BLOGGING AS THE PREMIER PROMOTION MEDIUM

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Dear Friends:

The world of cyberspace is jammed full of information, from websites, to mass e-mails to VoIP (i.e., Skype), but most of it seems to be just unfocused, self-serving noise. I have touted blogging as the most responsible and well-regarding informational medium of all. Whereas most other e-media are created and launched with profits in mind, bloggers tend to provide sources of expert technical information, unique points of view, and valuable advice. They are universally regarding as having more credibility than any other i-media.

My business colleague, Bruce Newman, Vice President of THE PRODUCTIVITY INSTITUTE, LLC (a highly ingenius enterprise which finds, rates and provides pre-qualified consultants to businesses of all sizes which cannot afford the burden of full-time staffers, with their benefits and high salaries, but which still need specific projects and functions to be handled -- I envy Bruce his market niche as his clients are both companies in need of expert consultants, and consultants who wish to be retained by companies who require their special skills). In fact, the more that employers downsize, the more they need the services of an organization like The Productivity Institute. Bruce's specific alchemy is helping companies convert fixed costs to lower, variable costs. Add bnewman@prodinst.com to your address book, and bookmark this article, as well.

Bruce, who is a voracious reader, recently forwarded an article to my attention which I thought would be of interest to all of us, as Internationalists working to getting our messages across. I offer it here for your information and enjoyment:

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Study: Blogs Influence Purchases More Than Social Sites
By Enid Burns, ClickZ, Oct 28, 2008

Blogs can have more impact on purchase decisions than social networks, a new study finds. Blogs create a conversation and trusted resource that influences purchase decision.

The study, "Harnessing the Power of Blogs," sponsored research by Buzz Logic and conducted by Jupiter Research, a Forrester Research company, looks at the evolving influence from the reader's perspective. "What we wanted to do was look at the reader's side of the coin, look at reader patterns and how people are reading blogs...and drill down into the content impacting other media platforms," said Valerie Combs, VP of corporate communications at Buzz Logic.

Readership of blogs is on the rise. Jupiter Research noted a 300 percent growth in monthly blog readership in the past four years. Readers look to links and multiple blog sources to extend the conversation: 49 percent of blog readers, defined as someone who reads at least one blog a month, and 71 percent of frequent readers all read more than one blog per session. Multiple blog sources offer more opportunities for consumers to see blog ads.

A quarter of readers say they trust ads on a blog, compared to 19 percent who trust ads on social networking sites.

Advertisements on blogs are an opportunity for marketers to reach consumers. The findings said 40 percent of people reading blogs have taken action as a result of viewing an ad on a blog; and 50 percent of frequent blog readers say they have taken action. Of those actions: 17 percent have read product reviews online; 16 percent have sought out more information on a product or service; and 16 percent have visited a manufacturer or retailer Web site.

"More and more publishers are become extremely savvy understanding the game and becoming better at monetizing, which is great for the advertiser as well," said Combs.

The survey also finds consumers are influenced by blogs at the moment of purchase decision. The channel plays a greater role than social networks, likely because bloggers establish themselves as an authority on a topic, particularly in niche areas, and create a relationship with the consumer.

"One of the things that's so great about them is the personal, specific information," said Combs. "Thorough, useful, honest creation, create a level of trust with the reader."

BuzzLogic is a marketing influence company that measures word-of-mouth interaction online, runs online ad campaigns, and hosts the Conversation Ad Network, an ad network built for social media and bloggers to help monetize niche topic Web sites.

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To view this article in its entirety, click on http://www.clickz.com/3631303 .

Blogging, as I have contended before, is one of the most powerful forms of media ever created. If you have a website, you might wish to compliment it with a blog site, as well. If I may be of service to you in this regard, please find my contact information at http://aboutdouglascastle.blogspot.com/ , or ring me at (toll free) 888.317.6498.

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle

p.s. If you would like to speak directly with Bruce Newman at THE PRODUCTIVITY INSTITUTE, LLC. either visit his website at http://www.prodinst.com/ , email him at bnewman@prodinst.com, or telephone the company's offices at 845.228.1301. Incidentally, TPI has a blog and a newsletter which might well be worth receiving -- it is free, but filled with valuable information. Please email Bruce at bnewman@prodinst.com and send him a brief message requesting your free Newsletter, and he will send it to you. simply provide your name and email address. Every downsizing company, and every consultant with technical, vertical expertise should initiate a conversation with this fellow. having his company's services at the ready can literally save your business.

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