Quoted in Blogging Article

Chris Mercer, my CEO and writer of Mercer on Value, and I were quoted in an article entitled "To Blog or Not to Blog" in the Summer 2005 issue of The ASA Professional, a quarterly magazine published by the American Society of Appraisers.

In our profession, business appraisal, Chris is leading the blogging charge.  His blog is a strategic piece of Mercer Capital's marketing plan.  It is our attempt to reach a broader audience with a broader message and so far has been successful for us and that success is growing.  We were interviewed about Chris' blog and our blogging strategy.

For those professionals interested, I reproduce "Mercer Capital's 5 P's of Blogging":

1. Platform - Find a platform that is easy to use and that also suits your needs.  Since Mercer on Value needed to complement our visual brand identity, we hired a designer.  We also wanted to get a quick start right out of the gate, so we hired a blogging consultant.  Both were good decisions.
2. Purpose - Understand your purpose.  Chris recommends that anyone considering starting a blog should talk to 20 people and articulate it 20 times so that you define the purpose of your blog.
3. People - Make sure you know your audience and who your blog will target.
4. Practice - Before you engage in the expense and fanfare of announcing your blog, actually write 10 posts.  This gives you content when your blog is launched and gives you some practice writing and an understanding of what it takes to provide consistent content.
5. Patience - Commit to at least one year of blogging.  Know that a blog is not a short-term fix to anyone's marketing program.

For those in the American Society of Appraisers, you can find the article on pages 29-31.