Character Blogs are a Complete Waste of Time

I have been holding back on this for awhile, but it's now time for me to unload. I'm sorry, but I believe character blogs are a complete waste. Maybe this is why the infamous Captain Morgan Blog, as of tonight, as of now has been taken down. Jason Dowdell predicted this would happen. (Thanks to Jud Branam for letting me know it's 404. Hopefully someone talked some sense into them and it won't be back.)

Earlier this month I incorrectly called the Gourmet Station blog a fake blog. My readers criticized me in comments and it even sparked a broader debate. Ok, they are right. Maybe I went too far in calling a character blog a fake blog – but it's darn close. And this does not change the fact that character blogs are a waste of time, server space and bandwidth. I am not alone here. Ask Hugh Macleod and Shel Israel what they think.

Character blogs are a waste of time because a character is not and never will be human - unless it's Pinocchio. Jason even noted that the Captain, who blogged about basketball, couldn't possibly play the sport. Ugh. A character blog is a giant missed opportunity to have real humans – whether they be employees, customers, or even distillers and bottlers - engaging in a real dialogue with consumers. I am all for using characters in TV commercials and even micro-sites, but having them blog is just a lame, lazy idea. In fact, it's an insult to blogging and bloggers everywhere.

When you go to Walt Disney World and try to talk to Mickey Mouse, does he talk back? Uh, no. In fact, the guy in the suit (which I can tell you from having worked there is usually a woman) never engages in conversation. If Mickey did, I bet he would tell us what his real name is, how many kids stepped on his foot, how hot it is in the mouse suit and how he is dying to take a bio-break. Characters don't talk in real life so there’s no reason why they should talk on a blog.

The Captain Morgan blog is just another example that shows how some advertisers just don't get the blogosphere. They haven't studied it enough to know that blogging is a conversation. It's about being real and transparent. The good news is that if advertisers continue to play ignorant, the lionshare of corporate blog dollars will flow into the PR industry because we get it. I can sleep easier at night knowing that Captain Morgan and other characters are blogging.

Comments

[Robert Scoble]

Right on! Actually, the best blogs are done by people WITH character. Think about that one for a moment.

[Jeremy Pepper]

You might not like the character driven corporate blogs, but it likely is the futre, and coming very soon.

[Eric Rice]

Pop culture alert!

There is an enormous community around people who role-play and write fan fic. With all due respect, and this might be 'beneath' the Upper Blogosphere, there are pleennnnnnnty of young people who a) would kill to write for a character blog, and in a more grassroots way, b) write their own.

It's fantasy and entertainment. A Spongebob Squarepants blog.....a Beavis and Butthead blog? (Oh man that hurts just thinking about it)... The natural extension of a television show.

I realize we all stopped believing in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny a long time ago. And perhaps, that might be the problem.

In fact, Santa *does* have a blog. And since the blogosphere is so smart, maybe they can explain why it's lame to a kid. Oh yeah, and Buster, the cartoon bunny has a blog. Better tell PBS Kids what's up.

By the way, take your kids to Disneyworld and whip out the autograph book. And ho-ho, what will Mickey do? He'll *write*. Analog, real-life autograph blogging.

And if someone wants their dog to blog, then *so be it*... I'm sure all the pundits would have a field day if Triumph the Insult Comic Dog started blogging.

Advertisers not getting the blogosphere? Yeahright. Post a fake blog and people go nuts talking about it... The blogosphere is predictable, and every PR person knows this.

Of course, I'm not Dennis Miller, so I could be wrong. ;-)

[Robert Scoble]

I'd recommend not linking to fake blogs. We just urge them on.

[Tom Guarriello]

Well, I certainly agree, Steve. I've gotten smacked around by marketing folks who've made the, "hey, let the market decide" argument. Whatever.

Isn't it true that every communication channel has a sweet spot? I mean, Top 40 radio was made for the three minute song. Of course you could do, "Stairway to Heaven," on AM Top 40, but it worked much better on FM. It just fit the format.

For me, blogging's made for real voices, not fake characters. Why? This is a way for people to tell one another about things that matter to them. Doesn't have to be the end of the world, but it's important. Who tells a fake character something important?

It's just a bad fit.

And this business about any publicity being good publicity? Ask Ken Lay and Tom DeLay about that one.

[Dan Diephouse]

I very very much disagree. I read the Achewood (http://achewood.com) blogs pretty regularly. They're complementary to the blogs and are hilarious. You gain a much better understanding of the characters.

Character blogs can have a large entertainment value. Just because its fiction doesn't mean it isn't good.

[Peter Everhard]

There is one tiny little thing about creating a character and having it blog that can and will change the entire economics of blogging, its called movie rights.

In Re Equal Time for Characters, Steve Rubel, Not Hot

[Jeremy Pepper]

Another thought - I still am not sure if Robert Scoble is a real person, or just a marketing amalgamation. I only talked to him on the phone, and for all I know, he's the latest incarnation of clippy. ;)

The market will bear it out. There will be good character-driven blogs, and there will be bad ones. There will be ones that I probably will read. If Snoopy blogs, I'll be there. If Charlie Brown blogs (especially about the little redheaded girl), I'll be there. If Jack from Jack in the Box blogs - and it is as creative as the ads - I'll be there.

And, there will be other blogs - character driven or not - that I never will care about.

[Robert Scoble]

Jeremy: oh, crud, you found out the truth: I'm a blogging character. Or something.

Trouble is I've been to too many geek dinners to be called fake or anonymous. Heh!

[Randy Charles Morin]

99% of my subscribed blogs have real names behind them. That's because real people blogs are better. But surely there is room for alternatives?

[Rick]

I think it's just a question of whether the content is interesting and feels "real", whether or not the identity of the supposed person is or not. With the Achewood blogs linked by Dan, each one reads like the characters really are writing them.

Besides, I don't know what other forms a Captain Morgan blog could take that wouldn't sound like pure advertising. I didn't think it was great but points for trying at least. I think it's more a question of "good vs. crap" than "real vs. fake".

[hugh macleod]

I think character blogs are doable, if, like I siad "the voice speaking from behind the mask is genuine"... a good example being Monolo The Shoe Blogger"... but still, even him would be counterintuitive to your average ad agency.

Agencies deal in the language of artifice. Phoney is the only currency they're comfortable with.

Dave Partmet, my PR guy for English Cut, gets blogs. I don't know of any senior ad guys on Madison Avenue who do.

[TDavid]

First Amendment, anyone? Telling people what they can and can't say now? What they can and can't do with their writing .. yeah, that's censorship.

Where do you get off?

Boy ... Ruble, Scoble, where is your creativity? I thought you guys were all about finding new things and promoting ideas? Ever stop to think that some customers might actually appreciate a well done, properly identified, character blog?

I'm a bit surprised you guys are going all nay-sayer on this one. Oh well, let some company with a well-done character blog laugh all the way to the bank while you guys sulk from your perch in the sky.

[TDavid]

First Amendment, anyone? Telling people what they can and can't say now? What they can and can't do with their writing .. yeah, that smacks of censorship. I'm glad you aren't a politician, Steve ... wait, a PR guy. Pretty darn close.

Boy ... Ruble, Scoble, where is your creativity? I thought you guys were all about finding new things and promoting ideas? Ever stop to think that some customers might actually appreciate a well done, properly identified, character blog?

I'm a bit surprised you guys are going all nay-sayer on this one. Oh well, let some company with a well-done character blog laugh all the way to the bank while you guys sulk from your perch in the sky.

[TDavid]

Wow, first one gave a 500 error, so I added a few more words and posted again. Sorry about the double-post there.

[Rok Hrastnik]

Why can't we accept that the blogosphere is changing?

While we're all striving for authenticity, our approach may not be authentic to many consumers out there.

PR and branding a strongly connected, but differ in some fundamental concepts. A character blog is in fact a branding effort, and less a PR effort.

Here's an article that explores this:
Character Blogs as a Branding Vehicle: An Essay On the Use of Character Blogs to Extend the Brand
http://www.marketingstudies.net/blogs/diary/archive/000335.html

[Jason Lefkowitz]

"While we're all striving for authenticity, our approach may not be authentic to many consumers out there."

Wow, I don't even know where to begin to unpack all the arrogance it takes to imagine your audience as people dumb enough to buy faux copy "by" "Captain Morgan" as a case study in KEEPIN' IT REAL.

Maybe if we stop thinking of people as idiots we'll get a lot farther in communicating with them. Just a thought.

[Rok Hrastnik]

"Wow, I don't even know where to begin to unpack all the arrogance it takes to imagine your audience as people dumb enough to buy faux copy "by" "Captain Morgan" as a case study in KEEPIN' IT REAL."

You don't get the point.

It's not about people being dumb or about buying something for real, it's about entertainment (if we're talking about character blogs).

But, the authenticity that "the original" bloggers want is not neccessarily the authenticity that the people want (if we're talking about character blogs and entertainment).

If I'm reading a character blog and am really deep in to the character, I want "his" voice and "his" signature on the blog, and not some writer's signature. I "want to believe" this is something the character would write, and I want the illussion to persist.

That's the whole point. And it's about entertainment.

[Tyme]

I think saying ALL character blogs are a waste of time. There are certain niches where they work, excellently.

Barbie has a blog and my daughter faithfully follows it. If "Barbie" posts that she's meeting a new friend "Diana" and the "Diana" doll comes out, guess who's going to want Mommie to buy it? It can be an excellent marketing tool.

But of course the real point here is this: if they're read, then they aren't a waste.

[Randy Charles Morin]

Tyme, perfect example. Hope you don't mind if I borrow it.

[Tyme]

Randy - not at all :)

And I meant to say that I think saying ALL character blogs are a waste of time is overkill...I started typing and got distracted. :)

[Shel Holtz]

Rok, exactly right. I can't imagine anybody reading the Capt. Morgan blog thought they were really talking to Capt. Morgan. (Well, maybe one or two who had been dipping into the Captain's product a bit too much.) If they thought it was fun (e.g., sharing tales of bar games) and helped embed the brand in their minds, what, exactly, is the harm? It seems to me we're trying to define "blog" as one thing in particular. A blog is a medium. What it's used for is another thing. "Real" blogs -- that is, the kind Steve and Robert talk about -- are vital and important. But blogs are also used for novels, soap operas, and a host of other purposes, so why not characters? Whether one fails or not, is lame or not, is not a function of whether it's applied to a blog. It's a function of whether the content is creative and original and compelling.

Tyme, your daughter probably doesn't know what a blog is, but if Barbie's going to talk to her, she thinks it's great.

The blog (as I keep harping on) is a lightweight CMS. Period. Its uses are tracking down several evolutionary paths. Only one of those is real people talking with real voices, and simply dismissing the rest is a mistake. Never forget that Alexander Graham Bell envisioned the telephone as a broadcasting tool!

[Shel Holtz]

Steve, you were a wee bit hasty. The Captain's Blog is alive and well. Perhaps it was just a server problem, or an upgrade. In any case, http://www.thecaptainsblog.com/home.php includes its most recent post from Friday, dealing with the weighty topic, "April 15th is Not My Favorite Day." Eighteen comments and no reason to believe they're all bogus.

[Steve Rubel]

Shel it was down earlier. Still doesn't excuse it's lameness.

[Tyme]

Shel, my daughter isn't a "young" child. I've been writing on the net for years and she's well aware of what blogs are...since her Mom was one. She knows Barbies aren't real...that's not the point. The point is that the blog is where the information is and that's where she goes to find it, as millions of other kids. It works.

Steve, you have the right to your opinion but I hope you realize you've insulted quite a few people. Yes, these people have common sense and they know a character blog when see one. It's entertainment, it's not hurting anyone and thankfully no one has the right to dictate what's lame and should be on the net and what's not. The people these character blogs are targeting are getting exactly what they want - or they wouldn't read it...would they?

What I find particularly disturbing is that you've lost your sense of objectivity in this issue. There is a HUGE marketing potential in character blogs/sites in some niches and your so stuck on the lameness of it that you don't even see it...

[Shel Holtz]

Hey, Steve, it IS lame! But there are a lot of low-brow people out there who probably think it's a hoot. I have to believe the people who put it together knew the demographic they were shooting for. I'm also convinced that, just because we haven't seen a character blog yet that isn't lame doesn't mean we won't!

Sorry, Tyme. I was involved in focus groups near DC last December with high school seniors. They didn't know what blogs were, but liked Xanga and Live Journal. I didn't mean to imply that you had to be 6 and think Barbie was really talking to you! (By the way, I used to be director of Corporate Communications at Mattel, so I knew Barbie personally.)

[Oscar Merida]

I'm not sure I agree, the Hulk's blog is pretty funny and not a complete waste at all:

http://incrediblehulk.blogspot.com/

[Jason Lefkowitz]

"It's not about people being dumb or about buying something for real, it's about entertainment (if we're talking about character blogs)...

That's the whole point. And it's about entertainment."

No, I'm not missing the point. Most things in life are about entertainment these days. These "character blogs" fail that test too because they by and large are not entertaining.

Why? Because a character designed to embody a corporate brand in a TV spot or on a billboard just doesn't have that much to say. In fact, they are designed not to have anything to say, other than "buy my product".

Does Captain Morgan have opinions about anything not related to getting trashed? Does he have bad days at work? Is the company willing to give him that much personality?

Of course not. So the "character blog" becomes a lame exercise in watching the writers tiptoe around the fact that they have to generate content for a character that has nothing to say.

You could create a blog from the perspective of a fictional character that is engaging. Manolo is an obvious example. But "branding" characters make terrible inspirations for such blogs because what they can say is hemmed in from a thousand directions by corporate diktat. And that just makes for boring reading.

[Eric Eggertson]

Trying to cram blogs back onto some sort of pre-determined shape doesn't make any sense, unless you are omniscient, a benevolent dictator, and a genius. If for dramatic effect I write a blog posting in the character of my evil twin brother Lothar, I don't think the fabric of space and time is going rip apart and suck us all into the vortex...

[Shel Holtz]

Jason, you don't think any of the blogs are entertaining, yet Oscar thinks the Hulk's blog IS entertaining. So who defines what's entertaining? You? Only for yourself. One man's poison...

[Shawn Lea]

I am not a fan of character blogs, because I think that even those who do like them will soon tire of their cuteness and will not return. The example I gave in talking to someone recently about a sponsored-by or character blog vs. a "real" blogger was Robert Scoble. Think of the difference it would make reading his blog if it was just Scobleizer - sponsored by Microsoft or The Scobleizer (Terminator-like cartoon character crushing all Microsoft competition with a mere sweep of his iron fingers.) There is a difference!

And, ironically Steve, the other distinction I made was with you and CooperKatz. You were Steve Rubel of Micropersuasion to me first - now CooperKatz has added Micropersuasion to its line of offerings, but if you left the company, you would still be Micropersuasion. But Robert Scoble was a Microsoft geek blogger from the beginning (bless his heart). ;)

But I draw a distinction here. I'm not against fictitious blogs or character blogs - but those character blogs used to market products or communicate with a public who is over 12 years of age. (I'm just waiting for the Trix rabbit or Toucan Sam to start cereal blogging.) I can see the Hulk or Spiderman having a blog to plug a movie and it being cute or funny - but I don't see audiences reading that blog three years from now. And that's what any smart communicator is aiming for when they create a blog.

[Rok Hrastnik]

Jason, Shel makes an excellent point.

Who are we to determine what is entertaining and what is not for the people that these blogs are intended for? If you cannot put yourself in to the mind of these people (Claude Hopkins was right!), you cannot comment on what is entertaining for them or isn't.

The Barbie blog is a perfect example of this. It doesn't appeal to me, but I really can't judge it since it's intended for a completely different target audience.

But I do agree --- if there's no story behind the character, the character itself can hardly be turned in to a blog. This, however, is the "new" challenge for brand managers --> creating brands that do not only visually impress, but carry a strong and worthwhile story.

To conclude this, all of these conversations around character blogs are starting to remind me of creative ad contests, where a bunch of "creative experts" sit at a panel and decide which ad is "really the best" ... based on their subjective opinions.

But the market as a whole is "objective". None of us can judge a marketing work, without first seeing the objective opinion of the market.

You may have the ego to think you know what ultimately works (and what is ultimately "right") and what doesn't, but every direct marketer will tell you there are no rules, except test, test and test again.

And no matter how smart you think you are, the market is always smarter. Always ...

[steven streight aka vaspersthegrate]

Hey Steve Rubel, blogo-combat ally, here's what I posted on The Red Couch, plus further comment:

Preach it brother. Yet another reason why Micropersuasion is on everyone's blogroll and Mr. Rubel is quoted and referenced all over the blogosphere. Good move, mate.

This chap has his ducks in order. Ducks? The devil duck person of Dr. Quack is honked off all the time at Dysfunctional Fictional Character Blogs.

Fictional Character blogs is like a direct attack on the Universal Blog Core Values Mantra:

"Authenticity. Passion. Transparency. Originality."

And yet, Ronald McDonald, Barney, or Space Ghost, maybe Speed Racer, could possibly succeed as bloggers, as long as they were trained correctly and thoroughly.

Consultant: "A talking gorilla or simulated pig is a better spokesperson for this company. Your CEO? Boring. Stupid. Idiot. Use a monkey or yard rake or UFO to connect with customers. Make a blog amusing and silly, like your crummy products."

Consultant: "Stolen ideas are better than none at all."

Consultant: "Let's get entertaining, creative, and who cares if you look ridiculous...as long as I make money. I have no marketing expertise. But I did watch a lot of cartoons as a kid. Not now of course."

Ugh...is right!

EDIT ADDITION:

Yeah, sure is funny how people who know nothing about marketing run to defend Fictional Character Blogs used for marketing Serious Adult Products.

For all you exploited Fictional Characters, Dr. Quack is here to counsel and heal:

http://shystered.info/doctorquack

Fictional Characters aren't bad people.

In fact, they aren't people at all.

So, why force one to be the spokesperson for your firm?
Can you say "brain dead".

This is not "creativity", it is "idiocy".

[Tyme]

Shel - it's ok. In fairness my daughter's friends might have been in the same boat if I didn't have a blog and wasn't so techy/geeky. How else would it enter their lives?

[Amy Gahran]

Personally, I think character blogs have their uses -- especially when the target audience is kids, or when the goal is education or humor.

I just blogged about this.

Would love to hear your perspective on this angle, Steve.

- Amy Gahran
Editor, CONTENTIOUS

[Sandy Smith]

Shel,

Jason's point was that 1-dimensional corporate characters are not deep and don't have much to say. The Hulk blog is based on a cartoon character with a rich history and the whole idea is to SELL THAT CHARACTER. So he's not selling Hulk(tm)-brand toothpaste.

"Hey kids? You like brushing? Hulk like brushing. Cavities? HULK SMASH!"

Riiiight.

In a First Amendment sense, and as someone waaay more pro-market than Jason, I agree that the market will decide. The point of this, however, is, if you're advising someone, do you tell them to do something with a poor chance of success, or do you say "Go for it!" and let the market strangle them?

Furthermore, go look at the subject of the original blog entry. Is it about the rip-roaring success of Cap'n Morgan's blog? Not exactly.

So if you've got some evidence of 1-D corporate characters (anybody got a link to the Mr. Peanut blog?) that have successful marketing blogs that boost sales and capture buzz, by all means bring it forth.

Otherwise, the rest of us are equally free to tell the marketroids that it's a Bad Idea to do these blogs and spend their time writing some funny commercials for next year's Superbowl or something. We don't get to decide, but we've noticed that other people are deciding right along with us that these are not great ideas.

[Dimitar Vesselinov]

Bloatosphere: bloated with anti-blogs

http://vaspersthegrate.blogspot.com/2005/04/bloatosphere-bloated-with-anti-blogs.html

[Gary LaPointe]

Ditto on the Hulk blog. It's hysterical, especially if you grew up on stuff like that when you were a kid. http://incrediblehulk.blogspot.com/

As far as I know the Hulk blog has nothing to do with the comics, movies or anything. I think it's just someone into comics.

I'm worried they'll get shut down someday... (When what really should happen is the companies should sponsor it or buy ad space).

[Phil Gomes]

There was a God blog that's since been shuttered. I thought it was funny.

All the character blogs I've actually enjoyed weren't tied to a commercial interest. That ought to tell me something.

The thing is, there is a high-mag lens trained on such things these days -- hypersensitive, really -- so I'm staying well enough away from any such ideas.

Someone will eventually write a character blog that's truly entertaining, link-worthy, and isn't just a stupid pseudo-shill. Such a blog will strike the perfect balance. 99% of us commenting on this blog here will say "Damn! Why didn't *I* think of that!?"

But the Jack in the Box guy? I'd rather see a blog from the Geico Gecko, personally. "Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2005, 5:41pm: I'm going to kill that silly-looking blond guy they stuck me with in those ads."

Oh... And maybe the chick from those Carl's Junior ads who spilled ketchup on her blouse while her male officemates gawked and placed bets.

[1ConfusedWriter]

Although I understand your position, I believe that character blogs can have a very good purpose, especially for fiction writers. Although I've never created one, it would be a great help for an author to hone his or her character development skills. In other words, if you can create a character with such a detailed life (and convey that through a blog), you're in essence creating a more 3D and believable character for your stories.

Vic

[notebook]

I like character Blogs.A lot of them is fun to me.
And update very Rapid

[Talvin Imon Seodore]

Just like everything else, there is no answer to this discussion. Character blogs are a waste of time and money to some. To others, they are effective. The end.