Filed under: Blog Biz by Chelsea

This is an apology of sorts. Not one of those “sorry I haven’t blogged as much as usual lately” apology posts that I see on so many blogs…because, hey, it’s my blog, and I’ll blog when I feel like it! No, this is more of a “sorry I won’t shut up” post. You see, I have a rather life-altering nuptial event coming up in a few months and according to my bridesmaids (who STILL don’t know what dress they’re wearing when this marriage thing finally happens), it’s crunch time. Lots to do. Lately I feel like I eat, sleep, and breathe wedding.  I’ve tried my best to keep it to a minimum, but sometimes I just can’t help talking about it. Any of you who follow me on Twitter are probably feeling this pain more than most as I have a tendency to rant over there.

So here is something NOT related to weddings for any of you who are sick of hearing about it. (Actually, I happened to stumble upon it while searching how to make pocketfold invites for – you guessed it – my wedding. This girl over at a blog called Road to the Aisle has the most fantastic step-by-step how-to post for DIY pocketfold invites. And her colors are the same as mine!!) Wait, where was I? Oh, yeah, NOT weddings. Right. So it turns out that the girl who started the Road to the Aisle blog has also started another blog called Heather Drive.

I LOVE this blog. I love this Heather girl (if she happens upon this, I’m sure she’ll be more than a little creeped out since we’ve never met each other and I haven’t even attempted to make her aware of my existence). Or perhaps it would be worse if I made her aware of my existence? How do stalkers usually do this…covertly, I’d assume? Anywho, I feel a definite kinship with this stranger and fellow marketing-by-day/DIY-by-night blogger.  She reads MY favorite books, she throws weird ingredients together, and she writes “sorry my blog sucks lately” posts TOO! As if that all weren’t enough, she’s taken the Wilton cake decorating classes that have been on my “someday I’ll find time for hobbies” list forever. I have serious blog envy.

So if you like my blog (and if you don’t…well…see that little red “X” in the corner up there? there you go!) you’ll probably like hers as well. Go check it out and read about everything from crafts to football to babies. And while we’re on the subject, if my wedding plans freak you out, just wait until I start procreating…

Filed under: Blog Biz by Chelsea

I’ve had several people ask me my feelings on “sponsored posts,” which are blog posts that have been paid for by an advertiser. The short answer is yes, I accept sponsored posts. However, I turn down the majority of offers I receive because I’d rather not bore my readers to pieces. I don’t think anyone coming to Someday I’ll Learn really cares about ”sexy nighttime costumes” or “the next big thing in MLM,” so I won’t write about it (although I suppose it’s possible that I’m mis-judging my readers!).

What I will write about is anything I find interesting. And on the rare occasion that I do accept payment, I ALWAYS disclose it to my readers (like in my last sponsored post for Food Connect). Sometimes I’ll even point out if something ISN’T a sponsored post (like when I recently wrote about Wall Pops), just for the sake of being clear about it all. The majority of sponsored post requests I see are advertisers wanting bloggers to recommend a product to their readers in order to drive sales. Recently, however, I’ve noticed an odd trend in sponsored posts, with advertisers requesting that bloggers post press releases on their blogs verbatim.

A specifically rampant example of this press release thing is PBM products, who have been paying bloggers left and right to publish this article about how PBM has recently won a lawsuit against Mead Johnson, maker of Enfamil. Here’s the back story: Enfamil released an ad campaign claiming that Enfamil brand infant formula provides better nutrition than store brands. PBM, who manufactures store brand formulas, sued and won $13.5 million. And now they’re touting this win on any blog that’s willing to publish it.

I remember a similar advertising phenomenon developing when I briefly worked in the magazine industry. Companies would take out large ad spaces and publish promotional stories that soon became known as “advertorials” (advertising + editorial). There was a huge conflict over disclosure and reader deception and integrity. Having also worked in the advertising industry, I understand the reasoning behind it. PBM sees that their store brand has suffered and they want to take action. I can hardly blame them. But now as a blogger, the whole thing makes me feel kind of…unsettled.

Sponsored posts, if not handled properly, can be really irritating to the reader. Many of us bloggers are choosy about sponsored posts so we don’t alienate and annoy people. Even bloggers who aren’t choosy about their sponsorships usually at least insist on writing a thoughtful post in their own words. If we all just start publishing mindless corporate crap all the time, why would anyone keep reading blogs? I’m sure PBM would say they’re just trying to inform the public about this newsworthy event. But if people really want news, current events, or business updates, they’ll read a newspaper (and yes, I know that newspapers may “sell” stories as well…don’t even get me started on that). I’m not saying that any of it is implicitly right or wrong, or that one model fits every publishing media. I’m just asserting my hope that with our sponsored posts, our ad sidebars and our pay-per-tweet, we don’t all devolve into a “he said, she-said, this company paid me that much” promo fest and smear campaign. I’m confident that most of us have more backbone than that.