Article in The Albuquerque Tribune: Even tech insiders see power of the blog

When the New Mexico Information Technology and Software Association considered what it wanted from its revamped Web site, board members knew it should be a central information hub for the tech community.

But using a blog do it?

That got some resistance, said Webb Johnson, head of communications for the association, a technology industry group.

“Blogs had a little bit of a bad reputation because they tended to be single-user, ego-driven affairs,” Johnson said. “People used them or abused them as bull pulpits. They tended to not be so much informational as opinion-driven.”

But used differently, blogs can pull together the “collective wisdom of crowds,” Johnson said. Their ease of updating, he said, means the latest information can be quickly published.

The association went with the interactive tool.

It, like other features on the recently launched Web site – such as a forum, events calendar and job postings area – allow registered users to contribute content.

To keep content fresh and steady, Johnson plans to enlist some members of the association as regular contributors.

“We thought it advisable to make it as accessible as possible,” he said. “This will be an experiment.”

Such content will help propel the site beyond being just “brochureware,” said Brad Key, chairman of the board for the association. What’s brochureware? Think sticking a company brochure on a Web site.

“This is much more of a dynamic site,” Key said.

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