Posted on August 14, 2008
Filed Under BS-Free Advice |

Mashable contributor Aaron Uhrmacher that corporate bloggers are not immune from writer’s block:

There will be times that you have to contribute a post for your company’s blog and you just don’t have one idea that inspires you to start a conversation.

In true Mashable fashion, there was a solution in list format: “40+ Topics for Corporate Bloggers.”

Normally, a “10 _____” or “50 _____” list wouldn’t be worthy of discussion but I found this topic interesting. My interest was further piqued upon reading that Uhrmacher is a “social media consultant.”

I’ve been told that I “just don’t get” social media more than a few times apparently because I won’t change my definition of “return on investment” but I think I have a pretty good idea about the tenets of social media, which include:

1. Everything is a conversation.
2. Conservations should be authentic.

So I found it curious that Uhrmacher would provide a canned list of topics for corporate bloggers. After all, if a corporate blogger lacks inspiration, how is it possible to write a post that is authentic and sparks conversation?



What good can come of a post that is “forced”? What value will realistically be provided? Isn’t it better to post something only when you really have something to write?

Out of all the people I’ve met in my life, the most intelligent, insightful and successful people are typically the ones who keep their mouths shut until they actually have something important to say. I respect them and listen to them with great interest for one simple fact: I know that when they say something, there’s likely something worth listening to.

Thus, Uhrmacher’s suggestion that corporate bloggers essentially “fake it” when they don’t have “it” struck me as not only going against the tenets of social media but against common sense.

Unfortunately, the tenets of social media appear to be little more than bullshit and in my opinion, most social media initiatives - even the ones implemented by “professional consultants” - are as artificial as aspartame.

Give that, it’s no surprise to me that most of the companies that follow the “processes” of social media consultants start the type of “conversations” (or build the type of communities) that they were told by social media consultants they’d be able to start (and build).

This, of course, shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who actually still enjoys social interactions in real life and has a decent .

After all, the most enjoyable conversations are those that aren’t forced and aren’t scripted. They don’t occur for the sole reason that one party feels the need to start a conversation - they occur because both parties actually believe they have something to discuss.

So here’s my 1 tip for corporate bloggers (and individuals in general):

When you have nothing important to say, keep your mouth shut. You’ll thank yourself for it someday.

And as a free added bonus, here’s my 1 tip for social media consultants who enjoy tweeting to talking:

If you don’t understand how conversations work in the real world, you have no business giving suggestions as to how they should be started in the online world.



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Comments

2 Responses to “1 Tip for Corporate Bloggers”

  1. on August 18th, 2008 11:27 pm

    […] Drama 2.0 blog took issue with my list, saying that a canned list of topics lacks authenticity and that “forcing” a blogger to write […]

  2. Aaron Uhrmacher on August 18th, 2008 11:37 pm

    I appreciate you taking the time to post this reply. While you might not agree with the premise - that sometimes people need help coming up with topics to write about - I think the rest of your analysis is right on.

    As I said at the conclusion of my post, “what makes a good corporate blog post is the passion of the writer. Find the topics that you are most interested in and help your readers to feel that same type of excitement.”

    Again, thanks for your comments.

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Drama 2.0 spikes the Web 2.0 kool aid by providing critical analyses of Web 2.0, its people, its startups and its impact on the world of media. Other topics are explored when Drama 2.0 has been drinking too much 1975 Dom Perignon. Read more about the Internet's version of Keyser Söze here.

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