Come on in, the water — er, blogosphere’s — fine

For probably 9 out of 10 corporations, the blogosphere is a scary place…and understandably so. We’ve all heard our share of the “corporate blogging gone wrong” stories, the Kryptonite lock incident I wrote about previously, and so on. Even if companies don’t get it right the first time around, one thing that they should remember is that the blogosphere is, generally speaking, pretty forgiving.

But this can be easy to forget when – like L’Oreal experienced – a corporation sees commenters writing how they think the company’s blog is “foisting a fraud upon the public.” This is exactly what happened with Vichy, a blog written by fictitious author Claire to promote a new L’Oreal product. The company generated this character, an all-too-perfect looking thirtysomething, whose language resembled (a little too closely) that of the Vichy advertisements. Of course the blog’s readers saw right through this, and they made it clear to L’Oreal that the blog was, well, lame.

Although the Vichy blog got off to a bad start, Scoble and Israel use it as their “favorite case of a bad blog turning good” in chapter 10 of Naked Conversations. After being inundated with so many negative comments, L’Oreal shut down the blog but reincarnated it shortly thereafter. The company found five women bloggers who were willing to test the anti-aging cream and gave them license to write whatever they wanted about it on the blog. The public’s reaction to the blog was exactly the opposite of their reaction to the first blog: people loved it. And the blog even earned praise from the press.

This is a great example of why corporations shouldn’t be afraid of delving into and participating in the online space. It might take a company several tries to get it right, but jumping in and trying to engage those online is far better than turning a deaf ear on the conversation that’s happening.

Even though a mistake or two in the blogosphere probably won’t make or break a corporation, it would be nice to do things right the first time around. As always, Scoble and Israel offer tips on how to make this happen. Chapter 11 focuses on “doing it right”, and here are some of the highlights:

• Read a bunch of blogs before you start. “Reading other blogs should help inspire you to write your own—and should give you some ideas of what is already being said and what you might contribute.”

• Demonstrate passion. Show your authority. “A good corporate blog is both passionate and authoritative. Blog what you know.”

• Add comments. “A good blog is a conversation, not a one-way PR channel. Get over the fact that you won’t have full control.”

• Be accessible. “It’s surprising how many people start conversations with blogs but foolishly choose to make themselves unreachable through e-mail or phone.”

 

Corporations should read and re-read Scoble and Israel’s suggestions and then get into the online discussion. Yes, they might make a mistake or two, but that’s okay. Just get out there. Because, like so many social media gurus have said, the conversation is going to continue regardless of whether your company is paying attention.

Talk is cheap (but can be very valuable)

I was pretty excited to see Robert Scoble and Shel Israel’s Naked Conversations on the reading list for this class.  I read the book several semesters ago for another course at Johns Hopkins and, even the second time around, I think Scoble and Israel have some great (and very honest) advice for corporations that are considering stepping into the blogosphere.

I’ve found that many people – including authors who write books on subjects similar to that of Naked Conversations – tend to imply that blogging is right for everyone and is a one-size-fits-all approach to building and keeping a customer base.  Jackie Huba, author of Citizen Marketers: Where People are the Message, said “I see no reason for any company not to blog – unless they’re sleazy.  Every company needs a feedback system.”   

And while Huba is correct about corporations needing feedback from their customers, is a blog always the best medium to use to obtain that feedback?  I don’t think blogging is right for every company.  But if a corporation is going to start a blog, it’s critical that their bloggers engrain Scoble and Israel’s five success tips in their heads:

• Talk, don’t sell.  “If you talk to them, they get to know you.  If you sell to them, they’ll just leave—if you’re lucky.” 

• Post often and be interesting.  “…being interesting is what motivates others to link to you.”

• Write on issues you know and care about.  “A good blog is passionate and shows authority.” 

• Blogging saves money but costs time.  “Being a good blogger takes time.”

• You get smarter by listening to what people tell you.  “As Dan Gillmor emphasized in We the Media, ‘My readers are collectively smarter than me.’” 

These five bullet points sum up the qualities that make a good corporate blogger.  Robert Scoble was a great candidate to blog for Microsoft; he was passionate and honest about what he wrote and he talked to his audience as he would a friend instead of being a marketing mouthpiece for Microsoft.  But does every company have someone who is willing to invest their time in blogging?  Can that blogger be conversational instead of sounding mechanical when they blog?  Is that company’s blogger truly going to listen to what others are saying, not just the week the blog launches but six months or a year from now? 

Like Scoble and Israel said, blogging definitely is cheap in terms of monetary cost, but it’s a big time commitment.  The positive value in having a corporate blog can be huge.  On the flip side, though, poorly executed blogs can sometimes damage a company’s reputation. 

There are a number of great corporate blogs that exist, some which are mentioned in Scoble and Israel’s book such as the GM FastLane Blog and Jonathan’s Blog, written by the CEO of Sun Microsystems.  But speaking of poorly executed blogs, have you ever visited Google’s blog?  Why don’t users have the option to leave a comment?  Where are the author’s bios?  And maybe it’s just me but this post – while it’s a bit conversational – seems like a press release in disguise.  Of course, this blog certainly hasn’t hurt Google’s bottom line or the company’s popularity, but it’s disappointing that a corporation that’s so innovative and creative has a blog that’s just the opposite.

The bottom line is that if a company is thinking of creating a blog, they need to have someone blogging who is passionate, conversational, a good listener, and is willing to invest their time.  Every corporation can potentially have a blog…they’d just better have the right blogger.

“Google never forgets.”

It’s obvious that, although social media isn’t exactly brand new (according to Wikipedia, Justin Hall was the first blogger in 1994 and the term “weblog” was coined in ’97), companies are still grappling with how to respond to citizen marketers. McConnell and Huba’s book “Citizen Marketers” Where People are the Message” is full of stories about corporations who’ve decided not to respond to what could potentially be some of their company’s greatest allies. New tales of companies shying away from interacting with these 1 Percenters are popping up all the time. All these incidents raise an important question: how do we get companies to change their thinking about citizen marketers and realize that corporations can no longer fully control the message?

One of my favorite points that McConnell and Huba make is this: “With the Power of One, Google never forgets.” This is so true. One company misstep, one missed opportunity to connect with a 1 Percenter, and the entire world will probably read about it…and will be able to read about it for years to come.

Remember what happened with Kryptonite Locks in 2004? This article from Wired gives a good rundown of the events that ensued. Chris Brennan, a “bike enthusiast and network security consultant” opened a pricy Kryptonite bike lock with a Bic pen. Brennan posted his experience on an Internet forum, and then additional posts began appearing on related forums and Web sites. Instead of directly addressing Brennan’s discovery, Kryptonite declined to comment. Instead, they talked about releasing a new lock design that is supposedly more secure. Brennan said he would never purchase a Kryptonite lock again. (And who can blame him?)

For obvious reasons, this is great example of a “don’t” when it comes to citizen marketers and corporations. Companies can no longer ignore what’s being said about them in the online space. And trying to ignore that conversation usually only hurts corporations in the long run.

This leads back to the point of “Google never forgets.” Try running a Google search for “Kryptonite bike lock.” Guess what? Not counting the sponsored links, the first link is to the Wikipedia entry about Kryptonite which, in the brief summary on the search page, mentions the Bic pen incident. The second and third search results are posts from the popular blog Engadget about the company’s locks being “hacked by a Bic pen.” The fourth link is the Kryptonite Web site. And remember that Brennan cracked the Kryptonite lock three years ago.  Once this missteps occur, they don’t just fall into oblivion a month later….which is why it’s so important that companies learn to adapt to and work with citizen marketers.

So many companies don’t understand the idea of citizen marketers because they’re so determined to control their image at any cost, even if it means ignoring the people to whom they should be listening. McConnell and Huba give some great examples of companies who, on some occasions, didn’t quite embrace the 1 Percenters; check out the sections about “iPod’s Dirty Little Secret”, the woman with the “Slave to Target” blog, and Coca Cola’s reaction to the Diet Coke and Mentos video.

Although these citizen marketers are forcing many companies out of their comfort zones, the online conversation about corporations isn’t going to go away. Companies have to learn how to listen and respond to citizen marketers. Pete Blackshaw makes a great point in that companies must put themselves in the shoes of the consumer. It’s all about – as Blackshaw says – “listening-centered marketing.” But he also acknowledges that this isn’t easy.

Blackshaw writes: “But let’s face it; listening is hard. I’m not terribly good at it, nor are many of my industry friends who wave the “listening” banner. It takes work. What we hear can throw us off track. But without new frameworks for putting our ear to the consumer pulse, we’ll never get it right, and we’ll never have the benefit of conversation to inform judgment or “marketing optimization.”