In a post announcing their new corporate blog, Andreas Freund, Orga Systems’ VP Marketing, asks why have a blog at all? As an industry blogger myself, of course I have an opinion…
Andreas writes:
There are many reasons to launch a blog: because it’s en vogue, because the board wants it, because a competitor has done it before or because a staff member in corporate communication thinks it’s cool, or, or, or.
It’s true. Blogging is en vogue, it is cool. And so are bloggers (right??).
That’s not usually a good enough reason for most OSS/BSS companies. So I love that Andreas has clearly been in marketing long enough to recognize that a lot of initiatives like this might be driven because ‘the board wants it’. Heck, I created a whole online forum and community for a company because the board thought it was a good idea. Unfortunately the board’s enthusiasm rarely extends to engaging with the community and delivering the content to keep such initiatives alive.
The right reason to build a blog is because you want to engage with your peers and your customers. The need comes first, not the platform. Which Andreas acknowledges:
Because we want to initiate a dialogue with interested people who are all driven by one thing: an unreserved dialogue about the digital world.
That’s not the same reason I started OSS Line, but I was driven by a professional need rather than jumping on the latest trend.
OSS Line was originally a way for me to stay connected with the industry while I was between ‘proper’ jobs. I had committed nearly ten years to OSS, I had a lot of ideas and opinions, and I fully expected to stay in OSS either as a solo expert or by joining my next start-up.
OSS Line turned in to a great way to keep in touch, meet new peers, and demonstrate my enthusiasm for OSS.
And that’s as good a reason as any for an individual or business to get involved in blogging. Orga Systems’ blog will be added to my reading list, so that’s one more peer they can start a dialogue with.