I’m not anti-character blogs if they’re not lame like Captain Morgan. A clever character blog could be ok if it was well-written and had a reason to exist. But I’ve yet to see one of those. I wouldn’t have minded a character blog from the subservient chicken for example. But moosetopia by the moose logo for Denali Flavors is just dull.
An Overly Solicitous PR Pitch
I got a PR email pitch last week from John Nardini telling me that he writes moosetopia for Denali, a Michigan-based ice cream company that supplies elite flavors to 80 ice cream-making dairies. “News story you are going to hate” was the subject line. Nardini told me the blog would be “talked about a lot at great length tomorrow” (It wasn’t.)
As a PR pitch it was a nice try, but too solicitous to be taken too seriously. I can’t help thinking he told dozens of other bloggers “Before I begin, I just want to say how appreciative I am of your blog. I have learned so much by reading it over the past couple of months and it’s really helped form my thinking on blogging. I don’t always agree with you, but you make me think. :-)”
Nardini wanted me to see “that there is more than a shoddy attempt at marketing here (which you may disagree with) but a thoughtful strategy that while potentially risky, is also one that our consumers will love.”
The blog is supposed to be written by the moose who is the corporate mascot. It says it contains “fun, wacky, inspirational, silly, strange stuff and more.” Not so far! I’d much rather hear from someone who is a professional taster talking about how they come up with new flavors than about an email joke someone sent the moose.
Steven Streight, of the blog Vaspers the Grate called it “one of the worst blogs I’ve seen … a boring stupid waste of time. Fire the blog consultant and the entire marketing department. Morons.”
Really, it’s not that bad!
Paul Chaney at Radiant Marketing said “It is what it appears to be, a fun blog using the company mascot as the spokesperson.” Not much fun so far!
Shel Israel said he was basically ambivalent about it and that he’d leave it to the blogosphere to judge it. One commenter on Israel’s blog said “The idea of a “talking Moose” blog seems fairly inoffensive to me. It also sounds very uninteresting to me.”
Another said “The idea of some codeyed moose telling crap anecdotes in order to sell ice cream is patently absurd. It gets even more absurd once you see said moose whining about what’s being said about it by other blogs.”
Ad Agencies Will Dominate Character Blogs, Sigh
I thought the Dr. Pepper Raging Cow’s ill-fated blog was just done by the wrong people. If it had been handled better, it might still be around. My 5 year-old niece loves Barbie’s blog and wants to products it talks about.
I believe ad agencies will dominate the character blog space, which is too bad because they tend to be heavy-handed jerks who still don’t get the Internet. PR people still haven’t taken back websites from the sales department at most big companies and that’s why there are so few memorably clever Fortune 100 sites.
The blogosphere tends to be elitist, likes to get down on bloggers who have ads on their sites, which is ridiculous. Blogging is like anything else people spend a lot of time and effort on — a way to make money. Either directly or indirectly most bloggers, including this one, want to make money by blogging.
I don’t agree with Steve Rubel that all character blogs are a waste of time. Character blogs will evolve the same way websites have and eventually the cream will rise to the top. Meantime, we can look forward to lots more Captain Morgan’s and boring moose.
Character Blogs Aren’t Inherently Evil. So Why Are So Many So Lame?
BL Ochman | April 18, 2005 | Permanent Link | Comments (8) | TrackBack (
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Categories: Blogging and Moblogging
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Dr Quack
I am pleased to see the debate about fake blogs aka as 'character' blogs evolving to a more practical level. I give you Dr Quack: Are you a fake blog character, brand or logo that has been pilloried for the part you've played in turni…
What’s a Character Blog?
Dave, I’ve been reading all sorts of stuff on different weblogs about “character blogs”, but I’m still not clear on what they are and whether they’re a good thing or not. What’s your opinion?…
What’s a Character Blog?
Dave, I’ve been reading all sorts of stuff on different weblogs about “character blogs”, but I’m still not clear on what they are and whether they’re a good thing or not. What’s your opinion?…
Boy, are you suspicious! “An overly solicitous PR pitch”? Ever hear of a friendly heads-up? I guess not. Perhaps you need to look at everything as having a hidden agenda. Too bad. That’s a sorry way to live life.
As far as Moosetopia, I’d agree that it has a long way to go — and I’m committed to it getting better every day. However, I’m also of the opinion that “doing” is the best form of “learning” and instead of waiting five years until everything settles down, we’re jumping in. Time (and our customers) will tell if it’s a success or not.
John Nardini
Sorry John, but just about every pitch starts with something about how the person has read my blog and then they pitch me something totally unrelated. In the past three days I’ve been pitched about wigs, travel, radio and several other topics that have no relationship to blogs or Internet marketing or PR, all of which I do cover. So yes, I am suspicious of pitches and expect them to be insincere.
I guess you really believed that moosetopia would be the talk of the blogosphere the next day. I also wondred why I’d be told second and not first.
I wish you well with moosetopia as I am a major ice cream fan. :>) And, as I said, I don’t agree with Steve Rubel, Robert Scoble and many others who categorically dismiss character blogs.
I even agree that a blog by a moose could be popular, if it has content that is original and funny, or if it appeals to kids. So far, it doesn’t. Using email jokes for posts really doesn’t cut it at all.
I don’t agree that moosetopia should be online until there is a clear voice and a plan for character development. I certainly hope it gets better.
Sorry you got it second — the circumstances of how it came to public light were rather complicated and transpired over hours — not even days. Maybe we let the cat out of the bag (or moose out of the whatever) too early. Time will tell.
The ultimate judges on this issue will be consumers and given feedback we’ve received already, it appears that they are much less critical than most of the professionals out there. However, this is based on a very small sample and can’t be used as a projection. Still, at least it’s encouraging.
I think we will get better over the course in time and we’ll learn a lot along the way. If not, we won’t be around long. If that happens, I promise I’ll allow you to send me an “I told you so” email without any negative feedback coming your way. ;-)
I’ll consider what you’ve said about originality and being funny. Perhaps that comment alone will be the spark that will ultimately put us in at least the “acceptable” level.
Above all else, keep eating ice cream. It’s good for the soul. :-)
The core values of blogging, according to journalist, business, political, and marketing bloggers, seems to be the consensus Universal Blog Mantra:
Authenticity. Passion. Transparency. Honesty. Integrity. Originality.
I see none of these virtues in Fictional Character blogs. CEOs have been “fictional characters” long enough.
Now it’s time for them to speak for their products, their firms, their beliefs, in a candid, two-way, open, sincere, intelligent, interactive conversation with the target audience.
“No, customers do not wish to interact with the CEO,” chortles the blog consultant. “They would prefer to interact with a Talking Gorilla or Simulated Pig or Discoursing Yard Rake. Far more fun. And people tend to buy more product when they’re being silly and entertained and stupid.”
What’s fictional is actually the blog consultant, the marketing strategy, and the future for such blatantly off-core pseudo bloggeries.
I‘m sure many of you are like me and one of the first things you do in the morning is head here and check out the new post. Along with seeing the new posts, I’m also always checking out the blog roll rss feed and watching them grow, or shrink sometimes. In one of my past …but all in all excellent site. Keep it up!