Web 2.0 Strategy - In depth interview with Necole Bitchie of NecoleBitchie.com
This week’s Web 2.0 strategy is a bit different. It is not a how-to, but an in-depth interview with well known blogger Necole Bitchie of NecoleBitchie.com
NecoleBitchie.com is the creation of Necole Bitchie, a self-proclaimed “blogalite” from Maryland. Residing in Atlanta, Necole Bitchie keeps her blog updated with the latest celebrity gossip, news, new music and recaps of the hottest parties and events in Black Hollywood. Incepted in December 0f 2007,
NecoleBitchie.com has been pegged one of the fastest growing urban celebrity gossip sites on the net with a loyal fanbase and huge following. In such a short time, the site has been referenced by SOHH.com, Allhiphop.com, SandraRose.com, Crunk & Disorderly, LoveBScott.com, TheYbf.com, The Corporate Takeover and many more.
Q: We’ve heard a lot of talk that an indie band can make more money selling less CDs without a big label utilizing new media such as blogs. Do you find that to be true?
A: Absolutely. And this plays off of my answer to the first question. Bloggers are the new media personalities and with the growth of blogging, it is just as important to be endorsed by blogs as it is to have your music featured on top video channels and radio.
If a blogger introduces an artist’s music to their fanbase, it can hold just as much weight as some of your top media personalities. A bloggers’ endorsement of an artist or band adds credibility because their fanbase has established trust in that blogger. Additionally, an artist’s video posted on YouTube and seeded to the blogs have the possibility to be viewed by more people than it would premiering on top video shows like BET’s 106 and Park and MTV’s TRL.
Bloggers, such as Perez Hilton, have millions of readers visit their site a day and have the ability to break an artist through one feature on their site so I’d definitely say that blogs play a very vital part in artist’s marketing plans in this day and age. Nowadays, labels are premiering their artist videos online a full week or two before it hits major networks. I find that amazing!
Q: Where do you see the web 2.0 world moving within the next 2 years?
A: Well of course blogs are really huge and every newspaper, magazine, music label and artist will have one. Also, every outlet will have its own social community (this is happening right now). There will definitely be a few huge sites that come along and migrate bloggers under networks, sort of like what Rawkus.com did with the blogs Real Talk NY, Fat Lace Magazine and The Smoking Section. B5 Media is a network of over 300 blogs that reach over 10 million visitors monthly. These blog channels and networks are similar in concept to new television and radio programming in concept.
Q: What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced as a blogger?
A: The biggest challenge that I’ve faced as a blogger has been accepting responsibility for my thoughts and opinions. When I first started, I only had a hand full of readers, so it wasn’t as big of a deal. But as the blog started to grow, I started to realize the impact of my words and its influence on other people. It can be challenging because as a blogger, you can say you don’t like someone’s music and you can influence most of your readers to think the same. This influence can assist in how successful or unsuccessful the project becomes. It’s crazy but in this day and age, a blogger’s review can hold just as much merit among their faithful readers as a review in Billboard or the NY Times.
Q: Do you feel that bloggers should be seen and respected in the same light as journalists?
A: Well, journalists have rules they have to follow. They are required to be ethical. Bloggers don’t have those restrictions and because you don’t need to have a formal education to become a blogger, this may be why they aren’t respected in the same light. Not to mention, you have some blog sites that are devoted to starting messy rumors and writing obnoxious posts, which I think give bloggers (in general) a bad name, especially celebrity gossip bloggers.
Q: Your Ning community for the urban blogger has been growing by leaps and bounds what made you come up with the concept for that?
A: The Urban Blogger.com is a place for urban bloggers to network with each other, through personal profile pages and forum discussions. They are calling it the MySpace for bloggers (laughs). I came up with the idea after receiving numerous emails from bloggers asking various questions like “What advertisers do you use” and “How do you market your site”. Also the biggest complaint I always received was that people felt like urban bloggers did not stick together so it only made sense that I made a site where these bloggers could get together, network, build relationships and grow together.
Q: As far as bringing more traffic to your site, what are the two best tips you can give other bloggers?
A: The biggest source of traffic to NecoleBitchie.com is referrals from other sites so it’s very important to build relationships with other bloggers through constant link exchanges and crediting sources. Being endorsed by other blogs holds far more weight than taking out various ads because that blogger is linking your blog and telling their readers to click directly on to your site.
The second tip would be work on branding your site. Right now the internet is over saturated with blogs (especially entertainment related ones) so you have to make sure your site stands out and makes people want to come back. That includes everything from picking the right url, to picking a great slogan and blog design. The goal is to grab the visitors’ attention and make them want to continuously come back every day.
The final tip would be to update the site with quality content on a consistent basis
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