After six years big business still has no idea what to do with this blog thing.
Oh, that makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Of course, these are the companies that should know right? I mean they've been using Trapper Keepers and Daytimers all their lives, so blogs are just like that right? A neat folder system for your mind-thoughts?
Read: We're going share notes on how we pretend to be fifteen year olds who can't stop blogging about how great our products are and how to avoid being sniffed out as a fraudlog two hours after the first post. Oh, and we're going to have a lovely salad with Pacific Northwest farmed salmon for lunch.
As someone who's been at this for years, lets answer these questions right now and maybe save some of you the horror of having to stay overnight the Sheraton Orlando.
Hire individuals who speak the native language (and I don't mean as a second language). Provide them with the full experience of what you are trying to shlep and let them write about it in a way that energizes the local population.
Rejoice?!
Oh, I mean indoctrinate the workers on the heroic qualities of your brand. Let them know that lawyers are monitoring their feeds and at the first sign of dissent, they will be sent to Gitmo's Executive Bootcamp for Re-Education. Remind them that blogging is not the road to liberty—their voice represents the brand at all times, even when they might be writing about an obsession with Lisa Frank products.
Dynamic Global Revenue Upstream says what? Here's an idea: make fantastic products and services and stop trying to control the citizen voice. It only comes back to haunt you. Always has, always will.
First, don't freak if someone says you suck. Ask them why, take notes, and try harder. Second, don't freak if someone says you rock. They didn't blog about it to get more attention or free stuff (that's always nice but we don't like it when companies try too hard).
Yeah that makes sense. Explore and talk about a very, very public medium behind closed doors (What the hell is a private networking environment anyway? Tell me they provide free t-shirts: PNE-4-EVA). That's perfect! As long as you keep doing that, you'll always need your stupid councils to discuss why the cool kids think you're an idiot. Well played, asshats.
Maybe if you spent time actually blogging and engaging the community personally, not as a corporate stooge you might learn a thing or two, but I understand it's a lot easier to get a free chicken-based lunch at a pompous council meeting than it is through a trackback.