Practical Guide To Starting A Corporate Blog. So you’ve read all the social media experts’ blog posts about blogging.
You’ve explored the tools and picked your platform. You’ve talked your CEO into participating. You have a good feel from your customers that they would at least come read it once in a while. Now you’re ready to start your corporate blog. [flickr style="float: left"]photo:202203524[/flickr]Unfortunately, being able to really answer the question of whether or not you are really ready can’t fully be answered until you dive in and do it. What follows isn’t a sing-songy list of how to blog, but five practical questions to have answered before you even start.
Define an editorial purpose.Sure, this sounds obvious enough, but not many bloggers think of it until well into their blog’s life. There are hundreds of good blogs out there that provide much more refined information that I can. Making these decisions after the fact isn’t bad – they need to be made, no matter when. Other Posts You’ll Find Interesting: The 10 Best Corporate Blogs in the World. My reaction to most company blogs: “Blah, Blah and Double Blah!”
I recently taught a class on corporate blogging at the amazing social media marketing graduate program at Rutgers University. In my research for the class, I pored through hundreds of websites looking for examples of the best company blogs in the world. Amid the coal pile that is the state of corporate blogging today, I did manage to find a few diamonds that don’t bore to tears with pronouncements, promotions and product announcements (the Killer P’s).
Before I provide my view of the best of the best, here are a few general observations about the state of corporate blogging: 1) The best blogs are dominated by the tech sector. 2) Corporate blogging has evolvedfar beyond the idea of personal journaling. 3) There is a chasm between the adoption of blogs at large companies versus the rest of the world. In no particular order, here are ten examples of exceptional non-high-tech blogs: Caterpillar Starbucks Marriott Wegman’s Manpower. The Benefits of Corporate Blogging by MMI Public Relations. Blogging has come a long way during the past few years.
The blogosphere no longer is considered “fringe” journalism. Instead, bloggers helped drive the news cycle during the 2008 Presidential election. They can – and in many cases will – scoop beat writers at major metro newspapers. The result is that blogs have gained a great deal of readership and respect. It is a medium that is constantly leveling the playing field and creating powerful publishing opportunities for everyone from big-time CEOs to the college students with something to say. This paper will focus more on the CEOs than the students. There are five key benefits to starting a corporate blog. 1) A corporate blog promotes transparency.
If the corporate structure is a building, then blogs serve as the windows – they allow customers to peer inside and see what is happening internally with greater precision than ever before. 2) A corporate blog puts a human voice to your company’s name. Personalize your blog as much as possible. What Say You?!?!: Advantages and Disadvantages of Corporate Blogging. A corporate blog is published and used by an organization to reach its organizational goals.
Many businesses have launched corporate blogs in an effort to better communicate with customers and capture a little attention from web users. However, there are advantages and disadvantages in using corporate blogs. Advantages: Organization can build its relationship with its customers and promote their products at the same timeEncourage communication and allow businesses more easily reach their customers, develop stronger relationships and brand loyalty with its customersAllow employees to display their expertise on a particular topic, become an excellent way of sharing knowledge and showcasing the organization as having talent and expertiseAllow a positive way of getting feedback, and better understanding towards customers’ needs, as they react to certain pieces, suggest ideas, comments and etc As compare to other communication strategies, blogging is relatively much more cheaper.