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Naked Conversations: Why companies should jump on the blogging bandwagon

Robert Scoble and Shel Israel, the authors of "Naked Conversations: How Blogs Are Changing the Way Businesses Talk with Customers" are so passionate about the value of business blogging, they admit having toyed with the idea of titling their book "Blog or Die." Blogging, the authors insist, promises to be the long sought Holy Grail of business-to-customer relations -- the perfect tool for companies that wish to create a meaningful dialog with and subsequently win over their target customers.

2006-10-25

"During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act." — George Orwell The makers of Kryptonite bike locks received an anonymous call one day in September 2004. The caller claimed to have picked his Kryptonite lock with a Bic pen. The story began popping up in online biker forums and within a few days, bloggers had spread the news faster than anyone thought possible — complete with an Internet video featuring a demonstration of how the lock could be picked with a 19-cent plastic pen. Instead of leaping into the fray to address the problem at the source — the blogosphere — company teams worked furiously around the clock to assess the damage, determine what to do about it, and go through the usual PR channels to make good to their customers. In other words, the company was going by the traditional crisis management playbook. Kryptonite posted several updates on its Web site concerning the problem, eventually talked to the mainstream media — but continued to ignore the blogosphere "because of higher priorities," according to Kryptonite PR manager Donna Tocci. This mistake cost them dearly. The company was perceived to be shunning communication with a key customer base — knowledgeable, tech-savvy and influential users of their product. But in reality, their lack of response, as they admitted later, was due to ignorance of blogs and their power in the marketplace. (Eventually Kryptonite exchanged 350,000 locks at a cost of $10 million — a staggering loss for a company making only $25 million a year.) 'Word of mouth on steroids' This story is just one of many in the pages of "Naked Conversations: How Blogs Are Changing the Way Businesses Talk with Customers." But cautionary tales are only a small part of what the reader will find between the covers of this 251-page book. Profiled here are the high-flying success stories — blogs launched by CEOs, managers and employees of companies large and small, from Microsoft and Sun Microsystems to small-scale startups such as Stonyfield Farms yogurt. The authors, Robert Scoble and Shel Israel, are among the elder statesmen of the blogosphere. Scoble began blogging for Microsoft in 2000 and now has more than 3.5 million readers. Israel, an expert on innovation for more than 20 years, has played a key role in introducing successful products including PowerPoint and Sun Microsystems workstations. "Naked Conversations" takes a plain-language approach and doesn't take for granted that its readership is blog-savvy. It begins by breaking down the definition of a blog (short for Weblog: "It's nothing more than a personal Web site with content displayed in reverse-chronological order"), bluntly stating why your company needs to blog ("Businesses need to join the conversations because they build trust") and illustrating the impact of blogging (it's "word of mouth on steroids"). They set forth numerous case histories, resources and helpful tips for would-be business bloggers. And the authors don't shy away from blogging's "dark side" — the Kryptonite story is a case in point. The fact is that companies are taking risks when they decide to blog, but the book makes a solid argument that the payoff in customer loyalty, trust and marketplace attention far outweighs the risks. Indeed, the only viable reason for choosing not to blog, according to one marketing expert quoted in the book, is if the company has secrets or a suppressive culture. "If the company culture is manipulative, employees are not treated with respect, and customers are thought of as commodity items," says Toby Bloomberg, "then that company should not blog. That company should close its doors." The authors' argument in favor of blogging is a persuasive one for anyone who cares about their company and its service or product. Essentially, blogs put a human face on a company, the authors state — a priceless advantage these days. Blog or die? The authors are so passionate about the value of business blogging, they admit having toyed with the idea of titling their book "Blog or Die." "The new reality of the marketplace is that consumers have a choice," says Seth Godin, author of "Purple Cow" who is interviewed in the book. "They can ignore you. They can ignore your ads, your letters, your Web banners, and your salespeople. As a result, you and every other marketer face a choice: You can make something worth talking about or you can become invisible." Marketers know it's a tough world out there. Most of us can remember when sociologists first slapped the label "Generation X" on that cohort following on the heels of the Baby Boomers. Tech-savvy, independent, skeptical and information-focused, Gen X is stubbornly resistant to Madison Avenue's siren song. Disdaining brand loyalty, Gen Xers are prone to shift their loyalty at the slightest whiff of deceit or dishonesty on the part of a company. They prefer to get their information from the Internet, that freewheeling global marketplace of information and ideas. The first Gen Xers turned 40 in 2001. This group and succeeding generations have evolved to become ever more independent, skeptical and distrustful of marketing and PR. They can smell a pitch from miles away — and they will have none of it. In their eyes, the customer is calling the shots, and companies that want their business had better treat them as equals, if not VIPS. After all, they are superconsumers, in the prime demographic target market, and they are savvy enough to know they are eagerly sought after in a flat-world, hypercompetitive global marketplace. Which is why, Scoble and Israel insist, blogging promises to be the long sought Holy Grail of business-to-customer relations — the perfect tool for companies that wish to create a meaningful dialog with and subsequently win over their target customers. Bottom line The authors of "Naked Conversations" share five tips for successful business blogging:

• Talk, don't sell — If you talk to people, they will get to know you. If you pitch to them, they'll just leave.
• Post often and be interesting — Posting often helps you with search engine ratings, and being interesting is what motivates others to link to your blog.
• Write on issues you know and care about — A good blog is passionate and shows authority.
• Blogging saves money but costs time — Being a good blogger takes time. You need to join the conversation by reading other blogs, linking to them and putting comments on them. You need to research what you write about, check your facts, and avoid legal quagmires.
• You get smarter by listening to what people tell you — Your customers are smarter than you. Develop a thick skin and read the negative comments chances are you'll learn something from even the nastiest ones. And your customers will respect you for listening.

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