Michael Arrington, editor of influential technology blog TechCrunch, vowed today that he would break embargoes on almost any press release sent to him. This is part of a much larger trend across the blogosphere and underscores some of the growing pains that the PR industry is facing as people increasingly look to new media for news and information.

Arrington is not the first to take action against overzealous or lazy PR practitioners. Earlier in the year Chris Anderson of Wired magazine and Gina Trapani of Lifehacker put together blacklists of people who sent them unsolicited press releases. But Arrington is the first to take such a broad step. Why did he do it?

Gone are the days of polite pitches and actual relationship building. Today, PR firms email a story to us as many as 20 times, and call every TechCrunch writer on their cell phones repeatedly. If we say we won’t write a story (which is most of the time), things often turn nasty. (link)

Arrington goes on to say that he believes most people in the PR industry will not be very happy about his new policy. I agree; most PR people will not be happy.

But this does present opportunities… at least for some people in the PR industry. You see, the smart people in the PR industry are not the ones spamming TechCrunch writers. The smart people in the PR industry already know how to properly reach out to bloggers.

The death of the embargo will help cut through the clutter and ultimately benefit companies that take time to build relationships with bloggers. Burson-Marsteller has been telling our clients for several years that they have to reach out to bloggers differently than they would to journalists. With bloggers it’s all about one-on-one interaction and long-term relationships.

So, how can you be a smart PR person and reach out to blogs effectively?

1. Read the blog and make sure what you have is relevant to the bloggers interest. In other words, don’t waste the blogger’s time.
2. Then, get involved in the blog. Start commenting on relevant topics.
3. But, when you comment, be transparent. If you’re working for a tech company and commenting about your company’s product on Engadget, make sure to mention that you work for the company.
4. Never spam or demand coverage. You’ll just make the bloggers angry and they are more likely than journalists to strike back.
5. Personalize your pitches, but be straightforward. Bloggers are very savvy, so don’t try to trick them or "PR" them.
6. Give bloggers something they want. (Access to products or executives, free trials, etc.)
7. Thank bloggers when they help you.