It's not about the hammer

I just rediscovered this post that I wrote 2 weeks ago, marked as "draft." Time to post.

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Two guys sit down at a bar and start talking. One says to the other, "Hey, do you know how much hammers cost, and where I can buy one?" The other guy responds, "I dunno. I hear that a lot of people have hammers these days. What do you need it for?" "Well, I'm not really sure. I just keep reading about hammers, people tell me I need a hammer, and sales of hammers are going through the roof."

Pretty silly, huh?

Johnnie's got a post on 4/17 called "Making Money on Cheap Tools." A lot of people are selling hammers -- oops, I mean blogs. Carat is selling blog starter kits to their clients.  The question that appears to be zooming through the blogosphere is how much people can charge for hammers blogs.

Smart companies shouldn't spend a penny on a blog starter kit or blog consultant. Not until they understand whether a blog is the right tool to meet their needs. Why buy a hammer when you have a plumbing problem? Better to find someone who can sell you a wrench.

A blog is a tool. So is a wiki or discussion forum.  So is a face-to-face meeting or a conference call. And I've recently seen some very interesting tools that are in beta. The core issue is this: What conversations need to be happening inside and outside of your company? What is the cost to the company if these conversations don't happen? What are the cultural and organizational issues that prevent these conversations from taking place? How can we begin implementing conversation tools to facilitate those conversations? And finally, lastly, what are the right conversation tools for your business?

Blog consultants, designers and writers are wonderful resources in the executional phase. But there's usually a lot of work to be done before it makes sense to bring them into the picture. If you're building a home, do you go hire yourself a framer? Or a roofer? No, you start with an architect, then a contractor. I don't help companies build blogs... I can refer them to a blog specialist who can. But not until I ask a bunch of questions about what purpose it needs to serve. Just because blogs have hit the big time doesn't mean they're right for every situation.  So don't worry about answering "how much" until you've answered some "who," "what" and "why"questions.

 

Comments

[jenny]

I always come back sometimes to post few sentens but I am in the same trend as armand rousso and niall cook.

[James C]

This goes down to the ethics of must have sales, someone talks about a product or Item so much that eventually you are convinces that you need one.
http://www.bellabathrooms.co.uk/tc-bathrooms.html

[Bella Bathrooms]

Tom’s has made a very good suggestion with a valid point - getting people to think about "why" is not a problem restricted to blogs (or hammers). http://www.bellabathrooms.co.uk

[david gonzales]

i try to tell you that a metodology of what you propose its a kind of myth.

[Armand Rousso]

What a wonderful comparison, Jennifer - a hammer with a weblog!

But truly, like a hammer, even a weblog can be used to fix certain situations that are falling apart - it can be the ultimate tool to put together non-congruous ideas. I agree with your set of questions which should be addressed before we use it as a solution, given a situation. We have to use it judiciously, no doubt; not go overboard, but be honest in our posts and comments..this will take weblogs to a new, rather envious level.

Armand Rousso

[Brian Massey]

Those of us in the marketing community are looking to blogs to help us develop content... honest, open, transparent content. The question is not "I hear hammers a good" but "I think we'd be very good if we used hammers more." The implication is that we've got a new and potentially powerful tool.

Now tell me this: how do I introduce hammers to my company? How do I talk about the benefits of using hammers? Do I need to focus on those who have nails and wood? How do I make sure the early hammer adopters don't knock holes in the walls?

These are the questions members of the "geterati" are asking. Hammers may make sense. Consultants like you will do well to answer quesitons like "How do I start testing hammers safely in my company?"

[Niall Cook]

Some very good observations here, Jennifer.

However, there seems to be a built-in assumption in your article that "blog consultants" are just implementers. Whilst that is no doubt how many will position themselves, the best consultants will be those who help their clients understand exactly the kind of questions you raise.

I also agree with Tom's comment - getting people to think about "why" is not a problem restricted to blogs (or hammers).

[Tom Asacker]

Blogs are the new . . . whatever. Like voice mail marketing, podcasting, permission / opt in email marketing, search engine marketing, ad infinitum.

You and I will not even put a dent in business people grabbing onto and quickly implementing this new "marketing tool." Why? Because they're too busy to stop and strategically consider it's use.

And it's not just blogs. It's advertising, new logos, jingles, brochures, etc. They're obsessed with so called simple and relatively inexpensive tactics that will help them "cut through the clutter." As if clutter is their real problem. Ha! Hell, how do you think that sales people of traditional media continue to make a good living.