Control your message

The No. 1 factor in a successful website is keeping it updated with accurate, engaging information. There isn't a business or organization in the world that wouldn't benefit from a daily blog, a Twitter account and/or a Facebook page. Your supporters want to know what you're up to, how you think and how your business or service can help them. Modern, free tools give you the ability to do this in minutes a day.

The new media revolution is all about reducing barriers between organizations and their supporters (or businesses and their customers; writers and their readers; politicians and their constituents, etc.). If you still feel like you're relying on someone else to publish your message, you're not fully exploiting the incredible resources that are available. Take control of your message today.

Backslash, redux

Back in my JT days I wrote a column called "Backslash" that was a mushy collection of thoughts and research on the growing use of technology in our lives. It was a chance for a young reporter to riff on how he saw the world changing around him. It was pretty self-indulgent.

Years later I'd like to get back to the original intent of Backslash while, hopefully, losing the self indulgence. Bad start naming the blog with my own name. But I went with it to: 1.) Differentiate it from RacinePost, which I share with Pete. And, 2.) Give people a clear target to aim at if (when) they disagree what's written.

Once it gets rolling, this will be a collection of thoughts on Racine, local politics, media and how companies and organizations can use the web to share stories with the public. I'm also hoping to collect interesting ideas from cities around the world, and share things I'm reading that make up the deep background of RacinePost.

So that's it for the introduction. Let's see where it goes ...