And now, I will blog about a story about blogging.

Or more accurately a story about blogging as it relates to real estate, that ran in today's New York Times. 

Yup, that's me. I remember vividly — this must have been more than a few years ago — listening to my friend Jason Calacanis say something to the effect of "If your company doesn't have a company blog you're an idiot. Every company must have one, and it's one of the most efficient and effective ways of communicating with your customers. If you're not doing it, it's a giant missed opportunity." Or words to that effect. At the time I figured it might have been a bit of hyperbole, and of course at the time Jason's day job was building and promoting a company entirely composed of blogs, it wasn't a neutral point of view. 

But it was a comment that really stuck in my head for awhile. How? Why? Do people really care and want to read what's effectively a newsletter? Learn about your office party, or how excited you are about your new product rollout, or what you think about your industry, or the latest interesting article you read somewhere?

The answer is yes, and I think Jason (yet again) has proven to be highly prescient. I guess it's the same thing I said in the story that leads off this post. It's a way to really communicate with your audience in the first person, it's a medium well suited to a unique mix of information, opinion, and personality. When a blogger is well informed and has the background necessary to contextualize information it's one of the best ways to keep your finger on the pulse of some thing, someone — or some company. Your company. A concept anyone with customers, and prospective customers, would be wise to consider.