Ten DBI Member Companies Blogging in 2010 (Out Of 50)

I reviewed all of the graphic design companies listed as members of Design Business Ireland on the DBI website and identified which have a link to a company blog on their primary company website. This does not preclude their being such a blog, but where none is visible on the company website an inference can be made as to how the blog is positioned within the company’s mix of corporate communications.

The DBI now has 50 member companies listed on its website (accessed on 31 March 2010). 44 of which were included in last year’s review. Three companies have left the DBI since 2009: Affinity, BFK and Design Factory. Four companies have joined the DBI since last year: Clickworks, Design Tactics, Janus Design and mxbrandcom.

Ten of the 48 relevant DBI member companies are publishing corporate blogs, an increase of four on last year’s six. Fifteen DBI member companies now have corporate Twitter accounts, an increase of 13 on last year’s two. Three DBI member companies are also now publishing corporate Facebook pages compared to none last year.

Three ICAD Member Graphic Design Companies Blogging in 2009 (Out of 48)

I reviewed the websites of all members of The Institute of Creative Advertising and Design listed under ‘Graphic Design, Identity Design and Packaging Design’ in the Member’s Directory on the ICAD website (accessed on 20 June 2009) and investigated which have a link to a company blog from their primary company website. IDI membership is individual, so I have aggregated this list by company name. This research does not preclude their being such a company blog, but where one is not visibly linked on the company website, then an inference can be made as to how such a blog is positioned within the company’s mix of corporate communications.

Nine IDI Member Graphic Design Companies Blogging in 2009 (Out of 71)

I reviewed the websites of all members of Institute of Designers in Ireland listed under ‘Visual Communications’ on the IDI website (accessed on 03 June 2009) and investigated which have a link to a company blog from their primary company website. IDI membership is individual, so I have aggregated this list by company name. This research does not preclude their being such a company blog, but where one is not visibly linked on the company website, then an inference can be made as to how such a blog is positioned within the company’s mix of corporate communications.

Six DBI Graphic Design Companies Blogging in 2009 (Out of 46)

I reviewed all of the graphic design companies listed as members of Design Business Ireland on the DBI website (accessed on 05 April 2009) and identified which have a company blog linked to from their primary company website. This does not preclude their being such a blog, but where none is visible on the company website an inference can be made as to how the blog is positioned within the company’s mix of corporate communications.

Of the 46 relevant DBI members on the list, six had corporate blogs and forty had none.

Small Pieces, Loosely Connected

After a very quick scan through the blogs submitted after yesterday’s email request it strikes me that as yet there are no A-List or Go-To blogs in the Irish Graphic Design sector. Only a few blogs were mentioned more than once by respondents (in what was admittedly a very small and unscientific sample).

Where are the Seth Godins, the Hugh Macleods and John Grubers of the Irish graphic design sector? Given the small size of the Irish graphic design sector and the smaller subset one would expect to actively blog within that, perhaps small, ultra-niche atomized, personalized audiences are all that one can expect. Clay Shirkey’s power law analysis of blogging would suggest that one or two of these blogs should have gained a broader audience and expanded beyond their initial audience.

Actions: based on this analysis examine the sample blogs.
— Is their content very personalized, only of interest to friends and acquaintances?
— Is their content primarily of interest only to the author (diary blog, design reference for self)?
— Is their material published on an ad-hoc basis, with long intermissions?
— Does the blog promote the designer or their business?