A Different Kind of Blogger Outreach

Just heard NPR's Marketplace do a piece on this program this morning and how it differs from much of the blogger 'outreach' that's going on right now - nice soundbite from Jeffrey Sass - great job all around, here's a link to the story:
http://su.pr/1fKANY

I think that's a fantastic idea! I know that Sony worked with Moms a year or two ago so it's a great to see them work with the fellas now. I only follow one Dad and that's BenSpark. *GASP* I just didn't know of many but I'll these folks to my reader...who knows, my cowboy may wanna join in one day reckon? :)

I'm the only Daddy blogger you read? Wow that is wonderful. I didn't know. Thanks very much. I'm touched.

Hi Chris,

I love this. I love it even more because it's not rocket science. I'm not being disparaging here about your creative spark, which is considerable. What I'm saying is that this idea is entirely accessible. It's not the result of an expensive MBA. It comes from creative thinking by a dad about what another dad would find useful and the kind of voice he needs to hear it from in order to trust what he hears.

There must be a zillion ways for different companies to apply this exact methodology to their own products. You've given me something (more) to do this morning! Cheers.

I agree too. I think this is better than a pitch and better than using journalists to sell you approach. You are thinking outside the box, giving the Dad's something to think about and creating something "remarkable." Classic.

Chris, I think this is brilliant and it will be successful for one key reason (I think there are several, but this is key)...it infuses a fairly standard activity with the power of STORY. Kudos!

Good, simple thinking here Chris. I think the "dad" blogger population has pretty much been untapped though folks like you, me and others have been technically daddy bloggers for quite some time. What's better than writing about the joys of being a dad and using the latest technology to capture all the great moments your family will cherish 20-40 years down the road. Of course, the technology then will be much different than it is now so portability will be a key issue in terms of the final product - pictures, videos, etc.

Regardless, this is sharp, simple thinking that will work. It's as close to a lay-up in blogger relations as their ever will be. Nice work.

Hi Chris

This is right approach to marketing - in my humble opinion of course.

Social media is presenting us with a unique opportunity to cross over some of the traditional divides between business and personal.

I am much more likely to relate to experiences of "my camera and family life" than i am a professional discussion about a camera by some blogger (even a great one).

and if a brand is able to connect with me on a personal level
not only am i more likely to buy, i'm also more likely to remember favorably for next time around.

this is definitely a lesson in marketing i plan to take home

Tally

Glad to be part of it and looking forward to trying out the equipment.

There are 2 sides to this: one is rising above the noise of all the products that are being touted to the bloggers; the other is showing the utility of the products in the real world (or as real as we can make it). It hits on both sides.

And I'll have to see if Jeff Sass will let me borrow the equipment for a day or so to try it out myself. :)

A Dad who takes pictures of his family.... Where could you find one of those who has years of experience with many different kinds of cameras? Hmm...

Hmmm... you know, I hadn't thought of that. If we find early success, I know who to bug. Thank you for pointing that out. I love the "hmmm" comment, given your avatar. : )

I do a lot with that whole Pondering, Wondering, Thinking thing, not many people pick up on it, but I'm not surprised that you did. And as for bugging me, heck, go right ahead I'm always up for anything photography or video related. I remember seeing that Sony took a bunch of mommy bloggers out to California and gave them instruction on some great Sony products. I thought, what about the dads. How often do you see Dad in the picture, not often. Dad usually is behind the camera. So let's get those Dads the best equipment to show the world their wonderful families.

Love that you're reaching out to dads. Moms and mom bloggers are awesome, but dads are loving parents too.

I like the approach as it is getting right at the user base. It puts Sony at the heart of building relationships between dads and their kids while learning at the same time. I will check out the status on the Sony community platform, but I hope you will blog about how the project progresses.

Seems like a good idea, but the campaign would put me off because it is gender-biased. Granted, I don't have kids, but in our family I'm the photographer. If I were a mom, this campaign would leave me out. Since I'm passionate about photography and gear, it would make me angry at Sony.

I like the story-telling part, and dad-children relationship part (whatever that is, I didn't quite get to experience it as a child, so that may be another personal bias), but I wish there were a parallel campaign focused on women (even women and their cats :)

Besides, I'm not sure how camera purchasing decisions are made in most families? If women have a say in the decision-making process, I wouldn't leave them out.

You know that there are TONS of mommyblogger campaigns, right? Tons. That was the point. We decided to talk with dads, who rarely get pitched for this kind of thing.

And I would hope that women and men both have a say in most family decisions, wouldn't you, Doctor? : )

I am happy to be part of this campaign and hope that the good Dr. V would be open to reading my Sony DigiDads posts even though I am a Male. My daughter is certainly not going to mind using the Sony products and participating in the projects. ;-) I have read (and have been influenced by) many things written by so-called "mommy bloggers" and suspect I will continue to do so. I am really not sure how you can spin this as "gender biased" and hope you will reconsider your initial reaction. While it is us dads who are doing the "reporting," Sony has been very specific about using the gear for "family projects" and having other family members involved, which, presumably, would include the moms in most households. ;-)

Very cool idea, especially the dad angle. Mom bloggers get pitched a bunch, but dads have a big say in finances and purchases these days. Good to see a different take.

Looking forward to working with you on this!

I love this idea! Helps show the consumer how it relates to them.

Think the Sony idea is great. I would be interested in following it as it progresses.

It's really an honor to be part of this program. Not only am I excited, my kids are going nuts over being able to be active participants. I'm looking forward to this!

What about us Grandpas? We make decisions also.....

:)

mike

Great idea! All the dads seem really excited about the project.

Are you measuring the ROI of the project? It seems like it would be a tough chore and I'm wondering how you would do it.

As a father, a dad blogger and someone in the advertising field I love this. Brands need things like this to break through the clutter of standard ad placements. As long as everything is fully disclosed then I say rock on. Brands need to experiment and reach the consumers on a different level. I will follow along.

It's a very smart idea.

The younger ones of us, who grew up with the idea of constantly evolving technology can look at a new product and instantly think of 101 uses for it. It's a no brainer. You wouldn't need an outreach project like that for the younger set. A simple round table would give you all the answers you need in 10 minutes.

This however, is genius. Dad's don't have the time to brainstorm and drool over how a new piece of tech can enrich their lives. Sometimes the best ideas come from spontaneity. What better source of that is there than throwing something brand new into the mix on a family vacation or a Sunday picnic? I think this idea is clever and I think you'll get some really interesting feedback.

Cheers.

There are a lot of mom blogger campaigns, and rightfully so, I think they can be very valuable when done right. I always hear the statistic that says women make 80% of all purchase decisions. Obviously, I can only speak for my own household, but if we both aren't on board with a buying decision on a medium to large purchase it doesn't happen. Then again, I'm also in the extreme minority in that I'm a SAHD and handle 80% of all day to day household purchasing decisions.

The tide is definitely turning on the attitudes toward dad bloggers. It is refreshing to see brands realize that us dads aren't just a bunch of dolts that aren't active in our children's lives. Even on my tiny little corner of the net I've had a recent swell of review opportunities, most of which I have declined.

The reason I have passed on them is because marketers still need to learn to properly identify their target audience before sending some excessively long email out that rambles without getting to a point until nine paragraphs and a press release later. I've gotten emails on stuff that has little to no relevance to my life, so why would I be interested in it? However, I have done my best to respond to them if I know someone else in the blogosphere that would be a better fit for their pitch (after checking to see that person is interested in the opportunity first, of course).

Ironically enough I just accepted an opportunity to work with Sony. An agency contacted me a few weeks ago with a brief email asking me to check out a new Xplod headunit for my vehicle. The pitch was brief, to the point and clear. It also fit very well for me.

I write a music column on Dad Blogs and my personal blog's name is Real Men Drive Minivans, so the opportunity to review some car audio gear was right up my alley. They are giving me the unit to keep and paying for it to be professionally installed, all of which I plan to make explicitly clear in my posts about the experience. I just got the unit yesterday, and am looking forward to get going.

I'm excited about the DigiDads project not only because it is a great idea, but because it was well thought out. I've been following CC and DadLabs for years and I know they'll do a great job with it.

Awesome trust agent move. I am so happy that someone is looking at Dads as valuable consumers. I have been saying this for over a year. I always feel that Dads get looked at as an after thought. I have been involved in some of the mommy/women focused campaigns but usually after the process has began.

Knew you were a game changer when you launched Dad-o-matic (disclosure: I write for Dad-o-matic) and this furhter proves you are a trust agent.

Can you tell I am reading your book? I bought it on the big push day, hope it moved the needle.

It is refreshing to see some new attitudes forming about us Dads. Many of the assumed gender stereotypes simply don't pan out any longer. In fact, I suspect that lots more of us Dads take the LEAD role in domestic duties than you'd imagine. Dads of the new millennium change diapers, fold laundry, wash dishes, doctor scrapes, read books, and handle all sorts of stuff that's typically attributed to Moms.

And I'm excited that you've got the DadLabs guys involved - they're great!

I like the concept but I hedge at your selection. You recommend bloggers that happen to be dads but also just happen to be very well known. I'd have preferred you picked out some lesser known blogger dads for this experiment.

I know a few St. Louis dad bloggers that rock and use tech. Please consider farming out for suggestions if this goes well.
Yours,
Todd

I love this idea, and lord knows when it comes down to a tech buying decision in my house, it usually comes down to my husband- because he's teh one who really enjoys researching all of the varying options (and I mean ALL). Unless it's a KitchenAid product, then it's all me.:)

Jessica Smith, of Fleishman Hilliard and Jessica Knows, did a post recently calling this the Year of The Daddy blogger, because of their potential for cutting through the clutter and getting their voices heard in this increasingly shrill marketplace. Now that I've heard it from you both, I'm pretty much going to sit back and watch to see some dad friends have a turn in the spotlight. Curious to see how it all plays out, and happy to see some fresh voices in play.

The blogger evaluation concept is solid. At Green Leads, we did it with several industry leaders by offering to do appointment setting for them. The results were better than we had imagined they could be.

Having someone provide a fresh, non-copy-written, non-branded view of a product or service builds a trust that can't be earned with just an ad or a company blog.

Nice information, you have written very well. Thanks for this different kind of blogger out reach.

Ok while I commend Sony for doing something different and something I will defiantly follow along with just to see how it goes and learn about the products - I as a mommy blogger would LOVE to review a few products even if I had to send them back in the end - like oh say the new touch book reader (I have the 505 and love it) and maybe even a computer as I have never owned anything other than Toshiba so if they ever do branch out please let me know as I would love that BUT for now -- GO SONY and Daddy Bloggers!

I like what you said.

Clever way to extend the Sony brand into the blogosphere. Although I think it would have been interesting to choose some "regular" dads for the project as well.

So I would love to know how did this go? Did it hit the heights that you and they wanted?