Corporate blogging is a powerful potential PR tool in the SME arsenal. Here is my quick CEO digest.

Corporate Blogs

A company weblog, or corporate blog, is a web diary published by a corporate organisation. Created using a combination of fast broadband Internet connection, easy-to-use web publishing tools and a variety of devices, from static PC’s, mobile laptops and mobile phones, corporate blogs are media spaces aimed at a specific community of interest associated with the corporation, from employees and existing clients, to prospective clients. They invite comment from the audience and can be a tool for on-line education, marketing and networking.

Internal Blogs

These provide an on-line noticeboard or networking area for the members of the corporation and its employees on the company Intranet. Internal blogs are open forums, freed from the usual constraints of formal business communication, which can encourage feedback, the sharing of information, active participation in the culture and commercial life of the corporation, and in its decision making process.

External Blogs

Many corporations are now creating high profile public blogs which carry the company branding and marketing message onto the Internet, building bridges between between audiences involved in the work of the corporation and creating dialogue. These are an additional strand to traditional PR, providing stakeholders with the facility to respond to corporate activity and can channel a vibrant conversation between product or service sales personnel, investors, and commentators such journalists.

Advantages

As the trend for corporate blogs continues to grow, there is little doubt that more companies are coming to regard them as an extension of the corporate brand and voice. Corporate blogs are a powerful communication medium and establishing one transmits a message of trust in the employer/employee relationship. They can also be a powerful way of reaching and recruiting from the ‘Digital Native’ generation, i.e. those born after 1980.

Disadvantages

There are risks involved in corporate blogging. The communications filter of the PR or Marketing Department is gone at a keystroke and there is potential for open criticism of the company. Although the audience are unlikely to notice disclaimers and will tend to believe that the views expressed in the corporate blog are endorsed by the company, it is worth remembering that weblogs can be easily monitored and edited. It is also important to establish who owns the content. Typically, blog content belongs to the employer in a similar way to work related email. Web published material can accrue value, but also bring liability.

Cost

Unlike the traditional company Intranet, or corporate web presence, corporate blogs require minimal technical input or set-up investment and are highly cost effective to operate on an ongoing basis. Ease of access and the immediacy of instant publishing ensures that the corporate content published in the blog remains fresh and dynamic without the need to use third party services.

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What do you think? Could business blogging be a new way for your company to build relationships with customers, suppliers and investors?

Interested in finding out how a business blog might run alongside your existing PR planning?

Creating and maintaining a business blog is one of the services I offer.

Don’t hesitate to get in touch.