Why Dell's Blogger Outreach Was Successful

After reading about Dell's success with bloggers in Ben Worthen's Wall Street Journal article, I typed in red mini Inspiron into a few search engines. It was true! Consistently, all mentions on the first page of results were from social media, including top technology blogs. Only one mention was from the company -- and even that was from Dell's blog, aptly coined "your blog." The company had managed to turn the mike to tech-fluentials and they were promoting the new laptop since late May. 

Two things in the Worthen article are worth underscoring:

1- It took Dell a year (I'd say more) to engage with key bloggers

2- Dell has a team of staffers dedicated to tracking online buzz and responding where appropriate

In other words, blogger engagement pay off greatly, just like any other relationship, when you invest the time and energy into it. It's not about using the blogger's space as a sales vehicle. It's about making a valuable contribution to a conversation. It takes time (and in this case budget) to earn street creds...