HOW TO CREATE A TRAVEL INFLUENCER OR BLOGGER MEDIA KIT
If you’re a travel blogger, influencer or content creator you need to know that a media kit is one of the most valuable marketing assets to land partnerships and clients. Having a kick ass media kit is a sure way to get noticed and show that you not only have the street cred to deserve the job, but it also shows you are a true professional.
We like to think of media kits as a resume – you wouldn’t apply to a job without having an updated and polished resume right? Then why would pitching to a brand partner or client be any different?
Since here at Sidewalker Daily we work on both sides of the influencer equation, we know the value in creating an amazing influencer or blogger media kit when trying to impress brand partners. We receive tons of media kits when working with our tourism board and hotel clients and you can tell right away which content creators take their job seriously and which don’t.
Since media kits are such a hot topic in this industry, we’re going to shed some light on all the things you need to know to start making partnership magic happen sooner rather than later.
So what is a Media Kit, anyway?
Basically, a media kit is a presentation or set of promotional materials that includes important information about your online brand, blog or business that is used to pitch your services to potential brand partners or clients.
It’s a summary of all the aspects of your content creation or blogging business that a brand would need to know when considering whether to work with you or not. In the blogger and influencer world, it doubles as a visual resume that also represents your brand vibe and aesthetic.
Just FYI – a media kit is sometimes referred to as an influencer or blogger press kit just in case you get asked for that, you’ll know what they mean!
Why a blogger Media Kit is so important for your business.
When pitching to brand partners you have a limited time to really “wow” them and tell them everything they would ever need to know to even consider you for the job or deal. Since there are most likely many other bloggers or influencers in competition for the partnership or collaboration, a professional media kit is a great way to set you apart from the crowd. It allows you to show the decision makers what makes you the perfect fit for the destination or brand.
Also, since a media kit is a summary of what anyone would want to know (ie. stats, engagement, followers) they can quickly look over everything without having to spend time searching for your accounts and trying to figure out that information on their own. Trust us, no one has time for that so the easier you make it on them, the better.
Also, media kits are a great way to let brand partners know you take blogging and being a social influencer seriously! Sending over a media kit is not only professional, but expected (even if they don’t look at it). And don’t just take it from us – full-time travel/lifestyle influencer and content creator, Amy Marietta, shares her personal experience about using her media kit when pitching to brand partners in this article, so keep reading. 🙂
And if you’re just starting out, creating a media kit for new bloggers is a good idea because micro influencers are working more and more and brands expect to see one, no matter what level you’re at.
Let’s Break Down What Goes Inside A Travel Blogger Media Kit.
ABOUT YOU AND YOUR BLOG/BUSINESS
This is your chance to shine and capture the brand, hotel or destination’s attention. Why you over someone else? Tell them about yourself, what kind of content you create and why you’re special…in a cool way of course.
STATS AND DEMOGRAPHICS
This is the part where you can quantify your influence with hard numbers and let them know what kind of people view/interact with your content. Brands are eager to know this information to see if they are the same type of people they are targeting for their destination or business. For example, it doesn’t make sense for a bikini company to do a partnership with a blogger or influencer that has a predominantly male audience, you feel us?
You need to absolutely include stats on your followers, engagement, website and demographics. Print screens work best so the person on the receiving end can verify your numbers are in fact real. If your blog has significant traffic, definitely include that information too.
We recommend NOT just including stats for the sake of including them. For example, if you have 45 followers on Twitter, but 10,000 on Instagram – we would recommend not including the Twitter information.
Don’t have many stats yet? You can highlight the impact of your influence and how you’re able to drive your followers to action or even showcase the amazing growth of your social accounts or readership monthly. For example, “I double the amount of readers on my blog or email list monthly,” or “my Instagram following increases 30% monthly.”
SERVICES
Since travel influencers and bloggers are content creators at the core, they have many creative ways to make money on social media up their sleeve. A media kit is the perfect place to let brand partners what types of services you offer and show them examples of your work!
For example, do you offer social media photoshoots, video production or photo editing? It’s also a great idea to really highlight any special services that set you apart from anyone else as well as showcase your niches (fashion, food, romance, adventure etc.), if any.
EXAMPLES OF YOUR WORK
You’re a content creator right? So it’s time to show off what kind of content you create! Include some of your best work and if possible, cater it towards the type of destination or brand you’re pitching too. For example, if you’re pitching to a hotel, include past examples of work you did with a hotel company or destination.
Media kits are meant to be flexible working documents, so always have a standard media kit you send and then feel free to add or remove pages/slides based on who you are pitching to.
We believe it’s better to help people envision the types of things you can do and create for their company or destination since many people aren’t visionary. It’s good to think of this section almost as a portfolio of your best work. For example, if you were an artist and a gallery in NYC offered you their space for a week, you would only display your best paintings, right? Same goes for your media kit.
PAST WORK/PRESS
It’s normal for people to want to validate their decision to work with you by looking towards your past work, professional relationships and props to give them the confidence to pull the trigger. You need to let brands know what other companies you have worked with and include testimonials if possible. And of course, highlight any press or features your blog or social accounts has received. Include brand logos if possible so they can easily identify the brands you’ve worked with and press you have received.
If you can include a case study for a past partnership even better! Case studies are a great way to prove your influence and give companies the confidence to work with you. And if you want to go the extra mile, rather than just showing off the logos of brands you’ve worked with, how about creating a slide that gives them the exact scope of the project and what you delivered for the client. They will be impressed!
RATES
It’s up to you if you want to include rates for specific services you offer or if you would prefer to quote brands on a case by case basis. Since every brand has different goals and objectives, not every partnership or collaboration is treated equally. It seems earning money from social media is sometimes more of an art than a science. Of course, if a brand requests your rates and you haven’t sent them your media kit yet, definitely include that page/slide when you do.
CONTACT INFO
Yes, you’ve spent pages telling them how amazing you are, but what good is that if they don’t know how to contact you to find out more?! Make sure you include all of your relevant contact information in your media kit. This is especially important if your media kit gets forwarded to the decision maker but your contact details get lost in the shuffle.
LENGTH OF A BLOGGER MEDIA KIT
We get asked a lot about how long a media kit should be and there’s definitely a split in the industry on what people prefer. If you’re email pitching, you can always include the important highlights in the body of the email and then attach your long version just to play it safe.
But when you go to a travel conference or in person event/meeting, it is imperative that you have a one page version of your media kit. It can be double sided, but please make sure to print it on resume style, luxe paper. At in person events, no one wants to receive 12 pages of a media kit to carry around all day. You can always follow up with an email after, including your longer (and prettier) version.
Presentation is EVERYTHING.
Ok so will everyone read what’s inside your media kit, maybe not, but having a good looking media kit shows you take this job seriously and definitely deserve to get paid for your work.
Would you show up to a job interview in your pajamas? We didn’t think so. Then you definitely don’t want to send a poorly put together blogger media kit because you’ll get them thinking…if you can’t even put together a media kit, can you really put together that brand campaign you’re pitching?
Since bloggers and influencers are content creators, every piece of content they create and visual materials need to be spot on and polished. At the end of the day, everything reflects your brand and on your ability to create content or at least, put it all together.
And please, please, please don’t forget to send it as a PDF – sending it as an editable file type like a word document is just a bad look. If you’re sending a link, make sure it’s “view only” and not something the person can edit.
Putting It All Together – How To Make A Media Kit For Bloggers And Influencers.
Everyone has a different opinion of what the best media kit design is and there are tons of different options to create yours. You can hire a graphic designer, use a media kit template or even design one yourself!
If you’re a travel writer and photography isn’t your skill set, then take advantage of all the beautiful free images on stock sites like Unsplash, to help make your presentation more aesthetically pleasing.
And if you’re not the graphic design type, lucky for you one of our favorite websites Canva has some simple premade templates you can use to create great media kits. Other sites like Etsy and Creative Market have good media kits too you can use if you don’t want to invest too much time or money in yours.
You can even design your media kit on Google Slides which is a great option because it allows you to share your kit as a link and you don’t have to worry about the logistics with sending a very image heavy file. If you end up using Canva, make sure you compress the file so that it fits within your email service provider’s guidelines or you can always send it as a link using a file transfer site such as We Transfer.
Here are a couple of examples of media kit templates from Canva that are completely editable and customizable.
The only thing to keep in mind is, if you use a template, chances are other people will be too and there is nothing like showing up to a party in the same dress…LOL.
And don’t forget that one of the main goals of having a media kit is to showcase your professionalism so please have someone proofread your media kit to check for typos or mistakes before sending it out. It would be a bummer to work so hard on your media kit, only to let a couple loose ends throw everything off.
Since your stats and demographics likely change as often as social media algorithms, make sure you keep your media kit updated and always showcasing your best work. This is SUPER important. Any time you gain a new partnership, make sure to update your media kit. We also recommend updating your media kit at least monthly with all your new relevant social media stats and website analytics.
If you’re looking for more blog media kit examples, you can always search the web or Pinterest for some inspo. Remember not to copy anyone’s media kit though so you avoid legal issues…just do a little sleuthing to get inspired. Looking at examples is also a great way to help you understand what you like and more importantly…what you don’t like. 🙂
Drum Roll Please…Here’s An Example Of A Media Kit From Full-Time Influencer and Content Creator, Amy Marietta.
Full-time travel, fashion and lifestyle influencer/content creator, Amy Marietta, has been working in this industry for the past five (5) years and has partnered with major brands such as Starwood Hotels, Adidas, Uber, Harrods, and Jaguar. She has also been featured in publications such as Cosmopolitan, Glamour, GQ, Elle, and Refinery 29.
Sidewalker Daily asked Amy a few questions about how she uses her media kit to get more partnerships.
Sidewalker Daily: How has improving your media kit helped you professionally?
Amy Marietta: “I can’t even begin to explain how much more work I have gotten by just taking the time to improve my media kit. It has 100% increased my ability to secure a partnership. Brands not only look at me with more respect, they are confident that I have the creative vision to enhance their brand.”
Sidewalker Daily: “How has having a media kit helped you with earning income as an influencer?”
Amy Marietta: “You can definitely charge more because it shows you have the ability to put together something that looks cohesive and gets the message across- basically if you can do it for yourself you can replicate it for them. Also, having a put together media kits helps me get more hotel collaborations paid rather than just free stays.”
Sidewalker Daily: “How can a media kit help an influencer stand out?”