Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Blogging About Blogs

I'm always trying to keep up with what's being talked about in the mortgage industry, so I read a lot of blogs related to the industry. Starting a blog is simple. Blogger, Wordpress, and Xanga are just a few places to start. They're easy and they're free. Other business sites like ActiveRain or Merchant Circle allow you to start a blog as part of your profile. Plenty of people in the mortgage industry have something to say. Unfortunately, many say it poorly. Some use their business blog as a personal site, with updates on vacations, their family, their dogs, their favorite foods, and other completely irrelevant information. Others blog because they have an axe to grind. Some ramble on with no clear point, others butcher the English language. Laura Vestanen wrote an article a while back on GoGetNotary that offers some good points on writing a blog.

Why am I bringing this up? Because I've noticed one blog that I think absolutely rises above the rest. Robert Franco at Source of Title writes about concerns affecting small title agencies and abstractors. He's knowledgeable and interesting. He has a pleasant and clear writing style, and his topics are relevant to almost anyone in the mortgage industry (his 10/19/07 article on business relationships could speak to a lot of us). His blog is absolutely a must read.

4 comments:

Robert A. Franco said...

Thank you very much for the kind words. I have really enjoyed blogging and I hope the medium gains momentum in the real estate industry. Some days it is a way to vent my frustrations, others I hope I am helping to increase awareness of important issues. Either way, I hope to give people some food for thought.

Brenda Stone said...

Excellent article, Al. Keep up the good writing and the entertaining articles. Write more and write often. Brenda Stone

Alex Y. said...

I'll try Brenda! I write as often as I can. I'd love be as prolific as Robert or others, but as you already know, it can be time consuming. Two or three times a week has always been the plan, and it's about as much as I can handle.

LaShon James-Major said...

Sometimes it takes a while to find your voice but once you do you'll find your audience.

I think it's best to keep your personal blog separate from your professional blog.