Blog as marketing tool or personal chronicle?

[Dave Chesser]

ON 24 Fighting Chickens a while back, they made a comment that "telling it like it is" on there blog had hurt there business bit as martial arts instructors. They made the comment that successful blogging and successful martial arts teaching are sometimes at odds with each other. Apparently, they had lost students or potential students because of some posts they had made.

For you MA bloggers, what do you think about this? Do you use the blog as a marketing tool or personal chronicle? Do you refrain from posting things that your readers may not like?

[Karrie Bowen]

I definitely use my blog as a personal chronicle and not so much for marketing. There is, however, a fine line when you make the blog more personal. There are things I just don't write about, mostly subjects I know could generate hate mail, or even just strong opposition. I would see why certain subjects would cause people to leave an instructor. Perhaps that person shouldn't have made his blog known to his students?

[thefightgeek]

I use different blogs for different things. But in each, I say it like it is.

[Steve Z]

My blog is definitely my own training log and personal chronicle. I'm not marketing anything. My general rule of thumb when I post is to presume that the people I mention will read the post. If I'm comfortable with that, I go ahead and post it. This is, in my opinion, the online equivalent of not talking about people behind their backs... if that makes sense.

As for 24 Fighting Chickens, I really like that blog, responding to the fact that many of his posts strike me as being contrary to popular wisdom. Some posts in particular that stand out are his articles on how to quit a dojo, on kata and on competition.

I'd like to think that challenging the status quo will gain you as many students as it loses you, but that might be idealistic. :)

[Dave Chesser]

"I'd like to think that challenging the status quo will gain you as many students as it loses you, but that might be idealistic."

Yeah, you might want to reconsider that. If you go against the grain in your chosen art(s), you run a risk of pushing people away. And people won't even take the time to try to fully understand what you're saying either. My stats tell me that my average visitor spends 30 seconds on my blog. That's enough to skim what I write and form a cliched notion of what i meant. If your tone is critical, that's all that gets through. The perils of blog writing.

[Steve Z]

Interesting point, Dave. I understand what you're saying on a practical level.

As a writer, though, I have to say that there is a distinction to be made between tone and intent. Since we're using 24 Fighting Chickens as the example, I think he does a great job of challenging the status quo by posting thought provoking, insightful articles. His tone, however, doesn't come off to me as cynical. I guess the point I'm trying to make is that it's really a matter of defining your message and then as a writer ensuring that there is not a disconnect between the tone of the article and the intent of the article.

[Dave Chesser]

Good point. in his case, tone probably doesn't get in the way -- his content does. He only posts occasionally so the posts are up there for quite a while and they are lengthy to begin with. his readers probably spend more than 30 secs. Lucky him. But he has made some pretty deep criticisms of his art. I can see how that would hold him back commercially.

I think I'll start making more of my posts private just in case.

[Nathan Teodoro]

Great topic. I've just jumped on it tonight and found a lot of truth and value in the discussion. My situation: I don't teach commercially anymore, and with my students there was the understanding that I would blog about our training, so there was probably no chance of it upsetting anyone, in the same way that Steve mentioned talking behind backs. I can see both sides having some validity.

The problem comes when we lose anonymity by using our real name, real school, or real students or instructors names. I think it's a very dangerous idea to do any more than you're given permission to do. I'd also worry about legal problems if you write something someone could consider slanderous.

[Dave Chesser]

Using your real name gives you some credibility that being anonymous doesn't have. But it puts your name on the line when you post everything. You OWN it in a way you don't when you're anonymous. But then everything reflects back on you.

It can get serious when you decide to identify yourself as a flesh and blood human being. I've noticed that i take criticism much more personally now as compared to then. I expected readers to respond more positively to a real person, but sometimes they are harsher because of it, i think. The personal attacks are uncomfortable.

As to slander, one of my favorite aikido blogs used real names and situations in his dojo. His teacher was extremely upset that he did that. I think blogging under your real name is fine but I keep other people out of it. Bad idea.

[Mokuren Dojo - Patrick Parker]

I use mokurendojo.com as several things:
- marketing tool to get folks interested in my dojo
- a scrapbook of things I clip from around the net
- training log
- a sounding board to get opinions from others about things i'm thinking
- a way to keep educating my students when they are away from the dojo

and probably more...

I try to keep itt relevant to my readers interest, politically and religiously neutral, and non-offensive, but I don't particularly refrain form posting things that someone might not like hearing. So far it has worked well for me. My attendance has picked up in all classes, kids classes have boomed 400% (not all due to the blog though) and I have gotten some great students from the blog.

[John W. Zimmer]

Hello Dave,

I use my blogs to write about my interests and I try to keep the content relevant to the readers of the blog. My self-defense site, while has to studio specific stuff - that is not my audience but rather general self-defense topic (my bread and butter).

I try to avoid topics that would put me at odds with my fellow kenpo stylists (such as the roots of kenpo) but if a relevant topic addresses sensitive topics... I will partially talk about it.

Since I am trying to cater to what people want (to the point I am also interested), I would say my blogs are more marketing. My goal is to eventually make some money while I continue to point about my first love - karate! I've often kidded with my wife that given the choice (when I was younger) between a good fight and a night out on the town with a woman - there was no choice (I would call the woman the next day). But I digress.

Since I have a general interest site that last question does not really apply to me as I am trying hard to not have a position attached to any one style. I think there is good in all styles and do not pretend I have all the answers.

[Martial Arts Mom]

My blog is not used for marketing, and I'm too new to blogging to really get into advertisers and the like (although that might be an option later on.) But my main objective in starting my blog was to inspire other people like me to try martial arts and if they do, to encourage them to stick with it. When I say people "like me", I mean people in their 40's (early 40's that is!) who aren't typically seen by others (or themselves) as very athletic types. I am 43 and I took my son to our community's martial arts class, and in learning things to help him practice, realized that I really enjoyed it myself - which a year and a half later, still surprises me to no end. And that it has become my biggest interest ever continues to astonish me. I'm just not "the type" you'd think would be doing this. The challenges that faces someone who's overweight and not 20 years old are much different from most people's challenges. And my blog is all about putting that out there blatantly and letting people see how I deal with these obstacles, helping them overcome them themselves, or giving me new ideas with which to solve them for myself.

[Adam @ Low Tech Combat]

For my blog, Im not sure it fits into either of those categories.

Its not a personal blog. Rarely will I post stuff up about my personal thoughts, training sessions and such things.

And its not a marketing blog. I dont have a school. I have considered putting ads in and affiliate products, but to me, thats just providing more relevant content for my readers all in the one place.

I guess my blog is just something ive built because i have been unable to find a site like it on the web anywhere. Im interested in all aspects of person to person combat. Im interested in martial arts, self protection and self defence, strength and conditioning as well as read all the classics such as the book of five rings and hagakure. I was unable to find a site with everything in the one spot so I started one myself lol. Most sites focus on just one area of the martial arts or just fitness or whatever.

I guess my blog is just something where i make the blog i was looking for.