A Note About the 12 Days of Scaleout

Some have pointed out that the 12 Days of Scaleout campaign is a “cheap marketing tactic.”

Why, yes. It’s inexpensive as far as campaigns go. It’s definitely marketing. The grumbling seemed to be that there was no content on how the scaleout happened and worked for these companies.

We have to remember that not everyone is a geek. While we already know and love MySQL, there are people out there who only vaguely understand what a “database” is, much less have even heard of MySQL. Many laypeople I talk to haven’t heard of Oracle!

MySQL needs this kind of marketing. Perhaps it better belongs as an advertisement in a glossy magazine, but I see no problem with MySQL using what they own — lists, forums, PlanetMySQL, its own web page — to do cheap marketing. In fact, “cheap marketing” is one of the main reasons for having a website! The Log Buffers are a great way to give back to the community, but they’re also marketing for Pythian.

Heck, the people who post on Planet MySQL are marketing themselves — which may seem like a silly statement until you realize that there are a few folks who are independent consultants.

So, yes. I’m all for Planet MySQL being cheap marketing. I market my podcasts on the ‘planet, and I market my own skills. The next time I look for a job, I can point an employer to the fact that I’m at or near the top of the Planet MySQL top posters list.

Some have pointed out that the 12 Days of Scaleout campaign is a “cheap marketing tactic.”

Why, yes. It’s inexpensive as far as campaigns go. It’s definitely marketing. The grumbling seemed to be that there was no content on how the scaleout happened and worked for these companies.

We have to remember that not everyone is a geek. While we already know and love MySQL, there are people out there who only vaguely understand what a “database” is, much less have even heard of MySQL. Many laypeople I talk to haven’t heard of Oracle!

MySQL needs this kind of marketing. Perhaps it better belongs as an advertisement in a glossy magazine, but I see no problem with MySQL using what they own — lists, forums, PlanetMySQL, its own web page — to do cheap marketing. In fact, “cheap marketing” is one of the main reasons for having a website! The Log Buffers are a great way to give back to the community, but they’re also marketing for Pythian.

Heck, the people who post on Planet MySQL are marketing themselves — which may seem like a silly statement until you realize that there are a few folks who are independent consultants.

So, yes. I’m all for Planet MySQL being cheap marketing. I market my podcasts on the ‘planet, and I market my own skills. The next time I look for a job, I can point an employer to the fact that I’m at or near the top of the Planet MySQL top posters list.