I was a bit harsh on FOLIO, but I got a bit guilty and softened up on them after a few graphs. I'm glad that you agree on the blogging, though. I'm actually going to be doing a Webinar with Fuel Dog (www.fueldog.com) on trade show blogs for SISO (Society of Independent Show Organizers) and we did a presentation together at their annual meeting.
You folks are killing us! Yes, blogs are great to get the word out to the rest of the world. They're fun, intimate, valuable and convey color better than a digital replica of a print product.
But ON-SITE, a blog is of little value.
What we did was an on-site print daily. We thought we could bring SOME value to the rest of the industry by doing a digital replica.
And we produced revenue!
We could not blog, do the dailies, cover sessions, generate ideas for the magazine, host the event, etc., simultaneously. We chose to do a product that generated the most on-site value and generated revenue. Should we not have done the replica?
David, you and Prescott seem to be arguing that digital replicas don't have much value. I'd like to hear if I've gotten that wrong.
You both do a great job, but I differ with you on this.
Tony:
Your point is well taken, and there was no intent to cause harm.
I personally like digital editions, since they look and feel like magazines. But I'm 46 years old, and remember using manual typewriters. I still sometimes read newspapers the old-fashioned way.
I think the key thought was to look forward to the generation of readers who are foregoing print for the screen, and to the new generation of portable of web-enabled devices and mini-readers that most businesspeople are buying and using. I attended a conference earlier this week, and during breaks, caught up on my RSS feeds and e-newsletters using my cell phone.
Since my company does show dailies on behalf of our clients, I understand what you're saying. The print show daily still has relevance, and a digital edition which extends its reach is a decent idea.
But soon enough, I think, we won't be doing our jobs if we don't deliver content to our audience in the way they want to receive it.
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