Are You Being a Good Netizen?
Odds are good that if you are reading Sourcing Innovation, Spend Matters, eSourcing Forum, or one of the other leading sourcing and procurement blogs then you are a consultant, service, or software provider. Believe it or not, this is a bad thing. You’re probably reading these blogs to improve your understanding of the space, the relevant issues, and what others (analysts, service providers, and software providers) are doing to address these issues, and although this is itself a good thing, the reality is that you’re not the one that really needs this education the most.
The fact of the matter is, the people who need to be reading these blogs the most is the intended audience – the procurement and sourcing professionals these blogs are written for. Moreover, as a consultant, service, or software provider, it’s in your best interest if these procurement and sourcing professionals – your target customers – are reading these blogs daily. After all, I’m betting that your biggest challenge is user education – especially considering that you should be constantly struggling to keep up with demand considering the value associated with the average procurement and sourcing product on the market today.
So, are you telling your customers about these blogs and the educational opportunity they provide? If not, why not? The fact of the matter is, if you don’t tell them, chances are, no one else will. Even though they’ll ask us for a link, generally speaking, the on-line magazines will not link back. The analysts are looking for leads, not giving them away. And many people still think blogs are still just for journals, ranting, or political commentary.
This isn't to say that you shouldn't be reading these blogs, or that I don't value your readership. I do - and I am especially aware of the fact that the more informed you are, the better the debates get on Spend Matters! Just that I want you to be sure that you're doing your part to spread the word.
So tell your customers about Sourcing Innovation, Spend Matters, eSourcing Forum, and your favourite sourcing or procurement blogs. After all, it’s easier to sell to an informed customer than an uninformed one. And easier still when the customer takes it upon themselves to self educate!
That’s my rant for the month. There’s a comment feature if you want to leave yours.
"Odds are good that if you are reading Sourcing Innovation, Spend Matters, eSourcing Forum, or one of the other leading sourcing and procurement blogs then you are a consultant, service, or software provider."
Michael: this is a very astute assumption. So why is it that these blogs are attracting consultants/service providers/software providers instead of sourcing professionals?
The answer is simple: because these blogs are written by consultants/service providers/software providers!
Birds of a feather flock together.
From the conversations that I've had, sourcing professionals want to hear about sourcing from other sourcing professionals, not individuals without sourcing experience. There's the perception among them that they cannot learn how to do their job from someone who has never done their job.
Even when I do public speaking, some sourcing professionals are wary of what I have to say because they may lump me in the "consultant" category, even though I have over 10 results-producing years of experience as a practitioner!
So is this a problem for the authors of those blogs?
I don't think so.
I think that the authors should embrace that fact.
Even though the authors intended to reach another audience, they have attracted a very interested and loyal "other audience." Writing specifically for that other audience will only help those authors make their blogs even more appealing to the people who read them.
And some of those blogs (e.g., Spend Matters, Sourcing Innovation) have "sister companies" whose customers are service/software providers and not sourcing professionals anyway - not even beginning to mention the potential for referrals within the service/software provider space. To me, it would make good business sense for some of the blog writers to embrace the audience they has been drawn to them and grow it.
Am I totally off-base here, or does this make sense?
Sincerely,
Charles
A Service Provider
Charles:
I think the authors have accepted this fact, but would not embracing this fact indicate that we have given up? I'm not convinced that all sourcing practictioners believe that they can only learn from others doing the same job they are doing. If that was the case, they'd never read a book or magazine about sourcing, since most of those are written by authors and journalists with even less knowledge than those of us who spend our time trying to understand the problems sourcing professionals are facing everyday (since this is necessary to craft the right solutions). I'm not expecting them to take what we say in these blogs "as gospel", but I do think that a forward thinking practitioner who took what we had to say "with a grain of salt" and thought about the issues we presented would benefit from knowing about the blogs and checking them regularly. After all, where else are they going to get an up-to-the-minute second opinion, good or bad, on new products, services, research, and "solutions" announced in the space?
If you're right, and an average sourcing professional is never going to read these blogs, and the only way to reach them is through the consultant / software / service providers they let in the door, then a focus on reaching more of those individuals could definately make sense, but I do not see why a blog in this space cannot serve both audiences, especially one that focuses on the issues and potential solutions. Both professionals and providers need to understand what the issues are and what the solutions may be. Professionals so they can identify potential software and solution providers to help them, and software and solution providers so they can build the right solutions for their potential customers. After all, the value for both parties is being able to focus on the definition and delivery of a better service, not in a drawn out sales cycle which results when the customer does not understand what your solution could do or why it could be valuable. (Furthermore, this would only help the "sister companies" you mention, since once focus shifts from customer education to having the better next-generation product, I believe software and service providers are going to need more sources of ideas external to their four walls. If you remember my innovation series, the current leaders in the innovation space are those already reaching out and embracing the best ideas they can find.)
Thanks for the quick reply, Michael. I'm absolutely NOT saying that sourcing professionals shouldn't read these blogs. I share your opinion that they should.
But, first, I am alerting you to a very real PERCEPTION that exists among sourcing professionals, which could very well explain why the readership is different than the blog authors anticipated. I don't agree that the perception should prevent a sourcing professional from at least reading the blogs and filtering the advice through a mindset built by practical experience, but I do acknowledge that the perception exists.
And, second, I'm suggesting that the blog authors may benefit from catering more to their audience. For example, if you built a pub and stocked the jukebox with songs that would appeal to a country music audience, but found that most of the patrons sitting at the bar were classic rock fans, wouldn't you considering putting a few more Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, and Eagles CD's in the jukebox?
And if you sold more beers as a result, wouldn't you consider sending most of the Carrie Underwood and Kenny Chesney CD's to the second-hand store?
Wouldn't that help you - the pub owner - from a business perspective?
I think that success, whether it be in business or the Iraq war, is dependent upon making adjustments to the plan based on intelligence acquired along the way. Making adjustments isn't giving up, it's maximizing your opportunities.
Personally, I think that there is a lot of opportunities for intellectual stimulation for sourcing professionals in Sourcing Innovation, Spend Matters, and Supply Excellence. But I also see a huge opportunity for the bloggers by taking advantage of their understanding of the eyeballs that look at their blogs day-in and day-out.
Anyways, a great, thought-provoking post and discussion! Keep up the great work!
I feel like I should disagree with the initial post from Charles, as I probably am that "average" sourcing professional who trolls the site. Apparently I am in the minority, I would guess that your sites have various ways of determining who is accessing the content.
I try to keep up with several of the blogs on a daily or weekly basis. My interest is to stay current and as sharp as possible while playing the role of conduit for others that I work with.
I believe that the majority of non-providers who read these sites will never comment as they prefer to read and digest the content for their own use. A provider would seem to be more interested in responding, challenging, etc. in order to be better able to use the information as they interact with clients, etc.
While some of the sharpest folks I know are current or ex-providers, I also know that many people at the professional level do not/will not engage with providers with an open mind. Trying to keep abreast of what providers are thinking and doing should ease my way when I present new (to my organization) strategies, tools, or providers to help us achieve our goals.
In short - we may not say much but we appreciate your efforts!
What would you specifically recommend for content to target the right audience and get the most out of it?
Check out Charle's follow up post over on the Purchasing Certification Blog: Purchasing Education & Being Open-Minded. It's worth the read.
Charles & Michael, those are good ideas and I think mostly, spot on. One thing that has to be considered, is that people who will spend time to actually write content (which is extremely time intensive), need to have a reason. This is the reason that all of the blogs that have regular postings are also sponsored by groups that will indirectly benefit by their existence. Purchasing professionals are already working 50-60 hours week (or more) just to do their own jobs, let alone try to hold session on best practices which only benefits their ego or altruistic feelings. (Eg, see how few comments are posted on any sites as verification of this premise). There are plenty of controversial and thought provoking posts going on but 90% of the comments come from "insiders". Unfortunately, I do not foresee many new blogs coming on line that would be considered strictly purchasing professional focused. I try to keep a good mix of sourcing best practices, industry news, and 3rd party idea generation to make eSourcing Forum widely applicable with as little marketing as possible.
I DO know that we have a large readership of our own clients and this is a good medium to reach them with ideas and a way to become a better partner of theirs. That was the purpose of starting our blog. Any referrals that come to us are a bonus but I cannot really pinpoint anything like that after 18 months.
What would you specifically recommend for content to target the right audience and get the most out of it?