PepsiCo Hires Bloggers as "Digital Correspondents"

In a first for the company, PepsiCo's Women’s Inspiration Network (WIN) has selected three web savvy women to serve as digital correspondents at major PepsiCo-sponsored events including South by Southwest Interactive (SXSW) Festival, Aspen Ideas Festival, and BlogHer this year. Just don't call them mommy-bloggers.

“This is a first for PepsiCo and expands on our efforts to support female digital entrepreneurs by giving them insider access. We look forward to reading and watching their coverage,” said Jamie Stein, Director of Digital Platforms at PepsiCo.

The search began in August at the BlogHer 2011 conference with a nationwide call for women to share stories of inspiration on PepsiCoWIN.com. The trio of women hired will all receive a major boost in traffic to their respective blogs and businesses, as well as their personal brands. 

Angela Chee, Founder and Editor of TheZenMom.com, is a first-generation Chinese American fluent in Mandarin Chinese, a contributor to Lifetime Moms, Momversation, MomLogic.com and worked previously as a Host, Anchor and Reporter for HGTV, E! News.

Asked about FTC disclosure on PepsiCo-sponsored tweets and posts, Chee told brandchannel, “My tweets are not sponsored.” As for why she accepted the gig, “The Zen Mom is about Wisdom, Inspiration, and Laughter and I believe through sharing stories we can inspire and empower each other.”

Nicole Feliciano, Founder and Editor of Momtrends.com, began her career in advertising and moved into fashion at Ralph Lauren, but traded it all in to become a freelance writer and spend more time with her husband and young family. Targeting mom-fashionistas, she launched Momtrends in 2007.

Asked if the PepsiCo relationship compromises her editorial integrity, Feliciano replied, “Not in the least. I've never purported to be a hard-hitting journalist. I'm an editor who shares her views and opinions on style. I'm pretty sure I won't be reporting on the election while on assignment with Pepsi WIN — but I promise to report my findings from the conference with my usual candor and style.” 

As for FTC disclosure, “When I post something on the site that is sponsored, we clearly indicate our relationship with the brand. You can check my record on disclosure — it's pretty impeccable. I look at this as an opportunity to expand the reach of my brand and to attend a conference I might not otherwise have visited. My job is to scope out trends and share them with inquisitive moms.” 

Tammy Tibbetts is Founder and President of She’s the First, a not-for-profit that sponsors girls’ education in the developing world, helping them become the first in their families to graduate. Her company also nurtures young women in the United States. Tibbetts co-founded Girls Who Rock, a benefit concert for She’s the First during Internet Week New York, which raised more than $23,000 in two years for girls’ sponsorships in Tanzania and Uganda.  She's also the first in her immediate family to earn a bachelor's degree.

We didn’t hear back from Tibbetts directly, but she did comment in a statement via PepsiCo PR: “I'm so grateful for this opportunity to be a PepsiCo digital correspondent and thrilled to represent the non-profit community and millennial women! I truly believe with online and social media we can make a huge impact on the world, and I'm looking forward to seeing what we can all achieve together with PepsiCo.”