Adam L. Penenberg, “Blogging as Multiplier Effect” (Publishers Weekly, Oct. 5, 2009). Interview with Rebecca Ford and Evan Schnittman of Oxford University Press:
You’ve also had a few runaway blog hits that have served to effectively market Oxford University products.
Ford: Yes, in spring 2007, Andrew Smith, author of The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink, posted about four fake culinary icons, and then called for a vote to nominate America’s best fake culinary icon. My vote, for example, was for Aunt Jemima. The post was picked up on all the big food blogs and readers poured in to share their opinion. As a result, we attracted a far wider audience of food lovers. In a similar vein, Ben Zimmer was able to promote our dictionaries program with a post about “long words,” which explained history, etymology, etc. Language bloggers reposted it across the Web, and a flurry of readers came to the blog to share the longest word they knew. In the process, they learned about Oxford’s dictionary program.
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