As Japan's Nuke Troubles Deflate, So Does a Japan Blogger

The sub-title of this blog should be: "As people lose interest in Japan's nuclear problems, bloggers on Japan lose readers."

THE TEMPTATIONS - AM I LOSING YOU?

I think all of us bloggers on Japan now have much deflated egos. I know I do. I have to admit it. I'm no longer flying high. I was a hot-shot blogger but now, to borrow a phrase from George Foreman, I am a "po" blogger. I am such a "po" blogger that I can't even afford to add the "or" at the end of "po." I am not a "poor" blogger. I am a "po" blogger. 


I was all proud of myself during the "hey-day" of the nuclear crisis in Japan as this blog was getting anywhere between 4,000 ~ 6,000 readers a day, on average, for about a month there (my current record is 8,418 readers in one day!). Those numbers, now, have dropped to about 1,500 ~ 1,800 readers a day. I can get over 2,000 ~2,200 if I blog three times a day like I used too, but, as people slowly return to work, along with the rest of Japan, who has time for that?


I guess my numbers are still pretty good for a blog that is barely one-year old, but, after those skyrocketing numbers, it is a bit of a downer.


This reminds me of how it used to be in Japan when I first came here in the early 1980's. There were very few foreigners here. Foreign guys were extremely popular amongst Japanese women. You would see these shockingly beautiful Japanese women hanging onto dorky looking foreign guys everywhere. You didn't think, "Why is that gorgeous goddess hanging out with that stupid-looking guy?" back then because you, too, had your own 4 or 5 awesome babes hanging around your neck! 


If you were a foreign guy in Japan in the 1980's, Japan was like dying and going to guy heaven.


Those days are long past. Foreign men are no longer anything special and now you see dorky looking foreigners hanging out with plain looking (albeit nice) Japanese girls. You still see the awesome women, but they are back to reality and are hanging out, for the most part, with rich guys (in Japan that means rich Japanese - funny that!)


Oh, those were the days!... But I digress... This blog is about the waning popularity of English language blogs on Japan. I suppose the English language blogs on Japan that were mainly tech and gadget orientated have not felt any drop in readership, yet I would imagine the earthquake, tsunami and subsequent nuclear accident didn't really jump their readership, but I could be mistaken. 


I 'm talking about the drop in readership to blogs about Japan that are culturally, economically or politically focused have all seen recent drops in interest. I'm sure that I am not the only blogger on Japan that is experiencing this drop in readership. 


That brings me to the real purpose of this blog post. Actually, I am writing this blog post for bloggers, like me, who have seen their numbers drop, or fail to rise as expected, whether they are in Japan or not or blogging about Japan or not. 


Fellow bloggers who do not see quickly great fruits of their works do not despair! Keep up the blogging and keep up the good work! 


As for myself, I am inspired by Mike "Mish" Shedlock. Mish has been blogging since 2005 at Global Economic Analysis. He tells me that he now gets about 1.8 million readers per month. That's wonderful but realize that he's been doing it for nearly seven years! So just because your numbers haven't climbed greatly in a year or two of blogging, don't give up! 


This is not an overnight success job.


I've been blogging since 2004, but not at my own site. I blogged at Lew Rockwell (LRC) and a few other sites until last year. I still submit to LRC. In 2006, Lew told me that one article I wrote in 2005 was the second most popular post on his blog for that entire year and that I had received over 1.5 million views. That article was entitled America is Bankrupt. You can read it here: http://www.lewrockwell.com/rogers/rogers171.html  When I wrote that article, I was bombed with criticism from hundreds of people. No one criticizes me for that anymore. 


I didn't write that post to be popular, I wrote it because I wanted to tell people what I thought.


Don't forget, bloggers, to ask yourself, who do we do this labor of love for? It's not for other people. It's for ourselves. It's because this is what we want to say. 


You don't need to send out notices to people on Twitter and Facebook that say, "Please read my blog!" or "Please follow my blog!" You only need to keep writing those posts and then letting people know the subject matter. If what you write is good and you have a policy and are focused, then they will come. If you are consistent, they will follow.


Also, don't be ashamed of low readership! Be proud of what you are doing! I think everyone needs to put a visitor counter on their blog or web page if they can. If you don't put a counter on your blog, it seems that you are hiding a possible embarrassment over low readership numbers! Being embarrassed about something like that is not cool! It's like worrying too much about what the neighbors might think. Don't do it.


Like the hilarious remarks by Ian Faith in the classic movie, "Spinal Tap" your attitude shouldn't be that your popularity is low, your attitude should be that your popularity is becoming more "selective." After all, you only want the beautiful, intelligent, cool people reading your blog, right?

"Oh, no, no. I don't think the band's popularity is waning, 

I think their appeal is becoming more selective." 

- Ian Faith from Spinal Tap

So be proud of your audience and place that counter on your blog!


I am also reminded about my youth and playing in a Punk band. One time we played at a place called Madame Wong's in Los Angeles with Black Flag and Fear. All the bands expected a massive turnout. I thought we'd have at least 300 people there. Nope! I think there were only 8 customers.


My band's set was sh*tty and uninspired because of this. Black Flag's set was awesome! After the show I asked one of the members of Black Flag about it and he told me, "It doesn't matter if you are playing in front of 3 people or 300 people, you go out there and give it 10,000%!" Wow! He's right. Spoken like a true professional.


That was the difference between Black Flag and my band. They played their hearts out every time, like professionals, regardless of the crowd. My band's performance was influenced by outside factors beyond our control.


Bloggers! Do not be influenced by outside factors! Write your hearts out. Give it your all. Remember that blogging is not something you do for three months and then get thousands of readers! Think about getting a few thousand readers a day after two or three years solid effort. That's the way to approach the very rewarding effort of blogging.


Inspire and they will come. 

Blogger "Disappears" Several Posts

MIsh Fills us in:


As many of you are aware, Blogger posts on Thursday were wiped out across the board (all blogs) when Google restored Blogger to a state from Wednesday, having to back out maintenance gone awry.

I just spoke with the head of the Google Blogger team and he expects "full recovery" of any missing posts, sometime later today."


Well, it didn't happen. I lost a previous blog post about making correct decisions (that had already been commented on by several thoughtful readers about "Making the Correct Decision") and I lost the content of 4 posts that were in "Draft Mode." All four of those have completely disappeared. One of them was a two-part series on the government "take-over" of TEPCO that I had spent over two hours on.


Blogger team expected the posts to return yesterday, but that hasn't happened. Those posts have dropped down the memory hole.


Not only that, but, in my case, I was unable to access my Blogger dashboard to edit or write for almost two days. 


Sorry for the trouble. Maybe it is time to switch to Wordpress.

Blogger Down For Almost Two Days

Notice: Sorry that I was unable to post anything new yesterday. Google has been having much trouble with Blogger over these past few days. I was unable to update this blog for over 24 hours. I have to run now, but will update it ASAP.


You good folks could see the blog, but us bloggers could not access our dashboard to update new posts. It looked like this for the last 40 hours:

Earthquake, Tsunami, Nuclear Accident & Bloggers

I received an email this morning from Mr. Marc Shaffner who runs the excellent blog Searching for Accurate Maps asking me about why we do this blogging business and our future. I thought it was an excellent question and one I had asked myself several months ago. I think this conversation would be of interest to anyone who is doing Social Media, Social Media Marketing and blogging - or is thinking about blogging. I've written before that blogging blows Social Media away as blogging gives one a base camp; Social media is good but the party is always at someone else's house. With your own blog, the party is at your home and your are the host!

Here's Marc's letter and my reply. I hope you find this exchange useful: 

Mike, 

Out of interest, what is the purpose of your blog (I mean usually, before this nuclear/tsunami mess)? You don't make money out of it (that I can see), you don't sell a product. 

The reason I ask is, because Searching for Accurate Maps is now getting 200 or so visitors/day. 

Once this crisis is over, the blog will lose its focus point and hence its visitors, and I'm trying to think of ways to capitalize (I'm not thinking primarily of money at the moment). 

- Marc

A good question. Here's my reply to Marc:

Hi Marc,

Good morning.

What is the purpose of my blog? Good question. I think I might be like you! I started my blog  because I worked in mass media for so many decades. As a producer, part of my job was selling advertising for programs I produced. 

These last few years saw a rapid decline in advertisers for the Main Stream Mass Media  MSM (this recent event in Japan and the shoddy reporting by that media is one more good reason why) and  that, besides the facts that clients cannot actually count how many people are really watching or listening to a broadcast on the traditional channels made me realize that I had better change and get Internet savvy.

Today, you can go around you and ask many people if they are Internet savvy and most of the people under 45 will tell you they are, but they are fooling themselves. They are not Internet savvy by any stretch of the imagination. I don't think that being able to do email or use Google search or Microsoft office makes anyone Internet savvy. But, many of these people will fool themselves and tell you that they are.

It's laughable when you consider it like that, but it's true.

So, if I wanted to walk the walk and not just talk the talk, I needed to actually do my own blogging and Social Media. I had to do these things and learn by experience on effective ways to write on the Internet and how to use Social Media. There's a million lessons to learn. The only way you can learn them is by doing them yourself. There's even a totally different skill set at titling blog posts for maximum effectiveness.

There's not really any bible on the subject of how to effectively do blogging, Social Media and the Internet, short of David Meerman Scott's "New Rules of PR and Marketing" so the only way to know how it works is by jumping in head first and doing it...

Oh, Marc, how many times I've wanted to quit blogging too! Staring is one thing... Having the drive and perseverance is what makes the big difference. I gather that most people who start a blog quit after three months. But I've held on - in spite of myself - and persisted. I am glad I did.

My blog started out as a blog for Marketing and I wrote about the things I learned everyday concerning the Internet. Then it started to evolve. It is basically, now, about three things (I think) and all relate to Japan:

1) Marketing

2) Mass Media

3) Anything "Japan" that tickles my fancy

I don't run advertising on this blog because I want to fairly criticize if I can and not be compromised. I want to be as honest as I can be. Regretfully, at this very moment, there is a particular company that I need to expose but have been afraid to do so because there is one person at that company who is a great person (the rest? well...) and I don't want to make trouble for that guy... But, that company is messed up and needs to be exposed... I placate my feelings of procrastination because, if you search this companies name on the net and see what people are saying about it, you'll find that few say anything good about it... So, I guess it can wait. 

But I digress... This might sound like bragging but the fact of the matter is that, after doing this for these last 8 months or so, I have gotten over 200,000 visitors to which I am blown away and humbled. I have to thank my friends Mish Shedlock and Lew Rockwell for their fabulous support. Without those guys, I might still be at 20 page views a day (with more than half of those by me!) If you are getting over 200 views a day - and your blog is new - that's excellent! Keep up the good work. I don't think that you will lose readers after this crisis is over for three reasons:

1. This crisis is going on for a long time... With ups and downs over the next few months, I suspect.
2. This earthquake, tsunami and nuclear accident shows us that it was the bloggers and a very few other minor medai that were doing the truthful reporting on the situation here. The main stream mass media - and even many so-called “Alternative media” were - to put it mildly - basically sucking at their jobs with the fearmongering and crass sensationalism
3. Your writing quality and style is excellent! Well done, really!

Like, I said, Marc, your writing is very good and level-headed. I may not agree with what you say, but I love the way you say it and think people need differing viewpoints to be able to draw their own conclusions (if, that is, that there are any left who can still think for themselves).

In the book, "New Rules of Marketing and PR" David Meerman Scott talks about doing this blogging and just doing it and learning while you go. He is right.  If you start out with the idea, "OK, I'll blog, but how do I get paid?" Then you are starting out on the wrong foot. In my case, I've actually been hired and paid quite well from two different companies to teach their people how to use the Internet, Social Media and to blog effectively... I've been approached by a few others but I declined because I didn't find their business "fun" nor appealing to me (Translation: I don't use nor even like their products and think they are unhealthy - not just for the body, but for society).  

By having a blog, I can show people with data what I am doing and prove by actions - not just words - that I do know what I am talking about. Well, at least I know more than 99.9% of the other people out there do.

You'd be very surprised by just how many Japanese advertising and PR agencies give advice to clients on how to use the Internet yet none of them actually blog or use Social Media personally. It's like the blind leading the blind.

I think, Marc, that if you consider the situation in Japan - about blogging - then you can see where there are very few people blogging about specific “adult” subjects concerning Japan (and I don’t mean “adult” as in porn). Most Japan blogs are Anime, Manga, Kinky stuff and other frivolity. Those are nice, but I think blogs like yours and mine are few.

Keep up your blog and keep it focused and the rewards will come... You are a great writer and you have no competition as you are probably the only expert in your field blogging in Japan, no?

- Mike

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See Marc's excellent blog and top quality factual reporting on Japan's nuclear accident and the current status here at Searching for Accurate Maps. http://www.sheffnersweb.net/blogs/accuratemaps/

7 Ways to Lose Readers to Your Blog

A great piece out today on Social Media Today; Seven Ways to Lose 10 Readers a Day on Your Blog.

I think this is great advice and (I think  - I hope) I am not guilty of any of these. 


From Social Media Today:

Nothing is more important to a blogger than having a loyal following. However, even the best and bravest of the blogging community often make critical mistakes that not only fail to build a visitor base, but sabotage these efforts. Here are seven common mistakes that you need to avoid if you don’t want to drive visitors from your site. 

1. The giant brick wall of text.

Only one in seven people who visit a given entry will actually read the entire thing. The rest will skim through it, taking a look at headers, images, bold text, links, and other portions of the site that stick out. Nonetheless, many bloggers present their content in long paragraphs, with no headers, no bulleted lists, no bold text — in short, as a giant brick wall of text that’s nearly impossible to skim.

2. Selling out without subtlety.
Yes, we understand: You’re in the blogging game to make money. That doesn’t mean that your entries should be obvious advertisements for a product, or that ads should flood the layout of your site. Trying to sell without subtlety, and without already establishing reader loyalty, is like trying to kiss your blind date two minutes after meeting them — it comes off too strong, it makes it seem like you only care about one thing, and you’re likely to send them running.

Number 2 is the killer for me whenever I read a blog. My company does marketing and advertising for some major corporations so I can understand this concern by most bloggers. But I try to do my best and tell things like they are. 

The truth is best. Now, at this time, I sometimes think that if I can't say anything nice, I'll say nothing at all, but very soon I figure that this blog will be a blog for consumer advocacy and I'm going to write clearly about corporations who are not doing a good job. Sure, some of them will be mad, but, in the long run, when I complain about their product and service if they take that and consider it honestly then do something to fix the problem, I am actually doing them a favor.

Anyway, if you are a blogger, you might want to read more about the 7 Ways to Lose Readers to Your Blog here.

Get High Google Rankings: Blog and Write Everyday!...

By Mike in Tokyo Rogers

It is my purpose to get my name and the name of my company and service out to the public in the most effective way possible; and the best way to do that is to use the Internet. The Internet is targeted marketing and media and it allows me to focus my message to the audience; and it does it for free. I cannot think of a cheaper price than free, can you? 

I go to the Internet to get great information with a focused message; and I get that information for free. I hope that this is the same reason some of you good folks come to see me everyday. I'm trying to give you all tips on how to empower yourselves and increase your business in Japan everyday. 


One reader asked me how it was possible that I was able to get my name at #1 on a Google search if someone merely searched "Mike" and "Tokyo" (remember that there are millions of foreigners in this country and there's been many many famous Mike7s to come here; think Mike Tyson in Tokyo, etc., etc.) Well, let me tell you that you can do the same thing too! You can get high rankings on a Google or Yahoo search in the most cost effective way possible. But, just starting a blog or a vlog and letting sit there isn't going to do it.


You can either buy search words like BP did for "Oil Spill" etc., or, if you are on a limited budget, then you can put in the effort. Elbow grease is the answer, my friends!  


I believe that the only way to get great Google or Yahoo search results is to keep hammering away at putting out a lot of good quality stuff on a consistent basis. You must keep at the blogging and writing and to continually put up good quality, useful stuff, for your readers. You need to put up new information at least 3 times a week and you need to keep the message focused.


But how to keep the message focused? That could be tough, especially if there are so many topics that interest you. Like me. I'm interested in many things Japan. So I write for three different places; my blog, my company blog, and on wwwlewrockwell.com 


This blog (my blog) is targeted to foreign businessmen wanting to sell their products and services in Japan to the Japanese... Only. (If that seems obvious or absurd, realize that there are many foreigners in Japan trying to sell their products and services to the other foreigners living here. I do not deal with those). That's why this blog is called, "Modern Marketing Japan." 


On my company blog, Universal-vision.jp, I mirror items on this blog, but I also place Japanese language news releases there too. Here's a recent example. The final place that I try to blog consistently is at Lew Rockwell. Lew Rockwell is the most read Libertarian site in the world and ranked by Alexa in the Top 15 of the most read sites in the entire world. 


Blogging, making YouTube videos, Twitter, Myspace, Facebook, Mixi and doing U-Stream are all important but remember that just setting up a blog or a YouTube channel and then putting up new information on it once a month or once every two months is just not going to get you the results you need. You need to put up new blogs, information or videos at least three times a week.


As David Meerman Scott wrote in the bible of new media marketing, The New Rules of Marketing and PR, when he quoted the president of The Concrete Network;


"You need to think about how a series of one hundred news releases over two years will benefit your business and then commit to it, understanding that nothing is an overnight thing." 

Of course, this is all a part of my ever continuing opinion that, if you want to succeed in Social Media, Marketing and the Internet, then you must continually produce content by writing and on your own blog and give it away for free. 


Write a lot but keep messages focused... By the way, I have another new article on Lew Rockwell about silly things in Japan here.


I hope you get a laugh.




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Twitter a hit in Japan as millions 'mumble' online

I just found this on AP and, since I post about Twitter and Social Media so much, I thought I'd post it as is.

Twitter a hit in Japan as millions 'mumble' online

Twitter a hit in Japan as 'mumbling' tweeters give micro-blogging a distinctly Japanese flavor 

Twitter is a hit in Japan, succeeding where other social networking imports like Facebook have foundered as millions "mumble" -- the translation of tweet -- and give mini-blogging a distinctly Japanese flavor.

The arrival of the Japanese language Twitter service in 2008 tapped into a greater sense of individuality in Japan, especially among younger people less accepting of the understatement and conformity their culture is usually associated with, analysts say.

A mobile version of Twitter started last October, further fueling the Twitter boom in a nation where Internet-connecting cell phones have been the rule for years.

These days, seminars teaching the tricks of the tweet, as the micro-blog postings are known, are popping up. Ending Japanese sentences with "nah-woo" -- an adaptation of "now" in English -- is hip, showing off the speaker's versatility in pseudo-English Twitter-speak.

A TV show features characters that tweet. A Tokyo bar has screens showing tweets along with World Cup games. And pop idols, a former prime minister and plain regular people are all tweeting like crazy.

The proportion of Japanese Internet users who tweet is 16.3 percent and now surpasses the ratio among Americans at 9.8 percent. Twitter and Japan's top social networking site, mixi, have been running neck-and-neck with monthly visitors between 9 million and 10 million but in April Twitter squeaked past mixi, according to ratings agency Nielsen Online.

In contrast, only 3 percent of Japanese Internet users are on Facebook compared with 62 percent in the U.S., according to Nielsen. MySpace has also failed to take off in Japan, at under 3 percent of Net users versus 35 percent in the U.S., according to comScore Inc.

Twitter estimates Japanese write nearly 8 million tweets a day, or about 12 percent of the global total. Data from Tweet Sentiments, a web site that analyzes tweets, show Japanese are sometimes tweeting more frequently than Americans.

"Japan is enjoying the richest and most varied form of Twitter usage as a communication tool," says Daisuke Tsuda, 36, a writer with more than 65,000 "followers" for his tweets. "It's playing out as a rediscovery of the Internet."

One reason is language. It's possible to say so much more in Japanese within Twitter's 140 letter limit. The word "information" requires just two letters in Japanese. That allows academics and politicians to relay complex views, according to Tsuda, who believes Twitter could easily attract 20 million people in Japan soon.

Another is that people are owning up to their identities on Twitter. Anonymity tended to be the rule on popular Japanese Web sites, and horror stories abounded about people getting targeted in smear-campaigns that were launched under the shroud of anonymity.

In contrast, Twitter anecdotes are heartwarming. One well-known case is a woman who posted on Twitter the photo of a park her father sent in an e-mail attachment before he died. Twitter was immediately abuzz with people comparing parks.

So far, people are flocking to Twitter in positive ways, reaching out in direct, public and interactive communication, debunking the stereotype of Japanese as shy and insular, says Noriyuki Ikeda, chief executive of Tribal Media House, which consults on social media marketing.

"Twitter is turning out to be like a cocktail party," he told The Associated Press. "Japanese see how fun it is to network and casually connect with other people."

Twitter is also proving a good business tool. Companies are exploring Twitter as a way to reach consumers and get feedback, a function that holds potential in Japan where broadband connections are widespread and cheap, and mobile phones outnumber the population.

Retailer Tokyu Hands uses Twitter to answer queries from customers, while clothing-chain Uniqlo has used Twitter in marketing by setting up a virtual queue where people tweet with each other and get freebies.

Motohiko Tokuriki, chief executive of consultant Agile Media Network, who has nearly 200,000 followers, believes Twitter is on its way to be chosen the hit new word of the year, a coveted honor that draws great publicity here.

"It's telling that Twitter was translated as 'mumbling' in Japanese," he said. "They love the idea of talking to themselves," he said.

Twitter may even offer Japan's web entrepreneurs global opportunities that had so far eluded them because it's the first digital "global-standard" outside of search engines like Google or Yahoo! to catch on here, says Toru Saito, chief executive of Loops Communications, which specializes in social networking businesses.

That means software applications Japanese develop for Twitter could win acceptance from a global market. Japanese mobile software products have tended to be for Japanese up to now.

"I'm getting so many queries, including those from abroad," Saito said.

Rocky Eda, corporate communications manager for Digital Garage, which supports Twitter's Japan operations, is thrilled people are embracing Twitter.

"In finding fulfillment in expressing what's on your mind for the moment, Twitter is like haiku," he said. "It is so Japanese."

(Article from AP see here)

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What Should I Do About My Floundering Business?

By Mike in Tokyo Rogers

"What should I do about my floundering career?" A good friend asked me the other day.

This guy, whom I have known for well over thirteen years, told me the other day that he was "lost" and didn't know what to do about his floundering career here in Japan.

This is from a guy who has one regular TV show and a nightly FM radio show. Most people, in show business, would love to change places with him. Having two regular shows is great.

But he is right. His career is floundering. In my opinion, it could come to a crashing end at any time. I'll bet there are a lot of other people, in different business fields, who can relate to this feeling of impending doom.

My friend asked what he should do to help his career opportunities. When he said that to me, I almost spilled my coffee.

I think this fundamental question; "what to do about my career?" And; "what to do about my business?" is essentially the same question. Of course, if you stop to think about it, I have to believe that you'd agree. After all, you are your business. If you do not make the effort to grow your business, to improve yourself and your life, then who will? As famous American Basketball coach Pat Riley once wrote,  "If you are not constantly getting better, you are getting worse."

In the new economy, you have to get better every day or you will not be able to compete with people who do. Trust that there are many young people out there, hungry for a job, who will work much harder than you will for less money. Increase your value by becoming more knowledgeable and more connected.

Isn't one's saleability the same as the saleability of a product or service? If there is a need for a product or service, then isn't creating the demand for that certain solution merely a problem of marketing and PR?

As far as my friend telling me that he is lost and doesn't know what to do, I have a hard time believing that. I had to ask him to open his eyes and get real. I said, "Jeez! It's 2010. Get into the 90's willya?"

Is there anyone who doesn't believe that the Internet is the future of media, marketing, advertising, and promotion? Is there anyone around you who hasn't heard of blogging, Twitter, Facebook, Mixi (in Japan) or Pick? Is there anyone who doesn't think that Social Media and the Internet are not buzzwords amongst sponsors and society-at-large?

One the other hand, is there anyone who doesn't understand the idea of "out of sight, out of mind"?

Whether you or I think the Internet is taking over or not is immaterial (I think it is undoubtedly). The point is that, for example in the case of my friend wanting to know why his phone doesn't ring from agents, or why he gets no offers for work, then I want to remind everyone of something all of our moms told us when we were kids, "To receive letters, you have to write letters."

My friend, incredibly, has two great platforms for promoting his brand. He has the radio and TV, yet he fails to capitalize on this by using one of the most effective means at his disposal; the Internet.

My friend does not blog, he does not Twitter, he does not Pick, he does not U-Stream. He doesn't do any of those things! Now, when you see this written down in black & white, it must astound you all. It does me. How Google would have loved to have had a TV station or radio station at the start to help promote their brand.

My friend has that, yet he chooses not to use it.

Here is a guy who has, easily, over one-hundred thousand listeners to his nightly radio show, yet he fails to capitalize on that by not blogging, Twittering, or what-have-you. Is that just plain lazy? Or is that just plain crazy?

It's a bit of both.

The obvious solution to creating a buzz about his business and his branding is to get off his butt and start doing some effective Internet Marketing starting now!

Take your pick, blog, vlog, Pick, Twitter, Mixi, whatever. It's all there for the taking and it's all free.

So what is stopping my friend, what is stopping you, from using this free media to promote yourself and your product / service? That's intelligent marketing.

What are you waiting for?

Sitting around waiting is not a good business plan. Hoping for the best is an even worse business plan. In the new market, you will have to create opportunities for yourself. Begin to do something, blogging, vlogging, Social Media, whatever. Create a good, useful image for yourself with some focused message.

Once you get off your butt and make the effort and walk down that corridor of opportunity, then doors will become visible... But no one will make that walk down that hallway of opportunity if you don't.

Remember, if you want to receive letters, you have to write letters. If you want people to talk about you and to create a buzz, then get to where the buzz is; Internet and blogs, and vlogs. That's not just great advice, that's smart marketing. Get started now.

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