To say I\u2019m interested in marketing blogs would be an understatement.\u00a0 I\u2019m\u00a0irrationally commited\u00a0to the niche as both a reader to several hundred blogs and contributor to a handful.<\/p>\n
So what\u2019s the largest\u00a0subjective\u00a0observation that comes to my mind about the marketing niche?\u00a0 That it feels like one of the most saturated on the web from an industry perspective \u2013 perhaps only taking a backseat to the technology industry.\u00a0 This is due to the fact that as marketers, we\u2019re especially conscious of the\u00a0reasons why organizations (and individuals) with audiences win.<\/p>\n
With that said, I\u2019m not one of the people who comes across new marketing blogs and thinks to myself \u201cyet\u00a0another<\/em>\u00a0marketing blog!?\u201d\u00a0 I know some people do have that mindset, however it\u2019s sort of silly because\u00a0the benefits\u00a0of having a successful blog are so great why would everyone not at least\u00a0try<\/em>?<\/p>\n I\u2019m all for more blogs, as in any other network,\u00a0Metcalfe\u2019s law\u00a0holds true in the blogosphere \u2013 more blogs equals a more valuable network for everyone.<\/p>\n Every professional\u00a0passionate\u00a0about their industry\u00a0should<\/em>\u00a0have a blog, especially those in media, marketing or PR.\u00a0 Even if you can only contribute sparingly, exercising the\u00a0metacognition\u00a0required to write about your own industry is going to help you see things more clearly and rationally.\u00a0 Plus it can only help you or your company\u2019s image in the world \u2013 it just shows you\u2019re interested in what you\u2019re doing.\u00a0 The only way it can hurt you is if the content sucks, and if you\u2019re in the communications industry and you can\u2019t write proper web content you have larger problems to worry about.<\/p>\n So bearing you can write sharp content, what is the hurtle stopping your personal or company blog from being an experiment read by just your friends\/co-workers\/clients and actually delivering results?<\/p>\n It\u2019s not that your efforts aren\u2019t working to connect with others, the problem I see most frequently is one of two items.\u00a0 The first of which is consistently.\u00a0 At least at the start, consistency is a good thing \u2013 as time goes on, it becomes less important and in fact a strategy you can use later is to focus on\u00a0quality over consistency.\u00a0 In the beginning though it helps quite a bit.<\/p>\n Got consistency down?\u00a0 Great.\u00a0 The other item \u2013 most likely \u2013\u00a0 is you\u2019re not accentuating your differentiation point.\u00a0 We really don\u2019t need another Chris Brogan or Darren Rowse.\u00a0 Don\u2019t try to be them.\u00a0 Honestly it\u2019s boring, I will read\u00a0Chris Brogan\u2019s blog\u00a0to get Chris, or\u00a0ProBlogger\u00a0to get Darren.\u00a0 We need you \u2013 your own point or perspective is all I care about.<\/p>\n So if you want to be different in the marketing niche, what should you do?<\/p>\n What follows is not meant to be taken personally by anyone, and none of the following items are necessarily wrong.\u00a0 There aren\u2019t really right or wrong answers anyway \u2013 I\u2019m just sharing how to differentiate yourself in the marketing niche based on what I observe to be common.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t write about Twitter<\/strong><\/p>\n I don\u2019t actually think there\u2019s anything wrong with writing about Twitter, but realize by doing so you sound just like most other marketing bloggers.\u00a0 Don\u2019t believe me?\u00a0 Head over to the\u00a0marketing section of AllTop, hit \u201ccontrol f\u201d and type Twitter.\u00a0 Keep clicking find next and see how long it takes you to get down the page.\u00a0 It\u2019s overkill, you\u2019d think by now everyone would be talking about something else.<\/p>\n If you must write about any popular tool, (or even topic) say something different.\u00a0 For example, I don\u2019t need to see more posts on \u201c5 Twitter Tools You Don\u2019t Know About\u201d \u2013 if they were that good I probably would have known about them.\u00a0 Besides, technology bloggers do a great job of sharing tools already, if you\u2019re just sharing tools, you\u2019re not actually a marketing blogger.<\/p>\n Better yet, stay away from any tools and write on strategy \u2013 that\u2019s what is sorely lacking from most marketing industry blogs.\u00a0 The tools are democratized and to be perfectly honest not difficult to use.\u00a0 I feel like people who consider any web tools difficult to use haven\u2019t even tried.\u00a0 If you\u00a0experiment\u00a0you can almost always figure things out on your own.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t sound like a white paper<\/strong>.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t read blogs to read white papers, I will read white papers if I want to read white papers.\u00a0 Sound like a human.\u00a0 So many marketing industry blogs sound like this, it\u2019s no wonder they don\u2019t have subscribers.\u00a0 Style and substance are both necessary:\u00a0 it isn\u2019t either-or, there\u2019s too much competition not to have both.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t be afraid to\u00a0have opinions or take sides.<\/strong><\/p>\n I\u2019ll never understand what so many in the marketing industry are afraid of that they refuse to take a stance on things.\u00a0 Take sides on an issue and even throw some opinion behind it.\u00a0 A good marketer should be able to make a readable, interesting argument anyway.\u00a0 It\u2019s something you should enjoy and not fear.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t join the echo chamber<\/strong><\/p>\n The echo chambers in the marketing or technology industries in-particular aren\u2019t all that interesting.\u00a0 I know many reading this are involved in it, but for the most part I tired of it a few years ago as a reader and only jump in sparingly as a blogger.\u00a0 As a marketer, I\u2019ve used the echo chamber to help spread ideas, but as an industry blogger I try to stay away.\u00a0 It sounds a bit counter intuitive, in that jumping in the echo chamber\u00a0seems<\/em>\u00a0like a way to\u00a0create buzz\u00a0as a content creator, but in reality only those at the top win.\u00a0 Instead\u00a0start interesting conversations\u00a0of your own.<\/p>\n So how do you\u00a0stand out? Go out and do your own thing, use your marketing prowess and create something that spreads.\u00a0 Take pride in it and give it a proper effort.\u00a0 You\u2019re the marketer, and to not\u00a0market yourself\u00a0and do so in a unique and compelling way speaks volumes.<\/p>\n What might work?\u00a0<\/strong>Find your differentiation point, and accentuate it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" To say I\u2019m interested in marketing blogs would be an understatement.\u00a0 I\u2019m\u00a0irrationally commited\u00a0to the niche as both a reader to … <\/p>\n
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