Comments on: case study: english cut

By: Meikah Delid

Meikah Delid — Tue, 19 Dec 2006 14:04:35 +0000

Very useful tips, Hugh. You have also captured very well the thrust of English Cut. Tell you what, the 8 items above has me thinking of how I can improve my blog to please and help (in some ways) my readers. So, thank you!

By: Jim Moffat

Jim Moffat — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 21:44:53 +0000

As someone who was in the audience when Hugh gave this talk, I’d like to thank him for speaking straight, with passion and authority. What Hugh says makes for a successful business-generating blog is also true for any effective communication. Like his blog, he spoke from the heart with conviction and knowledge. As a result, he got my vote as the top speaker there and should do it more often.

By: Sheamus

Sheamus — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 16:01:00 +0000

Well-done Hugh. Best wishes regarding your presentation at the conference.

By: Shazz

Shazz — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 12:53:56 +0000

While I've gotta love the "lifestyle porn" comment above for pure cheek ;-) ha! ... blogging and the micro-approach can be (is) a powerful human-scale combo for communicating meaningfully and effectively. Why, just take a quick peek over at a few blogs like these to understand the (non-luxury) opportunity. Blended with micro-preneurship like Lesedi ... wow! http://www.netsquared.org/ http://foodmuseum.typepad.com/food_museum_blog/ http://www.artsjournal.com/man/ http://www.lesedi.org/ And, you know, what's wrong with a little luxury in our lives? Especially when it hasn't been marked up 800% and depersonalized ... passing through impersonal, byzantine corporate channels. Have fun!

By: sbill30

sbill30 — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 10:37:11 +0000

Having plodded through your archives over the past few weeks, I find this as fine a definition as you’ve yet created to explain your endeavors.
During my time in your archives, I’ve made a few notes to myself about puting your theories into action. What’s attractive is that I want to make a home stand in the small Midwestern (USA) town from which I hail.
You’re in Cumbria these days, not London or New York where you’d been slave to prior. Bravo to that.
My hope is to do the same. I call it “minding the store,” and in my notes, I point out that “minding the store” has traditionally meant that we stay behind or close to our geographical roots for something we refuse to relinquish. Traditionally, this has meant that we give up opportunities elsewhere in order to remain with the familiar or family ties.
Cumbria ain’t Texas, my friend. But it need not be. In the last few days I’ve set in motion a way to make the home stand. It’s a bit of global microbranding and a bit of asking what I’m worth from the diminished bargaining point of telecommuting.
With luck you’ll hear back.

By: Kathy Sierra

Kathy Sierra — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 07:22:22 +0000

"For everybody else, well, what you're being sold is a bill of goods." Maybe not... I've heard from lots of people inspired by Hugh's "global microbrand" thing who've had much success with it without meeting the rich-person/high-barrier-to-entry criteria (a cowboy and a one-woman jewelery maker are two examples). And I certainly wouldn't consider my programming books in the category of "lifestyle porn", but paying attention to Hugh's list has been more useful and successful (not to mention fun and rewarding) than I could have imagined. Do *we* really have control over whether we're successful or not? Not quite... the REAL "gatekeepers" are now our readers/users/customers. THEY are the ones who decide whether we have something worth their time, effort, money, etc. What we *can* control is how much we respect, listen to, and care about them, coupled with the ways in which we demonstrate that. Thank-you Hugh!

By: Ian Green

Ian Green — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 05:53:24 +0000

Question: How do we engage with the Luddites — my definition not their’s — and those not engaged with new media.
I think what you’ve done is fantastic — for English Cut and Stormhoek — and hope the conference went well, but I do wonder sometimes whether traditional media really get it and, I confess, I suppose I was a Luddite for a long time too. However, I do struggle over how we bring the two world’s together. When we launched Wensleydaleblog.co.uk it was an act of faith — or, as you would say an “act of love”, and, largely inspired by your experiences.
But there is an element of Us and Them in the debate at the moment and I wonder how we overcome that among those who embrace the new technology and those,for the time being, who hate it. Wensleydale has 160 staff and we have not be able to convice them to go to the blog and post a comment or opinion — inspite of the fact that I have told them they can say anything they like including one guy (their best worker) who is deaf and dumb. What a great story! Management love it too but I have to bully them to blog as well.
I love the potential of blogs, web 2.0 etc — but there are still a lot of people out there who are blissfully unaware of what’s happening in our world.
How do we engage with them? Press Releases? Media Briefings? Lunch with CEO?
It doesn’t all tie up at present. Answer please.

By: Gerd Brunzema

Gerd Brunzema — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 05:35:47 +0000

Well, I have no excuse. I try to do it. And thats why this summary of yours is very important and useful for me. I just started, as you can see in my blog.
Especially the “Focus” point is important to me and a thing that needs improvement, I´m afraid. You are wellcome to take a look, though.

By: Hugh MacLeod

Hugh MacLeod — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 05:27:42 +0000

Yes, Seth, having stuff people want to read and selling stuff people actually want to buy does factor into it.
Just like the real world, imagine that

By: n.l. belardes

n.l. belardes — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 02:06:15 +0000

But we can all emulate the people we admire, Robert.

By: n.l. belardes

n.l. belardes — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 01:36:10 +0000

Yes, share what you love. But in a suit? Come on. I thought you were a rebel…
Just jokin’… –n.l.

By: Seth Finkelstein

Seth Finkelstein — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 00:55:03 +0000

Umm, I don’t have an ultra-luxury product sold to the very well-off, with a super-high barrier to entry in the market, that’s effectively advertised with “lifestyle porn”?
If you do fulfill all those conditions — GO FOR IT! Blogging has great potential for you!
For everybody else, well, what you’re being sold is a bill of goods.

By: robert

robert — Thu, 21 Sep 2006 22:18:47 +0000

What’s my excuse? I don’t have a Hugh Macleod in my camp!
Booohooo!

By: steve clayton

steve clayton — Thu, 21 Sep 2006 21:14:25 +0000

Good luck toay Hugh — I’m keen to know *how* you are presenting the story? Dreaded PowerPoint, using cartoons, or just wingin it with the best of ‘em?
Steve

By: colin kennedy

colin kennedy — Thu, 21 Sep 2006 19:53:33 +0000

Too true Hugh, and boiled down so eloquently by someone you once quoted to me in ‘share what you love’
Good luck at the conference today.