If the only way people know you is through your blog you'll be seen as a pretty one-dimensional person.
Blogging does have lots of advantages: lots of people can get to know you with a minimal amount of effort. But, when push comes to shove it's not a way to build a really deep relationship.
There's a reason why conferences are still very well attended: meeting someone face-to-face still is better than meeting them through a grid of pixels on the screen.
So, get out!
Speak at conferences. Visit users' groups or meetups. Host dinners so people can see that you're a real person. Show up at industry events.
OK, so, for many of you those things are pretty difficult to do. Most of them cost money and take time. So, what else can you do?
How about a podcast? Or a video blog?
Both let people get to know you in a far deeper way than if you just write on the screen.
Even a photo blog is a good add-on to your blog. You can use that to drop in product pictures too so you'll have even more to talk about on your blog.
Don't know how to do these things? There are plenty of bloggers who'll teach you how (and plenty of low-cost software to help too).
What other ways do you use to build relationships off blog?
Being human? While all your ideas are good, they are all time intensive.
There needs to be a balance between blogging, and, well life. You have that good balance. Most others do not.
Posted by: Jeremy Pepper | July 06, 2005 at 11:40 PM
For a corporate blogger "being seen" as well as heard is vital.
Some of us are lucky that we have a position where we can get in front of customers - trade shows, webinars etc. For others - especially in the engineering side of things - it's not so easy.
I've personally found that blogging is another aspect of how I can work with customers and partners. It's a lot more immediate.
Posted by: Evil ZEN Scientist | July 11, 2005 at 02:40 PM