I’ve been working on a new project for almost four months now.
During that time, I’ve learned a lot of new stuff. CSS is evil. That was a good lesson. I’ve learned lots about web design, sponsorship and blogging that I didn’t know before.
But the best thing I’ve learned is that social media helps us do stuff we couldn’t do otherwise. Maybe it’s going to sound hokey, but this project has taught me that the networks we build on forums, Twitter, blogs and websites have value – they can be harnessed to build something real.
Last October I had a vague idea that it would be good to run some awards for parent blogs. It might never have been any more than that, without the help and support I’ve received from social media contacts.
One person who comments on this blog regularly helped me write up the sponsorship proposal, another blogger introduced me to a media buying agency, a Twitter buddy helped me with CSS coding when I was ready to set my laptop on fire, and two amazing parenting bloggers jumped on board and helped to build the site content from scratch, doing everything from writing privacy policies to choosing between logo designs.
I’m so proud of what we’ve managed to create together. The MADs launches today - it's a great awards programme that celebrates the amazing talent that’s on display among British parent bloggers. You should check us out. And without Twitter, blogs, Ning forums and Facebook, The MADs wouldn’t exist. So, this is just me saying a huge, huge thanks to everyone who has helped us get to this point. I hope I can repay the favour some day.
