Bloggers are getting pitched more and more from companies and their public relations people who are looking to promote all sorts of goods. There’s a lot of book pitching, but no shortage of other products being pitched as well.

Lots of A-list bloggers get pitched daily. Many are getting tired of it, mostly because there’s so many crappy pitches.

Personally, I love it. For starters it’s nice to know that someone wants to promote something through Instigator Blog.

But more importantly, I pitch back.

Over the last few weeks I’ve been pitched a few times. A couple of those weren’t good fits. I replied quickly to the pitches (I don’t get millions of emails, so I can still respond to everyone!) and left it at that. Some of the pitches were good fits and I engaged in some conversations with the pitchers about what they wanted out of me. One was a book. The PR person sent me the book (I have yet to read it, but I plan to.) It’s a book on entrepreneurship, so it makes perfect sense for me to read it and review it here.

I also pitched the PR person back. Something along the lines of, “Would you like to run a contest on the blog? Or maybe do some advertising? Are there other products you’re promoting that would be a good fit?”

There wasn’t a good fit in terms of doing any blog sponsorship but it was great to create and build the relationship beyond the PR person just pitching me.

Pitch the pitchers. It’s a legitimate and great way to find new opportunities for making money on your blog.

With all the hoopla going on about companies like ReviewMe, it’s absolutely essential that you maintain the integrity of your blog and keep separate what you do for money and what you do voluntarily. TechCrunch calls pay-per-post stuff a virus, and while I think that’s harsh (and easy for an A-list blogger to say), I do think it’s important to maintain integrity and be open to what you’re doing for money (or not.) To-date I haven’t written any pay-per-post material, whatsoever. If I did, I’d tell you.

If I write a review of the book that I was pitched it will be an honest review. Simple as that. PR people have to realize that when they make a pitch. Certainly if you write a bad review they’re unlikely to pitch you again, but that’s their problem, not yours. If I further engage that PR company to do any advertising or sponsorship for money it will have to be completely separate from any writing I do voluntarily. It’s a fine line, but it’s manageable.

The best way to make money on a blog is through sponsorship and when you’re pitched think of it as an opportunity to create and extend the relationship and find sponsorship opportunities.

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Picture by bd2000.