Although corporate blogging can be a powerful tool, there is a time when it can get pretty dicey. Without proper management, a blog can be a disaster that can end up ruining your corporate image. Let’s take a look at three examples of the good, bad and ugly in the world of corporate blogging.

The Good

A good corporate blog finds the balance between being personable and professional. This is a juggling act, but when it’s done right, the result is a successful blog that builds a solid relationship with the public. The best example of a good corporate blog is Sun Microsystems. They’ve allowed their employees as well as management to post blogs on anything under the sun and the result has been terrific in the blogging community. Readers feel connected with the company and they can now put faces with a big corporation. This company has long been a leader in the corporate blogging world and they are a very good example to emulate.

The Bad

Walmart is a terrific example of corporate blogging gone bad. They set up a blog that was supposed to be written by a couple that was traveling the US in an RV and staying at Walmarts. The only thing that was not mentioned was that Walmart was sponsoring this as a corporate blog – not as a personal endeavor as the creators originally claimed. The blogosphere soon found out and the result was scorn. This did not do Walmart’s image any favors and they quickly retired the blog in question and have not made any new overtures.

A lot can be learned from this debacle. Never try to masquerade a corporate blog as anything but a corporate blog. It will backfire.

The Ugly

Earthlink’s blog is perhaps the most notorious. The company already has customer service issues and a lot of ill will already. When they debuted the blog, they were opening themselves up to a whole new host of problems. First, they didn’t allow comments, then they did, then they didn’t and the cycle continued. The posts ended up addressing constant controversy instead of addressing any key issues for the company. They simply could not surmount these obstacles and the blog was eventually cancelled.

For this lesson – make a decision and stick to it. Otherwise you look wishy washy. If you have trouble with customer service, a blog may not be the best idea. Don’t open your company up to problems right off the bat if you are concerned that the blog will turn into a public bashing forum for your company. This was a bad decision on the part of Earthlink and one that they undoubtedly regretted. Instead of fixing their image, they ended up reinforcing bad publicity.

The best way to ensure that your corporate blog joins the ranks of The Good in blogging is to work with a management company that can help you navigate the treacherous waters of blogging. With their help, you can avoid falling into The Bad or The Ugly categories.

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Originally posted 2008-08-08 05:16:46. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Few people realize how powerful a blog can be when it comes to projecting an image to the public. Words have a power all their own and the wrong ones may sink your company’s reputation. Before you even start your own corporate blog it is very important to first come up with the image you would like the public to have of your company. Then, figure out how you want to get that image to come across. Here are some hints to help get you started.

1. Honesty is always the best policy.

While full disclosure of a company meltdown may not be the best idea, it is always important to be honest in your blogs. Never try to stretch the facts, pad your accomplishments or make your company look like something it is not. The blogosphere as it is called is an incredibly small little micro-universe and news, both good and bad, travels fast. It only takes one small slip up to tank your company’s image.

2. Be engaging and never dull.

Most people think of companies as being grey, lifeless and without any character. You can dramatically change that perception by having a blog that is engaging, fun to read and exciting. However, you have to walk that fine line between getting people interested in your company and becoming unprofessional. If necessary, try to take a few courses in creative and persuasive writing. It will definitely pay off.

3. Avoid the sales pitch.

There is a way to move products on your blog without having it sound like an informercial. Today’s blog readers don’t want to read a commercial – they want news and they want it now. Instead of blatant sales pitches, find a way to integrate your products with what you are talking about, or what is in the news right now. This way, you’re actually providing your readers with help instead of hawking your latest product in their face.

4. Be friendly and cultivate blogging relationships.

The whole point of blogging is that it is very social in nature. The whole point of corporate blogging is to bring that element into your business to help increase your customer base and build a stronger brand. By inviting popular guest bloggers in your niche, or just developing some great friendships with other bloggers, you can build a strong network between each other, and everyone wins.

It is also important to remember to be very friendly, but professional, when dealing with your readers. Never get dragged into a flame war on your blog or stoop to picking fights with readers that leave comments on your blog. In the end, you’re going to be the one that looks bad, and that is not the image you want to project for your company.

These are just a few hints to get you started on the path to presenting the right image of your company. Sometimes it helps to have a professional walk you through these initial phases and we highly recommend hiring a blog management service to do just that.

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Originally posted 2008-08-14 05:00:10. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Mention the names Robert Scoble or Shel Israel in the blogosphere and you’ll get a pretty instant reaction. Both are well known and while they have their share of detractors, both are well respected in their own rights. Putting the two of them together on this book project was genius and considering their experience, we were prepared for a great read.

This book really isn’t a how to, but more of a discussion on how corporate blogging is reshaping the way businesses do business. If you’re looking for a manual on how to get started, you’ll probably be pretty disappointed. However, the book has a lot of merit and it is one that every corporate blogger, especially those with larger companies, needs to read.

The main focus of the book is the Six Pillars of Corporate Blogging. Each one holds the key to your success or failure as a corporate blogger, and by mastering them, the authors hold that you will be able to enjoy a lot more success as a blogger, and you’ll learn new methods of treating your customers.

Our favorite part of the book was the discussion on Blogging Right and Wrong. The section on crisis blogging was fascinating and well worth any company owner’s time. The chapter on emerging technology was also very useful, but could use to be updated since the blogosphere does move quite fast.

Bottom line for this book – there is a ton of information to process, and you may want to read it a couple of times before dipping your toes into blogging. Even if you already have a blog, this book may help you take it to the next level and pinpoint areas that may need improvement. We appreciated how well written the book was and the time that went into putting everything together. It’s obvious by the finished product that the authors are passionate about corporate blogging and they did a great job of infusing that passion into their text.

Overall, this book was a fascinating read. We don’t agree with everything put forth, but it still managed to make a very solid case for corporate blogging as well as offering some great tips on how to go about it the right way. Even if you’re a seasoned blogging pro, there is still something to be learned by reading this book.

We highly recommend it to new and old bloggers since there is a lot of information that can be put to immediate use. The case studies and interviews with other corporate bloggers are well worth the cost of the book, and you can learn a lot from the mistakes and triumphs these blogs have experienced. It’s not a how-to manual, but in a way, it’s more important. It covers the nuts and bolts that so many people forget or fail to use, and by doing so, miss out on great opportunities.

Originally posted 2008-09-19 05:58:44. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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For those thinking about starting a corporate blog, there are a few caveats that should be considered before you ever throw your hat in the arena. The blogosphere can be a scary place if you are not prepared and it is easy to have a disaster of epic proportions on your hands without even realizing it. There are numerous stories of corporate blogging disasters and while they can be amusing, the owners of the companies affected probably would not agree.

A corporate blog is a unique tool that allows you to reach out to the public, increase brand awareness and build up your customer base. It is also a tool that has the potential to cause irreparable damage. You don’t want your blog to go down in flames, and you certainly don’t want it to take your company with it. Here are some tips to help you avoid the most common blogging disasters.

1. Pick your bloggers well.

If you will not be doing your own blogging, this usually means that the task falls to an employee. You will need to make sure that they are well balanced, can handle criticism and can post in an articulate and friendly manner. Think of this blogger as a public speaker – would they present the right face for your company to the public?

You also need to make sure that the employee is a stable individual that is not prone to bursts of anger or being disgruntled. You don’t want your company’s dirty laundry aired to the world and it only takes one angry blogger to turn the tide against you. If you end up firing a blogger, make sure that you remove their posting capabilities BEFORE you do so that they don’t have a chance to post one last burning missive.

2. Be consistent.

If you decide to allow comments on your blog, great. Just don’t change your mind. This gives an incredibly bad image of your company and makes it seem as though you have something to hide. Likewise, refusing to allow comments on your blog can give the same impression. Find the balance by using comment moderation tools to weed out bad comments and let the good ones through.

3. Always remain professional.

Your corporate blog is not the place to get overly personal. You may be having a bad day, you may hate your job, you may want to stick it to your spouse/boyfriend/girlfriend but your corporate blog is not the place to air these subjects. Always keep your private thoughts private – they just don’t belong on your blog. Keep your posts friendly and open, but make sure that you never cross that line.

By utilizing these three simple rules, you can avoid becoming a blogging disaster for the history books. If you have never blogged before, or you prefer not to leave your company’s future in the hands of an employee, it is a good idea to get some help with your blog. There are blog management services that specialize in helping you present the right image and get your message across.

Photo Credit: 1

Originally posted 2008-07-15 05:25:42. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Unless you are writing hundreds of posts a day, the amount of time you spend posting on your corporate blog should be minimal. In fact, that is why so many decide to start their own blogs, since everything can be automated and you can sit back and relax. However, there are a few things you should be doing when you are not posting. These methods and techniques can help you explode your traffic and get better results from your work. Here’s what you should be doing when you’re not working or posting.

1. Promoting your blog.

You can build it, but there is no guarantee that they will come. It’s up to you to get out there and find readers. Whether it’s getting back links to your site to increase traffic, commenting on blogs that are related to your niche, learning new promotional techniques or taking advantage of social sites, you should spend around a half hour every day promoting your blog. This kind of focus can pay off and you’ll start seeing results in a lot less time.

2. Finding ways to make your blog better.

Is there a plugin out there that could make your job easier? Take the time to see how to make your blog work for you – and harder than ever. New applications are released constantly and many of them are free to low cost. Instead of sitting there with the same version of WordPress for three years, make the effort to be proactive and keep improving your blog.

3. Learning more about the medium.

The blogosphere is not stagnant, it is always changing. You need to stay on top of trends, read news pertaining to blogs and keep finding ways to make your blog the best it can be. By being an early adopter of trends and techniques, you have an edge that your competitor’s won’t.

4. Researching new topics to cover.

Whether you’re researching new niche keywords (they do keep changing) or you are finding interesting angles to promote your products, your research should be an ongoing process. If you don’t have the time to do it on your own, consider outsourcing this task and have them deliver the information to you so you can read it at your leisure.

5. Keeping tabs on your competition.

This is a step that many companies fail to take and as such, they usually end up falling behind the pack. Always take the time to find out what they are doing and subscribe to their blog RSS feed so that you get instant updates delivered right to your reader. This is the easiest way to stay on top of what they are doing and you can use this information to make your blog better.

While some of these steps may be time consuming, they are necessary and will help you build up a very strong audience that is not only targeted, but invested emotionally in your company.

Photo Credit: 1

Originally posted 2008-11-26 05:24:01. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Whether you are just getting started in corporate blogging, or you haven’t been paying much attention to other bloggers, the so-called “blogosphere” can be a little confusing. There are literally thousands, if not millions of blogs out there, and if you’re trying to network through them, the task can be a bit overwhelming. There are a few tips however that can help you learn to navigate successfully through the blogosphere.

What is the blogosphere?

It is a term that was coined to describe the intertwining of blog sites, the general atmosphere of the community and the fact that bloggers are really in their own little world. You can become a member of the blogosphere just by becoming a coporate blogger, but you’ll need to know a few things before you get started. Otherwise, your best efforts may just be shooting yourself in the foot.

The first place to start is understanding RSS feeds, and social networking sites. If you don’t have the basics down for these two very important items, everything else may be more complicated than necessary. Take some time to go through places like Digg.com, Technorati, and Twitter to see what is going on. Chances are, you’ll be able to come up with some great ideas for your own blog during this process.

Next, you’ll want to start thinking about setting up some great relationships with other bloggers. This has many added benefits, such as being able to write a guest post for another blog (or having someone do the same for you) and you’ll be building up some strong contacts that will help you increase your traffic and your exposure. Take the time to hunt down other blogs in your niche and start by leaving thoughtful comments in their blog section, making sure to leave your URL.

This is quiet marketing, but it can be very successful. Once you have your own little network built up through your contacts, you should find that your traffic increases as a natural result. This is particularly true if you are utilizing social networking sites to promote your blog.

Remember, you don’t necessarily have to promote just your blog. You can develop a reputation as a valued contributor by sharing good links with your network and involving them in your blog. Try to keep your promotion efforts as quiet as possible, to avoid being labeled as a spammer. People in the blogosphere have a very low tolerance for behavior like this and you can quickly develop a reputation that is very hard to shake.

Taking the time to become a valued member of the blogosphere is time well spent. This is your opportunity to develop yourself as an authority on your subject of choice, and to build up real relationships with your readers and with other bloggers. By reaching out to them and becoming an active participant in social networks, comment sections and forums, you can start to grow your corporate blog very quickly and with little extra effort.

Photo Credits: 1

Originally posted 2008-11-19 05:37:29. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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This year, the focus for the annual Blog Action Day 2008 is on poverty. Bloggers around the world have the opportunity to participate in this effort to raise public awareness of global poverty. EU ministers have agreed to join in, and thousands of bloggers will be taking part in this year’s event. Buildify is also joining in, and will be taking their efforts one step further.

In addition to their posts on poverty for Blog Action Day 2008, Buildify will also be donating the entire day’s revenue to Habitat for Humanity. The organization is responsible for building more than 250,000 homes and aids people throughout the world, helping reduce the sting of poverty. Credit Karma (see Credit Karma’s Blog) will also be matching their portion of contributions made by Buildify on this day.

It is a rare event when you can gather thousands of bloggers to focus on a single issue, and the power of the previous Blog Action Day was evident. The 2007 event was centered around the environment, and had an amazing impact not only on the blogosphere, but also the rest of the world. It is expected that the 2008 event will exceed last year’s popularity.

By taking a few minutes out of our busy schedules to focus on the plight of the less fortunate throughout the world, it is hoped that the lives of millions will be impacted. Given the previous success of Blog Action Day, it is clear that this can be accomplished. Currently, more than three billion people are forced to subsist on less that two dollars per day, and poverty is quickly becoming one of the most important issues facing our world today.

That number includes more than one billion children. According to Global Issues, it is estimated that approximately 640 million children live without adequate shelter, while more than 400 million do not have access to safe sources of water. Approximately 270 million children do not have access to health care, and due to this sad statistic, more than 29,000 children die every single day.

Children in developing countries are hit the hardest by poverty. Nearly 28% of children in these countries are underweight and malnourished. South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa are by far the worst in terms of need, and the problem is expanding rapidly. When you consider that out of the two billion children in this world, that one billion suffer from the effects of poverty, it is clear that action must be taken to bring them relief.

Buildify is proud to be able to take part in this global push to end poverty and hopes that their contribution will make a real impact on the lives of those in need. It’s not too late to take part in Blog Action Day 2008, and these sentiments can be carried out throughout the year. Buildify encourages our readers to give back to their community, both globally and locally and to do all in their power to end poverty. By working together, we can make a difference.

Originally posted 2008-10-15 00:01:46. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Are you a small business owner, and looking to generate more business through an online internet presence? If you have been considering putting together a blog for your business, the blogging advice detailed below is intended especially for you.

Q: What should I be writing blog entries about?

A: This is one of the first questions that gets asked by small business owners who are curious about the blogosphere. The best advice that you can take when it comes to learning what to write about is to specifically write about any topic that meets two criteria:

a) It should interest you.

b) It should be related to your business in some way.

This may seem rather obvious to some people, but you might be surprised at how many bloggers choose the wrong topics and ideas for their blogs. If you do not choose a topic that is going to interest you, then you will be much more likely to fall behind on the blogging schedule that you need to maintain in order to attract traffic to your blog. If you choose a topic that is not related in some way to your business, then you will be defeating the whole purpose of blogging for your business in the first place.

Q: How often should I be writing and publishing blog entries?

A: Truth be told, the right answer to this one is: As often as you can. As long as you are not neglecting other aspects of your company, you should blog as often as is feasible. The benefits of blogging for your business tend to be rather cumulative in nature. All the things that your blog will do for you, including search engine visibility, buzz, popularity and traffic levels all come over time rather than at once. The best advice here then, obviously, is to blog as often as is possible, be it once a day, once a week, three times a week, or several times a day depending on what you have to say and how often it needs to be said. Choose a schedule that works for you and run with it for the best results.

Q: How should I organize the topics for my blog?

A: It is generally a best practice to limit how many categories you have, which will keep readers from becoming overwhelmed. Choose a handful of categories that you will write about and make sure that all of your blog posts fall under one of these categories, allowing readers to better search for and find the blog entries that you have written in the past. You can write blogs to fit into any category that you can think of; You should try to be broad when choosing organizational categories, so that you do not end up with blog entries that you do not know how to file.

With this small business blogging advice, you should be ready to start your own small business corporate blog to build a successful web presence online.

Photo Credits: 1

Originally posted 2009-01-26 05:56:30. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Sometimes increasing the efficiency of a corporate blog is as simple as implementing some small but powerful steps. Here are a few incredibly intelligent ideas for corporate blogging that will allow you to be more efficient and more effective as a result.

1 - When there is a lot of discussion in the comments section of a blog post, or if someone adds information to the comments that is critical and bears repeating, it would be ideal to create a short blog post that quotes the most relevant information, pointing people to the comments made prior so that they can read everything that was said. This isn’t cheating, but rather gives subscribers who use RSS to read your blog a chance to check out some conversation that they may not necessarily be aware of.

2 – When someone writes about something that was posted in your blog, and something of significance is added to the understanding of the issue in their blog, then consider creating a short post that briefly quotes their part of the conversation, posting a link to point people to the other blogger’s post. This will help people who do not see the trackback and pingback links in your post to reach out to other posts in the “blogosphere”.

3 – Create a short post in your blog that links to the top posts for your blog, or perhaps the most controversial posts in your blog, or even the ones that you sweated over more than the others. This is a great way to get readers looking at your other posts.

4 – When you go to another blog to write a guest post, or when you post content or another site, create a short blog post in your own corporate blog that links to that post. Even if what you wrote about was not quite on topic for your own blog, it is still worthwhile to let your readers know what you are writing elsewhere so that they can get to know you better through reading your content.

5 – If you have a big, long subject to talk about, break it into smaller pieces and spread them out over a period of several days. Use the first one in order to introduce the topic thoroughly and to solicit responses, and then post the others including reader feedback as you go.

6 – Solicit responses and suggestions from your readers regarding further reading, tips, weird news, best tools and other information and ask them to post the results as link lists. You can create a completely separate post for each topic that you come up with. Some of the best posts on some blogs are simply short links to other sources, even without a lengthy explanation of the background about the post.

7 – When you see something that is strikingly funny, awful, unusual or interesting, post something short about it, without feeling that you have a weighty reason to point it out. You can easily post a 15-30 word blog post like a little note tucked inside the margin of a book or magazine without having to go into any further detail.

Photo Credits: 1

Originally posted 2008-12-31 05:02:47. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Business blogs are quickly becoming the “in” thing, at least as far as corporate communication is concerned. “Blog” is short hand for weblog or web log, which is an online public diary that is updated on a regular basis. Some web logs are updated daily, while others see updates every few hours depending on the industry and who is running the blog. The web log is usually updated with comments, announcements, recommended links and other informative content from the owner of the blog.

Blogging has been a popular method of communication among teenagers, geeks and other extroverts for many years. The typical blog style involves unedited, informal, first person entries that are posted in reverse chronological order. Many bloggers do not consider any detail to be too insignificant to chronicle to a virtually worldwide audience. Many personal blogs are not afraid to get really personal for their readers, talking about what they ate, where they went, who they talked to, and other seemingly mundane tidbits of information that readers are more than willing to learn about.

The blogosphere, or the world of blogging has been expanding at a rapid pace however, and is now including professional journals that are web based and designed to allow companies to reach out to target audiences in a completely new way. Now that entrepreneurs are developing a variety of creative new uses for business blogs and corporate blogs, the technology surrounding the blog concept seems poised to become the next big thing when it comes to communicating on a corporate level, not only with employees within the company, but also customers and competitors as well.

If you are doubting the move that blogging is making from an underground phenomenon into a true, bona fide trend, then consider the evolution of blogging and how personal blogs have already become truly powerful voices and methods of communication in media and politics. Last year, for example, a couple of high profile bloggers blasted Senator Trent Lott for giving a speech that appeared to sanction the act of racial segregation, and the fallout and publicity were so powerful, they ultimately prompted Lott to resign from his position as the Senate majority leader. Meanwhile, high traffic blogs are maintained by comedians like Dave Barry and journalists like Jim Romenesko from the Poynter Institute.

Evangelists believe that business blogs, also sometimes known as bblogs, offer similar potential to any other industry. In a few years, it is believed that we will wonder how we ever lived without business blogs and corporate blogs, according to Jim Carroll, who is a successful author and consultant. At a recent conference focusing on business blogs, Michael Gartenberg with the Jupiter Research company said that the single word of advice for Dustin Hoffman’s character in “The Graduate” would not be “plastics”, but rather would be “weblogs” in this day and age. Blogging is opportunity, according to John Lawlor, a B-blog consultant.

Photo Credits: 1

Originally posted 2009-01-13 05:52:37. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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