In the past, I have been very hesitant about using this blog to showcase great services and products. In fact, I can think of just a tiny number of posts in the last 4 years, which were dedicated to introducing you to resources that I find extremely valuable.
I realised a few weeks ago that this was the wrong approach. This post explains why and also, why I believe it’s important for bloggers to share valuable resources with their readers.
The value of sharing
A few weeks ago, I decided to put things right and be a little more proactive, when it came to sharing useful resources. So, I gave a recommendation to the Marketing Over Coffee podcast, the only marketing podcast I now subscribe to. People are still thanking me today, for sharing that podcast with them.
Then yesterday, I heard some news that reinforced why unpaid, honest recommendations like that are so important.
A Seesmic shift
Some of you who connect with me on Twitter, know I use and love the Seesmic desktop app and Seesmic phone app. I’ve been using Twitter for 5 years and the Seesmic tools are the best I have found for my needs.
Yesterday, I discovered that Seesmic’s owner Loic Le Meur, had recently announced that he needed to release over half his workforce. You can read about it here. It’s especially sad news, as Loic is a lovely guy and the products, including the seesmic ping beta that I am testing right now, are extremely good.
In all the time I have used Seesmic products, I have never blogged about them. I have never shared why you may want to consider using Seesmic, if you are tired of using slow, browser based products that look like spreadsheets, for cross posting to your social networking accounts. Today I am doing just that. The news from Seesmic, shows us that it’s all too easy for people to miss out on great resources, if those of us who use them don’t share how much we value them.
Sharing matters
I am going to continue to be a little more proactive, about sharing resources I value, which I believe you will want to know about. These will always be unpaid recommendations and only for resources I personally trust and value, which will be of interest to business owners.
If you have a blog and there are resources you value, I suggest you use your voice to share them with your reader community. If enough of us do this, we will all benefit.
UPDATE: I heard from Loic earlier and he confirmed that Seesmic will now be focusing their efforts onto Seesmic Ping; an app that allows you to schedule posts across various social networks. You can find out more here.