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How to Create Your Media Kit

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This is the year you’ve decided to get serious about monetizing your blog. Whether it be for banner ads, video ads, sponsored posts, text links, giveaways, etc, chances are if you’re working with a company, they will want certain information about your blog. What kind of information? Traffic does help, but companies also look at other metrics in mind when deciding on developing a partnership with a blogger. So how do you prepare? With a media kit.

A media kit can be as involved as a slide show presentation with stats on your website, information about your readers, every press mention, and samples of your work, and as simple as a bulleted list of your stats and ad rates. When I first decided to put together a media kit, I prepared a detailed presentation, but found that more often than not it overwhelmed my potential sponsors for things like ads. For the most part I use a simple list of my stats and ad rates along with a few links, and that is sufficient. Either way, it’s important to have these on hand.

So how do you create your own media kit?

Look around at other media kits

The first thing I did was to look around at other people’s media kits to get a feeling about how they were approaching sponsors. How do you do this? Well I reasearced two types of media kits:

  • The Big Guns– If you type in “Media Kit” in Google, you’ll get directly to the pages of some of the most popular kits available on the web. But for more fashion specific results I checked sites like Daily Candy and worked off their style, as one day…one day… I hope to be able to work along those lines!
  • Your peers– Not to say you’re not a big gun! But the sponsors who are looking to work with Daily Candy may not be the same ones who are dying to work with you. I usually look around at other blogs to see which ones have their stats listed on their website, and see what kind of information they have available. Usually if a site is big enough and is serious about monetizing, they’ll have an Advertise link on the home page. Sometimes they’ll have the stats and information available there.

Keep your kit handy

From there you’ll get a good idea about what kind of information you need to create a media kit that’s right for you. Even so, here are some tips to help you make your blog more appealing to sponsors:

  • Have your kit handy– I use Canned Responses in Gmail with my stats and ad rates to get back to sponsors. Sometimes people ask for types of advertising that doesn’t work with your blog, so it’s not worth it to recreate the wheel and customize every request. If a sponsor sounds legit, and wants more information, you can then tailor your media kit.
  • Screen shots– I usually describe in my Canned Response where the ads go, but sometimes people want a visual aid. This can easily be done with a screen shot that clearly points out where their ad will appear on your site. I’ve posted what my old screen shot looked like as an example.
  • Presentations– Presentations either in PDF or in Powerpoint look really nice, and you have more control over how it appears when you send it over. I’ve also started using Google Presentations, because it features a sharable link, embeddable code, and you can have multiple editors who can modify your kit if you need help. The downside to Google Presentations is being at the mercy of Google… last week they went down, and  had to rewrite a proposal from memory to secure a sponsorship. It made my morning crazy.
  • Documents– If you need just one pager, using a Word Doc is good, or a one page PDF. If you want to make it available within the general stat count… I would suggest creating a Google Doc, publish it so it’s available on the web, and place the link in your stat count in Canned Responses.
  • Create and ‘Advertise’ Page on your website: If you don’t feel comfortable placing your stats on your site, a short summary of what your site can do for sponsors, perhaps links to a press page (for all your mentions), and some of the past campaigns you’ve worked on, is all valuable information. If  you do feel comfortable placing your stats, go ahead, that has made a big difference for me in separating the serious people from the not so serious ones.
  • Keep your kit handy, but don’t automate everything! Grechen’s Closet says “I definitely wouldn’t recommend adding a shopping cart where advertisers can purchase ads without even talking to you…a personal relationship is very important with advertisers, especially if you want them to stick around for more than just one term…”

While you’re creating your media kit, it’s probably also important to develop your advertising policy.

5 Things You MUST Include In Your Media Kit

While there are an infinite number of ways to put together your media, it absolutely must include certain information. So when writing out a media kit, remember to make room for these 5 things:

1. Statistics

Your statistics includes items like visitors, page views, and demographics (where your blog's readers live, their gender, age, etc.). It's important to use a reliable and trusted stat tracking platform like Google Analytics for this data. And, of course, it goes without saying that you should be always be honest with your numbers. Don't lie. Don't fudge. Don't round up. If anything, I'd suggest rounding down, especially if your traffic tends to be inconsistent. Many brands will ask for a screenshot of your Google Analytics to verify that your stats are what you say they are; you may just want to include a screenshot of that information as a standard part of your media kit.

2. Advertising Opportunities

So you sell banner ads, but that's not enough information. What size are your ads? Where are they located? Do you rotate the ad spaces with other brands? Can brands pay by the week or do you only sell by the month? What about special rates for long-term contracts or discounts for small or indie brands? Are some of your advertising opportunities limited (for example, do you only offer one giveaway per month or have a maximum 12 sidebar banner spaces on your blog)? Are certain opportunities only available around the holidays? Be as detailed as possible about what brands can expect from the ad space they're paying for. This definitely isn't the time to hold back information.

3. Advertising Policies

While some people think your stats or your advertising opportunities are the most important part of a media kit, I think the most important section is your advertising policies. Taking the time to put things down in writing now – even if you've never had an issue with a single advertiser – can save you a lot of trouble later on. Put yourself in the brand's shoes; what kinds of questions and concerns might they have? And though it's never pleasant, think through the worst case scenarios. What will you do if a brand demands a refund at the end of their ad period because they're not satisfied with how much traffic you sent over? What is your policy if a brand's ad payment is overdue? How will you accept payments?  Spending the time thinking through all these things now can only help your blog in the long term.

4. SEO and Keyword Information

Is your blog receiving traffic for the search terms a brand wants to be associated with? Put another way, are people from your advertiser's target market actually visiting your blog? If a brand is selling budget fashion, and your top five referring keywords are some variant of luxury, high-end, or expensive fashion, that's good to know. Similarly, if a brand specializes in retro or pinup fashion and your blog visitors are looking for futuristic or postmodern fashion, that's relevant information. Get familiar with your Google Analytics, and dig into which keywords are sending the most traffic to your site.

5. Social Proof

Finally, brag a little bit about yourself. You've shared a lot of quantitative data; now it's time to tell a brand what other people are saying about you. Include some words from readers in your media kit about why they read your blog or the difference it's made in their life. Ask previous or current advertisers to give you a testimonial explaining how advertising with your blog affected their business. Show off your social media following, and don't forget to include links to other major media outlets your blog has been mentioned on. We make a lot of decisions based on what we see others doing; use the power of social proof to your benefit.

What kind of information do you like to include in your media kit? Has putting together a media kit been helpful for you when talking with brands? Let's share some advertising stories in the comments!

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About The Author

Ana is a Travel Blogger and Blogging Coach at The City Sidewalks. With her expertise in online marketing, she's able to help other bloggers, creatives, and entrepreneurs grow their businesses so that they can achieve financial freedom to travel the world on their own terms.

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37 Responses

  1. Alice

    I am not planning to monetise my blog just now but I found this article very useful. It is important to have the information from the very beginning as it helps you to stay focused.

    Thanks again!

    Reply
  2. Retro Chick

    That’s brilliant.

    I have an advertise page at the moment, but when I’m approached I’m currently customising my responses individually. I’ve been thinking about putting together a proper media kit and this is really good timing!

    Thanks
    .-= Retro Chick´s last blog ..Retro Chick Style Icon – Poirot =-.

    Reply
  3. Kari

    Thank you for the tips! It’s definitely something to think about for the future and it’s good to know how to do it in a professional consistent manner. I love IFB!

    Reply
  4. WendyB

    You don’t want to be TOO much like Daily Candy now. They’re closing editions. Be like Daily Candy in the past where the founder sold at the right time.
    .-= WendyB´s last blog ..Characters Welcome, Fortunately for Us =-.

    Reply
  5. meg, reckless daughter

    ^ very true!
    .-= meg, reckless daughter´s last blog ..red legs =-.

    Reply
  6. lisa

    Truthfully I hadn’t even considered doing a media kit, but this post provided all sorts of advice to help me get started! Terrific tips.
    .-= lisa´s last blog ..January Sale Round-Up =-.

    Reply
  7. Nicola Thomas

    Very useful indeed. My old media kit is absolutely hopeless beyond belief and way out of date. Today I was thinking I must do, particularly as we’re getting new software to geotarget etc. This has been a great help – thanks Jennine. Nicola 🙂

    Reply
  8. Nicola Thomas

    oh yes, I think Client testimonials help a lot in media packs too. Always ask permission, and give their company name and position of person giving testimonial – this will gain trust it isn’t made up!

    Reply
  9. Ambar

    This is so helpful and came to me right in time. Just last night I was searching for this info.

    Thank you so much.
    .-= Ambar´s last blog ..Also… A Few New Things Around Here =-.

    Reply
  10. Phyllis

    Don’t think I’m quite there yet – but this is some great info to get started on! I had thought about it briefly and was so overwhelmed and clueless about it all! Thanks for the great tips
    .-= Phyllis´s last blog ..CdG inspired skirt =-.

    Reply
  11. thefatandskinny

    This is awesome info. I want to do one of these for my blog. Good things to start with.
    .-= thefatandskinny´s last blog ..Betsey Johnson Spring 2010 Fashion Show =-.

    Reply
  13. Kalyn

    Thanks for such a comprehensive article – v. helpful! Please keep them coming because they’re much appreciated and extremely useful. This came right on time for me.

    Reply
  14. wholzy

    want to ask u, are the people have to join IFB to get the badge in their blog?
    .-= wholzy´s last blog ..Sequinned things =-.

    Reply
  15. Fi Figueroa

    this is GREAT for getting into event etc locally! I am getting on it right now!
    .-= Fi Figueroa´s last blog ..And the winner of the PREVIOUSLY OWNED giveaway is? =-.

    Reply
  16. Andrea

    Great article! I had not heard of Google canned responses – something I will definitely check out as it gets old typing the same response over and over! I have found it to be helpful to have a media kit on hand so you don’t have to gather stats, etc. when someone needs the info.
    .-= Andrea´s last blog ..Nail Trends: Nail Art by Minx =-.

    Reply
  17. Life Of Brian

    THIS CAME RIGHT TIME TO MY INBOX BECAUSE, I HAD STARTED LOOKING AT HOW TO CREATE ONE.

    Reply
  18. Jen

    Do you recommend including or not including prices on your advertise page? (and why?) 🙂

    Reply
  20. Cafe Fashionista

    I absolutely love you for putting this post together! I have been contemplating putting a media kit together for Cafe Fashionista but had absolutely no idea where to start! Thank you so much!! 🙂
    .-= Cafe Fashionista´s last blog ..Why Don’t You…? =-.

    Reply
  21. Bree

    Can anyone share your thoughts on how much you are charging for your services? I like to host giveaways and wonder if you all charge to host a giveaway. If so how much? I’m kinda…clueless. I’ve been a celebrity stylist for many years and have my styling rates but just been guessing on what to charge for other blog services. Thanks so much and thanks for starting this discussion!
    .-= Bree´s last blog ..Are Fashion Bloggers taking over the world? =-.

    Reply
  22. Style Revolution

    Brilliant post!
    .-= Style Revolution´s last blog ..I Confess.. I’m A Baghag =-.

    Reply
  23. TheChickenista

    Thank you so much I’ve been searching for ways to start one, but still I had no idea what program to use
    Do I make it a web page, a page within my blog, or just like a resume??? I’m so lost.

    Reply
  24. Michelle Ruiz

    I swear this is sooo helpful!! Thank you so much. I have been working on our media kit and this is just like a gift!

    Reply
  25. Tyesh Barnor

    Thank you for this great tip. I will start on my media kit this weekend. So much to know and so much to do to have your blog/site a success.
    .-= Tyesh Barnor´s last blog ..SAMPLE SALE THURSDAY =-.

    Reply
  26. hannah

    This is so incredibly helpful. Thank you!
    xo
    .-= hannah´s last blog ..i still like miu =-.

    Reply
  27. misslikey

    haven’t been on IFB for ages tho I used to be hooked up on old forum, but I always read the newsletter. this is one of the stories that are helpful beyond. I adore stuff like this
    .-= misslikey´s last blog ..All nude; from tip to toe =-.

    Reply
  29. William K Wallace

    I’m currently in the process of putting together my first media kit and I want it to look the business, and your tips have helped to point me in the right direction…

    Reply
  31. YouNxt

    Really great advice. Thank you. Bottom line – if bloggers want to be taken seriously they have to work on a professional level.

    Reply
  32. Rachel

    Thank you so much for this I have not been blogging long and am now in need of a media kit and knew this was where to come. Does anyone here have any advise around rates, what the standard is or what thay are based on?

    Reply
  33. January Jones

    wow i have been looking for an article like this for so long thank you so much !!! great and well put

    Reply
  34. Alex Winter

    Thank you for the tips! It’s definitely something to think about for the future and it’s good to know how to do it in a professional consistent manner.

    Reply
  35. vinay kumar

    I absolutely love you for putting this post together! I have been contemplating putting a media kit together for Cafe Fashionista but had absolutely no idea where to start! Thank you so much!!

    Reply
  36. Vk Verma

    This is awesome info. I want to do one of these for my blog. Good things to start with.

    Reply
  37. amit singh

    very nice information you shared. This is really good and time worth to read it out. You shared good professional advice.

    Reply