I have a copy of this magazine here, Wearables published by ASI (Advertising Specialty Institute). This particular publication focuses on sellers and buyers of "wearables" that are customizable with advertising or corporate logos.A couple of months ago I was contacted for an interview about the value of blogging for business. The interview went well and eventually I was notified that it had gone to press. The fella who interviewed my found me through my business blog. Interesting.
As you can see, if you click on the above image and view it full size you can read the full interview. You might also notice that there is no mention of my blog address, nor anyone else who was interviewed.
I went to the online version of the magazine and found a feature called "Business Toolkit". If you click on the web subject, up pops a window with an image of the print page using a application called "Flash Paper", which in not unlike a PDF. There you can read this same article, still with no live links.
So, a publication that is trying to educate their readers about the value of blogging for business is not actually using that technology or any other ability to "link" to resources outside it's actual print magazine. I was shocked!
I did not want to appear ungrateful but I had initially taken the time for this interview because I believed it would drive traffic to my blog. I interview people all the time and this is the exchange: You answer some questions to me and I'll put you out there! Yes, folks can find me easily if they google my name. In this case though, I wonder how you can talk about a technologies' worth and then not actually use it. Hmmm.
I contacted the editor via email and asked what has happened with this. The response I got was:
"Melissa,
You're right, it wouldn't have done much harm to include the links for the blogs. Just chalk it up to a simple oversight between writer and editor. Thanks for your help
C.J. Mittica"
Alrighty then!
What tells me is that there is a fear of technology in some business sectors and a sense of "self-protection" as well. A thought that perhaps if you like to someone else, you can giving them a change to leave your site. There are ways around that like a second browser window opening with the link so that you can easily go back if you wish. It's not rocket science but this example was simply astounding to me.
Blogging for business makes sense. If you actually read the above article, you'll get my take on it. (!)
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