Why Blogs are like TV Programming

By on April 30, 2007 in Blogging with 8 Comments

Even before cable took off, there was a variety of different television programming: News; Sports; Variety; Instructional; Talk; Drama; Comedy; Game Shows… different uses for different audiences.

I doubt if anyone brushed off buying a TV because they didn’t want to watch soap operas. That would have been limited thinking. In some ways, blogging – at least business blogging – is facing some of that limited thinking.

One business owner I’ve been working with says he doesn’t write to a "bloggy" audience. What he doesn’t know (and refuses to see) is that his industry (and audience) is abundantly present in the blogosphere. Where is he getting his "bloggy" perception from? And is he getting a nose bleed sitting that far above ground?

Television programming is constantly changing and re-inventing itself. Each audience is unique and special. Yours is too. Don’t try to be Boing Boing, Wallstrip or even ConverStations.

Be yourself. Engage with your audience.

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  • http://www.maryschmidt.com Mary Schmidt

    Exactly! I still think a large part of the problem is the term, “blogging” If they’d called early tv – say – “soaping” ???? Hmmmm….
    Dismissing blogging because it’s too “bloggy” (or personal, or cute, or silly, or obscene) is like confusing PBS with Lifetime; CNN with the Comedy Channel; “My Name is Earl” with “The Apprentice;” Bill Moyers with Bill O’Reilly; Fox “news” with C-span…and so on.

  • http://www.u-g-h.com Owen Cutajar

    Good analogy. Audiences will watch/read what they want to at any specific moment in time, and the wide choice of blog topics is not unlike what’s on TV at any particular moment in time.

  • http://www.allthingsworkplace.com Steve Roesler

    Mike,
    When I do sit down to watch TV, I click and surf through all 300 channels and sometimes just turn it off. But many times I find something that grabs me and stay for the whole thing; or watch part of an event and then move on to something else.
    The mouse is the remote control of the online community. We’re always looking for something to capture us–and when we find it, we bookmark, subscribe, and check back to see what’s there today.
    Years ago I sold radio time, one of the ultimate intangibles. Truth be told, there weren’t that many ways that you could show that Mr. X specifically came to your business on a certain day because of our programming. What we did know was that those advertisers who bought an entire program or who bought spots that ran with consistent, spaced repetition were always renewing. They knew that the traffic they were getting was driven in large part by awareness and name recognition. And they knew that listeners were “turning the dial.” Which meant that other listeners were turning, too…in our direction.

  • http://www.rushonbusiness.com Rush Nigut

    “Bloggy” audience? What is that? I never quite thought I was writing for a “bloggy” audience either. The reality is that the blogophere has thousands of people who are looking for expertise on any particular subject. You can provide it to them or someone else will. I know which one I choose.
    Rush

  • http://www.converstations.com Mike Sansone

    Mary – So right. It’s a bit unfortunate that the perception or name is still a hurdle. Whether the hangup is perception or verbage…there are some with a brick wall around their brain.
    Owen – It’s amazing how many people don’t know they’re reading a blog site. I asked one person recently what some of their favorite web sites were…two of five were actually blogs. They had no idea. Which is good, sorta…right?
    Steve – “The mouse is the remote control…” I’ll use that offline a lot! thanks. Radio is another medium where the choice of programming types are plentiful. “Consistent, spaced repetition…” sounds like good posting advice. Sign me up for renewal!
    Rush – You’re proof in the pudding! Your site is probably as un-bloggy as any, yet you’re visitors and audience are global. Keep up the great work.

  • http://thedeadartist.blogspot.com/ The Dead Artist

    Very good advise indeed.

  • http://www.blogopreneur.com Kian Ann

    Hey Mike, great post! I think it is important for every blogger to know who their readers are and what kind of articles they like.
    Like what you said, each blog has a unique audience, and as you learn more about them (by engaging them and getting feedback), you can cater your writing prose to them.

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