Following on from the debate triggered by the increasing use of the ResponseSource Enquiry Service by bloggers, we've started to tighten-up the moderation of the service.
We're doing this in response to feedback from our PR customers, who fund the service and who scan the hundreds of enquiries each week (often well over 100 a day) to see if they can help.
Below is a bit of background on the service and a list of things we look for in blogs when considering whether we are able to release requests. The latter are also useful as general guidelines for any blogger wanting to increase their audience.
I want to stress that we're always reviewing our approach to this and are keen to consider thoughts from bloggers and the PR community about how we can do this better.
Background
ResponseSource is primarily intended as a resource for journalists and professional media to seek information from PR professionals. PR professionals subscribe to the service to help them obtain effective media coverage for their clients.
Requests from bloggers are welcome and of course in most cases they are legitimate and represent valuable opportunities for PR professionals. But the volume of blogs that want to use ResponseSource has grown significantly and we have be sure we meet the needs of our subscribers for requests from quality, established blogs reaching a relevant audience.
Our aim is always to maintain the effectiveness of the service in the long-term for both the PR subscribers who pay for the service and also the media - including bloggers as well as journalists and broadcasters - who use it to source content. We therefore must reserve the right not to distribute any request which we feel is inappropriate for our subscribers. Due to the high volume of enquiries, we may not always be able to provide a full reason to the submitter, although we will try to contact submitters and discuss requests if we are able to help.
Blog 'qualities'
To help submitters decide if ResponseSource is suitable before submitting a request, below is a non-exhaustive list, not in any particular order, of some qualities we consider in a blog:
Frequency and regularity of posts - generally more than once a month, and preferably one or more a week. We're looking for clear dates so we can see your blog is thriving
Variety of content - if your blog is mainly about product reviews, competitions and giveaways, it may not be suitable to our audience. Too many "personal" posts may also be inappropriate
High standard of design and language - this could be anything from spelling and grammar to fonts, image size and quality, and page layout. We're looking at your blog as a reader would - it needs to impress from the first click on to your home page
Clear focus and/or audience - eg do you concentrate on food, fashion, technology, or for a specific audience eg young men, over 60s, finance professionals? Whatever the target audience, consistency is all
Experience and qualifications - are you blogging about something you do as a profession, or are you an enthusiast about your topic? Add this to your about page - it will make it easier for passing visitors to get a feeling for you as an author
Viewing figures (traffic reports, normally 'unique visitors' per month) should ideally be freely available or offered on request, and if you submit a ResponseSource enquiry you'll need to provide these in each request
Well established - we and our subscribers are wary of newly established blogs and in the early days of your blog we may not be able to distribute your requests. If we say no to begin with, come back in a couple of months and we will be happy to review it
Comments from visitors - we're looking for quality as well as quantity. People engaging with your content demonstrate you have an audience
Transparent - is your full name and contact details shown on the 'about' or 'contact' pages? Blogs that are transparent about the people behind them engender more trust
In addition to considering the above we also look at the requests themselves, as a poorly constructed or vague media request makes it difficult for recipients to decide it if it is worthwhile responding. Clearly written, specific requests always work better.
Hopefully the above gives you some idea of the criteria we use to measure the quality of a blog. Like I have said, we're on a learning curve with this and welcome input from both bloggers and PRs to refine these guidelines.