Influence is a word thrown around like confetti these days. Yet just as there is no homogeneous audience in a social media world, there is no homogeneous influencer.

So those launching social PR or marketing initiatives need to know more – precisely who is influential about what, to whom, and in what context?

However, faced with shiny new topic, a place to start is needed.

To find and prioritize who, of millions of bloggers, to begin to engaging with, follow these steps:

1. Find relevant bloggers (Try Google Blog Search, Blog lists in the category, these social media tools, Followerwonk to search Twitter and then check the blog rolls of good ones)
2. Record for each blogger: Awards / List membership, Google Page Rank, Twitter Followers, Klout and PeerIndex (Bear in mind there is ongoing debate about how reliable a measure Klout and PeerIndex are, but they can at least serve as a comparative indicator)
3. Prioritize based on the overall picture (Make notes and don’t rely on one measure alone. If there is time and the blog is very active, you could make more in-depth ethnographic observations on participation occuring)
4. After launching the campaign measure referrals back to your target URL – to ascertain which blogs are bringing most traffic /are most goal-achieving

More on brand engagement with bloggers from Eric Schwartzman, including stats from the 2011 Technorati bloggers survey:

Item cross-posted from Mariam’s blog

Our very own Helen Nowicka, UK head of digital, gave PR Moment her predictions for digital PR in 2012:

“I’ve picked out three challenges facing agencies and in-house teams, all of which present opportunities.

“First, skills. People who cut their teeth on press sell-ins might have personal Facebook and Twitter profiles, but they’re still learning how to be accomplished community managers. We all need to keep learning.

“Second, simplicity. For some clients, digital can still feel like uncharted territory compared to the neatly-defined traditional media environment. Agencies can help, we have tools to simplify the landscape by delivering clear and actionable insights.

“Third, spend. The economic climate will get tougher next year. Unsurprisingly, social media budgets have become battlegrounds as PR, ad, digital, and media agencies all wrestle for them. PR firms are more likely to win if they can integrate digital and traditional comms; have robust metrics to show results; and combine creative thinking with executional excellence.”

This originally appeared on PR Moment - read original article

No, it’s not an iPhone app that does the housework, folds the laundry, picks the kids up from school, gets dinner ready for the whole family and holds down a full-time job all in one click… although wouldn’t that be fab!

Cybermummy is the only British blogging conference dedicated entirely to parent bloggers.

The conference was founded just last year by Jennifer Howze (Lifestyle Editor for Times Online and former lead blogger of its Alpha Mummy blog), Sian To (As Clear as Media) and Susanna Scott (founder of the British Mummy Bloggers community now known as Brit Mums).

On Saturday 25^thJune, over 400 parent bloggers came together to attend CyberMummy 11 at the Brewery in London, compared to around 120 in the previous year, marking a growing trend in parent blogs.

‘Mummy bloggers’ are not just writing about their parenting experiences and giving advice to fellow parents anymore, they are also using their blogs to make a real difference in their local communities, promote causes and in some cases, make a substantial income through writing eBooks and courses.

Sarah Fortuna, UK and Ireland Consumer Marketing Manager for HP talked about working with brands:

“Consumers are tending not to listen to advertisements but are more interested in hearing from a genuine person about what they think about a product – so it’s a blogger’s voice, not a corporate voice.”

Erica Douglas from Littlemummy.com recommended advertisers make their approach personal.  She adds: “Don’t treat us like we’re a ‘band of mummy bloggers.

Über Blogger, Natalie Lue, makes a full-time income from her relationship website, Baggage Reclaim, and the baby products site, Bambino Goodies.  She receives over 350,000 visitors per month.

“There are a gazillion parenting and relationship sites but what’s saleable is authenticity and voice.”