Blogger Spotlight: Nigel Powell, Red Ferret

Founded in 2000 by columnist and feature writer Nigel Powell, The Red Ferret updates its readers on the latest tech trends and covers strange technology news such as the Samurai Armor for Small Pets. Powell aims to provide technology enthusiasts with obscure information about technology, as he explores its advancements in all its forms. In this spotlight, Nigel who appears on our technology blog ranking, chats to us about why he started blogging, his favourite brands and how technology will affect the comms industry in the future.

In this spotlight like Nigel, who appears on our technology ranking chats to us about why knowing your audience is key, the importance of delivering top value content and building a following.

What was your main goal when you started your blog? I just wanted to create an online diary where I could store stuff I was doing for the newspaper for our end of year roundups. There were no real tech gadget blogs back then, so it was a bit of a shock when I suddenly realised that people were reading what I posted.

What inspires you the most to continue blogging? I love the community feel, and the pleasure of helping people make better decisions based on what we uncover and announce.

Why did you decide to write about technology? I have always enjoyed the fast moving pace of technology, right from a young age. So when I got the opportunity to write about what I know and love, I jumped at the chance. No other industry moves as fast and has as much impact on the world, and it continues to surprise and amaze me even today.

Do you have a favourite piece of tech? Smartphones are clearly one of the most disruptive and personally valuable pieces of technology to ever happen. The idea that you can connect to a satellite 12,000 miles in the sky to do some navigation while streaming your favourite music over a fast 4g network and chat to someone in Beijing all at the same time, is still mind-boggling when you really think about it. All in the palm of your hand? Wow!

Which blogs do you regularly read? I read the major blogs like The Verge and Engadget, but I also try to find more specialist blogs which offer a different viewpoint from the mainstream. You can find a selection of my favourites on our Gadget Site page. Do you ever get writer’s block? How do you overcome it?

Do you ever get writer’s block? How do you overcome it? I’m very fortunate that I really don’t suffer from problems like that. The nearest I get is when something is not flowing, in which case a nice cup of tea and a little rest doing something else usually clears things out nicely.

Which are your favourite brands? I tend to favour products and brands which deliver excellent value for money along with solid build quality. Plantronics for audio, DELL for laptops, Lenovo for tablets, Samsung for phones and Anker for portable chargers come to mind.

Have you been able to build a relationship with them, and how did you go about it? We were fortunate in that my work as a newspaper journalist opened a lot of doors initially, so we didn’t have any problem making contact. From then on it’s just about trying to be professional in everything you do. We’ve found that large brands appreciate honesty and intelligent recognition of the realities of the industry more than anything else.

If you had to choose one social media network to use for the rest of your life, which one would it be and why? Can I cheat and class email as a social media tool? Because for us it still remains the premiere communication tool in so many ways. Apart from that, I can see the appeal in Twitter for maintaining constant contact with a fan base.

How do you think that technology will affect the comms industry in the future? From where I sit, it is really the other way around. The comms industry is driving technology into spaces we would never have imagined a few years ago. It’s the improvement in mobile communication speed and reliability that drives things like autonomous vehicles, as well as moible health care and anything where you need data to be available in an instant, sometimes to save a life.

Is there any advice that you have for any aspiring bloggers? The key to happiness is to know and appreciate your audience and deliver top value content as payment for their attention and time. If you do that, you will build a following which will support you over a long period. Oh and make sure to always have a nice cup of tea handy, just in case.