One of the indications of the growing power and influence of blogs is that the US government is looking at legislation and rules around requiring bloggers to be more transparent when it comes to declaring if and how much they have been paid or received to write about or recommend services and products.
As an active blogger (http://www.tipsfortravellers.com; http://allaboutcunard.blogspot.com and http://www.garybembridge.com), I have become increasingly aware of the level and amount of contacts I am getting either to link to sites (with or without commissions) and more and more receiving press releases and invitations to attend events and functions related to my blogging.
This also shows that marketing companies are increasingly realising the power of bloggers and their influence, as the internet gives access to broader and more peer based advice and recommendations.
Here are some examples:
Virgin Atlantic Airlines
They invited me to go on a 2 night trip to New York, flying there in premium economy and back in upper class, staying at a trendy hotel with events arranged.
They are inviting travel bloggers to experience their product and write about it.
This is a very powerful initiative, as I know from my web statistics and also most clicked through articles in my email feeds, that the most visited pages on my blog are those that describe and show inside the plane with photos and videos. On airline websites the photos and descriptions are always glowing - and we all know how cramped space can be.
Hotel reviews
There are at least 2 hotels where the management have read my blog about them. One is very critical and has led to me getting better rooms and even notes and small gifts (like chocolates) when checking in.
I also know that some beauty brands are increasingly inviting or even having dedicated blogger launch and PR events to get coverage and recommendations.
Over time the key is to find blogs that have a lot of quality traffic and unbiased and honest comment and recommendations, and to work with those.
Ones that clearly take incentives and money to recommend and write will lose influence.
Do you have any examples to share?
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Some further reading on the topic: books about this topic
Blog Schmog: The Truth About What Blogs Can (and Can't) Do for Your Business
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