Announcing The Techdirt Insight Community -- Bringing Together The Smartest Bloggers Around To Provide Their Insight To Businesses

from the something-new dept

We may be a bit slow in posting today, as we're at the Office 2.0 conference to announce our new Techdirt Insight Community. Over the past few years, we've seen an amazing growth in smart, insightful bloggers, who really know their market, and provide great opinions and analysis about a variety of topics on their blogs. At the same time, through our Techdirt Corporate Intelligence service, we've heard about how companies are really looking for good, fast and honest insight and analysis, while also trying to get a better grasp on what the blogosphere has to say about things. However, rather than just monitoring them or bombarding them with press releases, we believe there's an opportunity to bring together the smart bloggers into a community to help provide directed, confidential insight to companies.

Companies sign up to engage the Techdirt Insight Community to raise issues, get feedback, test ideas, review products, make strategy suggestions, help with purchasing decisions or any number of other services that require a dedicated group of experts. We take those issues and alert a group of qualified bloggers, who then can respond within our system. Techdirt analysts then review the responses, and deliver them back to the company. So, rather than setting up a focus group or hiring an expensive analyst firm for their input, companies get a wide variety of perspectives and insights very quickly, and can act on it. The company can also open up the discussion among those bloggers to get second and third-level analysis as they each respond to each other's analysis. In order to focus on honest responses, initially communication uses a double-blind anonymous system, so that people feel they can speak honestly and openly, and companies get the feedback they need to hear. There will, however, be additional opportunities to get like-minded bloggers together on various projects for companies. The service is already in beta testing with a variety of customers and bloggers, and you can see case studies with VeriSign and SAP here. If you are a blogger who regularly blogs about certain industries or technologies, please sign up to be considered for the community. If you represent a company that wants to get the perspectives of a group of very smart bloggers, please contact us to see about joining our beta program. Or you can just read more at the Techdirt Insight Community website.
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  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 11 Oct 2006 @ 9:30am

    Cool

    Sounds like a cool idea. Should be a good way for bloggers to get more out of their effort.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Jo Mamma, 11 Oct 2006 @ 10:13am

    A bit daring

    Well, I've never heard of anything like this before... and I'm honestly not sure what to make of it.

    But you never get anywhere by playing it safe.

    Good luck guys, we'll see how it works.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Republican Gun, 11 Oct 2006 @ 10:57am

    Great, but.....

    I truly hate the term blogger. How about internet consultants, experts, publishers or anything else that doesn't sound stupid like bloggers.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Ana, 11 Oct 2006 @ 12:11pm

      Re: Great, but.....

      I know that the term blogger sounds a bit silly... BUT...
      They ARE bloggers indeed :-)

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 11 Oct 2006 @ 11:46am

    One problem is that most (and I don't mean all) bloggers really don't know whats really going on, they just talk to others or comment on stories out in the media. If I want business advise, I don't go to the Wall Street Journal writers, I would want to speak with their sources.

    If you pick the right sources, I would think it could do well, but if you pick the usual sources (Abramson, Om etc.) it won't work. I love those guys, and read them all the time, but I want to talk to their sources, not them.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Sven, 12 Oct 2006 @ 8:26am

    Great idea, hopefully great service

    I think this can be successful for both sides. Upside for all sides.

    There is a similar service in Germany: TRND. But U.S. bloggers are market leaders. We (www.dialo.de) would greatly appreciate their feedback.

    link to this | view in chronology ]


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