Answers for a College Project

I agree that it is important to make sure that when your blogging you understand that you are opening up yourself or company to both positive and negative comments. If a company sets up a blog it needs to make sure they are prepared for responses, both quickly and accuratetly. It is also important to have information and material that the reader would be interested in. If not, it could turn the reader away from the company completely. Companies also need to sit down and make sure that this is going to be the best approach for their market because blogging is still a new concept for many. They need to make sure that if they do decide to blog then they are not overlooking traditional ways of reaching the customer.

Thank you for this post, Josh. Everything you said is so important to remember. The essence of blogging lies in building relationships, not in marketing or advertising plugs. Companies sometimes forget this, and their blog suffers and becomes ineffective. Maintaining a blog over a long period of time can be a challenge too. The excitement often dies off, and the blog is left to endure a slow painful death. We must rise up to the challenge and keep our blogs alive- keeping in mind the original purpose and intent of the blog.

As a forty-year-old college student finishing my sophomore year, I am being exposed to blogging for the first time in my beginning level marketing class. Once I worked through the glassy eyed what are you talking about look I am sure I had on my face at the first mention of the word blog, I really have enjoyed the learning experience. Having worked my way up to my current management role, I have seen new tools put too use that were not readily accepted by the more “seasoned� managers. Now those tools are the standard in many cases and the managers are no longer around. So post such as this one not only helps educate the beginning blogger, but it helps the more seasoned managers (a group which I am now a part of) understand and be more accepting new technology.

Thanks so much for the post. It was incredibly helpful. These are all questions I have considered on many occasions when learning about blogs, and your answers put to rest many of my lingering suspicions.

One of the most important things that you highlighted in this post was the importance of the reasons a company or organization chooses to start a blog. As you stated, a company or organizations intentions need to be in the right place before they decide to proceed with starting a blog. Blogs set up for purely marketing causes are not a good idea.

Thanks for a great post. It put together a lot of information that I think is very important to understanding how blogs can be an efficient tool for companies and organizations.

Great post! I always talk about blogging and social media in my interviews with potential clients, but have always been scared they would ask me the question…How would you set it up? I am one of the non-savvy tech persons that you talked about, but if I can blog and understand why people blog, anyone can do it!

I have tried to tell potential employers the “Do’s and Don’ts” of blogging. I think some get it, others are way behind the times and may never get on the blogging train. I think it is important that you said other PR tools still work, like personal calls or events. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in the blogosphere and talking about all the cool new things I am learning that I forget to mention the traditional PR tools. I will keep that in mind for my next interview.

I think it was also important to understand why a company wants to blog, or why you think blogging would be good for the company you work for. It’s always important to have goals for any PR campaign or tool that the practitioner is using, and I don’t think blogging or social media should be any different. However, it’s hard to convey to companies that blogging should be more of a communication tool rather than a promotional tool.

All great things to think about! Thanks!

It’s funny how things change. Just a few years ago, it was difficult to get businesses to even think about setting up a blog. Now that they finally see the potential, we are trying to slow them down, so they can think about whether a blog is right for them. Blogs aren’t for everyone, and if companies begin blogging without research or foresight, the medium risks becoming a fad. Blogs done well give the medium longevity and credibility.

If everyone keeps the customer in mind, the blog will provide useful content and relationship building that benefits all parties. If the PR practitioner thinks about their customer, the client, they will be able to suggest a course of action that will be in their best interest. If the client thinks about their customer, they will be able to provide blog content that is useful and interesting. Knowing your audience is a basic that never goes out of style.

Josh, thank you for the helpful insight. I love your personal motto: “just because you can doesn’t mean you should.” It really is so easy to get caught up in the tool and forget the end goal. While a flashy new blog may seem like a great idea to the client and to us (we love blogs), a blog is not the answer for everyone. Consumers are unimpressed by weak, irrelevant information, even in a pretty, new package.

Also, while many clients consider themselves knowledgeable of the technology of social media (and want to showcase that knowledge) those same people/companies still don’t “get” that underlying concept of conversation over persuasion.

Until a client/company is ready to stop building brands and start building bonds with the consumer, it isn’t ready for blogging. Part of knowing a tool is knowing when and how to use it.

These are some great tips for anyone looking to set up a blog. I agree that a blog should have good content or conversations for its readers. I always thought of a blog as an open air forum and to get people to participate you must provide them with good conversation points. The content of your blog should be well thought out so that your readers will be able to have these conversations.

Blogging is all about building relationships with your customers. Unless a company is ready to put enough time and effort into blogging they should not do it. Companies need to be able to give their blogging customers the time that the customers want and give them good content.

Hi Josh, this is a great list. I aprinted this out so I could have it in the future.
I especially liked what you said about building a relationship with customers instead of promoting yourself. I think that a relationship between two people or organizations working together is the main key in developing a successful campaign, project, etc.
I also appreciated when you said that when a person finds what they like or are good at that they will be successful. Overall I think this Q&A has a lot of useful tips, thanks.

Hi Josh

Hi Josh

Thanks for the helpful tips. I think this is perfect information for anyone loking to start a blog or for those who have one and need some tips on how to maintain it.

I’ve visited your blog several times and from the looks of it and that you are a highly respected social media consultant, it appears that you know what you are talking about.

Maintaining a blog is much like maintaining a close knit relationship with your customers. I believe it lets them know you are comitted to the cause the said company has set forth. That being said, if companies aren’t ready for the responsibility of maintaining a blog, they shouldn’t start one.

Hello Josh,
Blogging is an excellent tool for sending and receiving information, so it is understandable that people might confuse it as a good source of advertising. The difference is that the blog should be used to help the customer learn more about the company and the company learn more about its customers and their needs. Using a blog as a marketing tool seems like a good idea, but as your story stated it will also allow for some negative things to be said along with the good. Businesses should understand that if they try to use blogs for selling something, it could backfire very quickly. I believe that blogging is more of an opportunity for the company to gain information about its customers than anything. It is a wonderful way to learn how they feel about the company and its way of doing business, and that knowledge will indirectly help them sell items because they have learned the best way to market them because they now their audience so well.

This post provides great tips that will be well needed, especially when one enters the work force.

Many people think that starting a blog is just something they should do, and they may not have put much thought into the actual process. A blog is a great communication tool, if used properly and efficiently.

The idea that some blogs are great at the beginning, but fizzle out over time, is one that should be carefully thought over. If someone wants to start a corporate blog, they need to make sure their company can provide the necessary content. More specifically, not just any content, but interesting information that the blog reader can benefit from.

The statement, “Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should,” fits this situation perfectly. Many organizations want to start a blog to try and keep up with current technology trends. However, these organizations must realize that blogs will not replace their fundamental means of communication (telephone, e-mail), they will simply enhance them.

Organizations need to truly decide what they want to get out of a blog and if they feel this outcome is needed, then they should implement a strategic plan.

This plan needs to be carefully thought out and once again the organization needs to make sure they have enough content to keep the blog current.

These tips are well needed and much appreciated. Thanks Josh!

This post caught my attention. In my PR campaigns class this semester, we are currently organizing PR campaigns for non-profit organizations around the community. My group is working with an organization that is interested in updating their current Web site. One of the ideas we are brainstorming is the creation of a blog.

The blog would probably be a diary of the organization’s current events or activities. After giving out surveys, we discovered that the organization has a negative connotation within the community. Do you think that a blog could give the organization a more personal touch?

I particularly liked the section about working with an organization that may not be the most technologically-savvy. I think this is important to remember because in my group’s case we are working with individuals who are not familiar with the Internet. When we brought up the idea of creating a blog, we emphasized that it would be simple to use. Thanks for the advice!

Josh,
I’m glad you pointed out that events and phone calls are equally as useful ways to reach customers. No amount of writing can replace the impression of face-to-face communication, a theory I hope will always be supported in the public relations curriculum.
However, blogs give our companies a customer expansion that would not be possible if all we relied on was handshakes and smiles. After a company has decided that blogs are the way to go- how do you publicize it? How do you get the word out about your blog to customers, and more importantly- potential costumers?

Josh,
Thank you for your post. It’s nice to finally get some concrete advice about blogging in the corporate world. Most people just give vague answers about its place in business. I think it’s important that you point out that blogs are usually more successful when they are created by a group of people who feel passionately about them. I know from having my own blog, that if it’s not something that is important to you, it’s hard to keep it up. I think the company really has to believe in the power of a blog and not just create it to be a part of the trend.

I also like that you point out that it isn’t always good to have a narrow scope of focus for the blog. I think too many corporations form one with a narrow purpose and end up running out of things to say. It is important to have a goal in mind, but it’s also important to have flexibility and let the blog mature over time.

I know that you say the importance of having a blog is different for every company, but how do you think a company should decide whether or not to have a blog? If a company seems to be unaware of blogging or not convinced of its importance, do you think this is a weakness for the company?

Thanks again!