Press Release / Blogging & Social Media / Tamar release results of influencer engagement research

Tamar release results of influencer engagement research

The research - released to tie in with Social Media Week London and previewed at Tamar’s "The only way is outreach" panel session - reveals how bloggers feel about the tactics used by brands and agencies in an attempt to secure coverage or relationships with them.

Conducted with the help of over 100 bloggers, the research covers blogs on almost every blogging vertical - from Travel and Beauty to Parenting and Wine, and probed the opinions of writers who have been blogging for between 6 months to 15 years.

Amongst the insights uncovered by the research (full results included at the end of this document) were:

Over 50% of the bloggers surveyed spent more than 10 hours a week producing content or marketing their blog.
Despite this heavy workload, only 11% were full-time bloggers, with 86% blogging alongside a full time career.
Facebook and Twitter are the social platforms which they see most reader engagement on, with blog platform ’Bloglovin’ ranking 4th above Google+, LinkedIn and Pinterest.
When asked who they prefer to work with (agency or brand), 82% expressed no preference.
However, 65% said they believed Agencies "do it better", with only 11% suggesting brands are the more natural engagers.
A massive 89% said they do post sponsored or commercial content.
Of those who said they don’t, the majority noted that it was simply down to a lack of opportunity so far.
When asked to rate the statement "I believe bloggers should disclose when they have been paid or compensated to write a post", 67% said they strongly agreed.
The statement "I believe, when reviewing a product, you should send it back afterwards to remain impartial" provoked a strong response, with 91% saying they disagree or strongly disagree.

The full set of results can be seen below, but the highlights above will surely shine a spotlight on a number of commonly held beliefs amongst agencies or brands. The practise of being asked to send a product back after reviewing, for instance, received a particularly strong rebuttal - though most bloggers are happy to disclose promotional opportunities for the main.

One thing is clear - the majority of bloggers are open to approaches from commercial partners - though many used the survey comments to express frustration with the sloppy approaches they often receive, citing "Dear blogger" and PR folk who haven’t actually read their blog as two particular bugbears.

Tamar’s Managing Director, Henry Elliss, comments "With influencer engagement increasingly being used as part of brand marketing strategies, there would seem to be a huge opportunity for those who get it right - though beware the big pitfalls, as many of those we surveyed expressed no hesitance at casting aside those who do it badly."

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Notes to Editors
About Tamar

Tamar is the UK’s award-winning integrated social media and search agency.

Tamar combines 19 years of extensive expertise in SEO, social media and mobile to provide the rocket fuel which has ignited some of the UK’s most successful and profitable digital brands. Its extensive, high-profile client base includes Peugeot, Cotswold Outdoor, Halfords, The Prince’s Trust, The Perfume Shop, Danone, Which?, Citi Group and MandMDirect.

www.tamar.com