Blogging is crap - right?
Another piece in the UK press re-assessing blogging - this time the Guardian, which is usually so supportive of social media. The piece has been prompted by Technorati's recent State of Blogosphere report.
The report shows that blogging is still growing but is morphing into something a bit more one-sided than we all thought it would be.
I think there is a lot of truth in the arguments against blogging - ie a lot of it is solipistic, badly-written, ego-driven drivel (or is that just me?) - and the Guardian's Vic Keegan does make some good points because the average Joe in the Street just dosen't give a shit about blogs. And fair play to them. Who can blame them?
Most of my non-blogging friends just don't get it and consider me as something of a weirdo for blogging - although they all read the damn thing! You know who you are!
So what has blogging done for me?
- It's helped me win new business for GREEN Communications.
- It's introduced to people across the globe.
- It brought me together with Kevin Dixie - and together with Marcus Dyson (scarey picture) we have been able to grow Fuelmyblog.
- With The Wensleydale Creamery we have built a powerful business blog, allowing them to communicate directly with their customers.
- It's got me a few speaking gigs on Web2.0
- I've been able to host two workshops helping companies set up their own blogs.
- It has introduced me to people like Simon Collister who GREEN now employs.
- It's encouraged me to write more - as a former journalist I enjoy this.
- It's opened up new areas for my clients.
- And I've learned a lot from people a lot smarter than me.
Blogging isn't over - it's just evolving and I find that very exciting.
7 comments:
I agree Ian - just as you cannot un-invent paper, you can't change the fact that ordinary people can publish their own stuff no matter what the quality. Possibly a critical number will be reached and the numbers starting and stopping will become the same but methinks that's a while yet.
Spot on Lisa - I think blogs will evolve into mainstream website eventually anyway.
Lisa - I didn't realise you were a Yorkshire blogger. Did you know that Yorkshire has the biggest percentage of bloggers in the UK?
Well we have a lot to say us folks in Yorkshire.
Followed by Wiltshire or some other statistic. The reason for the comment is that all social media (not to mention the web in general) looks like drivell at first glance. It is only when you jump in and become part of the community that it makes sense - if that is your bag. Some will always seem strange. Its like pubs. They seem smelly and full of loud people who ignore strangers. Except mine, of course.
Not heard that factoid before. Whatever happened to 'If tha know nowt, say nowt'?
I've won some commissions and made contact with some interesting folk through my blog, but I still reckon it's just an extension of my (very old-school) website rather than anything radically new. It's a tool, that's all.
I agree with all the points you make, so much so that I am doing my dissertation on factors which make Corporate blogging a success.
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