{"id":122287,"date":"2019-04-24T07:30:45","date_gmt":"2019-04-24T06:30:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/?p=122287"},"modified":"2019-04-24T15:06:07","modified_gmt":"2019-04-24T14:06:07","slug":"spotlight-with-the-no-1-running-blog-the-runner-beans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/blog\/spotlight-with-the-no-1-running-blog-the-runner-beans\/","title":{"rendered":"Spotlight with the No. 1 Running blog: The Runner Beans"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/charliedwatson\">Charlie Watson<\/a> writes <a href=\"http:\/\/www.therunnerbeans.com\/\">The Runner Beans<\/a>, which was recently ranked as the number one <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/social-media-index\/uk-top-10-running-blogs\/\">running blog in the UK<\/a>, a title it\u2019s held for years. Charlie has been blogging her passion for running since 2011 and now runs around the world \u2013 this year she\u2019s running three marathons! <\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>We caught up with Charlie to find out how important running gear is, the rise of Instagram and how she works with PRs. <\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">How do you describe what you do to other people?<\/span><br \/>\n<\/strong>It\u2019s a tricky one \u2013 I think it depends who I am talking to (and their age!). I tell a lot of people that I &#8216;have a blog and Instagram&#8217; whereas to the older generation I often say I\u2019m a &#8216;freelance writer&#8217;.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">How does social media feed into your blog \u2013 are any channels more important?<\/span><br \/>\n<\/strong>Yes, my Instagram is so helpful for driving traffic (through the swipe up feature) to my blog. I would say that recently brands are more keen on doing collaborations on Instagram and Instagram stories, with the other social and blog as supplementary channels.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">How important is the right clothing\/gear for running?<\/span><br \/>\n<\/strong>There is NOTHING worse than running 20+ miles in shorts that ride up\/fall down, a sports bra that chafes and shoes that give you blisters. I&#8217;ve tried and tested enough shorts that I\u2019ve found the right pairs for me (I love lululemon Track and Train and Oiselle pocket joggers), and I won&#8217;t wear anything other than Triumph Triaction sports bras.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">What\u2019s your favourite pair of trainers?<\/span><br \/>\n<\/strong>I just bought myself another pair of the Nike Vaporfly 4% for my marathon in November \u2013 there&#8217;s something so light and bouncy about them that make you feel like you&#8217;re flying.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-122290\" src=\"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Runner-beans.jpg\" alt=\"The runner beans\" width=\"760\" height=\"430\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Runner-beans.jpg 760w, https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Runner-beans-300x170.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Runner-beans-705x399.jpg 705w, https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Runner-beans-450x255.jpg 450w, https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Runner-beans-500x283.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 760px) 100vw, 760px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">Where\u2019s the best place to run in the world?<\/span><br \/>\n<\/strong>For me it&#8217;s anywhere near water \u2013 I love the Thames towpath in west London from Putney to Richmond, but equally love running on the coast when abroad, or in Central Park in New York.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">How many races do you compete in a year?<\/span><br \/>\n<\/strong>I&#8217;ve honestly never counted &#8211; but I do know that this year I&#8217;ll run three marathons!<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">What advice would you give PRs?<\/span><br \/>\n<\/strong>Don&#8217;t send blanket emails \u2013 engage with the blogger and target them with the right product for them. Understand how they work and it will create a more symbiotic relationship for everyone.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">Do you accept press releases?<\/span><br \/>\n<\/strong>Yes \u2013 but again, when they have been targeted and personalised.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">What\u2019s the best collaboration you\u2019ve worked on with a brand or PR?<\/span><br \/>\n<\/strong>I&#8217;ve worked on some incredible partnerships over the years, but most recently I am loving the partnerships that involve travel for races \u2013 like a recent partnership with Visit Savannah and the Savannah Women&#8217;s Half Marathon for the weekend, and the LA Marathon back in March.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\">What are your favourite blogs?<\/span><br \/>\n<\/strong>My favourite blogs are honest recaps, sharing fashion, fitness, recipes and real life \u2013 anything with beautiful photography but a sense of realness. I like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.afoodiestaysfit.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">A Foodie Stays Fit<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/catmeffan.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Cat Meffan<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hellofashionblog.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Hello Fashion<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pumpsandiron.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pumps and Iron<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/fitfoodiefinds.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fit Foodie Finds<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.runtothefinish.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Run to the Finish<\/a> and so many others!<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/pr-software\/media-database\/?clid=promo_content_spotlights#get-pricing\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-111841\" src=\"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Reach-the-right-influencers-with-the-Vuelio-media-database.jpg\" alt=\"Reach-the-right-influencers-with-the-Vuelio-media-database\" width=\"900\" height=\"427\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Reach-the-right-influencers-with-the-Vuelio-media-database.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Reach-the-right-influencers-with-the-Vuelio-media-database-300x142.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Reach-the-right-influencers-with-the-Vuelio-media-database-768x364.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Reach-the-right-influencers-with-the-Vuelio-media-database-705x334.jpg 705w, https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Reach-the-right-influencers-with-the-Vuelio-media-database-450x214.jpg 450w, https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Reach-the-right-influencers-with-the-Vuelio-media-database-500x237.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Charlie Watson writes The Runner Beans, we caught up with Charlie to find out how important running gear is, the rise of Instagram and how she works with PRs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":323,"featured_media":122289,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7365,1109,4038,6980],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122287"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/323"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=122287"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122287\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":122342,"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122287\/revisions\/122342"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/122289"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=122287"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=122287"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=122287"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}