Surly lays it down

Surly has had problems keeping their stuff in stock lately and they've addressed it with a post on their blog. Without the blog, how would they have communicated this to the world? In a press release? Through their reps? In direct mail to their dealers? None of those avenues would be as effective, cheap and quick as their blog.

Here's an excerpt:

"What we can say is that we apologize for not having shit in stock. It sucks for you, it sucks for us. We're not happy about it...If you're a dealer reading this, consult our supplier for some simple low maintenance tips on how to be notified when product arrives into stock.

The purpose of this blog is part info, part entertainment. We're doing what we can to let you know when things are in stock and when things are coming. How many other companies do that? When you have a question, come to the source, we'll do what we can to inform you. (my italics) When you have a rant, doing it on some forum only alienates you from us because we don't have time to read all that stuff."

In my opinion, this is what blogs are all about. The straight dope, right from the source.