Image by meaganmakes via Flickr
Today is my 500th blog, give or take a few. While I wait for the applause to die down, I realize I have already broken one of my rules of marketing; so far this is all about me, with no hint of why you should care.
But let me continue about me, though by using a Question and Answer format so it seems more third person and objective.
Q. Why did you start a blog?
A. John Wiley, my book publisher, suggested it, as one way to publicize my book. In fact they said the blog had to be live before they would let me put the address in the book. Which forced me to jump into the deep end of the pool rather more quickly than I wanted.
Q. And why do you still blog?
A. Partially habit. Partially because I think I have something useful to say about creativity and ideas that could actually be helpful to marketers. (As in my book, I don’t just make a comment or do a critique without usually trying to tie it in to how the reader might adapt the thought to something they might be working on.) Partially ego; I indeed think I have something valuable to say. Finally, I said I would do a blog twice a week, and by golly, I will do a blog twice a week!
Q. Why Typepad?
A. Because that was what Seth Godin used.
Q. How do you decide on your topics?
A. I read everything and anything, from other blogs, marketing and not, to physical newspapers and magazines. Always have. But by force of habit now, I particularly pay attention to print ads, posters, kiosks, emails, commercials, etc., and somehow know if it might make a possible post. Usually I avoid discussing big budget TV campaigns, which are covered nicely by other sources.
Q. Any thoughts on some of the good things that have happened because of your blog?
A. I have “met” some really interesting fellow bloggers, which makes me regret, once again, never having created a blog roll so that my readers can see how truly insightful people do it. I have been amazed at the worldwide audience I reach. Not only cities I can neither pronounce nor spell, but places I couldn’t previously have found on a map even given the longitude and latitude and a magnifying glass. And I have gained more from writing the blog than I have given. Which is often how it works.
Q. And the down side?
A. Well, one compulsive, competitive thing I do is checking the number of readers of each post as if it were a popularity contest. It’s like checking the sales of my book on Amazon; you are not certain how it actually pertains to anything, but you have to have your daily fix.
Q. Who do you think reads your blog?
A. Not really sure, but I do know who it is written for. It is meant for the small business owner—the lieutenants of industry, rather than the captains—who are probably more concerned with a small space ad or local promotion than a $300,000 TV buy. And if an idea interests me, sometimes I go way off topic thinking it might be of interest my readers, even if it is not strictly speaking a marketing idea. It is good to be king.
Q. Anything else to add?
A. Yes. The usual thanks to my many—a relative term—readers, for commenting, enjoying and perhaps even occasionally finding some useful marketing ideas.
Q. Finally...?
A. See you at 1,000.
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