Let’s think about the reason why we should write technical blogs!
It’s a widespread belief that engineers should engage in writing technical blogs. In fact, there are many engineers who write technical blogs, and there are several services focused on writing technical blogs, such as Medium and DEV Community.
So, should every engineer necessarily write technical blogs? In this article, I would like to consider “Why and for whom to write a technical blog?” from both the perspective of the engineer and the corporate side.
Reasons for writing technical blogs
Reasons for writing technical blogs are often cited as follows:
Engineer Perspective
- To solidify the content learned
- To increase motivation for learning and communication
- For self-branding (evaluation from within and outside the company)
- To contribute to the community they belong to
- To help engineers struggling with the same issues
Corporate Perspective
- For internal engineer evaluation
- For recruitment marketing
- For corporate branding
From the engineer’s perspective, personal growth and evaluation from within and outside the company are the main reasons. On the other hand, from the corporate perspective, internal evaluation, recruitment, and corporate branding are the main reasons.
Isn’t it okay even if it’s not a blog?
When we reconsider the reasons for writing technical blogs, we realize that technical blogs are just one of many means of disseminating information. Therefore, it doesn’t seem necessary to be exclusively tied to outputting information as articles.
Of course, social media platforms are included, and recently, there has been an increase in those who disseminate technical information through platforms like YouTube.
Some might argue that “text-based communication is more efficient, so articles are better,” but the means of communication are diversifying, including audio and video.
Furthermore, with the emergence of generative AI technologies, the barriers to disseminating information through various channels are anticipated to diminish.
Depending on the generation and individual characteristics, there should be no problem if you can achieve purposes like solidifying learning or branding in the areas you are good at.
Who are you writing technical blogs for?
Who are you writing technical blogs for? In the end, I think it’s for no one other than yourself. Whether it’s a lightning talk or anything else, even if it’s an activity within the company, the person who performed the output can enjoy the most benefit.
The output done for yourself will mostly result in something positive.
However, when it comes to technical blogs, various challenges tend to arise suddenly when it becomes an effort at the level of individual to organizational layers.
Corporate activities with tech blogs should be decided with caution!
When actively engaging in writing technical blogs as a company, it’s common to hear about or actually experience cases where continuous activities become challenging.
Why do challenges tend to arise in organizational efforts? It’s because what individuals originally do for themselves is enforced to some degree within the organization.
Here are the key points to keep in mind:
- It’s incorporated into the internal evaluation (there are incentives).
- It can be tackled during work hours (it’s considered a necessary task).
- The purpose of writing is clearly stated.
If at least these three things are not established as a system, and if there is no meaning to the organization to pay the cost for them, it should not be adopted easily.
At the level of not the management but the engineering team, aiming for individual growth or slight branding, it is recommended to utilize services that have the ability to aggregate posts from organizational members.
The assets of the output should be kept in a state where each person can carry them, and it’s best to limit the role to merely maintaining motivation.
Criteria for deciding whether to engage in technical blogging as a company
Not all IT companies with engineers must engage in technical blogging for recruiting excellent talents or sales activities. Why? Because, from a business perspective, technical blogging is merely one tactic to achieve a goal.
Companies differ in their philosophies, objectives, and services provided. Therefore, each company must assess how technical blogging will interact with management resources such as people, things, and money, and make decisions accordingly.
In the author’s personal view, even if technical blogging were a necessary condition for corporate activities, the cases where it is a sufficient condition seem to be quite rare.
Conclusion
Thank you for reading to the end!
The main point I wanted to convey in this article is “Don’t be supremacy about technical blogging.” Whether it’s individual engineers or companies, let’s find and execute the best strategies and tactics suitable for each.
It’s natural to have various opinions on this topic. I hope you will take this as just one perspective and consider it for reference.
