Stream of consciousness ramble – Culture and Belonging

It’s as hot as hell here and I think my brain has turned to mush, or just melted. In view of the fact that thinking is presently beyond me and my ISP is broken yet again, I’m tunneling out briefly and resorting to something I scribbled a couple of days ago - and sharing some cooling pool reflection shots, which I know those of you in the cold, wet and snow probably really don’t need to see right now.

The previous post on The Material Culture has caused me to ponder a somewhat related concept, prompted by D’s remark that it must be quite fun to have blog visiting to do. My response was to say that I felt that blogosphere was a community to which one belonged and within that community - that culture of blogging - were individual communities of writers, photographers, cooks, gardeners, knitters, dog lovers, scientists, lawyers etc etc. Tribes, I suppose one might call them. And it struck me then, thinking of what I’d posted on the new culture of materialism that blogging goes perhaps, in some way, to also make up for the other crumbling “old” cultures and structures. Of course, there’s no doubt that it’s unquestionably a part of the globalization trend. If I think of those who visit here - there are Americans, Brits, French, Welsh, Irish, Indian, Australians, Canadians and a host of others – although once very separate, in blogosphere we find ourselves very much together, sharing thoughts and ideas, finding ourselves in agreement – and occasionally in conflict - but all reaching out to one another - one being to another, linked through cyberspace. And, as G&G from It Must Be The Vapors pointed out, beyond, for now, the grasp of government.

His comment, which I hope he doesn’t mind me quoting said:

“The interweb blogosphere is a perfect working model of how relationships across the globe serve the same function as tribes, enterprises, and self sustaining trade agreements with no need of government regulation whatsoever. We are much better than governments gives us freedom to be. Not being bound by physical location nullifies the ideas of nations and borders except for the unique cultural contributions we all bring.”

So perhaps blogosphere and cyberspace also go some way to create a new culture where the old cultures are crumbling. Perhaps blogging is another cultural construct, much like shopping – but, perhaps a considerably more meaningful one.

For me, this creation of new cultural constructs is quite pertinent since I have little concept of nationality, of what it is to be a South African. My heritage is central and northern European. My education was very much in the English/British mold. I have never felt a sense of belonging here – it’s just where I am. As such the nationality by which many define themselves has never really had much of a claim on me. Likewise, I belong to no religious grouping – been there, done that and decided to focus on a far broader spirituality than one defined by a particular doctrine and dogma. Similarly, as an only-child, family has little significance so again, it’s not something I feel I belong to. I consider myself, ultimately, I suppose, to be a citizen of the world – whatever that might be, and yet, I also don’t subscribe to the Material Culture.

All this has often left me wondering about belonging and where I belong - and yet, at the same time, I don’t feel like I don’t belong. I suspect, perhaps that being part of other communities, like blogosphere, a community of like-minded thinkers and a community of writers, is what does it. And of course, I also happen to know that I am part of a very different community, a far greater one that goes beyond the Earthly realm and I think that, more than anything else, gives rise to a tremendous sense of being and belonging - and of being interconnected.

How about you? How are you impacted by culture and community? How much do you belong, need to belong? Is blogosphere a cultural concept or a “tribe” for you?


And if none this post makes any sense, you can safely assume my brain has fried, melted and leaked out all over my desk. Now will someone please send some snow! What do you mean it will melt in the post? Oh well, best I go and through myself in the pool then.

Free Sex! Hot Sex! Sex Sells! AKA MARKETING 101

Blogosphere Network Map (image nicked off the internet not sure who to credit for this amazing image!)

THIS MAY BE A STICKY POST... but we likes a bit of controversy, now and then...

Recently some controversy about blogging has sprung up both here and here. Words like sycophantic, egotistic, inbreeding and jeering have all been gaily bandied about. And there's nothing journalists and marketing types like more than a bit of controversy. Why? Because it sells stuff. Want to market your blog or yourself - then get controversial, make it "hot" and watch the punters roll in. Sounds sarcastic perhaps. It's not meant to be. I certainly didn't expect as many comments as rolled up to my post on why bloggers blog.

See, if you want to market yourself or your work, as some do, blogosphere cannot be the only place to do it. Skint rightly pointed out that blogosphere works really well as a marketing tool if you're already a star or have a "hot/sexy/controversial" blog. Which means either the hard work's already been done or you have a shit-hot product that many want a piece of.

Thing is, you can never rely on any one medium to do your work for you. For another thing, in blogging, what exactly are you marketing? What's your USP - in plain English, your Unique Selling Proposition? What makes you or your words stand out, far above anything else, in blogosphere - or anywhere else? Is your product i.e. your writing, even good enough to stand out? What's your brand? Do you even have a brand? How original is it? What's your identifier, your look and feel? Why should anyone read your words over and above someone else's? What are you offering that no one else is (and how are you doing it in a fresh, new way)?

The problem with blogosphere is it's very big and very full (in May 2007 Technorati was tracking more than 71 million blogs). How on earth can you be assured that you will get noticed? You can't - unless you meet the above criteria - already a star, or flogging sex or controversy. And even then, you will draw a particular market or appeal to an already existing market.

Scott Westerfield, the YA writer, used MySpace to great effect to connect with his market. (His blog is now here.) Neil Gaiman's blog also allows him to connect with an existing market. The principle in both cases is called market retention and customer relationship management - both of which of course assume you already have a market and customers... Belle du Jour has used blogosphere to great effect to sell a call girl's story. Her success rests in the fact that sex sells (yep, it does!). But these people are few and far between the masses who blog - mostly, dare I say it, for fun! It also helps, if you want to be noticed, to be well-connected - particularly to people in the media who will promote your blog in the press. (Not what you know but who you know, remember...)

I started blogging because I wanted to explore and experiment with the marketing potential of blogosphere. (I also happened to have a mad chicken living in my head who was determined to get out and cause mayhem...). And I was, to put it simply, curious about the hype and the notion of people-driven websites. What I can tell you is this, unless you want to spend hours and hours surfing blogosphere, connecting with others, commenting all over the place, linking to the world and her husband, building up a humungous network, you are not going to build yourself a market in blogosphere. The investment in building that network is, in any case, likely to prove higher than the returns. So it becomes a no-brainer. Your ROI (return on investment) simply isn't worth it.

So, those who commented on my earlier post and said they blogged for fun or to meet like-minded people, they're the ones who actually get what blogosphere is about. You see, blogosphere is a social networking tool. And yes, sure, you can build markets through networking - all marketers do - but and this is a critical point, blogging is but one tool in what should be an entire arsenal of marketing tools. The reason Facebook and MySpace have been so successful is because they allow people to connect, share ideas, opinions and hobbies. Blogger, Live Journal, Wordpress, do the same - in a less overt manner.

So, you blog for fun. You might happen to be a writer. When your book is published you can tell all your blogging buddies about it. They may buy your book (or not). They may tell their friends about it - who may, or may not buy it. But, and here's the other thing, your blogging network is most likely not that huge (we do, after all, tend to hang out in like-minded social groups in blogosphere - just as we do in real life) - hence if your ultimate goal had been to sell piles and piles of books, you'll most likely be disappointed. You will sell books, you will connect to your market - but it won't be a mass market - in the traditional sense. Blogosphere may let you connect with a niche market but it won't bring you the opportunities for sales and promotion that more conventional marketing tools will bring you. Not unless you are willing to spend hours and hours at it - networking all day, hosting blogs on all the primary blog interfaces and generally giving up your life. The sensible approach says, don't put all your eggs in one basket, spread the risk, maximize your opportunities. Go and build a brand, define your USP, build a website, host a blog on it, advertise, do book signings, get some PR going, talk on the radio, write articles, get invited to speak at conferences, dish out bookmarks promoting your book, make yourself known through as many spheres as possible.

Of course, you could always start a splog - i.e. a blog with the sole purpose of spamming...

And then there's the really crucial factor. Ultimately, whether anyone buys your book, whether through your blogging efforts or any other marketing activity, depends entirely on the quality of the product (as is the case with any product or service) i.e. is it any good and/or does it hold mass appeal? You might think so (and your mother might agree with you), but others need to think so too. So, have you created a boy wizard who's parents were killed by the evil one? Or have you written about an alternate universe that stands on the back of a giant turtle? Or have you dreamed up a funny little Belgian detective with an egg shaped head...?

If not, as my good mate Debi says, accept and enjoy the fact that the kind of blogging we do is primarily about building mutually supportive communities (which can aid us in what we do). For now* that's what blogosphere is about - a social network. And, if anyone thinks that's sycophantic - well, you know what they say, "one person's opinion is just that, an opinion".

Now, I'm off to scratch the chicken's back in the hope that she will scratch mine...



* It's interesting to note that corporates are increasingly using blogs as part of their marketing arsenal - it's a means of talking to and connecting with their existing or new customers - but it's done through the company's website, in keeping with its brand and in conjunction with other marketing tools.

© 2007 Absolute Vanilla