The Obligation of a Blogger in a Blogging Event
I was disturbed by the end of my very first product event for bloggers, i.e. an invite to a product presentation. Instead of feeling excited about the new information I was obtaining from the presentation, I was very reluctant to write anything about it; or, if I did write anything, it would surely end up being a Caught My Ire post, which implies that I would have related an unsatisfactory experience, accompanied by my feedback to management.
Well, I did give my feedback to management verbally, which I did from a consumer’s point of view, and then restrained myself from giving notes as a director.
Okay, I wasn’t totally successful because I told the marketing manager my opinion regarding a certain aspect of the presentation, but I was able to control myself to just one note.
My major concern, of course, is with regards as to what my obligation is as a blogger when invited to an event such as this. Am I required to write about the product or service or whatever is being promoted by the event?
I approached the person in charge of inviting the bloggers and clarified their expectations.
The overwhelming thank goodness reply to my question was there is NO OBLIGATION to write anything, even though I was privy to a mini-seminar that the presenter impressed upon the bloggers as something that could have charged high fees from the participants, even though I was fed mini-sandwiches that the waiter couldn’t identify, and even though I received a nice gift from the sponsoring client.
However, it still leaves a bad taste in the mouth. For the moment, I think I’ll avoid product events for bloggers, unless it’s something I’m really curious about, but, even then, I will still make it clear that there is NO OBLIGATION to write.
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I get invited to a lot of events and media launches for different types of products and services so I can relate to this post. And yes, there is no obligation to write about the products or services they present (at least for most of the PR firms). With or without the freebies, I write about the products and services based on my personal assessment. If I didn’t like the product or the event itself, I either post my opinion — negative or positive — about it (and sometimes inform the PR agency) or I don’t write about it at all.
When an agency or events organizer tells me that I MUST write about the event, that’s when I start going sour.
In my short stints in different media agencies (glossy magazine, TV Entertainment, TV News, FM Radio) in the past, I was also faced with this predicament, but the final decision was always up to my superiors. As a blogger, the only responsibility I have is to myself.
(sorry for the extremely long comment)
Not at all. Thank you very much for sharing your experiences and your thoughts regarding this matter. I am very concerned about my freedom as a blogger, which I don’t want to be constrained in any way. Your comment has allayed some of my fears. Thank you.