What took them sooo long?
No matter what magazine you pick up these days, no matter what information based web site you go to, the buzz for the past while has been that of the 'new community' tools like Blogs and Casting (Pod etc.). The excitement over all this, I must admit, raised my eyebrows, but that lasted only a few seconds ending with an "ahhhhh".
In 1997 I launched an on-line journal for adventure sporting athletes. A tool that allowed them to post articles with photo and videos via simple web interfaces from anywhere with web access. In turn, viewers were able to cross post comments and questions to the posters. We subsequently used this tool for many web clients: Domtar for its Creativetoolbox.com where artists shared electronic productivity ideas, BDC where on-line advice was given to upstart companies and much more. At the same time, newsgroups were the popular gathering points and it's interfaces were being used to share opinions, photos and video. Tools were being developed to stream Real Player video and audio via media browsers. Remember those days?
In my shop, we had developed a tool in a fledgling Flash application toolset, that allowed Montreal Canadien's fans to receive live updates to any game through a Flash browser. A goal would be scored and voila, the browser would download the latest video replay and text stats on the scoring for instand viewing... As soon as the coach stood in front of a microphone the audio feed was delivered to this browser... wasn't this a podcast? OK, OK! So iPods were, at the time, a sparkle in Steve Job's eye... but, the technology was there... haven't I just proved that? ... and the tools delivered the same things...
...So what took them sooo long? Well, there are a number of reasons that this boom is happening now. There are new and very accessible tools as well as distribution methods for getting content out there... but thats not the key reason. For the most part, the biggest reason is simply that we, as internet users, have GROWN UP to the point where blogger-spots and forums are 'mature' places to post to and the content we are publishing is becomming more and more consistant with our market's needs. The result of years of self-policing content at public content posting points has been a return to comfort levels where opinion and journal posts are welcomed and lauded. In the 90's and early 2000's we posted with varying results. Participating in forums and posting content in opinion form was a hazardous endevour. Remember the term 'flame'? You still see it today, but there is much more appreciation now towards those who are trying to post constructively. In the old days, when an opinion was just a bit off, you were knocked for a loop with cross posts that put you on a pedastal and horse whipped. Today, if you are wrong, you most likely will be politely corrected.
If your company posts blogs from you key personel, your markets appreciate the effort. If you show up on forums where consumers are complaining about your product and participate in trying to find a fix, you are appreciated. It was never like that. We have matured.There will always be a demand for factually correct postings and content. Posting as an authority means that you should be an authority. Your audience will ALWAYS sniff out the pretender or those counting on broadcasts like blogs and such for commercial gain. Contribute to your marketplace and you will quickly see results. Over-pitch the audience and you will quickly be seen as a door to door salesman. If you had tried to work with newsgroups and such before, don't fret, we have come a long way and welcome your blog or cast!
In 1997 I launched an on-line journal for adventure sporting athletes. A tool that allowed them to post articles with photo and videos via simple web interfaces from anywhere with web access. In turn, viewers were able to cross post comments and questions to the posters. We subsequently used this tool for many web clients: Domtar for its Creativetoolbox.com where artists shared electronic productivity ideas, BDC where on-line advice was given to upstart companies and much more. At the same time, newsgroups were the popular gathering points and it's interfaces were being used to share opinions, photos and video. Tools were being developed to stream Real Player video and audio via media browsers. Remember those days?
In my shop, we had developed a tool in a fledgling Flash application toolset, that allowed Montreal Canadien's fans to receive live updates to any game through a Flash browser. A goal would be scored and voila, the browser would download the latest video replay and text stats on the scoring for instand viewing... As soon as the coach stood in front of a microphone the audio feed was delivered to this browser... wasn't this a podcast? OK, OK! So iPods were, at the time, a sparkle in Steve Job's eye... but, the technology was there... haven't I just proved that? ... and the tools delivered the same things...
...So what took them sooo long? Well, there are a number of reasons that this boom is happening now. There are new and very accessible tools as well as distribution methods for getting content out there... but thats not the key reason. For the most part, the biggest reason is simply that we, as internet users, have GROWN UP to the point where blogger-spots and forums are 'mature' places to post to and the content we are publishing is becomming more and more consistant with our market's needs. The result of years of self-policing content at public content posting points has been a return to comfort levels where opinion and journal posts are welcomed and lauded. In the 90's and early 2000's we posted with varying results. Participating in forums and posting content in opinion form was a hazardous endevour. Remember the term 'flame'? You still see it today, but there is much more appreciation now towards those who are trying to post constructively. In the old days, when an opinion was just a bit off, you were knocked for a loop with cross posts that put you on a pedastal and horse whipped. Today, if you are wrong, you most likely will be politely corrected.
If your company posts blogs from you key personel, your markets appreciate the effort. If you show up on forums where consumers are complaining about your product and participate in trying to find a fix, you are appreciated. It was never like that. We have matured.There will always be a demand for factually correct postings and content. Posting as an authority means that you should be an authority. Your audience will ALWAYS sniff out the pretender or those counting on broadcasts like blogs and such for commercial gain. Contribute to your marketplace and you will quickly see results. Over-pitch the audience and you will quickly be seen as a door to door salesman. If you had tried to work with newsgroups and such before, don't fret, we have come a long way and welcome your blog or cast!
posted by James McBeath at 1:29 PM
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