Blogging has caused quite a buzz. From political activists to aspiring novelists, industry pros and avid hobbyists, everyone seems to be starting a blog. Corporate blogs are giving established companies and obscure brands alike the ability to connect with their audiences on a more personal level, build trust, collect valuable feedback and foster strengthened business relationships. More importantly, these companies are enjoying tangible returns in their blogging investment in the form of increased sales, partnerships, business opportunities, press coverage and lead generation.
Companies that employ a well thought out blogging strategy encourage the strongest community goodwill, and that goodwill, in turn, promotes significant marketing and sales gains. It is said that success breeds success.Thus, successful blogging breeds success in other marketing and sales initiatives.
Example for the successful company is Microsoft. The company is in the middle of the bridge at the moment. Once crossed, as Macromedia's example demonstrates, customers become blogging brand champions, better products are developed, even more links and higher search engine rankings are achieved. While crossing the corporate blogging cultural divide makes sense for some companies, especially product companies; we believe the idea may not make sense for every company.
Sales blogs - external
Purpose: To market or sell products/services, make citizens aware of public services, get donations for charities or political parties etc.
Blogger: The organization itself, or more specifically individuals within it writing on behalf of the organization.
Target groups: (Potential) clients/customers and citizens, that is persons and/or other organizations that are directly involved with the publishing organization, or those it wants to reach with the purpose above.
Relationship blogs - external
Purpose: To create, uphold or strengthen relationships.
Blogger: The organization itself, or more specifically individuals within it writing on behalf of the organization.
Target groups: Often smaller and more specified than with sales blogs. Examples are support blogs aimed at customers of a certain product, finance blogs for IR purposes, PR blogs for media, blogs trying to reach students, future employees, politicians/officials etc.
Branding blogs - external
Purpose: To strenghten the brand, the profile, of the publishing organization or individuals within it.
Blogger: Not necessarily the organization itself. Individual employees' or executives' blogging ("insider blogs"), if supported by the organization, can be viewed as a branding blog. The same goes for adverblogs and blogs that are not apparantly connected to the organization.
Target groups: See Relationship and Sales blogs.
Knowledge blogs - internal
Purpose: To give employees information and insights relating to their work assignments; news, business intelligence, reports about ongoing projects etc.
Blogger: The organization itself through one or more designated bloggers, or potentially all employees through a entirely open blog publishing model.
Target groups: All employees with a certain interest.
Collaboration blogs - internal
Purpose: To provide a working team with a tool for research, collaboration and discussion.
Blogger: The team.
Target group: The team.(There's only a fine line - if any - between this blog category and business wiki's. You could also see for example Relationship Blogs change into more wiki-like publications.)
Culture blogs - internal
Purpose: To strengthen organizational culture. Typically through informal content of social or non-work related character.
Blogger: The organization itself through one or more designated bloggers, or potentially all employees through a entirely open blog publishing model.
Target groups: All employees as employees, and not as professionals (developers, managers, assistants and so on).
References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_blog
http://www.backbonemedia.com/blogsurvey/8-corporate-blogging-cult-divide.htm
http://www.backbonemedia.com/blogsurvey/
Prepared By Agu.
All right reservced by EnT02 Group Rui,Ean and Agu™
All right reservced by EnT02 Group Rui,Ean and Agu™
No comments:
Post a Comment