Avoid Conflict of Interests and Better Your Chances of Landing a Campaign
According to thefreedictionary.com a conflict of interest is “a situation in which a person has a duty to more than one person or organization, but cannot do justice to the actual or potentially adverse interests of both parties.”
Bloggers need to be mindful of potential conflicts of interest when working with companies and when signing up to participate in campaigns.
For example, when a blogger writes one day about the best place to get Halloween costumes and then the next day about another retailer that carries Halloween costumes, it is not only a conflict of interest, but confuses their readers because they are endorsing multiple companies for the same product. When the blogger discloses they received product or compensation in these instances, the reader is less likely to be influenced by the blogger because it looks as if they are only promoting the brands because they are being compensated in some way to do so.
As a blogger, when considering participating in a campaign with a brand begin by first asking yourself the following questions:
- Do I have a banner ad on my side bar that is in competition with the campaign I am signing up to participate in?
- Have I or do I plan on writing about a conflicting brand or retailer while participating in the campaign?
- Have I ever publicly been an advocate or ambassador for a competing product/brand/retailer?
If you answered “no” to the above questions, then it looks like there is no conflict of interest, you should now continue to ask yourself these questions:
- Do I really love the brand or retailer that I will be promoting if I sign up for this campaign?
- Would I be able to turn down an offer if I am approached to do a review or participate in a campaign with a conflicting brand or retailer?
- Does my niche fit with the product/brand/retailer and the activity I’m asked to complete?
- Have I written other posts in the niche the product/brand/retailer fits into?
If you answered “yes” to the above questions, then you are the perfect fit! Apply for the campaign and show them the star you are!
By asking yourself the above question before applying for campaigns, it will save precious time for you and the brand you are trying to work with and will also help you gain and keep trust with your readers.
Being true to yourself, the brands you work with, and your readers will only make you a better blogger, brand advocate and influencer.
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Thank you for writing this! I love to partner with companies but I’m really careful about who I choose. It’s tempting to want to take everything so you can get free products or even get monetary compensation, but that really devalues your own brand that you’re building.
As a reader of MANY blogs, it’s hard to want to keep up with a blog when it’s apparent the author isn’t interested in giving their readers awesome, relevant content, but rather just talk about something free a company gave them.
I do want to hear about those things. I want to know what people think about products and services. But I want it in the right context and in the right way without feeling like my value as a reader isn’t appreciated.
It’s funny how many people DON’T consider something that should be so obvious. I’ve watched some bloggers “Love” their “Favorite” product then turn around and “Love” their “Favorite” of a competitor. It certainly does diminish their credibility.
I’ve related to this as a blogger as well as a consumer/reader of other blogs. Thank you for pointing out the viewpoint from the other side!
Very interesting, I agree with all of the above about avoiding conflicts of interest. I try to only sign up for brands I personally use and enjoy, and I’ve been able to work on some amazing campaigns as a result! I’ll be more careful about conflict of interest in the future; I don’t think I’ve had any but it doesn’t hurt to think about it when applying.
All good points! I think, though, that it can be very possible to work with “competing” brands, as some items aren’t mutually exclusive. If I have a favorite brand of toothpaste, I probably don’t like others as much. But I can be equally excited about three different toy brands, because they make *different* toys. I’m obviously not going to promote one in a post for the other, but I don’t see anything unethical or misleading about posting about them both on the same blog.
This is such a great post and so many great points to consider and remember when working with campaigns! I try really hard to not blog about anything that isn’t relevant to my blog- and conflicts are definitely something I will be paying attention to as I navigate this new world! Great article!
Thanks Courtney!