Sorry twitter. I just deleted my account with you. I liked you a lot and stood by your side through a lot of rough times, but at some point you know you had to get your crap together in order to keep me around. I wish you all the best and I’ll miss you.
I’ve linked to the site here on this blog already, and on other services, blogs and networks, but the official launch date for my new tech-lifestyle blog, Oxalon.com, will be Monday, May 26, 2008.
How did I come up with the domain name, Oxalon.com?
It was a cold an rainy night (lol, really, it was!) and I had just finished watching a Star Trek Voyager episode on TV where Nelix, with Voyager’s help, was helping a group of his people their settlement from rogue miners on an asteroid in the Delta quadrant. The alien dude leader of that settlement was named Oxalon.
Even with the heavy makeup and alien facial prosthesis, I knew from the actor’s eyes and voice that I had seen this guy in other TV shows and movies, so I went looking online and discovered that he was Rob LaBelle. Not only did Rob make at least 3 guest appearences on Star Trek Voyager, he was also the supporting actor in the hit sci-fi TV series, First Wave, a show filmed mainly here in Canada with Canadian (originally from Newfoundland, where I was born) actor Sebastian Spence who played Cade Foster. They were later joined on the show by former porn star, Tracy Lords.
Yes, I’m a Sci-fi nut and like Canadian actors and porn stars. So what? 
At any rate, at the time I was doing all that research online, which I often do after watching TV shows I like, I discovered that the Oxalon.com domain was available, so I promptly registered it. I know it’s not the exact spelling of the name of the original character, but phonetically it sounds the same.
Yes, it was one of those spur-of-the-moment domain registration things, but with the futuristic sound of the domain and what I believe to be great brandability, the sub-$9 a year was well worth it until I could figure out what to use it for. Now I have.
Because I’m a Sci-fi lover and die-hard online geek, I thought it would be only too appropriate to set it up as the flagship site of my (soon-to-come) new blog network. The name is futuristic, yet current. It’s cool and brandable yet has a deeper personal meaning, just like the gadgets, technology and current events that have already started to take a foothold in the way we live our daily lives.
Like the brave leader of the asteroid settlement who would uproot his colony and move to a new home rather than send his people to their deaths in a battle they couldn’t win, but he stood his ground after the strategic alliance with Nelix and Voyager that made them strong enough to win. Oxalon will be meek at first glance, but I predict the site will garner some impressive strategic alliances in the near future.
So what’s the story behind your most prized domain name?
I’m in the process of starting a new blog network. This new network will have the company site plus 4-6 sites to start out with, the first one of which is Oxalon.com, a Tech Lifestyle site.
The site linked to above is not 100% complete in terms of design or content direction, but I see no point in having everything perfect before launching it. Tweaking for weeks on end has a name - procrastination.
Have a look at the new site and please leave feedback on any issues with it, like broken template stuff, or anything else you see that you think is outta wack. Thanks!
…and you’ll see why in my next blog post. The announcement is coming in a few days. For now, listen carefully:
I just listened to a few old podcasts from another blogger and there were two words mentioned several times in each recording: “Our Competitors.” It’s not so much those two words, but how they were said that made them stick out like a sore thumb. The tone of the guy’s voice when he uttered those words gave me the distinct impression that he focused too much on other sites in his niche - to the point of obsession.
I have watched and read this persons blogs for quite some time and always got the feeling that his thinking of other blogs occupying the same space as competitors was holding him and his business back. I’ve watched other blogs come into the space long after his and watched them soar while his blogs never seem to grow as fast.
My feeling is that he should have been looking at other blogs in his niche as potential partners and the new blogs as potential partnership opportunities, or at least as friends and colleagues instead of enemies/competitors.
Competition implies a limited mindset, a limited pie with limited pieces and no flexibility. Why think that if you have a tech blog and some of your readers read other tech blogs, they’re gone? Why try and compete in that sense?
Now I’d be an idiot if I told you not to keep an eye on what/who else is doing things in your niche. I’d also be an idiot if I didn’t tell you to look at those as research and opportunities to build relationships.
Concentrate on building the best blog with the best content possible and build relationships, especially with other bloggers in your space. Otherwise you’ll be stopped on the side of a lonely road while your competitors and their friends whiz by.
For anyone building out a brand around their own name, personality or business, social networks have become a crucial aspect of online life. If you ain’t constantly putting yourself out there in front of your peers and clients, you’re missing out. That’s a fact.
But what if you just want to sit in front of your computer and work. What if being part of all these social networks does nothing for you and your business because of the way it’s structured. What if maintaining appearances at all those social networks is actually hurting your business and negatively impacting your bottom line?
Personally, I’m at a point in my life/business where I would much rather just skrink into the shadows and do some work.
I’ve been ‘out there’ a number of different times. Years ago as an SEO dude, I singlehandedly started the 3rd or 4th ever blog network online, the internet marketing and info marketing, business, ad copywriting, etc. But I’ve never really been one for having my neck out there on the ‘fame and recognition’ chopping block. Quite frankly, I’ve hated every minute of that aspect.
Nowadays, in order to maintain any sort of image or reputation, you need to have a following and presence on all the popular social networks, but that just serves to perpetuate the one part of online business I hate the most.
Anyway, I’m happier, much more productive and a helluva lot more efficient with my time when I don’t have to worry about being part of the ‘IN’ crowd.
When I retire in Aruba in the next couple years, I don’t want to have to hide my face so no-one recognizes me or want’s to pitch business deals, I want to cover my face to avoid a sunburn. The way it’s looking right now, I’ll be there a lot sooner if I spend extra time working instead of trying to keep my twitter account active.
Oh, and ‘Social Marketing’ is an oxymoron to the ‘nth degree.
