As you all know, I have been talking to bloggers, publishers, and public relations agents alike to find out what really happens in the world of blogging. Recently, I had a chance to chat with the folks from Fournier Communications, a full service, boutique public relations company that, through international experience, personal attention to clients and close relationships with many of beauty and lifestyle magazines’ most influential editors, combines European glamour and American business integrity to create successful media strategies. The firm’s high profile in beauty and lifestyle products and services is built on its reputation for reflecting the best image of the product/project involved and being alert to all opportunities for publicity placements.
Q. Can you describe the most important aspect of public relations?
Fournier: As a public relations company, we first and foremost need to make sure that we act according to our client’s brand image in a way that is interesting to both the media and the consumer. In order to do this, we must always make sure that we are reaching out to the appropriate media for a client; that is, the media outlets we choose must ultimately reach the actual consumers of the brand. Additionally, since we deal with mostly European clients, we must constantly keep in mind that we are translating the brand’s image across cultures as well.
Q. What is the most difficult part of your job?
Fournier: The most difficult part by far is saying no to a brand that wants to work with us, but we don’t think it’s up to our standards.
Q. How do you choose the bloggers to whom you pitch your clients’ products? In other words, what qualities do you look for in a blog/blogger?
Fournier: There are so many criteria that we look for in a good blog. Thorough, frequent posts; a large number of comments from engaged readers; evidence of personal experience with the reviewed products; and high-quality layout/images are just a few of the necessary attributes. We also love it when a blogger inspires us by coming up with a unique angle on a product that we hadn’t thought of before. On top of those things, we have to make sure that the blog in question is reaching the appropriate consumer for our clients. Above all, we’re aware that some people try to use a blog as a vehicle through which to obtain free products; we try to make sure that the bloggers with whom we work write because they have a real passion for the beauty industry and want to contribute to it.
Q. What are the benefits of working with bloggers as opposed to other media outlets? Do you expect different things from bloggers than from magazine editors?
Fournier: For us, one of the main benefits of working with bloggers over other media outlets is timing. Because most of our clients are European, we sometimes don’t receive samples of new launches in time to be covered by the print magazines. The timing issue also pertains to product news. For example, when we discover that a celebrity loves one of our clients’ products and release this information to bloggers, we receive instant coverage.
Q. What happens when a blogger gives one of your clients a negative review? Does this affect your relationship with the blogger?
Fournier: Since we are lucky enough to be able to pre-select our clients, we know that their products are of the highest possible quality, and we don’t have to deal with this problem too much! That said, not every product works for every reviewer. A negative review, as long as it is justified, doesn’t affect our relationship with the blogger at all. In terms of reviews, we believe that it is the right and the responsibility of the media to put forth an honest opinion, whether positive or negative. Sometimes a negative review can even be helpful for us. For example, if we send a rich anti-aging product to a 21 year-old, and she breaks out, it is our responsibility to learn from that mistake and not repeat it.
Q. According to the new FTC ruling, bloggers must disclose whether the company whose products they are reviewing has compensated them in any way. Do you anticipate that this ruling will affect the way PR companies work with new media?
Fournier: The new FTC ruling won’t change the way we work with the new media because we don’t financially compensate anyone for writing reviews on our products. That sort of thing happens a lot in this industry, and we believe it is the reader’s right to know when a blogger or celebrity has been paid by a company to write or “tweet” about a product. We send products to bloggers like we send products to magazine editors—how does the FTC expect the media to test products before they hit the market if we don’t send them a sample???
Stay tuned for more interviews – and as always, feel free to send your questions to productpasha@gmail.com.
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