Global PR Blog Week 1.0

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

 

 

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

Looking forward to 2.0

Site Statistics and Trends

A participant’s final thoughts

Traditional PR is dead - Long Live DIY PR

Quiet is the new loud

Recent Comments

Rick Barry on A Very Brief Look at Blogging for the Uninitiated Executive

George Mc Quade on The Battle Over PR

Duncan Adams on Robert Scoble interviewed on Corporate Blogging

Kevin O'Keefe on How to launch a corporate blog for a professional services organization

William Luu on Site Statistics and Trends