Blogging for a community and promoting a product

Dell provides a perfect example of a corporate blog launched to not only promote a product, but serve as the voice of a community.

DigitalNomads.com focuses on life outside of the traditional office. It’s for business executives who travel and professional bloggers.

I find myself in this category as much of my time is spent in various places — my main office, my home office, a client’s office, or on the road. With my notebook, wireless Internet and a VoIP phone, it really doesn’t matter where I work from, as long as the Internet connection’s good.

Dell obviously wants to promote its laptop product. But it also seems genuinely interested in fostering a sense of community for ‘digital nomads.’ From its site: “These days “where” you work really has little significance to “what” you do. Increasingly, each of us faces no boundaries, whether they are geographic, physical or time-related…”

PRWeek today published an interesting article about Dell’s endeavor.