David Weinberger was one of the first bloggers I started reading; he has been a huge influence on my blogging style. When I jumped on the blogging bandwagon to create a nonprofit technology resource, he showed me that an authentic personal voice was the most powerful conduit to convey ideas and information – creating sticky content that strikes a balance between the formal and informal.

Formally kicking off the NTC, David's presentation and speech struck that perfect balance he does so well on his blog Joho the Blog. Funny, insightful, academic, and down to earth, David led us through the evolution - and impact of that evolution – of content, ideas and organization from the physical (e.g. libraries, Encyclopedia Britannica, newspapers) to the digital (Amazon, Wikipedia, blogs). Prior to the web, a handful of authorized content producers controlled the information we consumed while how that content was organized was prescribed and tightly controlled. The web blew that paradigm apart - it converted the ownership and control of content from broadcasters to the “Us” and our networks (basic Cluetrain Manifesto/Time Person of the Year stuff).

For me, David has provided a much needed framework to understand the work that I’m currently engaged in. I’m trying to figure out how to help nonprofits understand that mission-driven online strategy is not about driving traffic to your site- the digital equivalent of having to go to a library in order to get information – but about how to distribute content as widely as possible to have the broadest impact on our causes. We are a sector of content producers with extraordinary expertise. But for most of us, our websites are not destination points; our content is static and siloed away for only our most dedicated supporters. While I admit that metrics and branding are challenging, but not impossible, I believe it’s necessary for us as a sector to start seeing ourselves as not niche web portals, but content distributors that put our content in front of as many people as possible – through tagging, widetizing, engaging in established online social networks (yes…for better or for worse, think MySpace) and content exchanges between partnered organizations. I’ll blog more about scenarios in my next post. Chew on it, ask questions, let me know what you think.