Startup porn dictates that you should just build the product, and that blogging is the best form of networking. Here is the holy truth -- build it, and no one will come; blog it, and no one will read it.
I wrote a beautiful blog post, then what?
No one would read it, not even Google if you did not tell Google that the website exists. The best way for Google to know about the beautiful prose you wrote is, unfortunately, for someone famous or a major news site to post it online.
Ahh, so you have to find that editor on a major news site, reach out with a quick blurb, and hope that he cares enough about what you wrote and is willing to reblog your content.
Alternatively, you can share it with an existing community on one of those web2.0 platforms such as Reddit or a forum.
My point is, it takes work to distribute your content.
It is all about the distribution channel
When you build an app, you have to post it on the App Store or Google Play. It is where people go to find apps.
When you write great content, you have to post it to a platform for which people care about. Reddit used to be awesome for this, but most moderators realized that businesses have been gaming Reddit for growth.
But Reddit is just a convenient distribution channel. The best distribution channels are targeted AND allow you to send personal messages.
Hacking a distribution channel for hiring
I have world-class designers working for me. And you know how much I paid to find them? $199. That is the cost of the Pro account on Dribbble. Dribbble is the best place where the best designers gather to show off their portfolio.
BUT, Dribble has job ads! Nah. Posting job ads is a shitty way to get talent. The best talents are designers with the most followers and likes. And you know what the best way to get their attention is? Private Messages. I wrote a Selenium script to find the top N designers in Indonesia, and begin sending pseudo-customized messages congratulating them on their popularity, and if they are open to a job.
By the law of statistics, I will get responses. And out of the few responses that I get, I will find someone of the right fit.
Back to my point -- the best distribution channels are targeted communities THAT allow me to engage my audience one-on-one (with private messages).
In the case of hiring, I wanted to distribute my job ad. But instead of doing the naive thing, I invested a few hours of my time and automated distributing the job ad through private messages instead.
So, here lies another anti-thesis of mine in the startup scene. Do not build first. Do not write anything. Find the distribution channel first.