The A-Listers Aren't Different from You and Me -- No Matter What Steve Says
Steve Rubel has been one of Media Orchard's role models from the day we started this blog 10 months ago. We were amazed at the influence Steve had achieved for himself and his firm, CooperKatz, through blogging.
Steve has deserved his success. He has worked his butt off to post fresh, relevant content -- and to do so with consistency.
We also like the fact that while Micro Persuasion and Media Orchard are both considered PR blogs, our content choices have virtually no crossover. Steve focuses on the "new technology" side of things, and -- well, we're not sure what we do. (We try to explain it here.) No-crossover means that we can still read Micro Persuasion and learn something new every day.
Having hereby expressed our love for him, we must confess that now our feelings are conflicted. In fact, we wish we knew how to quit Steve -- though we fear we can't.
The source of our ambivalence? Steve is showing signs of a 'tude.
On Tuesday, Steve issued this post to fellow bloggers, in which he advises them not to bother him with "please link to me" e-mails -- but instead, to figure out which blogs he reads, and to bother them instead.
In other words:
"I'm on the A-List. I read the B-List. If you're C-List or below, please pitch to the B-List."
A rather hierarchical approach to blogging, isn't it? We're half expecting some of the B-List blogs that Steve reads to issue trackback posts, saying:
"I'm on the B-List. I read the C-List. If you're D-List or below, please pitch to the C-List."
Until, finally, we have some Y-List blog with three subscribers acting all high and mighty toward a Z-List blog with two subscribers.
While we don't doubt that Steve is trying to be helpful, we guess what we're trying to say is that his post comes off as a little snotty.
So we think it's important to point a couple things out. Namely:
1. Steve used to send out the same e-mail pitches when he was starting out (as Jeremy Pepper noted in comments to Steve's post.)
2. Steve needs you as much as you need him -- just as reporters need PR practitioners. If a reporter for The New York Times told you to pitch your story to the Peoria Journal Star because you are from a small agency or represent a small client, would you do it? That's a ticket to the poor house, bub.
Remember: If you have compelling content, you're doing Steve a favor by sending it to him. If he doesn't have time to go through his inbox, it's ultimately his readers who suffer from his narrowed range of sources.
Now, here's some practical advice on getting on the radar screens of A-Listers:
1. Never ask the A-Lister for a general link to your site; instead, e-mail a specific post that you think the blogger may find of interest.
2. When you're sending out your first post, make sure it's damned good. The A-Lister may not read future e-mails from you if he/she decides your content is not up to snuff.
3. Send fact-heavy posts with fresh information -- never old-news rehashes or opinion pieces. Make sure the post is the kind of thing the A-Lister typically writes about. If you're not a regular reader of the A-Lister's blog, become one.
4. Don't be intimidated. Some so-called A-Listers think they're hot stuff but have no traffic. You'll find this out when they link to you, and and you get no referral traffic from the link. Other bloggers -- including many that religiously read their e-mail -- can send you 5,000 or 10,000 referrals with a single link.
5. Don't focus solely on A-Listers. You can always e-mail regular-guy bloggers like us. We read everything we receive. In fact, we created "Pick of the Orchard" for the specific purpose of providing exposure for other PR, media and marketing bloggers -- including those just starting out. We're proud that some upstart PR blogs got their first inbound links from Media Orchard.
One last thing:
We promise that even when Media Orchard ascends to the A-List, we won't act high and mighty about it. Because bragging that you're an A-List blogger in the real world is like trying to pick up a girl in a bar by telling her you're good at math.
Oh, and if you were wondering, we still love Steve. And we will continue to read Micro Persuasion. Every day, in fact.
We just like to do our part in flattening the blogosphere -- and the egos that go with it.
Technorati tags: PR, Public Relations, Marketing
posted by Scott Baradell at
6:00 AM
28 Comments:
Well, things always come full circle. In November of 2004, Rubel was called for dropping a blog from his blogroll.
At the time, I noted:
Steve, this seems a tad suspicious. You are dropping PR blogs that have criticized you, not those that you find uninteresting.
Here's an email sent to me on April 19th, 2004 ... when you launched your blog. Close to a year after I launched mine, I might add. Yes, X1 is a great program.
Hi, I wanted to let you know about my PR blog called Micro Persuasion. It tracks how weblogs are changing the practice of public relations. I will add you to my blogroll. Do you think you might mention my blog on yours? You can find it at http://steverubel.typepad.com/micropersuasion.
Maybe I should drop you from my list of PR blogs, to return the favor? I offer those blogs as a resource to others, to give them an idea of what's happening in the PR blogosphere. I think it's a mere courtesy to crosslist, particularly since you made such a push to be crosslisted with other PR blogs, and then sending out pitches to more mainstream technology blogs and journalism blogs.
While I may not always agree with what Robb posts, I read his blog because he has many good points. While I may laugh at what you post some days, and am amazed at your ability to weave in SEO terms, popular links and other SEO tactics, I read your blog because you occasionally bring up good issues.
And, Steve, don't play the populist card. I thought we learned from the past election that it was a non-winning hand. And, yes, this is about the blego.
Sadly, Steve hasn't learned much in a year, and I doubt anyone would say that MP is about how weblogs change the practice of PR. He continues to let his ego get the best of him, is losing touch with PR blogging, and thinks he's above it.
I too read MP when I have the time - mainly to refute what he posts as dictum, but at times can just be hurtful for PR.
By
Jeremy, at 1/11/2006
Wonderful post! Amen brother! Halelujah!
... and then in the Pick of the Orchard below the post I see a link to my Marketing blog (Shut Up and Drink the Kool-Aid!). I swear I felt a little tear well up in my eyes.
1) Yes, even hacks like me get asked to link for other bloggers. I'm guessing I'm somewhere around a P-lister and I feel flattered when I get a submission from somebody. Usually it is somebody just getting started so I feel obligated to help, since I was in the same spot before. Sometimes it is somebody who I've read before and then I feel momentarily important... but only for a few minutes (that's why I have a wife).
2) Yes, you were among the first to provide Kool-Aid with a link. Now I suppose I owe you the same and will be adding you to our link list as I update the blog.
3) Rubel does seem to have gotten a little big for his breaches, but maybe there is hope for him. Lots of people are trying to serve him a few slices of humble pie now... I hope he's hungry.
By
Tim Jackson- Masi Guy, at 1/11/2006
My personal favorite was when he felt the need to tell all of us that someone begged to be put back on his blogroll.
I don't begrudge Steve his success, but I do think the people should continue to dance with those who brought them.
By
philgomes, at 1/11/2006
Just for the record, I don't intend on dissing either of my two subscribers.
Us Y-listers have to stick together.
Mike Bawden
Brand Central Station
By
Mike Bawden, at 1/11/2006
Scott; I think you gave me my first link. I also love your blog and read it every day.
As for MP, I read it, but less every day. I often am not interested in the posts anymore.
I wrote a post, "The Authentic Voice," about this in December with MP in mind. It was when I noticed Steve had ads and his tone seemed to be changing.
If he loses his "authentic voice" he may also ultimately lose his readership (and influence).
By
Kami Huyse, APR, at 1/11/2006
Scott, great post. You are 100% correct; if you have compelling content, you are doing "A-Listers" a favor by sending it to them.
You might find my blog relations advice interesting. It is in my Jan. 6th Letter to Editor in PRWeek called "Give the information to bloggers, don't pitch it." My letter refers to a Jan. 2nd Editorial written by Julia Hood called "Even for new media, old media relations works." Here's an excerpt:
"Bloggers essentially write for themselves. Like anyone who keeps a journal, most bloggers are not overly concerned about appealing to readers; they write about what appeals to them.
If readers enjoy a posting, great. If not, that's fine, too. Therefore, PR people should not "pitch" a blogger by saying that the blog's readers will find a client's information useful or interesting. Instead, PR people should only contact bloggers with information that the specific blogger will find interesting.
And, most important, don't ask bloggers to comment about a client on their blog. It can be perceived as offensive. It's like you asking me to write about your friend in my journal. Send bloggers the information, and if they want to comment, they will."
Again, great post.
By
Wayne E. Pollard, at 1/11/2006
Kami, what do you mean "may" - the grumblings are out there already.
Wayne, great point. At the end of the day, all bloggers are interested in themselves. I write on PR, bc I love what I do, and what to make it better. That's also why I rail against fakers to the throne.
By
Jeremy, at 1/11/2006
Scott,
I've never enjoyed MP. Steve, like many bloggers, is a referrer of other people's news. I prefer reading opinion...even if it's bad or I disagree with it.
By
Dee Rambeau, at 1/11/2006
I want to be removed from all [A-Z] lists. Where do I sign up?
By
Mike Manuel, at 1/11/2006
Wayne: Interesting thought. Personally, I wouldn't say that I "write for myself." I write for an audience that has similar interests to me, which I think is a little different.
Mike M: Sorry, but you've been on at LEAST the B-List ever since you won that award for being the top PR blog last year. It says here right on my scorecard...
Tim and Kami: Thank you!
Jeremy: I'm still working on scheduling Caesar's Palace for the big fight :)
By
SB, at 1/11/2006
Yeah, that Rubel guy. What a worm.
By
Steve Rubel, at 1/11/2006
No one called you that, Steve.
By
SB, at 1/11/2006
I think it's amazing that someone as goofy-looking as Steve has an attitude at all. Geez Louise. As a Z-lister, I guess I should feel fortunate that I'm even allowed to post comments anywhere. (Of course on his blog they're moderated, so my scathing rebuke is likely as not in peril of seeing the light of day.) So yeah, anyway.
I sort of like how my approach to blogroll works. If you happen to stumble by my blog, read it, leave a comment with a link back to your blog, and I find your blog interesting, BAM, you go on the blogroll. It's almost like you're a friend on myspace or something. I've found some great blogs that way, including the one that led me here. I guess I didn't realize by creating a blogroll I was venturing into a fragile social structure.
By
J.D., at 1/12/2006
So on one hand we're encouraging PR folk to learn by doing, then we're touting lists/dashboards like PubSub and Kinja that serve up quickly calculated, technical data that can be helpful but do not always tell the whole story.
Now we're also implying to use these lists when determining which blogs are worth paying attention to and, following Rubel’s logic, which ones aren’t as high on the list to determine pitching targets?
Strapping MSM metrics to blogs to ascertain which ones we should be paying attention to is silly. It only takes ONE.
Jose Avilia was not on anyone’s radar five minutes before that box hit the fan (unlike Kryptonite, I'm assuming Jose has a blog and not a web site, but the argument still applies).
As a low-ranking blogger (Z-List! Viva Z-List!), if I listened to what PubSub, Technorati and Blogpulse tell me about my blog, I'd pull the plug on it.
Luckily I'm a camel, finding sustenance from the occasional reader that thanks me for doing something other than navel gazing. Can you hear the melancholy violin playing in the background?
My traffic and links could be better if I increased my posting frequency, but I have a day job and that's not why I'm doing it.
By
Kevin Dugan, at 1/12/2006
I'm a proud memeber of the C list so if you want to pitch me, you'll have to talk to my people.
Fact is, most of us still watch Battlestar Galactica and Doctor Who so where do we come off acting like we're cool or something?
By
david parmet, at 1/12/2006
Kevin: You're no Z-Lister; modesty in a blogger, how very odd...
David: As long as you don't read Harlan Ellison like Phil, or act like Harlan Ellison, like Jeremy...
By
SB, at 1/12/2006
What's ironic is that Scott's post could have been about someone less prominent and no one would have showed up here to comment.
So there's a bit of a double-edged sword to all this ... we decry "A-listers," especially those who go around reminding us of their status, yet they continue to draw the biggest amount of attention.
Every new blogger learns quickly that they can raise their profile by linking to or taking on a bigger blogger. I've tried to avoid that as much as possible, but then looked what happened to my blog when Shel Holtz lambasted me? My readership spiked and inbound links came flying in left and right. For awhile I was on top of the world because someone said I was ruining the reputation of PR!
By
John Wagner, at 1/12/2006
John, someone with less prominence wouldn't have the chutzpah or hubris to post such a post.
And, the people that are on top and comfortable with their positions don't need to write that they are a top-tier blog. They go about blogging. Can you see Scoble or Hugh McLeod writing that they are top-tier? Part of it is modesty, part of it is confidence in their abilities.
The issue here is you can't have your cake and eat it to. Don't claim you are counseling companies on the equal nature of the blogosphere, where everyone's voice counts, then post you don't deign to link to the little people. It screams hypocrite and, well, fraud. But, no, not worm.
That's the real issue.
By
Jeremy, at 1/12/2006
As I hear more and more criticism of Steve, it boils down to these two concerns:
1. He worked very hard to position himself as the "No. 1 PR Blogger," but often chooses not to address the PR issues of the day in his blog -- particularly controversial ones that might alienate future clients. This approach becomes problematic when your pitch to clients is that corporate blogging is all about open communication and being able to accept and respond to criticism. It's a practice-what-you-preach thing.
2. Blogging is ostensibly about community, and PR bloggers are one of the strongest business blog communities out there. So when the "No. 1" in this community says or does things to set himself apart from it, this rankles some folks. And not just Jeremy -- he's merely the most vocal in expressing his emotions about it.
I like and respect Steve's blog, and I expect that I would like Steve if we met in person. But with the "No. 1" mantle comes responsibilities -- and accountability to others in the profession.
By
SB, at 1/12/2006
Can't we all just get along?
First off, I dig Media Orchard. Scott, you've done a great job with this blog.
Here's a bit of a contra POV, as I'm really trying to swear off this sort of meta-wankery. (We have enough on our plates trying to talk about the benefits of social media without the constant king-of-the-mountain routine. Really folks, let's chill. I recognize how fun snark is, but, I'm getting old here. It's time to build stuff that will last & will not leave. Extra points if you know where I ripped off that line.)
So, imagine your own daily moments of overwhelm. I don't have 6,000+ RSS readers and my email is all but unusable. I depend on NNW, tech.memeorandum, digg, delicious and other things to bring content to my attention. I don't think it's any secret that Micropersuasion is about aggregation of a certain kind of content. He's not trying to break stories, build a community, whatever. It's a pretty basic intro point for the intersection of DIY media tools & marketing uses. It ain't gigaom. Techcrunch. He has an audience because they value what he's offering. If your content fits in, it will probably get a link. If he says that the best way to get his attention is to show up in his aggregator, take it at face value.
I'm saying let's cut each other a bit of slack. You might email me & I'm swamped with current client work, a bunch of new apps & projects I want to do, my own blogging whims, new potential clients, my kids, an offline life, whatever. As the man said during a trip to the pitcher's mound: we're dealing with a lot of shit here.
What I'm not saying is let's get all kumbayah. I love vigorous disagreement with good ideas flowing about. What I believe most about social media is that we can quickly find out who/what has value & what doesn't. There is so much good stuff out there, that you'll simply lose our attention if you're not pumping out the good stuff. The so-called lists are effluvia. Take them seriously at the risk of wasting your time. Did any of you know who Mike Arrington was last January? I bet you'd love to have him link to you today. /oldmanranting
Party on.
By
Brian Oberkirch, at 1/12/2006
Brian: This kind of topic CAN become like eating too many potato chips after a while. I think my brain is getting a tummy-ache.
Or: another analogy would be that in any community, anthropologically speaking, there must be periodic rituals of purge and renewal. In the old days it might have been human sacrifice, for example. These days it's much more civilized than that...
By
SB, at 1/12/2006
We need to meet and mud-wrestle. We could wait for the August monsoons in Phoenix and all go visit Jeremy and drive into the nearest wash...or we could just go to Seattle right now!
By
Dee Rambeau, at 1/12/2006
Oh, Dee, if only we did have monsoons - stupid drought.
Heck, I'd buy dinner for everyone.
By
Jeremy, at 1/13/2006
The whole concept of "A-list bloggers" strikes me as pretty clue-less. Inevitable but clue-less. Luckily, I think we can also make it irrelevant. To adopt a phrase: just say no. Ignore it, don't worry about it and get on with it. At least that's my plan.
By
Susan Getgood, at 1/13/2006
As someone who gets a lot of e-mails from people wanting links, I think Steve was trying to be genuinely helpful.
I think there's only so much mileage to be had in writing "If I were an A-lister, this is how I'd behave differently" posts.
What's more interesting are A-Listers who actually behave diffrently.
Personally, I suspect that anyone who would expend this kind of effort writing something called "A-Listers aren't different from you and me" doesn't actually quite believe it, and have secret, hidden issues of their own.
But I could be wrong.
Hugh
http://www.gapingvoid.com
By
hugh, at 1/16/2006
Hugh: I agree with you that Steve was trying to be helpful, as I wrote in the post. I respect Steve's work, and I read his blog daily.
I would add that my criticism of Steve is certainly more measured than yours of me here -- and based on far greater familiarity with Steve's work.
So I'm assuming you can see the irony in your criticism of my criticism.
But I could be wrong.
By
SB, at 1/16/2006
Measured? Me? Now that would be a first...
It's just people who spend a lot of time (measured or otherwise) writing about A-Listology make me wonder what they're really trying to hide. It's kinda an automatic response with me, having it seen a lot of it over the years.
It's such a non-issue. A secret, hidden non-issue ;-)
Hugh MacLeod
http://www.gapingvoid.com
By
hugh, at 1/17/2006
Hugh: It's one post out of more than 500 here, so to say I "spend a lot of time" on this "non-issue" is a bit of an overstatement.
In any case, it's touched a nerve with some people -- so I'm obviously not the only one with issues over this non-issue.
But whatever ... I agree that it's not the biggest deal in the world. Continued success with your A-List blog, Hugh...:)
By
SB, at 1/17/2006
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