Blogging has become the means for online strategy and brand communication in the US. It’s a part of every day life. CEOs are writing blog posts. The COO of McDonalds uses blogging for internal communication, and McDonalds also runs a blog on Corporate Social Responsibility. Countless businesses are using blogs to access new markets and drive business success. Blogging is a critical marketing activity and embraces consumer communication. In 2004 the American Merriam-Webster claimed “blog” as the word of the year, because back then blogging was such an integral part of everyday business life.
What about Australia?
BRW has just claimed RSS (Really Simple Syndication – the XML technology allowing blog content to be read, syndicated and subscribed to) as a key technology of 2006. Companies are required to adopt blogging and begin syndicating content down under just to stay in the game. To get ahead of the game and capture market share it will take robust online strategy.
Telstra launched the Now We Are Talking blog collection earlier in the year and clearly has read the signs on the importance of corporate blogging. SMH has been blogging on a range of topics for a while and of course ZDNet AU is blogging for the technology and business market. Led by Tim Bray, Sun Microsystems has made a successful transition in allowing employees to blog. Marketing and image have been the main benefits for Sun.
Bloggy benefits
Microsoft corporate blogger Frank Arrigo says;
“If you are not there talking to your customer, someone else is going to be. It’s inevitable that the conversation will be happening. You are better off taking the lead in that and talking to your customer, rather than letting a competitor do it or having the customers talk among themselves and leaving you out of the conversation.”
Herein lies one of the critical benefits of blogging – you control the conversation. One of the biggest questions asked by corporations contemplating blogging is “what if the feedback on our blog is negative?” Well, at least you can see it and respond openly. By responding to criticism you’re taking the feedback onboard and taking action. Customers see you’re doing something about it and improving. Whether you like it or not, there are conversations happening in online forums, chatrooms and on the street with plenty of negative views on corporations. Blogging allows you to control the conversation, have full visibility and increase your personal connection, take corrective action and create trust.
Online Strategy
It takes more than a technology enabler to be successful in online marketing and PR. An online strategy combines market knowledge, audience, search engine optimisation (SEO), guerrilla marketing and technology to create a strategy for success, longevitity and driving new business online. A blog is a mandatory requirement for online business success, but you need a smart strategy and suitable resources for blogging to succeed.
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
Some awesome discussion going on with Tim Jackson and Toby Bloomberg over at Newsvine. If only Newsvine had an open API so we could syndicate comments… that’s probably the next step required for social bookmarking.
{ 2 trackbacks }