• About
  • Blog
  • Working together
  • Testimonials
  • Contact

Girl Gone Travel

Girl Gone Travel

Public Relations & Branding
/
August 24, 2012

The Importance of Purpose: A Message for Brands, Agencies & Bloggers

Enjoyed this post? Give it some love and share!
Share

The following is what I hope is helpful information for not only bloggers, but also for agencies and brands who pitch us.

Brands/Agencies – We cannot, as bloggers, promote what you do simply because you have informed us that you are doing it – regardless of how great it is.

We have to find and feel the reasons WHY you do it. As a travel blogger, my readers don’t care why I went to Vail (to cover their culinary scene) or to Scotland (to highlight the “Brave” film) or to the Dominican Rep (to highlight Puerto Plata or Las Terrenas), they want to know HOW I FELT IT, how I experienced it, how it affected me. Because this much more personal experience, the emotions evoked from it all is what will impact their decision to invest the time, the money on you, the brand  – and how they spend their money and time matters to most of us bloggers, because it is how we spend our money and time as well, and because we understand what it takes to get to the point where we are happy in making that investment.

Bloggers – The relationship between bloggers and brands is a delicate one: the best of us are committed to the integrity of our brand and blog. We are committed to providing our readers information that they can trust and use in their decision-making processes. And, as freelancers and entrepreneurs, we are committed to establishing relationships with the brands and agencies, and hopefully solidify them into income channels for our business.

But because our story has to truly be personal for us to evoke the message in a way that would translate beyond the standard marketing and public relations tools, we need to sacrifice and cut off those messages that don’t provide us to the WHY in our stories – regardless of the potential for profit promised from the brand. This is because though we may be able to acquire short term financial gain through business transactions with brands and agencies, our long term success and growth is dependent on our audience. Without their trust, continued following, and demand, we loose any reason to matter in this space.

The social in Social Media is the one most important factor, and it is incumbent upon the brands and agencies to follow and learn, not only so that they can work with us, but so that we can work with them as well.

Providing us with a reason to care, or at least giving us the professional consideration and merit to show them how, is what not only makes for a better story, but also a better reason for us to help share it.

I first saw this video The Culterist, a great site to visit for travel as well as small biz news and advice.

Simon Sinek (“The Golden Circle”) was speaking to the ambitiously talented crowd at TedTALKS. But I think it applies to so many of us looking to grow our blogs and brands through our connection with people via storytelling. It also helps to send the message to brands and agencies who tend to blindly mass email press releases and updates on their products, understand why this mass marketing approach tend to die in the email boxes of the bloggers they want to reach the most.

It is because they are failing to understand how to best connect with us (bloggers). As Mr. Sinek so eloquently states, “The goal isn’t to do business with the people that need what you have, the goal is to do business with the people who believe what you believe.”  Find those bloggers. Invest your time in searching them out. Read their stories, hear their voice: does it say what you want people to hear about you? Does it represent you in the way you want to be represented? Does it fit?

As a blogger, you should do the same and not just take whatever comes along to pay the bill. For this purpose, get a job, at an office, where a paycheck is guaranteed and a genuine voice doesn’t really matter. But if your purpose is to inspire and foster dreams, than you have to be willing to hold out for the partnerships that will help you do that in the most transparent and real way possible. Not always easy to come by on either side.

I want to convince people that where I go, what I see, where I stay, what I do and what I learn via my travels matters, not only to me, but to them. And I thought Mr. Sinek explained beautifully on why this approach is not only important, but also why it works.

Watch Simon Sinek’s How Great Leaders Inspire Action for more:

 

Related

Enjoyed this post? Give it some love and share!
Share
Pin this Post
Share this Post
Carol Cain

Brooklyn native Carol is happiest when on an adventure, whether close to home or farther away. She is a small business owner and travel writer. In addition to creating Girl Gone Travel, she is the Founder and Principal of Brave World Media, a social media marketing, communications, and branding agency. She's mom to three wonderful sons and wife to a handsome Irish/Scot. She lives, works, and plays in the beautiful Finger Lakes region of NY.

You May Also Like...

Blogaversary: A Blog Turns One, The Adventure Continues

December 10, 2009

Ice Skating in The Pond, Bryant Park, NY

December 28, 2009

Life’s Journey and The Marks You Leave Behind

August 14, 2010
6 Comments
  • Bicultural Mama
    August 27, 2012

    Great advice for both bloggers and brands…thanks!

    Reply
  • Carol Cain
    August 29, 2012

    @ Bicultural Mama:

    My pleasure!

    Reply
  • Eva
    September 4, 2012

    So true! If I feel something (good or bad) about the place or product that I am writing about, it comes so easily. I decided early on, that I wanted to do what I loved, and work hard at it, but it shouldn't BE hard for me to do. It would be great if brands could understand that we want tell the story of our experience with their brand, not just copy and paste their press releases. It would be a win-win for all of us, right?

    Very well written, and thank you for the Simon Sinek video.

    Reply
  • Carol Cain
    September 4, 2012

    @ Eva:

    Thank you Eva, and I completely agree! Happy to have shared, I think his advice was so perfect.

    Reply
  • Charu
    September 5, 2012

    I completely agree! Well said, Carol.

    Reply
  • Carol Cain
    September 6, 2012

    @ Charu:

    Thanks Charu!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Previous Post
Dreamy, Happy Summer in Vail, CO
Next Post
Culinary Adventures Off The Beaten Path in Orlando, FL

Categories

  • Asia5 Post(s)
  • Caribbean17 Post(s)
  • Central America4 Post(s)
  • Europe54 Post(s)
  • North America318 Post(s)
  • Oceana1 Post(s)

About me

Hi! I'm Carol! I am an award-winning travel blogger, a keynote speaker, and the Principal and owner of Brave World Media, a social media marketing, communications, and branding agency. I a wife to a handsome Irish/Scot and a mom to 3 sons. Welcome to my blog where I share stories of my travels and professional public relations insights and advice. Thank you for reading and for your support!

Carol Cain

Contact

  • caincarol@gmail.com

Follow @girlgonetravel

We have FINALLY opened the windows and it is heave We have FINALLY opened the windows and it is heavenly.
Nothing like starting the day with a solid cup of Nothing like starting the day with a solid cup of coffee. Before an early morning shoot, we stopped at @gimmecoffee in Ithaca, NY for a delicious pick me up.

A staple in the Ithaca community, with many shops throughout and founded in 2000, this iconic coffee brand is merits all the praise for it’s consistency in quality and service. Never disappoints. ☕️

#coffeetiktok #coffeeshop #ithacany #coffeelover
Nothing like starting the day with a solid cup of Nothing like starting the day with a solid cup of coffee. Before an early morning shoot, we stopped at @gimmecoffee in Ithaca, NY for a delicious pick me up.

A staple in the Ithaca community, with many shops throughout and founded in 2000, this iconic coffee brand is merits all the praise for it’s consistency in quality and service. Never disappoints. ☕️

#coffeetiktok #coffeeshop #ithacany #coffeelover
Taking in the sunset by the lake. We enjoy coming Taking in the sunset by the lake. We enjoy coming to the lake much later in the day when most people have left, and when we get to take a dip after a long, hot day to reset and relax. 

Almost 4 years since we moved to the Finger Lakes and I still can’t believe this is my lucky life. ❤️

#fingerlakes #newyork #lakelife
Thank you Toronto for the fun! This NYC girlie e Thank you Toronto for the fun! 

This NYC girlie enjoyed experiencing a different city, and finally making it to this one especially. 

I felt no pressure to check a bunch of things off “for the ‘gram” so enjoyed slowly touring around and spending time in areas I enjoyed the most. 

For those who have never been, like any city in the summer, it can be unpleasant on terribly hot days, and super crowded in touristy spots, but there are beaches and museums to escape to! People also seem generally friendlier. 

Toronto is really spread out so getting around can take awhile because of traffic, and public transport can get crowded at certain times. Best bet are the commuter bikes or walking - which we did tons of, especially in search of good coffee. There is a lot of good food but depending on where you are, you’ll have to travel a ways for it. 

In general, I found it to be an interesting city, with a vibrant and strong immigrant community, which I loved, and am excited to return and see more someday soon!

#toronto #canada #roadtrip
Checking out a new city for us! These are scenes f Checking out a new city for us! These are scenes from our first night in town. 

In all my years as a travel blogger the one place that seemed logical for me to visit cause of proximity and accesss was Toronto. But I never did. Till now. 

We’re staying in the city, in a home swap through (but not sponsored by) @livekindred and we’re excited to explore this city with the boys, one last trip before college, and see what I’ve been missing!

#toronto #canada #roadtrip

Copyright © 2025 Girl Gone Travel | Privacy Policy | Copyright Notice