I saw this tag on Jasmine’s blog a while ago and then also saw Sophie participate in this tag as well and thought it was a fab idea. I’m super nosey and love to read these kind of posts! I hope you enjoy hearing about all about my ventures into PR, gifting and sponsored content on my blog.

The Rules:

1. Link back to the post that started it all 
2. Acknowledge the person that tagged you in this (if anyone) and link back to their blog
3. Answer the questions below

Do you remember the first brand you worked with? When, what and how was it?

My first ever opportunity was with Uncommon Goods where I got to pick some products to be gifted in a Christmas gift guide. I’d only been blogging 3 months so to have a gifting opportunity already, I was blown away! The people who contacted me were really friendly, the products came quick with no issues and it was pretty smooth going, although most of my gifted opportunities are usually pretty unproblematic anyway.

How do you get the majority of your PR opportunities?

The majority of my opportunities do come to my inbox directly. The Blogger Programme has given me a handful of gifting opportunities but a lot of the time their requirements are ridiculous.  My sponsored posts 9 times out of 10 land in my inbox and come straight from brands or PR workers getting in touch with me.

Are there any brands that you work with on a regular/repeat basis? How did it happen?

If it counts, i’m part of the Soap & Glory #babesofglory programme in which I often get products sent to me from Soap & Glory which is basically a dream come true. This came about from a Tweet which I replied to. I’m also part of the Dermalogica #skinfluencer programme which is the same as the Soap & Glory programme but I was approached directly from the brand on Instagram. I get gifted products in return for coverage of the products on either my social medias or my blog. I’ve also worked with a really nice lady who represents clients from different brands a number of times and whenever I work on content from her it’s always so easy and payment is super prompt.

Who has been your favourite brand to work with and why?

This is quite a hard question because i’ve loved working with all the brands I have done purely because i’m so thankful for the opportunities. However, in terms of the nicest brand i’ve ever dealt with is the lovely Rebecca who is a fellow blogger. She opened up a homeware store and she ever so kindly gifted me some products to feature in a post. The lovely Lizzy who works at the PR team at Dermalogica is such a nice lady as well who I get in contact with regarding the #skinfluencer programme i’m apart of!

Who has been your least favourite brand to work with? What did they do?

At the very beginning of my blogging journey I was contacted by a company called Boutique of Molly (if I remember correctly) and they wanted to collab with me but their idea of a collab was giving me a discount to buy their products. I’ve learnt that this isn’t any kind of collab, this is a company exploiting new bloggers. You might think that getting a discount is good but think about it in terms of promotion; you’re buying something to promote and that isn’t what a collaboration is!

Has there been anything big that you’ve (perhaps reluctantly) turned down because you knew it wasn’t right for you?

I turn down a fair few brand collabs mainly because of their stupid terms “we like to build up a connection with bloggers so buy our products and you might get free products in the future”. I haven’t had that many opportunities that aren’t suitable for me and my blog but when I have, i’ve turned them down but they’ve never really been ‘big’ in terms of payment or what I get out of it.

What’s your favourite kind of PR to receive?  (E.g food, beauty etc)

I’d say it’s probably skincare! I’ve received quite a lot of skincare products and I do love to try out different products on my skin! I’d love to receive makeup though, that’d be amazing.

What would be your dream brand collaboration?

I’d love to have a brand collab with Pusheen because Pusheen the cat is the cutest thing ever and i’m always buying anything I see from socks to stickers! I’d also love a collab with Vans, Urban Decay and MUA because they’re all favourite brands of mine and to work with a brand that i’m passionate about would make such amazing blog content.

And those are my PR secrets which aren’t so secret anymore! I love being nosey so if you do wanna get involved in this tag then please let me know! I won’t be tagging anyone but if this inspires you to do your own version then I can’t wait to read! Remember to go and check out Jas’ original post of it!

Don’t forget to check out my latest post; The Nomad Factory Travel Journal

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