7/11/2005

To Blog or Not to Blog

Thanks to Shaun Frecska, who forwarded me this article to post here at the Dayton AMA blog site. It is an interesting look at how businesses are approaching the use of weblogs or "blogs." My take on this is clear. It is just like any other tool. If you run your business poorly, no blog, no matter how well written will help you. If you are using a blog as a compliment to your product and service offering, it is a great tool. I view the corporate blog as sort of a bulletin board for public consumption. I do disagree with the author's assessment that the "marketing department" should not be the ones authoring the blog. My take is that if your whole company is not the "Marketing Department," you are doomed to fail. Job title is meaningless. The person at the front desk is every bit as responsible for marketing as the Director of HR, as the Chief Marketing Officer, as the CEO. While that responsibility may not be spelled out in the job description in terms of tasks, it should be in terms of philosophy. "How you do your job impacts how the customer perceives our business. Your ability to succeed in your given job, means that the company will be more able to not only identify the needs of the customer, but to satisfy those needs." "That positive customer perception is critical in shaping the success of the organization." That is marketing at its purest.
If your HR department is bad about returning calls to job applicants. That is bad marketing. If your receptionist is too busy reading "People" to smile and greet actual people, that is bad marketing. A blog can serve as so much more than just a canned commercial. It can provoke thought. It can create discussion. It can make your business better. It can increase your businesses awareness. It can also be a disaster. It is not hard to do, if you take the time to put your heart into it. If you do that, you will find your niche on the web. If you can do that, you will find success in the use of the blog. If you simply "mail it in" and expect your less than honest communication to translate into increased business, your weblog will fail...miserably. Choose wisely.

Marketing
- bizjournals.com

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