SEAWATER BLOGGING

For quite a while, I took blogs with more than a pinch of sea salt. Having some personal professional background in the boating-related print media, blogs initially appeared to me to be forums for the distribution of the random mental meanderings of the self-involved and self-impressed – many of whom seemed to me to be people I would cross the street to avoid.

Over time, however, I began to notice that some bloggers really had things of value to say. Especially in the marine industry, an area with which I’ve had more than a passing acquaintance. Evidence Cam Collins’ blog at http://www.marinemanagementtoday.com/. Cam is the President and CEO of Exuma Technologies, parent company of DockMaster Software Systems. He not only has interesting things to say about the marine industry, but about marketing in the new age of electronic media as well; and I found myself checking back frequently to see what he was saying. Cam is a strong proponent of the use of blogging and other related technologies for marketing and business networking, particularly when it comes to the boating and marine business sectors. Eventually, I decided that Cam and several million others couldn’t be that wrong, and that blogging is probably here to stay.

The result of that astute example of deductive reasoning is what you now see before you. And let me tell you, it’s absolutely great! Instant release. Instant publishing. Instant gratification. No editors to convince. No publishers to woo. No advertisers with whom to curry favor. Just the opportunity to say exactly what you think – and hope that someone takes the time to read it, and finds it useful.

So, if you’re reading this, welcome to Boatbuild Consult. This blog will talk about boatbuilding, marine project planning and management, boatyard operations, and anything else related to the marine industry that comes to mind as being of value for discussion and communication. Your suggestions and comments are invited and welcomed.

Next week, I’m headed down to IBEX. I’ll keep you posted.