When I was gearing up to start my blog, one of the first things I did was tell people about it, so there could be no turning back (and to build a modicum of awareness the old-fashioned way).

PRWork’s David Jones offered a pre-launch tip: “I’d suggest you start leaving some comments on other PR blogs and podcasts and get your name known prior to launching your blog. It will help build readership. There are several good Canadian PR bloggers that are building a little community.”

And I thought since there’s so much information out there, soliciting advice from those in the know might help shed a bit of light on what to me felt like a swirling vortex of words. So I contacted bloggers – some I knew and some I just enjoyed reading – and asked them to provide a piece of advice to someone about to enter the fray. I told them that I would be including their answers in my blog. Most replied, though a few didn’t (but you won’t find that list here).

Here’s some food for blog:

Repman Steve Cody suggests: “…, there are quite a few things to keep in mind. The two most important are objectivity and continuity. Don’t start the blog unless you can devote the time to constantly refresh it. And never use it to sell yourself or your services.”

The Hubbub’s Giovanni Rodriguez said: “Best advice I can give you: Pick a general blog topic that you truly care about, and make that your personal brand. That will motivate you to write often, and to write passionately, the two things that make a very good blog.”

Guy Kawasaki’s How to Change the World blog referred me to a post from last April, ‘The 120 Day Wonder: How to Evangelize a Blog’. Though this is nearly a year old, it’s a good read and the links are helpful, too.

And me? Well, I’ve tried to immerse myself by reading blogs regularly (sometimes too regularly) and checking out people who’s names pop up independently on various sites. I also click on links, subscribe to least one or two new RSS feeds a week and, if, after a while, I find myself wondering why I added a particular site in the first place, I delete it.

But I still feel adrift, especially when I’m ten links deep or more and wonder how in the world did I ever get to this place?

Bla-bla-blog…

About Martin Waxman


Martin Waxman, MCM, is a digital communications strategist. He conducts AI research, leads digital and social media training workshops and speaks at events across North America. He's co-founder of two PR agencies, president of a consultancy and has worked in the industry for nearly 30 years. Martin is a LinkedIn Learning instructor, teaches digital strategy and social media at McMaster University, the Schulich School of Business, University of Toronto SCS and Seneca College. He's a member of the Institute for Public Relations Digital Media Research Center and a past-chair of PRSA Counselors Academy. He has a Master of Communications Management (MCM) from McMaster-Syracuse Universities.