OK, all. I want to admit something to you. But before I just outright do it, allow me to setup the back story.
I am a big fan of going directly to the consumer. Talking to the audience. Hearing the cries from people in the trenches, etc etc. With that in mind, I was contacting some bloggers who were blogging specifically about a market. I am doing research on said market for an internet service I’m designing for a company (more later… like close to launch in early ‘08). I gave full disclosure on what I was designing and was asking the bloggers thoughts on the service and what features may have been missed.
During the conversion with one blogger, he told me the service I described thus far was entirely accurate to the needs not being met (woohoo!) and (in a slightly disdainful tone) that if I were to read his blog under a certain tag, I would see much of what he’s said about the topic of features. I felt like an idiot. Then an acronym hit me, a general rule, if you will. RTFB.
RTFB. Yup. “Read The F***ing Blog” (some may remember it’s older brother, “Read The F***ing Manual”). It’s a rule that should be followed by any person or company who is doing market research, promotions, or, well, anything that involves a blogger. Most of the time, if you’ve gone to a blogger because they blog specifically about your industry, they have probably answered your question. Not to mention in PR’s situations, most bloggers at one point or another have written a post on “How to pitch to a blogger.” Those are probably good guidelines to go by when approaching that blogger with a pitch, and a great example of where RTFB is quoted with glee by the blogger.
When doing anything involving bloggers, that is my new rule of thumb in acronym form.
RTFB, Nathan. RTFB.