To kick off the idea, and to receive feedback both positive and negative, Paul Chaney with the generous support of Zane Safrit of Conference Calls Unlimited, hosted a conference call on the subject.
Included in the discussion was a cross section of business bloggers of all types.
I want to thank all of the contributors to the conference call, as some great ideas and feedback on the Blog Chamber of Commerce idea were discussed.
Those on the line included:
Andy Wibbels of Easy Bake Weblogs
Anthony Casalena - CEO of SquareSpace.com
B. L. Ochman - President of What's Next Online
Bill Flitter - VP of Marketing for Pheedo
Donna Fledderer - Owner of Virtual Business Connection (A small business blogger)
Henry Copeland - President of Blogads
J. D. Iles - Owner of Lincoln Sign Company (A small business that blogs)
Toby Bloomberg - President of Bloomberg Marketing
Paul Chaney - President of Radiant Marketing Group (who so generously hosted the event)
Zane Safrit - CEO of Conference Calls Unlimited (They underwrote a portion of the cost of the call, and we all appreciate that very much.)
Oh...and I was part of the call too.
Thanks to Paul Chaney, for compiling the list of names, on everyone's behalf.
The response among the participants was generally positive to the idea of a Blog Chamber of Commerce.
There were some dissenting voices who also provided a positive value, as they assured us that the project would have to be kept practical and realistic, while providing real benefit to member bloggers.
Paul Chaney summarized the tone of the call very well:
The benefits that were enumerated ran the gamut from being a credible clearinghouse of information and resources to promoting the "industry" of business blogging to serving as a networking center.
Some of the disadvantages discussed had to do with fears that the organizational structure would become top heavy and institutionalized.
Paul says he will be posting a transcript summary on his blog in the very near future.
Overall, things look very good for the establishment of a Blog Chamber of Commerce.
Paul and I are looking forward to hearing from as many bloggers as possible on the concept.
Ideas and thoughts, both for and against the initiative, are very welcome. We need as many voices heard, and issues brought forward as possible.
We want to hear from all of you.
Please feel free to E-mail me on the subject with your thoughts and ideas.
