Facibus On Blogging

…or a consultant who blogs?

I’ve found myself thinking about this since blogging at the Oz-IA conference. I met wiki consultants, mind-mapping consultants, social computing consultants, and, well a lot of consultant Information Architects (like myself). I didn’t meet any Blogging Consultants, but I’ve heard the term used here and there. I like to think of myself as a consultant who blogs, but I’m curious about what a Blogging Consultant is, and what they do.

I’ve advised clients and colleagues on blogging as part of wider communication/HR strategies, and find myself being drawn into a fair few conversations around the joys and pitfalls of corporate blogging. This is still only a small part of my consulting work and that of the local consultancy.

Where is the line?
So when does someone leave the consultant-who-blogs category and become a Blogging Consultant? Where is the line? I currently label myself a Consultant Information Architect (IA), but when you get right down to it I am a Consultant who does IA work. It is fairer to say that I use IA tools and methodologies to help clients and the consultancy. The bigger picture includes a heap of other skills that apply themselves anywhere in the consulting world, including:

• business process modeling and re-engineering,
• facilitation, and
• communications strategy.

At the moment I’m undertaking a short engagement that, if I had to put a label on it, would be closer to technical business analysis/data modeling than IA. So I can’t say that I qualify as a Blogging Consultant on the “100% of time spent consulting on blogging” criteria.

Is it about intensity instead?
If being a Blogging Consultant is about applying expertise when required, regardless of total time spent, then I probably do qualify. When I’m talking about blogging, it is in the context of meeting a stated need - usually one of the following:

• the need to raise awareness within a specific target audience,
• to be identified as the employer of choice,
• to appear more human/personal,
• to show thought leadership in a given field, or
• to sell a specific product - and this can be an item for sale, a methodology, or another free resource like a white paper.

Blogging is only one potential part of a solution that could also include a wiki, direct client contact, conference attendance/sponsorship, white papers, and  Marketing 1.0 tools (like brochures, newspaper advertisements, and t-shirts). My first question when I hear “we need a blog” is (and should always be) “What do you want to achieve?”. Blogs may be an answer, but my humble opinion is that they are rarely the only component of a holistic solution.

As an aside - I believe that there are too many consultants in the world who provide answers rather than solutions - I’m proud to work with the “solutions not answers” crew at SMS.
Is the label important anyway?
It is only important where people place an emphasis on it. There have been that many arguments over the years around “what is an IA?” that I’m not sure it is even worth considering the label as anything more than a convenience - it is a way of putting a circle around a bundle of services that may be shared between a client and a service provider. People get hung up on labels where there is money involved, and this is understandable if a little sad. It is not about what the business card says, it is about the good that you can do, and the difference that you can make. That said, like the black suit and white shirt, I understand that appearances are important. But a good tailor can only get you through the front door - it is in showing worth that we get to stay and do good.

My conclusion
…is that I’m not comfortable calling myself a Blogging Consultant at the moment. If I was working for myself, and there was work in corporate blog consulting, then I might think about using this as a promotional/marketing tool. How I would do this is an interesting post in and of itself for another day.