May 26, 2006
What's your deal? Are you trying to close a deal?
This morning, I spent some time tooling (yes, I said "tooling") through my feed reader, catching up on some old posts that a had been neglecting. Call it Spring cleaning. Call it searching for motivation. Call it get-to-the-point- because-I'm-running-out-of-room-in-the-RSS-summary-and-I-still-don't- know-what-your-post-is-about-jerky, if you like.This time I was focusing on the "business blogging" section. Which, I guess, is the equivalent of picking up the newspaper and only reading the business section. You get a very focused view of the world, but not much context for anything else. Ah, focus. How long your weary ears have waited for me to whisper that magical word. Focus.
Yeah, well forget it. Back to the matter at hand.
So, I came upon an interesting piece that got me to thinking. It got me thinking about how corporate blogging has so attempted to divorce itself from typical marketing communications fluff that it may have lost some of the impact it needs. It may have lost some of the connective tissue. It may, for all intensive intents and purposes (Thanks for the correction, Deannie.), be sprained and in need of an air cast.
And what sagacious post has me pondering such thoughts before completing my first pot of coffee on a Friday morning? Converting Traffic Into Business from Corporate Blogging 101.
And why did it hit me? Well, it hit me because, for all intensive purposes, hypocritical has now become a corporate blog. (This is why I've been thinking about the symbiotic brand thing, as well.) I mean, it used to be a personal blog. But now that I'm out on my own, it's really my business blog, as well.
But, see, here's the thing. I don't really want hypocritical to be a business blog. I mean, in a way, I do. I think hypocritical is a very solid portfolio piece for me. Both in terms of my writing style and using blogs. But, I don't think I want to transition it into the world of "lead generation."
And, more importantly, I don't think you, gentle reader, want it to become a business blog, either. I mean, there are plenty (a veritable plethora) of business blogs out there. And a bunch of them are very good. I'm not sure that hypocritical wants to take that kind of heat. No, I think hypocritical belongs right where it is, and if some business results from that, so be it.
So, I'm not trying to close the deal. I'm not asking you for the sale. All I'm asking is for you to comment, critique, and return. Tossing a few compliments my way, every once in a while would be welcome, as well. Although I never tire of patting myself on the back.
Because, and this is the good part, so get ready. I'll put it in bold, just to give it the emphasis I think it needs. Ready? Okay. Ready? Because... if I'm doing good work, communicating, making connections, and helping people, then lead generation should occur as a by-product of that activity. And any marketing communications activities--blogs included--whose end purpose is lead generation are aiming at the wrong target.
Now, taking a moment to step back, I'm not implying that this is what the good folks at Corporate Blogging 101 are advocating. They just made a really intriguing point about having a "call to action." That's their contribution here. And I thank them for it.
The rant which spun out of it? Put that blame on me.
What's your deal? Are you trying to close a deal?
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