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Global PR Blog Week 1.0

Program
Final program
Topics
PR in the Age of Participatory Journalism
Corporate Blogging
Making PR Work: Creativity & Strategy
Crisis Management
The State of the PR Profession
Orientation
Welcome
What's a Weblog?
How to Get Updates
Posting Etiquette
Archives
July 2004
June 2004


 

Day 4: Emergence of Ideas

July 15, 2004

Our topic for Day 4 was Crisis Management. A major theme that emerged was the need for planning ahead, for example, through following an ongoing risk communications process and by creating a crisis communications kit. In other content, Kevin Dugan provides an excellent analysis of the Martha Stewart crisis, and interviews with two influential journalists, Dan Gillmor and Steve Outing, are available.

Some other interesting ideas emerged:

1) Speed is of the essence in a crisis situation, the blogging can be the answer, as PR/communications has control over posting the content vs. waiting for the IT department. Here and here.

2) Given the negative, cynical tendencies of mainstream media, the blogosphere can offer an alternative, more positive viewpoint of a crisis. Alice Marshall comments on this on the Blogging in a Crisis post.

3) You can't treat bloggers the same as journalists, as they generally don't come from that background, and don't understand the intricacies of "off the record."

Author: Elizabeth Albrycht | Jul 15, 04 | Permalink | 0 comments
Category: @ Elizabeth Albrycht | Announcements | Topic 4 Crisis Management

 

Day 4: Lessons Learned

We decided today that it would be great if all of the authors had a chance to post their impressions of this event, discuss what they've learned, add more information based on feedback to their original posts, and so on. Therefore, we are creating a final category, "Final Thoughts," in which the authors can post whatever they want beginning on Saturday and throughout next week.

So, please come back and visit next week! We'll be watching the comments, and discussion will most certainly continue.

Also, the New PR community, to which the authors of this blog belong, is discussing the possibility of a new set of postings on this blog on one "Big Idea". The idea is to apply the knowledge that we've shared with you here to an issue. Some people suggested that we do this in the comments, and we are currently figuring out the best way to move forward and the timing. We'll make an announcement soon.

Author: Elizabeth Albrycht | Jul 15, 04 | Permalink | 0 comments
Category: Announcements

 

Day 4 Stats

The number of visits were down a little from Wednesday, but still just over one thousand people checked in. Even counting return visitors, that will total between 4000-5000 total visits this week, and the numbers will certainly continue to climb over the next weeks.

Average Per Day: 550
Average Visit Length: 6:15

Technorati: Global PR Blog Week 1.0 has 302 Links from 86 Sources

The Global PR Blog Week was no. 29 in BlogPulse's Top Links for July 14:

http://www.blogpulse.com/04_07_14/links.html
http://www.blogpulse.com/04_07_14/link_29.html

Author: Elizabeth Albrycht | Jul 15, 04 | Permalink | 1 comments
Category: Announcements

 

What Could Your Company Do With A Blog?

PUBLIC RELATIONS AND BLOGGING: HOW SMART COMPANIES USE BLOGS FOR MARKETING SUCCESS

The PR industry has taken a head-in-the-sand attitude about blogging. With everything we need to read already just to keep up, they say, how can we possibly add a few hundred blogs to the list?

Well guess what folks, you have to find the time because blogs have become an important marketing tool for a many hundreds of companies, and an important soapbox for a lot of self-appointed digital journalists who can trash your company in their blogs in a New York minute.

This report will show you examples of the many ways companies are using blogs and explain how blogs can be incorporated into public relations and marketing programs. In short, everything you need to know about blogging but didn't know whom to ask.

Because blogs are popping up daily, this list is far from complete. But it is broad enough to show you examples of how blogs are being used in a wide variety of businesses.

While many businesses are still getting used to the idea of having any kind of Web presence, forward-thinking companies are looking to blogs as simple, self-sustaining Websites and Intranets. If you're not thinking about how to use blogs in your business, you're missing a big opportunity.

Blogs make people feel like they know you and trust you, and that's one step closer to having them become your customer.

Blogging can be a remarkably effective marketing tool. It's also an excellent way to stay in touch with customers and hear concerns that can be an early warning system of potential problems. Many marketing campaigns cry out for blogs, but companies are missing great opportunities for blogs.

What could your company do with a blog? Read on!

Blogs are NOT for everyone.
Blogs are not an option for every company. They require time, commitment and, above all, good writing and research skills. Knowing how to search engine optimize blog copy is also important because that's how to get the great search engine placement that is still being afforded to blogs by the likes of Google and Yahoo. Search engines like blogs because they are frequently updated, have lots of outgoing and incoming links, and are almost entirely made of words. Search engines like words!

Blogs work in the marketing mix of companies whose products and services are somewhat complex. Maintaining a blog takes work and dedication. Publishing anything on a daily basis is time-consuming, and difficult.

Nobody will read a blog that sounds like a press release or standard company crap. You have to be willing to be conversational, and if you want an audience, you should be willing to be controversial as well.

Who should blog for your company? Someone you would trust as a public spokesperson. And it has to be someone who is a good writer. Better yet, an excellent writer, with a sense of humor. Now let's tale a look at what companies can do with blogs.

Blogs are not the answer to every marketing and PR question, but they certainly are a useful tool. Including them in the marketing mix frees you from the tyranny of the IT department and waiting to get new material online.
You make an entry into the template of a blog, hit the "Publish" button, and you are online. Couldn't be more simple or more suited to those, like me, who lack the technical gene.

Companies ranging from IBM and Microsoft to Jones Soda and Stonyfield Yogurt are using blogs as effective marketing tools.

Many other posts on The Global PR Blog Week blog have explained what blogs are and how they work, so I will skip that area here and get right into how they are being used.

Blog's Roles in Business
Talk of blogs is everywhere. But a lot of people still have basic questions about what blogs are and what businesses can do with them. Here are some straightforward explanations that will tell you just about everything you wanted to know about business blogging, but didn't know who to ask.

Because blogs are interactive, they are an excellent way to establish a point of personal contact between a company and its publics.

Despite the fact that the majority of people still don't know what a blog is, there is no denying that traditional journalists follow them closely and often cite them as news sources.

Journalists Read – and Write – Blogs
Here’s what’s next. Change will happen even faster online in the future and those in PR who don’t keep up will find themselves in a scrap heap populated with buggy whip manufacturers who decried the invention of the horseless carriage.

It doesn’t matter if you like blogs. It doesn’t matter if you agree with the opinions of the people who write them. What matters is that there are now more than 4 million blogs worldwide according to blogcount.com. And some of those have become quite influential – meaning that journalists read them and write about what is in them.

Not all blogs are rantings or diaries. For PR people, the ones that count are business, media and marketing blogs, particularly those like MarketingVox and Boing Boing which digest the contest of other blogs and traditional media worldwide and comment on the content.

Bloggers delight in scooping traditional media outlets with news, rumors and opinions. That’s one place where PR opportunity can be.

There are a growing number of influential blogs that have a huge number of readers (for example Boing Boing has in excess of 350,000 unique readers per month) and offer some opportunities in terms of promoting your client’s ideas or products.

What are the potential risks or pitfalls in using blogs (both internally and externally)?
It is important that the people who represent the company in the blog are the same people you would allow to represent the company to the media or to the outside world.

However, to fit the definition of blog, the blog has to be unedited and free from the legal mumbo jumbo that often mars PR material and robs it of credibility.

The Dr. Pepper Raging Cow blog has become a classic example of what PR people should NOT do. The company set up the blog and then went to several young bloggers and offered them financial rewards for blogging about the Raging Cow blog being cool.

Bloggers caught wind of the scheme and Raging Cow was creamed all over the Blogosphere. You can look up the case study on MarketingVox by typing "Raging Cow" into the search bar.

Many companies have embraced the new technology and incorporated blogs into their marketing campaigns. The following are examples of business blogs in many categories.

Examples of Effective Business Blogs

• Adverblogs
Blogs that are part of a company's marketing strategy and are intended to help sell a product or service.

Jones Soda http://www.jonessoda.com/blogs/ from this alternative soda company which appeals to young people is one of the best examples I have ever seen. It creates a real, open and interactive community for Jones' best customers.

Jones Blogs participants can:
• rate and review the products;
• suggest names for new flavors;
• upload their picture to the blog and have labels produced with their photos on the front and their copy on the back (minimum order is 12 bottles)
• suggest new flavor for Jones to make, with winners determined by votes from other participants
• suggest skateboarding, snowboarding and extreme sports athletes to be featured on the blogs;
• apply for Jones' sponsorship for athletes
• tell other participants about cool skateboarding parks and events of interest
• submit photos to be considered for use on Jones labels nationwide
• buy soda

Stonyfield Farm Blogs The environmentally conscious yogurt maker has five blog Cow-munities."

Stonyfield's Blogs include:
• Strong Women Daily News, for women's fitness and health tips and Stonyfield-sponsored events
• The Bovine Bugle, featuring daily moos from an organic dairy farm in Vermont
• The Daily Planet, discussing Stonyfield's efforts to reduce the company's impact on the environment
• The Daily Scoop, about Stonyfield Farm happenings.
• Creating Healthy Kids, moos about how to change the way kids eat as "the nation faces an epidemic of childhood obesity."

This may be more than anyone ever wanted to know about Stonyfield. And as a result there is not much reaction from visitors to the blog. But they definitely get an "A" for effort and hopefully the content will evolve to be more interesting.

The Stonyfield blogs are integrated into the company's consumer Web site, providing a way for customers to interact with the brand.

Those who register on the site can become eligible for "moosletters," e-coupons, enter contests, send e-cards, get recipes and sign up for a "Strong Women" conference.

Scene Embassies brands its hip European fashion label by having 18-28 year old bloggers around the globe spot trends in their cities and blog about them.

Beta-7 a marketing blog from ESPN and Sega, that is supposed to appear to be the blog of a beta tester for ESPN NFL video game. It has an active following of gamers and includes lots of video clips, some of which are supposedly commercial out-takes and rejects.

• B2B Blogs
These are blogs produced by one company to cater to other businesses.

Brand.blog Jennifer Rice of Brand Consulting blogs about branding, marketing and customer experience.

Ongoing Tim Bray technology director for Sun Microsystems, is one of the highest profile bloggers online.

His blogs notes, "The opinions expressed here are my own, and neither Sun nor any other party necessarily agrees with them." He says that his blog's "unifying themes are Truth, Technology, and Business. My strongly-held beliefs in each of these areas are … (I hope) reflected consistently in every other entry that is part of ongoing."

Microsoft Blogs More than 700 Microsoft employees maintain blogs, a remarkable phenomenon in a company that has always been highly secretive.

One of the highest profile Microsoft bloggers is Robert Scoble, whose Scobelizer is widely popular, and whom Steve Rubel interviewed for this event. .

Another remarkable Microsoft blog is Channel 9 It features video clips of the bloggers interviewing eachother as well as a moblog (mobile blog) and a wiki (collaborative Web site.) Channel 9, which has several authors, welcomes visitors with this statement:

"Channel 9 started as a personal story from one of us about fear of flying. Lenn realized after years of dealing with it, that it was actually a fear of the unknown. The fear was conquered through learning. The more transparency into what it took to fly a plane, the more the fear went away. Lenn got to know pilots who flew planes everyday, and every time he flew he turned on Channel 9 on the in-flight audio system to listen in to the cockpit.

We think developers need their own Channel 9, a way to listen in to the cockpit at Microsoft, an opportunity to learn how we fly, a chance to get to know our pilots. Five of us in Redmond are crazy enough to think we just might learn something from getting to know each other. Were we wrong? Time will tell.

Join in, and have a look inside our cockpit and help us fly the plane. Welcome to Channel 9."

ANA Marketing Musings
Robert Liodice, president and CEO of the Association of National Advertisers provides useful, straightforward posts on topics relevant to the industry.

This blog provides an example all associations would be smart to follow because it allows immediacy, interactivity and a human touch. Bravo.

ACCAbuzz - the official weblog of the Air Conditioning Contractors of America. Covers topics ranging from awards to chapter news, conferences, government affairs, marketing, legal issues, training and certification.

A perfect example of why blogs are an excellent medium for organizations with huge amounts of information to cover and a need to share up to date content with members and the public.

•Product Sales Blogs

Blogs set up to handle e-commerce

Shop Loosetooth .com Artist Brandy Agerbeck uses her blog to present her accessories, art, beads, cards, clothing, dolls, houseware and jewelry. She handles fulfillment through Cafe Press http://www.cafepress.com/cp/info/

Nike Art of Speed Nick Denton's Gawker Media, entering the market as a publisher of marketing blogs, has teamed up with Nike to publish Nike Art of Speed blog, a new ad campaign.

For Art of Speed, Nike commissioned 15 young filmmakers to interpret the idea of speed. Over the course of 20 days, this weblog introduced these directors, their short films, and the digital technology behind the scenes.

What's Next Blogis my blog, where I cover Internet strategy, marketing, public relations, politics with news and commentary. While book sales are not the primary purpose of my blog, I showcase my e-books and reports, and sell them through my Web site, whatsnextonline.com

• Customer Service Blogs
Blogs are perfectly suited to customer service because they are interactive, automatically archived and searchable. Clever companies are using then for handling customer service inquiries, giving out product information, explaining company policies.

Macromedia Flash Product Blogs take advantage of blog's ability to provide really extensive product information, instruction and background.

These blogs establish their authors as experts in their field because they provide useful information. Two dozen Macromedia employees provide product information, including:

John Dowdell's"news service for people using Macromedia MX."

Macromedia Director of Architecture Sean Cornfeld's, An Architect's View "Thoughts from the Director of Architecture in IT at Macromedia on: ColdFusion MX, Rich Internet Applications, software design... and neat CFMX hacks!"

Red Hat, which sells Linux services, used blogs and MeetUps during a worldwide customer outreach tour in early 2004, "for 1/5th the price of a trade show."

They set up a blog because, said Chris Grams Senior Manager, Marketing Communications, at Red Hat, "I really believe if you talk in a real person's voice, you reach people in such a deeper way. We try not to make the message so watered down and so enterprise antiseptic that it appeals to no one. We may make at least a couple of people mad, but I'm hoping an enormous number of people feel a deeper connection."
Apparently they did, because the blog averaged more than 3,500 visits a day during the tour.

Marketing Sherpahas an excellent case study of this campaign.

• Politics
Blogs by candidates or political organizations and political commentary by individuals. Candidates' blogs help raise money, plan MeetUps and encourage volunteerism.

John Kerry for President is the official blog of the Democratic Candidate. Posts are by Kerry's campaign staff, but it is not unusual to get 200 responses to a post.

Democrats.orgis the Democratic National Committee blog with the unlikely title "Kicking Ass." (Donkey, get it?)

Eden Prairie Blog Scott Neal, the "friendly City Manager for the City of Eden Prairie, MN," says he uses the blog "to keep Council members, staff, and interested citizens informally updated on a variety of community-related stuff that's crossing my desk and my mind."

• Thought Leader Blogs Blogs by well-known people in various fields.

Seth Godin, author of several best-selling marketing books, including "Free Prize Inside," "Permission Marketing," and "Purple Cow," blogs his opinions on topics ranging from marketing to politics. His blog was voted Number One in a Marketing Sherpa poll.

Godin recently hit the virtual road to do an online book tour for "Free Prize Inside." He guest blogged on a different blog every day. I first wrote about this possibility about a year earlier, yet he was the first name brand author to give it a go.

Godin also maintains a Web site for his consultancy, speaking inquiries and books.

Release 4.0 Esther Dyson is a long-time technology and Internet thought leader, and publisher of the influential monthly magazine Release 1.0.

Release 2.0 is the name of her highly regarded book, Release 3.0 is the name of her bi-weekly New York Times column. So the blog, of course, was 4.0.

• Media Blogs
Blogs by media organizations include publications which have blogs in addition to their Web sites and digital media organizations.

Fast Company Magazineblog tries to help the magazine regain its former reputation as a bastion of hipness and coolness. Doesn't quite make it, but some good writers are blogging and there is the standard disclaimer that the posts are the writers' opinions, not the publishers'.

• J- Blogs
Blogs by journalists
Wall St. Journal Opinion Journal- Best of the Web Today, by James Taranto features commentary on news stories carried online in a variety of media.

Dan Gillmor’s Must-Read Letter to PR People

On his blog, which covers technology, Internet trends, politics and lots more, Gillmor tells PR people his preferences in helpful detail.

Cyberjournalists
A directory of hundreds of journalists who blog. Invaluable to PR people.

Slashdot
"News for nerds." This group blog has become an important example of new media and a prime source for journalists. Get a technology client on here and you don't need to do a lot more. More than a million people read it in a week. Quantity is not as important as quality with blogs. Some blogs that are read by only a few hundred people have huge influence even with a small audience.

BoingBoing
Covers everything from politics to technology to Internet trends and gadgets. Has more than 350,000 visitors per day.

Poynteronline
A site by journalists for journalists. Let's PR people be a fly on the wall. The Poynter Institute is a school for journalists, and is dedicated to teaching and inspiring journalists and media leaders.

Because the blogosphere is ever-evolving, this list is incomplete. I conduct Bloginars for corporations and regularly write articles about blogging, with examples, in my newsletter, What's Next Online, and in publications including MarketingProfs and WebProNews.

Glossary and How Blogs Differ From Forums, Listserves, Newsletters and Websites
A Blog -- short for Web Log -- is a Website featuring information (posts) shown in reverse chronological order. Blog software provides an inexpensive, but full-featured content management system that is easily used by people with no technical skills. The act of updating a blog is called blogging and bloggers frequently add new material.

The totality of weblogs or blog-related websites is usually called the blogosphere.

The format of weblogs varies, from simple bullet lists of hyperlinks, to article summaries with user-provided comments and ratings. Individual weblog entries are almost always date and time-stamped, with the newest post at the top of the page.

Blog software allows automatic archiving of entries in categories created by the blogger. A static address, referred to as a permalink is generated for each individual post. The latest headlines, with hyperlinks and summaries, are offered in weblogs in the RSS XML-format, to be read with a RSS feedreader, described later in the report.

How do blogs differ from other online discussions, such as listservs or discussion forums?
On a listserv or forum, anyone can start a new discussion thread. On a blog, only the blog publisher can post a new item. Readers can comment on posts but cannot start a new topic.

Blog posts generally are followed by a link for comments. People who read a post and wish to comment on it simply type in their name, email address and comment on a built in form.

The comment is then visible to visitors to the blog, who can comment on the comments. The blogger can turn off the "comment" feature and also can decide to accept, reject or edit a comment but no reader can change or delete a comment. However, a blog that doesn't allow comments is not a true blog.

An e-zine is a publication containing the work of one or more writers. Can contain artwork, photos, streaming media. Readers wishing to make a comment can send a suggestion to the editor, who then can publish or respond to it.

Creating an html e-zine issue requires knowledge of programming, unless a designer has created templates that can be filled in with copy and artwork. Archiving the content of a newsletter or e-zine is not automatic and requires programming skills. Search software must be integrated into the archives.

Readers can comment to the publisher by email and the publisher can decide whether or not to publish these comments. E-zines are delivered by e-mail and/or posted to a Website. Some e-zines are now providing RSS feeds as a delivery option because e-zines and email newsletters are frequently caught in or mangled by spam filters.

Since blogs can have many different formats (which generally have to be set up by a programmer or designer) a blog can become a template for a newsletter or e-zine and notification that an issue has been published can be sent by email.

Newsgroups allow members to post comments or start a thread to which others add comments. However, newsgroup software does not allow posting of photographs, artwork or streaming media, or automatic archiving or delivery by RSS Feed.

Clearly, blogging for business is a huge and growing topic. I've given you real-world examples that should help you wrap your brain around blogging and what it might do for your company.

Author: B.L. Ochman | Jul 15, 04 | Permalink | 1 comments
Category: @ B.L. Ochman | Topic 4 Crisis Management

 

New to the Global PR Blog?

There is a huge amount of impressive, cutting edge comment on this site but I thought it was worth putting together a few quotes for those who, like me, are a bit lower on the learning curve. It's not a 'best of', just a taster to give a flavour of the rich variety of new ideas.

Trevor Cook: Re-thinking PR
What will blogs do? We have some inclinations but I think it is still far too early to tell with any real clarity and certainty. But we do know that the world of PR will be turned upside down over the next few years as we re-invent ourselves in response to this awe-inspiring new phenomenon.

Blogging is different from other mediums because it collapses the distinction between producer and consumer. Bloggers and blog readers are essentially the same people. Instead of largely passive audiences, complex webs of online communities and conversations are being created.

Intervening, and influencing, these communities and conversations, will require different skills, techniques, protocols and strategies. Up until now, ‘feedback’ has been the poor cousin of PR, which has been mostly concerned with the disciplined download of cleverly-crafted, and tightly-controlled, messages

Ryan May: Defining participatory journalism

As PR professionals we have two choices when it comes to blogging, either we can ignore it and hope our company never ends up in a blog or we can monitor blogs related to our business or our clients.

…. To which Elizabeth Albrycht added: I'd say we have a third choice. We should participate in the blogosphere itself (along with our clients). Don't just monitor from afar. Jump in with both feet.
PR people have been trained to be invisible in the old "control the message" world. In this new world, they need to celebrate their identity. Don't hide behind the client, but participate in public conversations with the client. Be open about what you are trying to persuade people to do and give them darn good reasons to take the action you want them too.

As the old adage says, talk TO people, not AT them.

Robert Scoble of Microsoft to Trevor Cook
... consumers now are getting knowledge networks that are unparalleled to learn about products that they are about to purchase. We can look up Consumer Reports latest ratings within minutes of them being posted. Thinking of buying a car or a book? Search Technorati and Feedster to see what people are thinking.
If people are saying your product isn't good, then you better have an answer. Why not link to those people and try to answer their concerns? Or, do you not care about your brand? Is sticking your head in the sand and trying to ignore the concerns of your customers going to do your company or your brand any good?

Companies traditionally are used to controlling the messages that go out... In the old world, word-of-mouth happened, but companies weren't able to be involved, and because word-of-mouth happened offline only, most corporate PR guys didn't worry too much ...

In the new world, however, word-of-mouth networks are far more efficient. Today people can email hundreds of friends within a few minutes of a news event...

I don't know if there should be rules, beyond a few common sense ones. But education is key. If you're going to have employees talking with the outside world, you should educate them about what's legally acceptable or not ... You should let them know what acceptable behavior is online. That will vary from company to company and product to product.

Trudy Schuett: All the basics in one place
(A blog is different from a traditional static website because) it can easily be set up and maintained by anyone who can comfortably use a word processing program ... send e-mail and surf the internet. The IT department of your organization need not be involved in the project at all.

John Cass: Microsoft Corporate Blogs and other stories
E-mail is losing its effectiveness as a communications tool. RSS will replace e-mail in key areas. RSS (really simple syndication), a method for syndicating content from a source (a website or a blog). RSS is providing an alternative to email as a way to keep in contact with websites and email newsletters. Tired with the barrage of permission-based e-mails, customers will switch to readers that read RSS content. A customer reads their RSS content through a reader on a daily basis. While, at the moment, it is presently culturally unacceptable to send too many emails, even permission based email. Armed with an RSS reader your audience will demand more content. Those corporate bloggers who provide regular content will be more likely to keep their audience’s attention in an RSS reader.

Blogs are communications tools that give your company a touch of honesty and establish the company has humans running the place. With a blog it is culturally acceptable for employees to use humor and inject their personality into their online conversations with an audience. Microsoft’s progress into corporate blogging (over 700 bloggers) illustrates that corporate blogging on a larger scale may subtly change an audience's perception about a company.

Wayne Hurlbert: Blogs as a website promotional tool
Blogs are communications tools that give your company a touch of honesty and establish the company has humans running the place. With a blog it is culturally acceptable for employees to use humor and inject their personality into their online conversations with an audience. Microsoft’s progress into corporate blogging (over 700 bloggers) illustrates that corporate blogging on a larger scale may subtly change an audience's perception about a company.

The very concept of adding a human element to your business, may seem a little obvious to many people. On the other hand, many business and website owners have overlooked the benefits of placing a personal stamp on their business. A blog can provide precisely that human element for you.

Robb Hecht: Blogs are Corporate Brand Threats… blogs are posing threats to Fortune 1000 brands and in order to meet the new brand threat that blogs pose, corporations are attempting to influence bloggers in their media relations outreach, as well as shifting media budgets to strenghthen their own online corporate brand voices.

Author: Philip Young | Jul 15, 04 | Permalink | 2 comments
Category: @ Philip Young | Announcements

 

Basic Principles for Crisis Communications

Whether the phones are ringing, camera trucks are showing up at a worksite, union leadership is speaking at a public hearing, or a regulator is issuing safety warnings about your product, it's pretty clear you've got a crisis.

Instead of days or weeks, you've got minutes to map out how your organization will respond. You have to demonstrate awareness of the issue, empathize with the community and possible victims, appear knowledgeable to stakeholders, and prepare for detailed questioning from the board, Wall Street analysts, regulators, politicians and the public.

Ideally, you will have already tackled your toughest challenge: preparing your leadership for the glare of the local, national or international spotlight. In some industries, some tough media training will suffice. In others, CEOs, Presidents, General Managers and Plant Managers may be called upon to explain safety or health consequences of an accident clearly and competently.

The key to the success of this dialogue is a corporate culture that understands the benefits of risk communications. It's a field of study that emphasizes transparency, information sharing, honest consultation processes and accountability.

Effective risk communications forces your organization to identify possible threats to its business, clients, workers, neighbours and other stakeholders - and to work with these groups in developing a shared response. It's an ongoing process - more effective than a stale binder on a shelf, and more reassuring than a troubleshooter flown in when the first reporter calls.

Vincent Covello, one of several academic authorities in the field, identified seven cardinal rules of risk communication:

While these rules were originally developed with health risks in mind, they apply equally to any situation where you must communicate to a variety of audiences about an incident, accident or health or safety risk.

Interestingly, the recent push for greater accountability from corporate officers (and subsequent court cases) has helped "open some eyes" in the previously insular world of the "e-suite" to the benefits of open and honest communication strategies. An example? Michael Eisner reacted slowly to the emerging threat from Roy Disney and Stanley Gold - and is now seeing his power curtailed because of it.

Clearer applications can be found in the transportation, food, chemical, energy and nuclear industries - where accidents arising from everyday operations can affect the lives of thousands of people.

Peter Sandman, another expert in the field, acknowledges that communicators will face ten (or more) dilemmas when developing or implementing emergency and crisis plans:

He's offered his preferred approach to each dilemma - at the link.

Sandman has also provided some suggestions for messaging during crises - especially when a corporate decision has provoked outrage from stakeholders. Many of these suggestions will run counter to any advice being offered by your legal counsel:

There are useful resources available on the web for:

Author: Colin McKay | Jul 15, 04 | Permalink | 0 comments
Category: @ Colin McKay | Topic 4 Crisis Management

 

7 Must-have Elements in Every Crisis Communications Kit

Chances are incredibly high that your company is going to experience a crisis of some kind in the next 5 years. It's how you handle that crisis with the media which will likely determine whether that crisis builds or seriously damages your company.

That's why it is vital that you develop a crisis communications and management plan that prepares you in advance for this eventuality.

In preparing this plan, keep in mind that this crisis may allow you to continue business as normal, or it may result in a situation where you aren't able to get access to the tools you normally use to do your job (natural disaster, lockout, etc.) so your crisis communications kit needs to provide the capability for you to provide the appearance of normality even in the most abnormal situations.

Thus it's important for your crisis communications kit to not only be duplicated in some offsite location, but to also include information, disks, graphics, computer files, photos, etc. that are normally readily at your fingertips in your office.

Here's a starter list of seven items that should be included in any crisis communications kit:


1. A list of the members of the crisis management team, which should include, at minimum, the CEO, a trusted assistant/top manager from the CEO's office, heads of each department, public relations and marketing team members, legal and security.
In case of actual crisis, this team will be focused down to the group applicable to that specific crisis.

2. Contact information for key officers, spokespeople, and crisis management team members including company and personal phone numbers, email addresses, cell numbers, pagers, faxes, instant message handles, addresses, even spouse's cell numbers.

3. Fact sheets on the company, each division, each physical location, and each product offered.
These should be in camera-ready condition, plus available on a disk in a generally-accepted word processor format (Microsoft Word) so they can be revised and printed out if necessary on a computer external to your facilities. Photos should also be included.

4. Profiles and biographies for each key manager in your company, again in camera-ready condition and on disk.

5. Copies of your company, division and product logos, your press release format and the scanned in signature of your CEO on disk in a format that works on your internal word processing program (plus one in Microsoft Word in case you have to work on a computer that isn't tied to your network.)

6. Pre-written scripts answering key questions that you have generated through your crisis scenario analysis. Included in these scripts should be the words you use to say "we don't have that information yet, but will let you know as soon as it becomes available."

7. Contact information for each of your key media contacts both locally, nationally, and if appropriate, key financial press and analysts. Contact information for your appropriate political, regulatory, and union leaders should also be included. Don't be afraid to go overboard here - if you have a large chemical release, your CEO will probably want to call not only the Mayor, but the Governor and congressional representatives.


We strongly recommend that you assemble this kit shortly. It will be one of the best insurance policies that you can have on hand once a crisis begins.

For more information on crisis management and communications, we recommend that you check out Crisis Communication Planning: Organizing and Completing A Plan That Works.

Author: Don Crowther | Jul 15, 04 | Permalink | 0 comments
Category: @ Don Crowther | Topic 4 Crisis Management

 

CHATEAR / LET'S CHAT: OCTAVIO ROJAS

For those who want to chat with me, you can reach me from 7 to 9 pm (GMT+1.00) (1-3 pm EST), 15th July.

I will be on MSN Messenger: octavio (dot) rojas (at) wanadoo(dot) es

Para aquellos que quieran chatear conmigo, pueden encontrarme de 7 a 9 pm (GMT+1.00) (1-3 pm EST), el 15 de Julio.

Estaré en MSN Messenger: octavio (dot) rojas (at) wanadoo(dot) es

Author: Octavio Rojas | Jul 15, 04 | Permalink | 0 comments
Category: @ Octavio Rojas

 

Interview: Steve Outing on Blogging's Impact

To get an overview of blogging's impact on both traditional journalism and the practice of PR, I interviewed Steve Outing, a well-known expert in the field of online media and a noted digital journalist. Outing, who has been covering online media since 1995, is a senior editor at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies, and an interactive media columnist for Editor and Publisher Online. He is US editor for Poynter's group blog, E-Media Tidbits.

Ochman: How do you keep up with all the media, online and off, these days? A lot of people are wondering if we have to grow another head.

Outing: My media habits have definitely changed. In the last year or so, I get as much of my intelligence and news about what's going on from blogs as from regular sources.

Ochman: What's the impact of blogging on traditional journalism?

Outing: Over the last 10 years, traditional journalists have been learning the lesson that the Internet is a two-way conversation with readers as opposed to just talking to them.

Blogs support his conversation between audience and journalist. That trend is influencing mainstream media. On my blog the other day, Katja Riefler cited a newspaper article in a German paper that was very critical on an online news service in Germany.

The editor of the online news service being criticized wrote an editorial and readers were invited to discuss it; bloggers stepped in with their point of view. The author of the original article came back and joined the conversation. This is the way journalism is going in the Internet Age. And that is one of the effects of blogs.

I sometimes think about bloggers as like alternative press, but maybe with a larger megaphone. The way things have spread throughout the blogs is pretty remarkable.

Some people have a very narrow definition of blogging. And much of the journalistic potential that I envision strays pretty far from that definition. (Besides, I've never liked the word 'blog.') Maybe we can come up with a new word to describe journalistic blogging." Anyone got any good ideas?

Ochman: A woman who works for a Fortune 500 company said at one of my seminars on blogging for business that she was mortified to learn that bloggers with no editors could say whatever they want about her company. Since most blogs are unedited, what are the checks and balances now with blogging?

Outing: Outside of the news industry, bloggers are an opinionated bunch. Typically they write independently; they're usually unedited, unfiltered voices. Controversy is considered to be a good thing in the land of blogs.

The best bloggers will rise to the top because their content is brilliantly written and well edited. Some blogs will even be edited pre-publication (especially blogs published by news organizations). To say that an edited blog (and that would include this one) is not a blog is just bizarre, in my humble opinion.

Blogging is still relatively new. Even among the top tier 5% bloggers, most are not making a living at it. Not many are doing it fulltime. It is not a fad, it will be around for a while.

Ochman: What impact will bloggers have on the US Presidential convention coverage?

Outing: Blogging is getting to be more and more mainstream. You hear about blogs on the news now.

There will be some very different perspectives coming out of having bloggers at the conventions. Wonkette will have a very different perspective. Ana Marie Cox is the irreverent writer behind Wonkette, and her writing and attitude is a joy to read -- well, assuming you enjoy seeing politicians on both sides of the aisle getting skewered and don't mind the occasional profanity and frequent use of questionable-taste humor.

I read wonkette because she's who she is. She's very funny. It's really hard to tell if she is a Democrat or a Republican, she keeps it pretty balanced.. Most bloggers have their politics on their sleeves.

Another milestone blog is AP's. Surely this must be a sign that blogging is mainstream. Pulitzer Prize-winning Associated Press reporter Walter Mears and colleague Nancy Benac will be providing "running commentary, insight, and news tidbits" from the Democratic and Republican conventions later this summer.

Their AP feature, called blog@ap.org, is being offered to AP clients as part of the wire service's political coverage, and will open for business the Sunday before the conventions open and run through the final proceedings on Thursday night.

This is the first blog to be offered by the AP. Mears has reported from every U.S. national political convention since 1964 and spent most of his 45 years with the AP covering politics; Benac has covered 10 conventions. Mears retired in 2001, so the blog is his temporary return to news coverage.

Ochman: How do you find the bloggers you follow and how many do you read?

Outing: I follow about 20 blogs daily. I tend to find new ones I like through posts on other blogs. . Often one blog mentions another, and there are the blog rolls that a lot of bloggers have. I use Feed Demon as a newsreader to scan blog headlines.

Ochman: Do you still read press releases?

Outing: There has definitely been a drop off in number that come in email, and I get hardly any regular mail. Most of what I get is fairly targeted from people in my industry.

I definitely find some stories breaking in blogs. There is a great talent pool in bloggers.

Ochman: Are bloggers being watchdogs to the traditional press?

Outing: The Trent Lott story is example. People in mainstream press didn't think it was important enough to keep the story moving.

Lott praised Senator Strom Thurmond's segregationalist platform when he was a presidential candidate in 1948. Newspapers did not immediately notice the remarks but bloggers kept up the campaign and the outcry eventually forced Lott to resign as Senate majority leader in 2002.)

Ochman: Why aren't newspapers keeping up with trend to have blogs and have reporters use photo phones to quickly get stories online?

Outing: Media has traditionally been a fairly conservative industry and slow to change. The vast majority of income still comes from print. Even though the Web is exciting and news organizations are getting more diverse, the money still isn't there.

To get money into digital journalism – a lot is dependant on the technology, on having broadband in every home. We have made great strides already, with people already carrying portable devices that can bring them news.

The phone will become a more and more important media device.
Vodafone has a cool site with a vision of the wireless future. One of their visions is a replacement of a watch.

Ochman: What should a company do when bad news about it is reported in blogs?

Outing: If news is bad about a company, respond directly to the bloggers and engage them in conversation. But realize that however you respond, be ready for that to go public. I wouldn’t send a blogger a private note and expect it not to be widely published in the blogosphere.

In traditional media, you might be able to say "off the record" but bloggers, with no journalistic training, no editors, may not have same rules. They are definitely a little more unpredictable.

Ochman: Is that a good thing?

Outing: It's the way it is. Everybody has a microphone, has a publication. If you have something that really strikes a cord, it will spread everywhere. The nice thing about the blog world is that sometimes, something on a blog gets written about on 100 other blogs and has a spiral impact.

Ochman: Will journalists take corporate blogs seriously? What's your advice to Bill Gates when he starts blogging?

Outing: Write it himself. There is lots of precedent. Mark Cubandoes it. (Cuban is owner of the Dallas Mavericks. He previously co-founded Broadcast.com, the leading provider of multimedia and streaming on the Internet, in 1995, selling it to Yahoo! in July of 1999.) Alan Meckler, CEO of Jupiter media also writes a blog.

It's the approach they take. If it comes across like a press release, nobody will pay attention to them.

Ochman: Will big blogs ever have audiences of millions?

Outing: It will take talent, luck. It may be that a blogger who is really talented will become that popular one day.

Ochman: What should PR people do to approach people who blog?

Outing: The first challenge is that you have to pick and choose who to go after. Most bloggers have a fairly narrow niche, have to be sure you fit in it.

Ochman: Is it ok to send bloggers a press release?

Outing: I personally like that. If it's something in left field, that's like spam. If it's something that's appropriate, a press release is fine.

Ochman: What is the best way to reach you?

Outing: I am getting a couple hundred emails a day, but e-mail is still a good one for me. I have really good spam filters.

Ochman: Does a PR person have to have a personal relationship with you before you pay attention to them, or is the story the most important thing?

Outing: Personal relationships really help, especially because my field of coverage is the news industry. There definitely are PR people who often send me things and I definitely value those relationships. Sometimes I call them and they are really helpful in getting me interviews.

Ochman: What's the best way to start a relationship with you?

Outing: Send some interesting stuff that turns out to be a good story.

Ochman: With all the bloggers providing leads, will there still be a need for PR people in the news process?

Outing: With the expansion of all the blogger/journos, there might be more demand for PR. Mainstream media isn’t getting any smaller, and now you have bloggers. There will be more and more journalists for PR people to pitch. But only about 1000 journalists really matter to corporate PR folks.

Ochman: Why don't you have a personal blog?

Outing: I wonder about that myself! News organizations – the NY Times is a classic example , don't want journalists' personal views. It depends what role you have in the organization. If you are a liberal at the times, everybody knows your view, if you cover political news, that is not good.

I found that there are two principal types of employed journalist bloggers:

1. Those who are very careful about what they blog, never getting too controversial and seldom expressing opinions. Their employers know what they're doing and support them as long as they don't do anything that might put the news organization in a bad light.

2. Those who feel stymied by their media-company employers from writing what they want -- who look at the larger blog world and feel annoyed at their managers because they're not allowed such freedom of expression.

Personal employee blogs, it seems, are land mines for media employers. The nature of the Internet is why. A simple family blog written by a reporter might contain a reference to trouble at work, or discontent with a boss. It's so easy for such an item -- meant for a tiny group but accessible by the entire Web world -- to take on a life of its own and spread to a huge audience, embarrassing not only the employer but also the employee. The media operates in a Google-driven, Romenesko world now.

Author: B.L. Ochman | Jul 15, 04 | Permalink | 6 comments
Category: @ B.L. Ochman | Topic 4 Crisis Management

 

A Conversation with Dan Gillmor

Dan Gillmor is a nationally known technology columnist for the San Jose Mercury News, Silicon Valley's paper of record. His syndicated column runs in many other U.S. newspapers. Gillmor's daily weblog for SiliconValley.com, an online affiliate of the Mercury News, is read by nearly 500,000 people each month.

Later this month, O'Reilly will publish Dan's first book, We the Media. In the book Dan writes that grassroots journalists (such as bloggers) are dismantling Big Media's monopoly on the news, transforming it from a lecture to a conversation. He believes the impact is just beginning to be felt by professional journalists and the newsmakers they cover. The public relations profession needs to adapt too and Dan devotes much of an entire chapter to this topic.

I recently conducted an email interview with Dan focused on how grassroots journalism is changing how we should listen to customers and respond to crises. If you have additional questions on this topic for Dan that are not covered here, please leave a comment here and I will forward a selection of these to him for further elaboration as his schedule permits.

STEVE RUBEL: Dan, as weblogs and personal journalism mushroom, will companies become more prone to crises? Which kinds of firms are most vulnerable?

DAN GILLMOR: Apart from the kinds of difficult situations all companies can find themselves in from time to time, there may be heightened vulnerability to a new kind of problem. For example, customers, employees or gadflies might use blogs or other new media to reveal information a company might otherwise have wanted to keep secret.

I don't necessarily believe that companies are in greater danger if they have internal bloggers, however. With proper guidelines, employee bloggers are among the greatest PR assets any enterprise can have.

RUBEL: Weblogs and personal/amateur journalism mean greater transparency. Does this mean PR pros will lose complete control of their company's reputation? What opportunity is there here for PR pros to shape reputations?

GILLMOR: Not at all. The PR mission evolves. But it's important for people to understand that a) they never had complete control in the first place; and b) "control" is a mistaken notion. Think in terms of managing, not controlling, what clients say and what is said about them.

The risks are growing on one level. Bloggers and other grassroots media -including the increasingly ubiquitous digital camera - are uncovering information many companies might prefer to keep secret and then spreading what they learn to anyone else who cares. Customers help each other "hack" products today in ways companies might not like. And some of the information that gets spread is false.

The opportunities are also growing. Using the same tools, companies can communicate better with their various constituencies: customers, suppliers, employees, community. With a more human than PR-laden voice, they can explain what is happening and why. They can have a conversation with these constituencies, via comments, bulletin boards, etc. They can enjoy the value that comes from listening to people's ideas.

PR folks also can use RSS to distribute routine news, instead of clogging up the e-mail inboxes of journalists who are already overwhelmed. And they can be careful to pitch the right people at any given organization, rather than blasting messages widely.

RUBEL: How has a journalist's job changed in this new era of communications?

GILLMOR: Journalists have to use the tools, and we have to learn to listen better. In an emerging era of multi-directional, digital communications, the audience is becoming be an integral part of the process or journalism. In fact, the audience *must* be part.

This boils down to one of my mantras: Our readers (or viewers or listeners) collectively know more than we do. This is not a threat, but an opportunity. We need to recognize and, in the best sense of the word, use their knowledge. Our former "consumers" have more choices now, and they'll use them.

Journalists have to embrace blogging and other grassroots media, for ourselves and for our communities.

RUBEL: The media are an important part of this country's checks and balance system. As blogs and participatory journalism take off is the media becoming more relevant or less?

GILLMOR: Since I include blogs and participatory media as part of the media, I'd say the media are becoming more relevant. But even assuming that we're talking about new media as a separate entity, I don't think mainstream media are necessarily less relevant in the mission of helping people keep themselves informed. The new entrants are adding context and facts and viewpoints that we - and readers who want to know more - can use to create more complete news reports.

RUBEL: Recently we both - on our individual blogs - re-reported some news that was partially inaccurate and promptly took steps to correct it. You're a pro journalist. I am simply a blogger. Do we each "live" by a separate code of ethics?

GILLMOR:Apparently we don't. We both felt obliged to post corrections/clarifications to what one of the parties in the dispute said was incorrect. Some bloggers - and some major media outlets - might not have felt any such obligation. I'm more comfortable correcting the record.

RUBEL: How should PR pros monitor the blogosphere for potential crises?

GILLMOR: Avidly, but not just for crises. With sites like Technorati and Feedster, it's becoming almost trivial to track what people are saying about you. If they're offering praise, a company can use that to do an even better job. If they're complaining, there's an opportunity to fix what's wrong.

RUBEL: What steps should professional journalists take in following up on damaging news they find on Weblogs?

GILLMOR: Check it out. This applies to all responsible media.

RUBEL: Why/why not should PR pros chase down every rumor they see online?

GILLMOR: Life is too short to track everything. But it's vital to track down the ones that are seriously damaging or wonderfully positive.  Your critics can help you learn how to do things better; pay attention.

RUBEL: Why do you feel that trade secrets are dying?

GILLMOR:Threatened, not dying. Because technology reaches into everything we touch, with things like digital cameras, blogs and a global reach, it's getting harder to keep secrets. More important, the reason for keeping secrets in most cases is less compelling. Transparency is almost always a better strategy than secrecy.

RUBEL: What impact might regulation have on weblogs/personal journalism? What should we watch for?

GILLMOR: Potentially the most dangerous is the emerging duopoly of cable and phone "broadband" carriers. They'll have every incentive to turn today's open-access lines into walled gardens, or to allow some content to get to people before other content. This duopoly could make the already problematic corporate consolidation of media seem tame.

The copyright industry, meanwhile, is trying to outlaw all kinds of technologies that will be essential for the creation of a true grassroots media. Unfortunately, Congress has been on the wrong side of issues such as fair use and copying for personal use. Intellectual property is turning into a license for older industries to thwart innovation, and we have to fix this disaster.

RUBEL: How can PR pros use blogs - either penned by their own employees or outsiders- to their advantage in responding to crises?

GILLMOR: Tell the truth. Tell it quickly.  Tell as much as you can. People crave a genuine, human voice in times of crisis.

RUBEL: Finally, are PR pros paying enough attention to all of these changes? If not, what will it take for this to occur?

GILLMOR: Some are, most aren't yet. I don't expect every PR person to get this right away, but I do sense a growing recognition that something important has changed. The word is getting out.

Author: Steve Rubel | Jul 15, 04 | Permalink | 3 comments
Category: @ Steve Rubel | Topic 4 Crisis Management

 

Now Is Too Late

Gerald Baron is the owner of a public relations and marketing company in Bellingham, Washington. Gerald’s book "Now is too late," describes Mr. Baron’s work with a gas pipeline company in the Pacific Northwest. The company had a major disaster, three people died. Gerald documents how he (a consultant) and the company handled the incident's crisis communications.

As I read the book, I thought maybe it was a primer on how not to run a crisis communication incident. Gerald carefully describes how companies can build a strategy to handle crisis communications. The book discusses how to use new technologies to help smooth the process of crisis communications. Gerald is an able and experienced practitioner in Public Relations who also understands how to use technology to solve communications problems.

Gerald Baron's description of the automatic telephone notification system for crisis communications was particularly interesting. Basically, a company, say a gas pipeline company, would gather all of the telephone numbers of local residents so that if an incident occurs an automatic recorded message warning about an incident would be sent to several hundred or thousand residents within 5 to 10 minutes. Mr. Baron's company, Baron & Companyhas spun off a separate company called AudienceCentral. The company has developed an integrated technology product for managing communications called PIER.
Gerald goes onto to describe how to set up a crisis communications website. Using a content management system, a crisis manager would set up a center of operations when an crisis incident occurs. Pre-prepared templates for press releases and an e-mail list for journalists and government, safety and security officials would allow the crisis manager to get information out quickly and to the people who need to know.

Author: John Cass | Jul 15, 04 | Permalink | 0 comments
Category: @ John Cass | Topic 4 Crisis Management

 

Blogging in a Crisis

These comments are based on an crisis on which I worked recently. The crisis had a bit of everything -- Congressional hearings, sensational charges, innuendos, falsehoods, facts, activists, demonstrations, hate mail, poisonous phone calls and hundreds of stories. It was a difficult time because facts weren't available to the client at the beginning of the turmoil, and there was a period in which the media seemed to know far more about what was happening than the client. The client never did catch up with the news cycle and by time stories died away, the impression that the company had been engaged in wrongdoing was rooted, although the company now has a strong, fact-based case for its innocence.

How would blogging fit into a situation like this? Blogging, as some define it, -- a place to record opinion and insights -- does not fit. However, blogging as a continuous record of facts and corrections of errors in near real time would have been valuable. Regrettably, the client did not use the blogging tool but did make use of its Web page. A key difference between a Web page and blogging was critical. The corporate communications director relied on the Webmaster to upload information to the Web page. With a blog, the director could have created a content stream directly. Speed was critical.

The problem in a crisis is not opinion but facts. What you do not want is opinion or speculation. Either can touch off chaos and lawsuits. You need to state quickly and accurately what happened to whom, where, when and how. You need to state what the company is going to do about it, although you might not be able to give details. You need to answer questions quickly and accurately and to knock down rumors convincingly.

If a company cannot lead the media in getting the 5W's out, it is condemned to follow, and news at the beginning of any crisis is filled with inaccuracy. You have seen this yourself.

"There were 500 people killed. Correction. There were about 200 people killed. Correction, the latest tally is less than 100. Further correction. The final count of people killed was 56. "

Blogging is useful in such instances. One might not have a final count, but absurd figures like "500 people killed" could be knocked down at once. Further, blogging can add detail as it is verified and slow speculation. In the instance above, the last name of an individual convinced some reporters that a foreign country was involved in wrongdoing. The allegation was and is absurd, but it continues to surface and some "investigative" reporters appear to believe it. Blogging could have dented that rumor quickly by showing how stupid the allegation is.

Who should blog in a crisis? One person and one person only reporting directly to the CEO or to the corporate communications person who reports directly to the CEO. Facts as they come in should be verified for this person. Copy should be vetted before publishing -- yes, even by legal counsel. There should be no hint of individuality in the blog and EVERYTHING must be approved. The blogger speaks for the company and never for himself or herself.

The company in the international incident is now fighting lawsuits. You can bet every word the CEO and corporate communications director have spoken and written will go under a tort attorney's microscope. Even a minor slip will be used against them.

To summarize, blogging, because it is an easy tool to use, has a role in crisis communications to get out facts, to project a company's message and to combat error.

Author: Jim Horton | Jul 15, 04 | Permalink | 7 comments
Category: @ Jim Horton | Topic 4 Crisis Management

 

 

About
The Global PR Blog Week 1.0 is an online event that will engage PR, marketing and business bloggers from around the globe in a discussion about blogging and communications. The event is scheduled for July 12 - 16, 2004.
Links
The New PR Wiki
Recent Entries
Day 4: Emergence of Ideas
Day 4: Lessons Learned
Day 4 Stats
What Could Your Company Do With A Blog?
New to the Global PR Blog?
Recent Comments
Bernie Goldbach on Day 4 Stats
Jim Grisanzio on What Could Your Company Do With A Blog?
J. Michael Lenninger, APR on New to the Global PR Blog?
Meryl K. Evans on Interview: Steve Outing on Blogging's Impact
Hoi Poloi on A Conversation with Dan Gillmor
Perry de Havilland on Blogging in a Crisis