Launching Momtent to Connect Mom Bloggers and Companies

Hey Kelby, interesting idea and having been part of some of the “bloggers working with companies” conversations at TypeAMom Conference this year, I get where you’re coming from. What I’d want to understand better for my clients is what’s the fee structure for Momtent? How do you differ from what other “mom networks” promising one-stop shopping for marketers seeking content and blogging partners? Thanks for the post and for your efforts to smooth the way for more effective blogger-brand transactions.

I was filling out the application, and just had a question about “other sites” that I contribute to – would that be like Foodiemama.com, typamom.com, etc.?

Hi Stephanie! Those are great questions. I am going to post a FAQ on Momtent and I think more details about fee structure would be helpful for boths ides.

This is, too, a work in progress (like pretty much everything I do). I figure I will launch, get feedback, and tweak accordingly. But this is what I have in mind: Companies could pick the level of service. If they want someone to simply find them the perfect blogger or bloggers, get the metrics for the bloggers, provide them with some excellent choices and then do the outreach to the bloggers, great. In many cases, I think bloggers don’t know how to package themselves very well, too, so we would be able to do that for them and guide them in that area. For companies or agencies, they are doing this work often times as an outsider. For us, we are within the community. For example, if a company needs a frugal blogger, I could rattle off five names off the top of my head. Yes, I can also back that up with metrics and more information, but we have that base knowledge of who’s who in the mom blogosphere.

We can also go so far as to manage the content: edit it and optimize it for search engines, and upload or deliver it in the format needed. We can guide the bloggers in ways to track effectiveness of tweets, give them widgets for that content to place in their sidebar, etc. We can also provide post-project metrics.

We can do a quote specific to the project depending on what the company needs, but that is a breakdown of the services available. The per-post price for a company that wants editing and optimizing, for example, will reflect the cost of both the post and getting someone to do the editing and optimizing work.

As far as this vs. other services, I think there are some wonderful mom blogger outreach companies out there. I would actually argue that companies should use more than one method to truly be effective. I think, too, that the number of opportunities out there for companies to engage bloggers plus all bloggers involved to earn money is limited. That was the gap I am seeking to fill.

I also think very few focus exclusively on content, and if they do it often is content bloggers write on their own blogs. In many cases, great bloggers are not included in that mix because they do not choose to participate or don’t want to post something about a company directly on their blog. And it gets sticky. Either that content on their blog is posted free, or it is posted for pay. Quite a number of bloggers will not do paid posts.

Mom bloggers are masters of developing quality, engaging content. Companies can use that content to drive organic search traffic, and the mom bloggers can also bring their followers/readers/community to the company’s site. That takes the engagement off the mom blogs and directly to the brand site.

I hope all of that makes sense! I am more than open to suggestions, too. Like I said, this has just launched and I am not aware of any other service just like it… so I am learning, too, what works best.