MDC and the Devil
Category: Local...
Posted Saturday, November 17, 2007 at 09:35 AM [GMT-6]

This article has the local blogosphere buzzing, and rightly so, I think – although it also calls to mind something C.S. Lewis wrote about the devil. He said that the biggest mistakes people make about Satan are to either attribute too little or too much power to him.

In any event, the Midland Development Corporation is in a no-win situation at this point. It cannot – I repeat: cannot – compete in a blogging war, should it come to that. It has neither the resources nor the expertise nor the sheer willpower.

But, more importantly, it doesn't have the weight of facts. It's interesting to me that the consultant in the article doesn't dispute the veracity of any of the claims made by local bloggers about the activities and results of the MDC. Unlike the situation where another town's bloggers were characterizing it as racist, it's difficult to argue against documented dollars and cents.

So, the MDC is faced with an age-old dilemma of, well, inconvenient truth. And in such situations, an equally old adage will no doubt apply: if you can't get a better story, get a better storyteller.

Oh, and guys...good luck with that "buying a good search engine ranking" thing. That's also know as "paid advertising." That's bound to enhance your cred.

Permalink
Comments

Eric:

I also published a piece on the topic:

http://blog.nuance9.com/2007/11/local-news-mdc-blog-recommendation.html

Posted by: Justin Pease at November 17, 2007 11:21 AM

Why do you think "paid advertising" on a search engine is a bad idea?

Lots of credible organizations do just that.

Besides, I didn't get the impression that the paid advertising for a first page search results listing was to increase credibility as much as visibility.

If your side of the story doesn't show up on page one (paid or not) you may never get a chance to tell it.

Obviously first page organic (non-paid) results are better, but you can't see those results in 15 minutes like you can with paid.

Posted by: Justin Pease at November 17, 2007 11:30 AM

I don't think pay-for-placement is in and of itself a bad idea. I wish more of my clients had the budget to do that sort of thing, in fact.

But the MDC isn't seeking visibility. It's seeking credibility, and to offset the criticism its getting from certain quarters. If it wants to advertise Midland as a great place to live and work and set up shop, I definitely agree that they need to pursue that avenue of advertising. But if they think that paying for a higher search ranking than Jessica's Well will automatically imbue them with more credibility, then they're barking up a wrong and potentially expensive tree.

Posted by: Eric at November 17, 2007 11:37 AM

I think the MDC is probably being a tad more realistic than, say, the Oklahoma City Urban Renewal Authority, which won't talk to anyone about anything if it can possibly help it.

Posted by: CGHill at November 17, 2007 05:02 PM
Post a comment [Take your time...we're in no hurry.]
Note: You must provide either a website URL or an email address...but there's no rule that says you have to tell the truth. If you don't want your email address published on this site, just input a website URL, or make up an email address.









Remember personal info?