedman (fromhiptohousewife.com). The panel focused on the best way for PR folks to approach this group. First, not all of these sites are the same. For example, some include advertising and sponsorships while others do not once they feel it impacts the purity of the content.

“We have a valuable relationship with our readers. After I have bonded with my readers over my hemorrhoids, I can say anything,” said Amy.

Nancy stressed the importance of finding out how influential the blogger is and the extent of their reach. She recommends using the Klout Score that measures among other things, not just your followers but the number of retweets you have.

Suzanne asked what was the unique value that mom bloggers bring to brands. Levy said, “We bring authenticity and a real personality and voice. Women are very good at telling each other what they like. We can give your brand a personality.”

Amy cautioned PR pros to do their research before contacting them. She said obviously visit the blog but specifically read the disclosure page. She said, “They know exactly what I have to offer because I have laid it out in 15 points.” She added, “Respect the bloggers time.”

Top tips to approach a blogger include: come with a plan how you are going to pay and collaborate with them, hire a mom blogger to reach other mom bloggers. Some women will work for product, others want to be paid. Don’t just look at their stats – look at their sphere of influence, look at the blog to determine if it is informational or personal and cover all of the bloggers’ expenses.

Rebecca added, “Microsoft has a great working relationship with us. They were great at CES.”

Want more info? Check out bloggingangels.com.