On corporate vs personal blogs
November 06, 2009 | 12:23 am
I've been doing a great deal of thinking about this and I'm wondering what everyone thinks about this. Although this blog is primarily my opinions and understanding of subjects related to design, social media, marketing, branding, technology and the web, I think the posts that are the most successful are the ones that show a little bit of me. Like when I blogged about our five year anniversary or things we could do better.
The thing is, although design and social media marketing are the focus of my business and one of the things I'm totally passionate about it, it's not all I'm interested in. I also love talking about:
- my kids and family
- cycling
- cars or as I call mine "transpotainment"
- the business of running a small company
- design education
- tech, gadgets, great experiences
I realize that most people come here because I'm a designer and have become a reasonably proficient blogger, but I think I can offer even more that maybe doesn't fit the model of a boutique web design shoppe. In the next little while, I'll begin to spin off the blog so that it has more personality. I don't want to maintain multiple online presences.
Don't worry, the focus will still be on the things that matter to my business clients and partners, and I will still try to weave stories that make sense into these posts. But, for many reasons, I think it's time to use my blog to show more of me.
Does this seem like a good idea, or am I nuts?
one thing to add
I think it's a terrific idea Jeff. I like how you blog about design. I also think it's great how you add this personal touch and talk a little bit more about your day to day life.
However, I'm not sure if this is the place where you should do that. At least if it's only about you ;)
Let me explain why....
When I think of brightwhite I first think of Jeff White. But it's not just Jeff White..it's the BrightWhite Group. Your company is made up of 3 interesting people now. That's awesome! I've met Matt at the last tweet up. Great guy! Never met the other fellow yet. Paul right? What I am saying is this. I think it would be great if this blog was opened up to all 3 of you guys. It would be the Brightwhite group blog where you can each write about design, projects or your personal lives.
Do you know what I mean? It's just a thought... :)
i know, and it's an awesome idea...
...and I've offered to the guys to let them blog on the site as well (since the beginning, in fact). Matt does have his own blog at http://matthewmorgan.tumblr.com/, Paul doesn't blog yet. They haven't taken me up on it just yet, but I definitely want to see their perspective on the site too.
There's a few other reasons that I'm considering this change. Things I can't quite talk about yet, but I see this as sort of a transition to what's coming next.
YES!!!
I have no internal monologue and that carries over to my blog. I will talk/blog about anything, including the most TMI things...it's all good. You can totally strike a balance between having a blog that's useful and informative from a business perspective but at the same time showcases lots about YOU, including non-work-related things. People definitely seem to connect when you're willing to share personal tidbits. Like Joel said, context is key :)
Rainy Saturday is actually one on my favourite blogs
I think you strike a really interesting balance with your blog, Amy.
The thing I love about it most is that it *always* gives me something to discuss with you when I see you in person. And to me, that's one of the best things about a blog. It's stalkeriffic.
Yes!
I think you're right on the money here. Blogs are boring when they're only about one thing, and when they don't have enough personality. I haven't been reading your blog until now, so I don't know if yours has personality or doesn't, although judging from seeing you speak at a seminar, I'm guessing it DOES.
Anyway.
I look forward to checking in, and seeing where you go with this.
Thanks Leah!
I'm glad you found me and hope I'll be interesting enough going forward to keep you around.
Go for it. You can't do this
Go for it. You can't do this wrong,
PS: had to come back up and ask wtf is that skill-testing question down there? I get it, just never saw one before.
thanks!
Oh, and the damn math captcha is there to keep the spam bots out. drupal's spam fighting skills leave a bit to be desired, so it's necessary.
Agreed
i wholly endorse adding a little context. It's about adding the story (context) to your blog, not just focusing on the content.
But I'm sure you already know I'm all about this sort of thing ;)
http://ingenioustries.com/blog/2009/07/the-keys-to-a-storytelling-blog/
absolutely...
...but I think the big issue with this and the challenge for me is this part from your post, Joel:
This is the Why Should Anyone Give a Shit? part. When someone reads your blog, what do they get out of it? What can they get out of it? Are you literally selling something they might want to purchase? Or are you teaching them something valuable?
I need to make sure I still make my blog genuinely useful, even if it's more personal.
Gotcha
Definitely hear ya there. Still struggling to make sure I'm hitting that point myself :)
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