In a semi-recent post on his blog Matt Cutts discussed some very powerful information about corporate blogging. We got a lot out of this post and decided to expand a little more on the subject. Whether you are already a corporate blogger, or thinking about getting started, this information could drastically effect the way you run your blog and how the public perceives it.

The first point that Matt covered was about leaving yourself enough wiggle room when it comes to product launches, updates or other big events. Whenever you set a date that is hard and fast, you are opening yourself up to a lot of potential problems. Let’s look at a common scenario and how this type of issue could have a negative effect on your business.

Let’s say that you use your blog to announce that on Date X you will be releasing Product Y. You start the buzz, everyone gets excited and your readers can’t wait. The countdown to Date X begins and as the big day gets closer, you realize that you’re not going to be able to make that deadline.

So, you post that Date X is now Date Z and explain that there is a good reason for the delay. Your audience is disappointed, and they may start to wonder about how professional your company is. While everyone understands that product launches are a delicate matter, setting a hard and fast date does raise expectations. If you can’t meet them, your audience may start to wonder what’s going wrong.

Date Z rolls by and you’re still not ready. You have another post about the new Date A, and once again, your audience is disappointed. By now, things look pretty bad, and you’ve already delayed the launch of Product Y twice. More problems occur, and before you know it your actual launch date is now Date D.

By this point, the majority of people that were really interested in Product Y will have moved on. You’ve failed to deliver, you’ve shown that you can’t keep a project on schedule and your launch will fizzle out. While some delays can be strategic and may increase demand, waiting too long and having too many delays will spell disaster for any product launch.

What can you learn from this scenario? First and foremost, while you do need to give your audience a date for a launch, it does not need to be hard and fast. Give yourself more than enough wiggle room so that if something does go wrong, your company is not going to be cast in a bad light.

This same principle can also apply to other promises you make on your blog. Bottom line, if you are not 150% sure you can keep a promise – don’t make it. It’s just that simple. If you don’t put yourself in a corner, you won’t have to worry about getting out of one. By leaving yourself that wiggle room, you’ll be able to present a strong front to the public and keep them interested in your launch or event.

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Originally posted 2008-11-12 05:15:07. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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