The power of contacts: how an established base of media and bloggers accelerates promotion

For those who want to understand when, why, and to whom it is worthwhile to outsource PR and influencer marketing tasks.

The illustration was created with the help of GPT Images

«It’s clear — everyone has connections with the media,» many people think. Advanced colleagues in the market understand that everything is not so simple, and this article is not for them. But on the part of the customer, who does at least some of the PR work himself, the phrase «own database» often hides ordinary Excel with emails collected from open sources. The reality is more complicated. Let’s figure it out without illusions.

What does a valuable media base actually consist of?

The usual list of addresses is the raw material. A real living asset begins where a relationship story is filed under each line. A high-quality network of contacts includes:

• The context. We know that one editor prefers short messages in Telegram, while the other does not open messengers on principle and waits for an email.
• Notes about joint projects. What happened two years ago. Where there was a negative experience. Who is friends with whom from related media / bloggers.
• Calendar nuances. On Wednesday, the editor-in-chief doesn’t answer the phone, but on Thursday, at nine a.m. sharp, he’s ready to discuss new topics.
• Classification by reliability. At our 2L agency, where we have accumulated maximum experience in IT, lifestyle and gaming topics, the blogger base is divided into three categories: reliable, medium reliable and those who tend to break deadlines. We know exactly who we can work with directly and who we can only work with through an agent, and why it’s more effective this way.

Such a dossier turns a cold dispatch into a targeted hit. That is why publishing articles in the media and working with opinion leaders is no longer risky fishing and is becoming a predictable process.

Why does a low price end up being more painful?

If we talk about choosing a contractor for media publications or bloggers, then a high—quality contact base is a privilege and a sign of a more experienced and, consequently, more expensive team. But where will the benefits and savings be in the end?

The well-known formula is: the final cost = the special’s rate × the hours spent. The catch is in the number of hours. Let’s say you urgently need to put an expert comment in the relevant media. A person without established connections follows a standard circle: searching for shared mail, writing, answering machines, dialing the reception, waiting days, etc., etc. An experienced PR person has the personal number of the issuing editor, and most importantly, the projects implemented and personal authority behind his back. No need to spend half a page on the presentation. The dialogue looks something like this: «Hello! Based on our previous topic: there is a column under your IT heading.» Everything. This is not magic, it is reputational capital that gives access to the most scarce resource — the attention of the right people. As a result, an hour of such a specialist is more expensive, but the total bill in money is often less, because the task is solved faster.

Why a good site does not guarantee effective publication

Metrics like reach and age of subscribers are a necessary basis for forecasting. But there is also a second layer, invisible to the customer.

There is a common saying among motorists about «the gasket between the steering wheel and the seat.» The point is that regardless of the characteristics of the car, the skills of the driver are crucial. The same goes for promotion through bloggers. A channel with a million subscribers may not have an effect if the author does a mediocre integration. At 2L, we have a clear understanding of who among the influencers knows how to be creative and adheres to agreements, and who is arrogant and can cheat. This knowledge makes it possible to act predictably, even when deadlines are tight.

It’s a similar story with journalists. In some media, the editor will strangle even an interesting story. And in another case, even if they refuse, they will explain the reason and offer to repackage the material. With the latter, the most readable and resonant texts are obtained. Knowing such nuances about a wide range of media is the expertise that comes only with practice.

How warm contacts determine the response and result

Now both bloggers and journalists are drowning in a flood of offers. When a message arrives from an unknown account, its fate is predictable: swipe into the trash. It’s not because the topic is stupid — there’s just no physical resource to figure out who you are and whether you should answer. A completely different mechanic turns on when there is a story. The conversation does not start from the point of «prove that you are not a spammer», but from a point of trust.

Irina Burenina, Lead Project Manager at 2L:

«An example. The software company wanted to get into industry publications. Their own cold mailing list did nothing. We used our connections and got a dozen publications in two days. The situation is similar with bloggers: on a burning project, they made a dozen exits in three days, cutting in without a queue. This is a warm contact.»

Why PR people won’t be replaced by AI

Sometimes it seems: now we’ll catch up with the robots, assemble the base, and that’s it. Technically, yes, the software can select channels on the topic and even collect editorial emails. But what’s next? Cold mailing? No program can tell you that the editor’s staff has changed and the temporary employee can’t stand external speakers. Such nuances live only in the minds of people who have been interacting with the sites for years. A live database is not a file, but a reputation and the right to dialogue.

What to look for when choosing a PR partner

If you are communicating with a potential contractor, I advise you to rely on three specific things:

1. Willingness to be responsible for deadlines. Ask not «can you accommodate?» but «when will I see the first exits?».
2. Reputation in narrow niches. Ask them to show cases where complex/urgent projects were implemented precisely because of the PR specialist’s connections with the sites.
3. The ability to say «no» to an irrelevant option. An experienced specialist will explain in a reasoned manner why a particular blogger with a million subscribers is not suitable for your brand.

Experience in our work is the only insurance against missed deadlines, wasted budgets, and ruined publicity. It is not developed quickly, but through dozens and hundreds of implemented projects. At the 2L agency, we call this reputational capital. It allows us to solve the most pressing tasks and not let our customers down.