Taking A Risk Here: Is Blogging on TM Approaching Regression to the Mean

There are currently 8,951 blog posts on TM. Rather faithfully I read the blogs of: Holly Rigsby, Dawn72, Lauren Barack, and Lea Curtes-Swenson. I love all the new fresh faces and often read new posts as well.

Last night, I came across Stacey's blog on living with autism and I was reminded that's why I came here. Stacey's post was beautiful. Honest but not over-the-top. The layout was excellent and I learned so much reading it. I think I might have even changed some of my own approach to life just reading it.

A year ago when there were less than 3000 moms on TM, the blogs were compelling. Many included personal stories and struggles, others offered advice, still others asked solid questions or commented on politics, literature or film. Today, there are still great posts. Some are personal some are not, many glean valuable tidbits or just a hearty laugh. But many should be ads not posts.

So where does becoming average come in, you ask? When blogging becomes anonymous with small biz, brands and corporate reps writing to push their products then TM becomes like every other mom blog site out there. When I get messages in my in-box that ask me to go to a link outside TM to read someone's personal blog, that's losing the personal touch and original style of TM. When direct selling spills into the central blog log, that's a turn-off, at least for me. When give-aways litter the writing space and original creative thoughts, stories, and ideas are left behind like rubble from a time past, that's when I stop reading and even stop writing.

Give-aways are super fun and corporate support is valuable but let's not lose the individual mom voices on TM.

Come back Ye Ole creative mommy's. Extend yourself and your literary power. Let your written voice be like art in this space. Please do not disappear.

Tags: blogging, moms, parenting, quality, tmfc

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Comment by Kathryn Skokna on September 4, 2009 at 11:38am: Amen to that! I'm very new to blogging and not knowing much about it, have to admit I thought...what is the point? ...it seems like just one big advertisement! I now know it can be soooo much more and truly should be so much more. I get so much more out of the blogs that are down to earth and about life. I decided that is what true blogging really is. I had to go through that learning curve....luckily it didn't take me long, and I never posted on here my commercialized one. Thank you, because if anyone is like me, and doesn't know how to blog or what it's really about....this is truly a heads up! :)

Comment by April Welch on September 1, 2009 at 9:10pm: Wow, the power of a mother will never cease to amaze me.

A little over a week ago I was having this same conversation with Amy at Mom Spark {that's intuition at its best!} She had written a similar thought provoking post & the discussion quickly shifted to feeling less connected to & more 'blitzed' by ads on those more recognized blogs.

I have to agree with Stefanie, I'm newer to the TM scene & I have never really understood how to navigate through. I actually thought the purpose of TM was to provide Mom Bloggers with PR opportunities, so to find out that I've been missing out on a warm & cozy community bums me out! But I'm looking forward to the tweaking that will take place in the future :o)

And Megan, be proud of what this has become! As you stated, you had no idea a year ago that these would be the things you'd be facing!

Now back to my original point, the beauty of our nurturing spirit as mothers is that you won't be facing any of this alone ~ we all see it as a need & we will stand by your side supporting you any way necessary.

Personally, my crystal ball predicts that the day is coming where we {as Mom Bloggers} will be the ones dictating marketing campaigns from their inception. Look at how many of us flat out ignore the continued attempts even now :-)

So stand strong my fearless leader & know that you are adored,

april

Comment by Stefanie Mullen on August 31, 2009 at 8:55am: Great discussion. I came on the scene of this site only a couple of months ago. I am new to blogging and was looking for a place to connect with other writers/moms.

The purpose of this site and frankly others like it was confusing to me. Upon joining it seemed as if most were using the site to promote themselves or a product or giveaway. I would rarely come across something that was just for the sole purpose of my reading pleasure. I confess that I followed suit.

I began posting small snippets of my own posts (on several mom sites) from my personal site and then directing, via a link, the reader back to my site. I noticed a couple of things. One my bounce rate went sky high. The other, I didn't like the feeling of self promotion. It felt dirty and deceitful.

I spent a lot of time mulling it over this past weekend and decided that the organic readers (the ones that find it naturally or through a referral are the readers that come back because they weren't deceived into showing up in the first place.) Also, I want readers on my site that are there because they want to be, not because I tricked them into showing up. It wasn't until this morning that I read this post.

It seems to me that there needs to be two types of sites or a separate place on this site for self promotion. If I knew that I was going into a section that was simply moms promoting their blogs, I wouldn't feel deceived and I wouldn't feel the guilt of self promotion when I posted my blog. I am always looking for new blogs to read and would love a place to find them.

I love this site Megan and love that you are constantly trying to improve it. Thank you for providing such a fabulous place for all of us to grow together.

Comment by Stefanie Mullen on August 31, 2009 at 8:50am: Great discussion. I came on the scene of this site only a couple of months ago. I am new to the blogging scene and was looking for a place to connect with other writers/moms.

The purpose of this site and frankly others like it was confusing to me. Upon joining it seemed as if most were using the site to promote themselves or a product or giveaway. I would rarely come across something that was just for the sole purpose of my reading pleasure. I confess that I followed suit.

I began posting small snippets of my own posts (on several mom sites) from my personal site and then directing, via a link, the reader back to my site. I noticed a couple of things. One my bounce rate went sky high. The other, I didn't like the feeling of self promotion. It felt dirty and deceitful.

I spent a lot of time mulling it over this past weekend and decided that the organic readers (the ones that find it naturally or through a referral are the readers that come back because they weren't deceived into showing up in the first place.) Also, I want readers on my site that are there because they want to be, not because I tricked them into showing up. It wasn't until this morning that I read this post.

It seems to me that there needs to be two types of sites or a separate place on this site for self promotion. If I knew that I was going into a section that was simply moms promoting their blogs, I wouldn't feel deceived and I wouldn't feel the guilt of self promotion when I posted my blog. I am always looking for new blogs to read and would love a place to find them.

I love this site Megan and love that you are constantly trying to improve it. Thank you for providing such a fabulous place for all of us to grow together.

Comment by molly balint on August 31, 2009 at 5:44am: Lynne, this is a fantastic post and I really enjoyed reading everyone's comments.

In the past year or so, I suddenly found myself being approached by companies wanting me to review products, host giveaways, etc. And I found it all very exciting and flattering. It felt like some "sign" that I had finally "made it" as a blogger. But in the past several months, I have felt myself drastically pulling away from this "scene". I felt like I was giving away my blog to people and to words that weren't my own. I felt like I had lost my voice and the true focus and tone of what I wanted my blog to be.

It was sucking all the life out of my blog. And burning me out.

What originally made my blog grow was an honest perspective, sharing stories from my life in the country raising three little girls. That's what kept people coming back. And somewhere, for awhile, that got lost. I needed to remember why it was that I was a blogger.

This isn't to say that there will never be another giveaway on my blog. I still have a few publishers whose books I enjoy writing about, and some etsy sellers whose work I love to pass on and give exposure to. But I have slowly found myself returning to my original passion, my desire to tell a story, to remember, savor and mark the fleeting time of childhood.

Thank you Lynne for this fabulous, honest "needed to be said post". Thank you Megan, Lea, and others for your great comments that allowed me to continue to think through this important topic.

I think it is wonderful, the economic opportunities that blogging can provide for so many mothers and in no way am I against that. But what I am, is a proponent for mothers to maintain their voice in the midst of all that provides. Including myself.

A great discussion, and a great start to another successful year for Twitter Moms.

Comment by Kate on August 31, 2009 at 2:37am: Great post! I've also been disappointed to see a minority who use their blogs and TM as a marketing tool. I've met some wonderful mums here and got to know them in other places too, but I did stop dropping by because I felt too many others were focussing on selling to me, rather than talking to me.

Comment by Megan Calhoun on August 17, 2009 at 11:15am: This is a GREAT discussion to be having. To Kelly's point, blogs that matter are blogs that are authentic and connect with readers -- and you get to know the author in some way. I really felt like the direction the "mom blog" industry was headed was all wrong. Many moms work hard to bring in extra income through blogging. Over the past few years, as social media and moms online grew more powerful, marketers started reaching out to bloggers. At first, it was flattering to be contacted by PR firm X about Brand Z's new product. Then it just got gross. Product reviews have their place, I'm sure, but the opportunities we bring out to our community are designed to inspire real discourse on topics of interest -- rather than talk about how great a fabric softener worked on a load of laundry. It's a subtle difference but a shift I wish more "mom blogging" communities would latch on to. I also think it's why we have such great responses to brand-driven blogging initiatives and it's probably worth diving into a bit here.

Yes, there are often rewards in the contests we bring to our readers -- everybody's time is valuable and should be given proper consideration. If you look at how our contests are constructed, they are really different. First, they revolve around discussion topics -- almost never around product reviews. We have a unique community of moms here who are creative, industrious, and very smart. There is no reason for moms to flog products on their blogs in exchange for coupons. Tit-for-tat product review posts are easy to ignore, uninspired and tactical. Worst of all, they fail to showcase EITHER the brand or the blogger in the best light possible. Social media is about conversations, discussions, and engaging readers on points of interest and passion.

A year ago, I took a look at who was joining and why. It became clear to me there were three things we needed to do in 2009:

1. Highlight new and interesting content every day on the topics you're most interested in discussing.
2. Offer economic opportunities for all members interested in connecting with the media, markerters and advertisers in creative and authentic ways.
3. Create fun events and contests for members based on your interests and expertise.

For #2 and #3, I feel like together we're taking a REAL leadership role in this, we have intentionally focused on setting new and higher standards for how brands should engage the "blogosphere".

You'll notice that nearly all of the opportunities we bring our blogging community allow maximum freedom of editorial voice. They revolve around a topic of discussion that's broad enough to allow for genuine creative output and showcase our community's passions and talents. These opportunities are strictly opt-in -- moms choose to participate only when the topic strikes her fancy and the economic incentive is in line with her valuable time. Finally, anything that we get behind here is vetted directly by me and needs to meet extremely high standards and ensure that our community maintains its integrity. I've turned down DOZENS of bad ideas, brought to us by some very big brands. There are plenty of other places people can turn to reach a more traditional blog network.

Anyway, I really do appreciate this discussion because it's important to the health of the community. Any and all feedback is welcome. We're constantly trying to improve the service and value we deliver to our members.

Comment by Lea Curtes-Swenson on August 16, 2009 at 8:00pm: So do you think that contests, et al are now becoming part of the normal social media landscape? Maybe it's driven by what the advertisers (OK, the bill-payers!) are asking for. Kind of an advertising trend, because it's perceived to be "interactive," and that's what they're "supposed" to do on social media (vs. the usual one-way marketing communication)?

Comment by Michelle Hutchison on August 16, 2009 at 3:55am: I agree with what you are saying, but I think TM can sometimes send a double message. There are many competitions featured by TM that encourage blogging to win something and obviously advertise something in the process. Don't get me wrong, I love it here - Just something to think about.

Comment by Lynne Kenney on August 15, 2009 at 2:31pm: I agree Kelly and Lea, I wished to thank Megan as well!. I have learned so much at TM. I have met moms who stay home, moms who work hrs and hrs every day, moms who write, sing, make music, create art. Before TM all we really had were bulletin boards, here we have a place to grow, learn be inspired and best of all laugh. This Fall I am traveling to do Moms Salons as a part of the Moms Know Best series and often, the home I go to will be a mom from TM - nothing cld be more fun. THANK YOU Megan! I mean it!