(via Darren)
J. S. Logan goes off on self-proclaimed blogging coaches in a salesletter disguised as a rant:
Consultants are busy reworking themselves as blogging experts, offering a variety of ebooks, seminars, audio products, and for fee newsletters on how to blog the right way. Consulting and marketing firms have gone as far as offering $695 reports on blogging basics. Some are positioning themselves as blog coaches.
I wonder if this includes blogging evangelists?
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The dictionary definition of a coach in the article is quaint.
As for the trick of denouncing all the ‘straw men’ coaches and then stepping forward as the saviour, at only $250, well, as playwright Jean Giradoux famously said: ‘The secret of success is sincerity. If you can fake that, you’ve got it made.’
Des Walsh, self-styled blogging evangelist
Blog Evangelists? No. There are many great things blogs enable. As a reader of my blog commented overnight:
“I have a business associate who years ago read a book touting the concept of a “mastermind” in business. Briefly, it was a group of individuals coming together to develop new ideas and solutions and that the union of these separate individuals would create that mastermind. The problem for small businesses or businesses in something less than urban communities is it is difficult to find, attract and retain a mastermind. Anchorage is not exactly small (300k), but producing a group of “merry men” even here is a monumental task. No longer! With a snap of my fingers (or click of my mouse) I can find that…Even better I can interact with this group and maybe actually improve my business. David can actually battle Goliath. For free.”
Blogs are very interesting and in many cases extremely valuable. Personally, my business and I have benefited from blogging – I’ve found new customers and friends as a direct result of blogging.
My comments and caution on blog coaching originate in a pet peeve of mine.
For years I had legions (mild exaggeration) of consultants’ parade through my offices offering a variety of “must have� tasks to me and my team – web services, direct mail, sales training, print advertising, signage, copywriting, etc. None of the tasks were wrong; it was the offer I never liked.
A sizable portion of the consulting space is built around the tasks of the individual providing the services, not the needs of the client. For example, if I’m a sales trainer, I sell sales training to anyone I can get to buy it…regardless of whether or not the training is of any real value to my client. You see this time and again across the breadth of sales, marketing, and business consulting. Services are recommended and sold because that’s what the consultant does, not necessarily because that’s what the client needs most at that time. Obviously, some consultants are better than others, but when you draw a circle around them, it’s true – certainly it’s true to my experience.
This pet peeve is shared by many of my prospects, customers, and readers of my blog. It’s unfortunate, but many business people feel uneasy with consultants because they believe they’ll say or do anything to sell their service. That some do, make it worse for those that don’t.
BTW…This ultimately is the opportunity for people such as you, me, and many others. The opportunity to serve customers based on their need, not on what we have to sell – to not tell everyone they need a blog because that’s what we have to offer.
Reading the comment before mine, I can see where Des could make that comment. My post wasn’t written as a trick though; the story is as it was written. I like the thought of business coaching and found that very day services described as such that do not fit the definition I hold for coach.
Related, I’m mixed in opinion on interest in blog coaching. I haven’t determined the demand for such a service; although I believe there are many people out there that could provide one, I’m not sure of the demand. In cursory review of such available services, it appears there is hole that could be filled. That hole is a more coaching-centric approach as opposed to a blogging service approach. In my mind the distinction is great. But ultimately, it’s determined by what people want, need, and value. I’m not sure such a service has demand.
Andy, if you’re interested in tossing this idea around, sharing thoughts, and discussing potential for such a service…please give me a call. I’m around most of this week.
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