As I was reminded earlier this week, today starts my fifth year blogging. That’s a long time! So I thought a little ‘state of the blog’ ramble was in order to mark the occasion.
I’ve been frustrated by a slower pace of posts I’ve been making the last few months. Most of the change of pace I attribute to my deepening involvement in projects and tasks that absorb my attention. I’ve found ‘flow’, which is nice, but it comes with a cost.
Flow was one of the elements I found hardest to achieve as I transitioned away from my sales responsibilities. Time was that multi-tasking was one of my greatest skills, hopping from the phone, to the computer, to harassing engineering. And blogging fit right in. Now I have to work harder at it.
One of my original goals was to discuss the impact of the internet on B2B marketing. This impact has come to maturity in many ways, limiting the number of strategic ‘what ifs’ that need to be discussed. Google rules, Thomas has ditched their green books, etc. But there are a ton of tactical applications that we could still discuss.
I love focusing on tactics, and that’s why I continue to discuss directories, salespeople, websites, and trade shows. We, as marketers, need to keep vigilant with these resources, ensuring they are what we want, and are doing what we expect.
Bloglines puts my subscriber number at 188, which I double in my head to guess at the total number of subscribers. This blog has hit a critical mass, I think, where almost every post garners at least one comment from a reader, something that was much, much rarer even a year ago. Unfortunately, Blogger and RSS don’t work to show comments to those using an RSS reader/service. I encourage you, if you like a post I wrote, to click-thru to read or post comments.
B2Blog is a vital part of my life, even when I’m not posting. While I write ‘for myself’, I’m encouraged and humbled by your readership. I’m thrilled when you email me, or post comments.
Thanks to you, all my readers.
A B2B marketing blog by an honest-to-goodness marketing manager for an industrial manufacturer.