Ask HN: What's the best way to approach blogs to write about your startup?
As a developer, "selling" people on my projects is something I often struggle with.
I'm sure a lot of others on here would also find advice on this topic to be helpful.
I'm sure a lot of others on here would also find advice on this topic to be helpful.
Think about what YOU would want to read in a blog. Blatant, shameless product pitches rarely have much value. Talking about how or why you added a particular feature is usually more interesting. Realistic use-case examples, either from your own dog-food eating (I hate that term), or even better from real customers gives people something they can relate to.
Basically, talk about anything but "selling", instead aim for something a little more conversational and along the lines of cool story you might tell a friend or colleague.
I'd contact blog owners during dev, tell them, "hey i've found this pain, and I'm building MyProduct to solve X, Y, Z. Do you think these are the biggest problems, as you see it?"
This way you can get press, you can network, you can get good feedback from potential customers... And the blog owner gets to feel special, and look special, to their readers. Win win.