Should Awards Matter to Pet Bloggers?
How much importance do you put on winning an award to recognize you for a job well done? At our very core as human beings, we all want to be recognized, appreciated, and in a perfect world, awarded in some way for our efforts in some aspect of our lives. Should awards matter to pet bloggers? Stay with me on this.
If you are a pet blogger or a pet microblogger (you have a pet-related presence on social media like Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, and/or Twitter), then you understand all too well wanting to be recognized for being a pet ______ (fill in the blank) mom, dad, parent, owner, guardian.
As a pet blogger whose blog is a part- or full-time venture, how many of the following things do you do on a regular basis:
- Plan content
- Research
- Write/blog
- Pay hosting and a whole slew of other “fees”
- Spend time promoting on social media
- Stay current on trends
- Networking, learn, attend conferences
If you have a blog business plan, then you know the amount of work that goes into building, grow, and maintaining a blog. At its core, there has to be a passion for it. No doubt, you are spending a fairly decent amount of time trying to command one thing:
R-E-S-P-E-C-T
I recall asking popular pet blogger, Paris Permenter, of DogTipper, about the influence of pet parents in the social media and blogging space.
“I think pet bloggers have much the same influence, reaching an audience that makes purchasing decisions not only for their pets but also for their entire household,” Permenter told me. “Whether that household includes two-legged children or not, I think pet households have many of the same concerns as young families.”
So where’s the respect? Those of us who share a life with, for, and about pets and then transcend that life into letters on a keyboard, delivered to an e-audience…well, we struggle with respect.
“You’re just a blogger,” some might say.
These are the same people who offer, “get another” when a beloved pet passes away.
He was just a ____ (fill in the species here).
He wasn’t just a dog, a cat, a bird, a rabbit, a ferret. I’m not just a blogger.
Pets are a life force. They are family members.
If we work hard enough and plan for it, we are more than “just pet bloggers.” We are influencers.
We help form the purchases that go in your cart, whether in store or electronically. We help deliver information that makes your pet’s life easier: from things like health and well being to gift ideas and everything in between.
Let’s compare an influential blogger to an influential brain surgeon. A brain surgeon is recommended, his or her education must be held to a high standard, the outcomes of their work must be successful, and their credibility is based on expertise, education, and experience.
An influential pet blogger will be held to a different set of standards, but the importance is there. Are you recommending a cat food? Does your blog ever dispense advice on behavior, training, places to visit, treats to feed, or how to keep a pet healthy? For most bloggers, credibility is a combination of experience, delivering the message properly, and being able to substantiate the information in the blog post with sourcing.
BlogPaws’ co-founder Yvonne DiVita says. “Our community is on the pulse of all things pet: from dogs to cats, rabbits to ferrets, and everything in between.”
That pulse is called blogging and its heartbeat is pets.
My heart beats dog.® I feel that so very much to my core that I legally trademarked. It’s my life mantra. It’s my blog. It’s my pulse.
What’s Your Pulse?
Do you command respect? Do you wish more pet parents would discover your blog and continue to come back? If they do, it means your page views would increase. We, the pet bloggers of the world, want that: More views.
More views = more credibility = more brands interested in working with us.
What’s your blogging pulse? Do you deliver 10,000 beats (views) per month? If not, you can learn how to bump up by 10K visitors a month here.
So What’s the Scoop on Blogging Awards?
Each year, BlogPaws celebrates pet bloggers and microbloggers by allowing you, the general public, to nominate your favorites in the pet space.
When someone is entered into what is called the BlogPaws Nose-to-Nose Awards, their work is viewed by professionals who consider both BlogPaws the company and BlogPaws the conference as one of the BEST pet industry organizations operating today. To be among the finalists in an awards ceremony, for a category of recognition covered NO WHERE else on the web (or off) is a great honor.
“BlogPaws is about the bloggers. Our Nose-to-Nose Pet Blogging and Social Media Awards is one way we recognize the professional work and dedication of our Community,” said Chloe DiVita, Director of Events and Programs for BlogPaws. “The influence of pet bloggers is growing and the BlogPaws community is leading the way.”’
These are the only pet industry awards in which pet bloggers and micro-bloggers are judged on the expertise, performance, and creativity of the entry. Each category is judged by a distinguished panel of professionals and not by popular vote. Here’s what some previous winners had to say:
Is Winning Everything?
No, but having respect is quite possibly, close to everything. Winning is icing on a hard-earned cake. Winning is admiration, a spotlight, and very much like any other award: It’s not what the award does for you, but what you choose to do with the award.
Case in point: Amanda Yantos is a pet blogger who runs the Dog Mom Days blog. She is also a BlogPaws Nose-to-Nose finalist for 2015. Yantos took this honor and ran with it: To the press.
“I literally shot up from my chair and started shaking and crying out of happiness,” she said. “I was so shocked and I’m just so honored … I really followed my dreams to become a blogger and this is one of the biggest awards that you can get in the pet-blogging community. To be a part of it is very humbling.”
Yantos is now a BlogPaws 2016 Ambassador and is helping with all aspects of conference planning and execution as we get closer and closer to the event. She took the time to leverage her finalist status. Though she didn’t win the award, that didn’t stop her. This is the sign of winner: Someone who secures a victory and takes it to the next level. Rock on, Amanda!
Amanda Yantos (left) with Carol Bryant as doggies Wynston and Dexter strike a pose
What to Finalists and Winners “Get?”
Finalists receive a free conference pass to BlogPaws’ 2016 Conference in beautiful Phoenix, Arizona. The pass covers most meals, educational sessions, and so much more.
Winners get the red carpet treatment. Beyond the trophy, the pass, the media coverage, the red carpet ceremony, the additional prizes….there is something that comes with being recognized:
R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Once the lights come down and the red carpet is packed away for the next time, the accolades do not end. BlogPaws interviews the winners, utilizes the winners in blog posts, assists with gaining press coverage, and shares content from the winners’ blogs long after the conference.
Winning isn’t a moment, folks: It’s oh so much more.
It looks really great in a media kit to say you won this highly lauded award. I know what that feels like: As the current Women in the Pet Industry Advocate of the Year, I leverage my win as much as possible. I know what my capabilities are, and it feels more than amazing to be recognized by my peers for them. (see the photo of us gals laughing above: We have fun, too!)
Pet blogging is not about winning awards. Making movies isn’t about getting an Oscar. Playing baseball isn’t about winning the World Series. You get the idea: The winning is in the journey. The winning is in the execution of a plan that takes months and years to develop. The winning is in getting a letter from a pet parent thanking them for advice dispensed on your blog.
The trophy is the icing, and the cake is even sweeter when your name is called.
What say you? Ready to nominate some pet bloggers and pet social media folks for this accolade?
Respect is a 7-letter word that is best commanded and not demanded. Show those you care about, yourself included, that you are worth it. You are. We’re waiting. We’ll be reading. And we’d love to have you in the pack.
Hurry: Nominations for this year’s BlogPaws awards close on Monday, April 11, 2016.
Did you like this post? Read How to Become a Credible Blogger People Can Trust
Carol Bryant is the Marketing and Social Media Manager for BlogPaws and runs her own blog, Fidose of Reality and its fundraising arm, Wigglebutt Warriors. When not busy playing with her Cocker Spaniel, Dexter, she stays far away from cooking. Her trademark is her mantra and is tattooed on her arm: My Heart Beats Dog.®
