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ISSUE 9: JULY 2008 In This Issue: FROM THE ARCHIVES JOIN US |
IT'S TIME TO GET A BLOG (Part Two) By Joel Postman, Principal, Socialized WHO SHOULD BLOG? Depending on the size of your company and your objectives, any number of people can blog, but your bloggers should be selected on the basis of the blogging platform. (I talked about the blogging platform in part one of this article.) In some cases, a company may choose to have just the CEO, or a small number of senior executives blog. (Jargon alert: if only one person blogs, it's called an "individual blog" and if more than one person blogs on the same site it's a "group blog.") Ideally, the CEO should blog. Companies with CEO bloggers are very well respected in the blogosphere. Having a CEO blogger positions the company as progressive and genuinely interested in the voice of the marketplace, and can contribute to a perception of the CEO as someone who is truly engaged and willing to speak directly to influencers. Authenticity and transparency are highly valued by bloggers, journalists, shareholders and investors. Jonathan Schwartz, CEO of Sun Microsystems, is a very well-known blogger and communicates very effectively through his popular blog. http://blogs.sun.com/jonathan/ Dave Kellogg, CEO of Mark Logic, writes a great blog at http://marklogic.blogspot.com/. Each blogger should support one or more specific aspects of your blogging platform. You could have a "visionary," a tech "guru," a marketing person, or even a customer support person. What's important is that each has something to say that contributes uniquely to the conversation. Has anyone in your company written a business or technical book? Is there anyone who has written for a well-known publication, and therefore has a "built-in" following that could be leveraged for a blog? Do you have any tech luminaries, who are known for industry firsts or innovative thinking? Are there any people in the company who speak regularly at conferences, and would already have a ready audience? Or maybe you just have a really enthusiastic salesperson who'd love to write about the company on a regular basis. Any of these people are potential bloggers. WHAT SHOULD BLOGGERS WRITE ABOUT? Bloggers should write in a conversational tone about things they are genuinely interested in, and authoritative about. Blog posts should be relatively short, generally 500 words or less, and need not be formal essays (though sometimes these are useful). Controversy is OK, but should not be used regularly or insincerely, or merely to generate traffic to the blog. Blog posts need not always be specifically about the company, its products, etc. In fact, it's very important not to think of the blog as just another marketing vehicle. The etiquette, style and ethical expectations for a blog are not the same as those for regular web content. Readers expect that corporate bloggers will:
Some bloggers talk about their frustrations with air travel, or the hassles of replacing a lost Blackberry or cell phone. While personal experience can make an interesting "hook" for a blog post, some of these topics have become trite. The best way to get a sense of proper blog writing style is to read other blogs. Every blogger should also maintain a blogroll, which is a list of favorite blogs. Unsure how to start one? Find one blog you like, and visit blogs on its blogroll. Nearly every blog has a blogroll. Bookmark the ones you like. Once you have a blog, add these to your own blogroll. MITIGATING RISK Like any "new" technology, there are risks, both real and perceived, with blogging in a corporate environment. These include risk of:
It's also important to understand that blogging is just a part of your communications arsenal, and is not exempt from either the law or common sense. You should remind bloggers that they are still bound by your standards of business conduct and your employee handbook, which caution against unfair competitive practice and guide employee "good faith" behavior as representatives of the company. Blogger training programs, and specific blogging agreements can help bloggers further understand and avoid these situations. Comments on the blog are not immediately published when a visitor submits them, but are kept in a moderation queue, meaning whoever manages your blog will review comments and approve or delete them based on your standards. Your blogging platform will help bloggers stay "on message," but ultimately, it is the candid and authentic conversation that takes place on a good blog that draws and retains readers. So, in reality, it is important to let bloggers go a little "off message" sometimes. Too much "marketing speak" and messaging will kill a blog. GET IN THE CONVERSATION It's time to get blogging. Your company, no matter what size, has something to say and it won't be heard by all the right people until you get a blog. A blog is a powerful, generally inexpensive and highly efficient and flexible tool, and should be a part of your communications strategy. Increasingly, the people who influence your company's success will expect you to have a blog. And there's that conversation going on. Don't be the last to be in on it. ______________________________________________ Joel is the principal of Socialized, a consultancy that helps companies make effective use of social media like blogs, podcasts, and digital newsrooms, in corporate communications, marketing and public relations. Joel is a recognized authority on public relations, social media and executive communications. Previously, Joel was EVP of emerging media at Eastwick Communications, a Silicon Valley PR agency. His background includes nearly a decade of Fortune 500 corporate communications leadership, including four years as the speechwriter to the CEO of Sun Microsystems and experience in print and broadcast news. Joel may be reached at: joel@socializedpr.com
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