SocPub.com launches
It is great to see Bryan Ruby of CMSReport.com picking up the social publishing torch with the launch of his new site SocPub.com.
When I was working at Acquia, I spent a lot time thinking about the convergence of social software technologies into what I called “social publishing.” Since that original post back in 2008, I’ve seen the term gained a lot of currency in the market and the pattern continues to emerge.
I’m excited by what Acquia is doing with their Drupal Gardens project, which will bring the leading open source social publishing system to a much broader audience by combining the incredible innovation of the open source development model with the convenience and ease-of-use of software as a service.
Some people will misunderstand what Drupal Gardens is all about, assuming that it is just a Drupal equivalent of WordPress.com. That is true to some degree, but Drupal and WordPress are similar but not the same. Drupal is not primarily about blogging, although blogging is one of the social publishing patterns that it addresses. Drupal is about delivering sites that blend multiple social publishing patterns together to create an engaging community oriented web experience that brings people together around conversations.
I spoke recently with the team over at Acquia about the target market for Drupal Gardens. They told me that their initial focus is on corporate micro sites that are used in conjunction with marketing campaigns and/or specific community development initiatives that need to be launched quickly. I think that this is a smart approach to take because as social media has become such an integral part of marketing strategy, it has placed a lot of pressure on organizations to be able to get social publishing sites up quickly. Drupal Gardens is going to be a big help in that.
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Jeff, thanks for the mention of both of my sites. It is always interesting how certain articles we write on our blogs end up carrying a lot of weight as times moves us forward.
I recall a post I wrote four years ago on my initial frustrations of Drupal which would later add value to the posts where Drupal won me over. I also recall our early conversations on social publishing and those discussions still influence me today with regards to my current views of social media. This is an amazing age that we live in and I can’t help but be enthusiastic in each new project that comes my way.
I still haven’t been able to completely wrap my arms around Drupal Gardens but that’s a good thing. It means that someone out there is smarter than me and I’m going to enjoy watching Drupal Gardens grow up. Right now, I feel like I need to grab the popcorn and just sit and watch how this exciting story develops.