8 Tips in Organising a Blogger Gathering

(courtesy of 24 Seven)

Any PR person worth his or her salt these days would know that reaching bloggers, youtubers, flickrers, facebookers and twitterers (etcetera..) isn’t exactly the same as engaging the mainstream press. Trying the same traditional approach may only court failure, disappointment, and maybe even a tongue lashing (trust me I have been there)!

So how can you attract bloggers to participate in a gathering?

Let me use a recent dinner I was invited to – courtesy of Citibank Credit Card – at the 10 at Claymore Restaurant of Pan Pacific Orchard as an illustration.

1) Organise the event in the evening or weekends rather than the day. Unlike members of the mainstream media, many bloggers do have a full-time job/lessons/NS which may not allow them to leave during office hours.

2) Keep the gathering as casual and informal as possible, but ensure that there is some semblance of order. Bloggers do not like to be preached to for too long a duration – they’d rather be up and about exploring the experience for themselves.

3) Provide lots and lots (and lots) of photography/videography/audio opportunities. I suppose this is quite commonsensical, considering how obsessed we are about getting a good pic. Oh yes, do also ensure that we can camwhore too!

Geeks of the world unite! (courtesy of 24 Seven)

4) If possible, provide nice “after the event” photographs so that bloggers can use them for their own respective blog posts. 24 Seven has done a great job here for the recent dinner.

5) Provide lots of opportunities for mingling, networking, schmoozing, and socialising. They don’t call it social media for nothing!

We like to talk lah…(courtesy of 24 Seven)

6) If you do need to sell something to the bloggers, do it subtly and gently. Do not insist on a deadline for publication. If the bloggers are decent human beings who are not out to exploit you, they will share something good with their networks without coercion. Just be patient and wait for it…

Marcoms Manager KS Lee of Pan Pacific Orchard sharing about the restaurant and hotel (courtesy of 24 Seven)

7) Naturally, a press release would still be useful. More importantly however, is the provision of other useful multi-media aids like photographs, logos, videos, audio clips, and so on.

8) Finally, provide opportunities for bloggers to contribute and participate to the event. Many of us are gadget geeks (see below) and love to talk about the technical specs of our latest tech-enabled acquisitions.

Bloggers love to play with tech toys – regardless of the setting! (courtesy of 24 Seven)

What other tips would you have to share about organising blogger events?

OK, enough of the geek speak. Here are the amateurish photos I took of the wonderfully indulgent (and sinful) dinner we had that night at 10 at Claymore. Enjoy!

This post has been made possible by Citibank Credit Card. Apply for one now and enjoy special deals like a $20 Tangs voucher. If you are a Citibank credit card holder, you can enjoy the following yummy gourmet deals from 10 @ Claymore during these periods:

* Valid 1st Aug 2010 – 30th Sep 2010
– Get 1 complimentary THE CLAYMORE (which is a steak) with any order from the grill menu.
– Get a 2nd grilled item from the grill menu for $10, with any order from the grill menu.

* Valid till 31st Dec 2010
– 15% off total bill