I recently wrote my first post in AR and immediately witnessed the power of "The BLOG".
But what exactly is a blog anyway? 
I don't know that I'm qualified to say for sure, but I'm pretty sure it has a heart, a brain, and it permeates my computer every night. It's kind of scary because its growing bigger and BIGGER everyday and I don't know what to expect everytime I approach it.
Yes, I know you can't help shake those images of the 1958 Alfred Hitchcock movie "The Blob" (Thats what I thought first time I heard the word Blog.) but come to think of it, "A Blog" is not to far removed from "The Blob". Only in this case, this monster is a good thing. (most of the time).
So how do you contain this beast?
Sure by now you know that a Blog is an electronic diary of sorts. A compilitation of topics for discussion, and an open forum to expand your mind through creative writing experiences. A blog is testimony to the power and effectiveness of the rapid growth of the internet and how we use it in commerce today.
Yesterday, Laurie Manny wrote an excellent Blog titled "The Featured Post" where she gave some excellent tips on how to write good front-page worthy and thought provoking blogs. (A must read for anyone new to AR) In this post, there is a comment by Tony Marriott where he wishes that "Blog" was recognized by the spell checker. Interesting comment I thought. The reason Blog is not in recognized is because the word didn't exist when Microsoft released its previous version of the MS dictionary. (They finally got it in this last realease.) Now that's amazing to me, that a segment of the internet has grown so rapidly that even Microsoft the "Goliath" hasn't been able to keep up with the changes.
The blogoshphere is growing at such a rapid pace, how is one supposed to wrap their brain around it all and keep it in check? How do you extract the information that you want and need without going crazy and most importantly without crossing the line where productive research becomes counterproductive.
Harness the Blog.
You need to know the space you play in and you need to know why you're here. If active rain (or blogging in general) is something you do as a favorite past time in lieu of prime time TV. Great! Stay as long as you can, just don't oversleep in the morning. I guarantee the content is better than anything you'll find on the tube and you'll be better all around for it.
If you're here to research a particular topic or engage in a specific dialogue with another member. Then stick to your plan, take care of business and leave. (you can come back during prime time) Don't get distracted or divert your attention into reading a bunch of other posts and comments that aren't directly related to the reason you came here to begin with. Priortize your time.
AR should be an intrical part of your marketing plan, your personal education and business growth, but even the best programs can work against you if it means that a client is calling and nobody is answering. Pick up the phone.
It'll still be raining here when you get back.
Martin
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