Posts tagged starting a company blog
Convincing the CEO to blog: Mission Impossible?
May 24th
By Stanford Smith, Contributing {grow} Columnist
The meeting room looked like most across corporate America. The fluorescent hum of recessed lights, the smell of 1-hour old Starbucks coffee, and the fake maple veneer conference table set the mood for another marketing meeting.
It’s your turn to update the team on your social media efforts for the last week.
Unfortunately the news is mixed.
You can’t seem to attract the right audience. Content on the blog is anemic due to half-hearted writing efforts from various divisions. Declining engagement numbers whisper of a blog that is failing to gain traction.
As you open your file folder you swear you hear Jeffrey, the traditional media superstar, mumble “dead-man walking” before you begin.
You clear your throat, stare intently at the CEO, and begin.
“Our blog is the hub of our social business initiative. It plays a leading role in telling our company’s story. It shows prospects and customers alike that we are a business that matters. It’s the most cost-efficient way to tell a deep story about our products. It’s critical for finding and cultivating brand evangelists.”
Jeffrey straightens in his chair, ever alert for the other shoe to drop.
You nervously re-adjust your water bottle a centimeter to the left and continue.
“But, every indicator shows that our blog, perhaps our most important marketing asset is dying”. You pause for blink waiting for the news to sink in.
After a moment you continue…
“And Maria” , your CEO straightens in her chair, “You are the only one that can save it. If you choose. Or we can continue to run the blog like an after-school project and watch a year’s worth of investment swirl down the toilet.”
The fluorescent lights hum their annoying applause. Everyone unconsciously shifts their bodies away from you.
“Ok…”, Maria says, “Let’s do this”
Leaning onto her elbow, she narrows her eyes and say,
“Convince me.”
Today we’ll talk about what you could and should say.
If your corporate blog is dying a slow, anonymous death then you can plan on having this conversation. Let’s make sure your prepared.
The Objections:
First you need to work your CEO’s most likely objections. The common ones are:
“I Have No Time”
CEOs are beyond busy. They are responsible for the entire business not just marketing. They rely on their marketing team to understand and execute the marketing strategy. The last thing on their mind is producing content for a blog.
In fact, they may get a little irritated by having yet another “to-do” placed on their list. You must be prepared to meet this objection.
“Our Customers Don’t Read Blogs”
There is an ongoing debate in many companies around the social expertise of customers. Many CEOs are skeptical that their customers have the time to read and comment on blogs. While these executives are fine with a placeholder effort for their company they are waiting for news that their suspicions have been confirmed.
These executives have to be shown that customers not only read blogs but make business decisions based on what they read.
I’m Not A Writer
It’s known that Public Speaking is the #1 fear of most business executives. I believe that “Public Writing” is the 2nd. The fear of writing an article from scratch terrifies many CEOs and goads them into rationalizing their fear with other objections.
Even though you may have a bullet-proof argument, be aware that your executive will most likely be wrestling with their secret fear of writing. You’ll need to factor this into your thinking when making your case.
Kicking Your CEO Off The Fence
Now that you know what is rolling around in the mind of your CEO, it’s time to kick them off the fence. The good news is that if you already have a blog then you can take comfort that the CEO is open to making it better. All they need is a reality check.
Here’s how to administer some tough love…
Show them what prospects are saying
Your prospects are talking about you and your competitors on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and other blogs. They are asking for advice, getting recommendations and referring others to websites.
I recommend that you use a tool such as SocialMention.com to start compiling a digest of these conversations. Since your CEOs is the top salesperson and cheerleader for your company; they will hate not being a part of these conversations.
Ask your CEO this: “What impact would it have to offer a blog post written by you that answers our prospect’s top concerns or objections?”
For good measure, I would push a little further and inquire -
“Imagine the leadership we could demonstrate in the marketplace by being the first to show our CEO rolling their sleeves and engaging with our audience?”
Show them what the competition is saying
The Social Media party is in full swing. Almost every company is trying to take advantage of the new channel. It’s extremely persuasive to show your CEO that the world isn’t standing still.
Show her what the competition is tweeting or putting on Facebook. Analyze your competition’s blogging efforts and provide a hard-hitting evaluation of their performance. Paint your CEO a picture of how social media can quietly build competitive momentum and loyalty.
Pull examples of other companies with blogging CEOs. Show how these executives are championing their brand, engaging with customers, and how they are leading by example. Take the time to find good examples from a variety of different industries.
Next…
Show them what customers are saying
Go to search.twitter.com and search for your company name. Repeat this exercise on Google and examine the results using the “blog” link in the sidebar. You can also use SocialMention.com (free) or Radian6 to dig a little deeper.
Your goal is to create a snapshot of how your customers are talking about your company’s product and brand.
These customers are looking for cues that your company cares about them. The #1 person for the job is your CEO.
Quick Ways to Get Your CEO Writing
If your CEO is already a writer then laying out your evidence will probably push them in the right direction. Don’t be too critical of their initial posts. Let them get into the groove of writing and watching their work get published. Most of all don’t let them burn themselves out. One post a month is perfect for a new CEO Blogger.
On the other hand, if your CEO isn’t a writer then you will need to do a little (or a lot more) hand-holding.
Try this:
- Create a clear 12-month editorial calendar: An editorial calendar takes the “what will I write” stress off your chief executive. Work on the calendar with your CEO to make sure that their priorities and concerns are baked into the final product.
- Repurpose Current Communications: Your CEO probably already writes regular emails or columns for the internal newsletter. Offer to review and repurpose these existing communications for the company blog
- Ghostwriting: I am a fan of ghostwriting. The benefits of CEO blogging is to great to get dogmatic about how the final post is made. I recommend finding someone inside the company that can create a draft that edited and approved by the CEO.
- One Post a Month: In the beginning, one post a month is fine. Make sure that your CEO understands that the team is still executing the 99% of the work, but one post is needed to move the blog in the right direction. In my experience, most CEOs end up writing more because they learn to enjoy the process.
Ready?
I’m very interested in hearing your perspective on CEO Blogging. Is it worthwhile? Do you think that CEOs see the benefit of being the social voice of their company’s marketing efforts?
Stanford Smith is a hopelessly addicted angler, father of 3 hellions, and the wild-eyed muse behind PushingSocial.com. Follow him on Twitter to get his latest unorthodox tips for getting your blog noticed and promoted.
The 7 Fundamentals of Starting a Company Blog
Apr 14th
It’s more than ideas. It’s more than marketing. Starting a corporate blog is a commitment and should be carefully thought-through before executing.
{grow} community member Tabatha Bourguignon told me she is starting a blog for her company, Sandy Bay Networks, and asked me about the steps to take to get started. Let’s all help her out, shall we?
The technology part of it — the right look, functionality and widgets — is not that big of deal when it comes to long-term success. You can make technology do anything you want, iterate and add widgets over time. However, you can’t make HUMANS do anything you want, and that is the most-overlooked — and also the most important — aspect of starting a company blog from scratch. Let’s look at the practical political realties of building a company blog.
1) Assess the culture – Even if starting a blog is the RIGHT thing to do, it might not be the WISE thing to do if your company can’t sustain it. Are you built to blog? I was working with a company that definitely could have used a blog and other social media tools to stand out, but the culture of the company (usually dictated by the person at the top) didn’t support it. You and I are in the job of creating success with the cards we’re dealt, not wishing for another hand to play, so I moved on to other ideas. It is disastrous to try to implement plans that your company either can’t, or won’t, support at the top. If you have a resistant culutre, you need to re-trench and begin an education process, not dive into a kamikaze mission.
Another consideration is that company culture will set the tone of your blog. If you are buttoned-up and conservative, your blog will be too. If you’re customer-focused and passionate about your product, that will show through. So have a realistic expectation about the tone of the blog before going into it.
2) Align with strategy – Blogging is a marketing function. There. I said it. Before all the PR folks jump down my throat (where did that phrase come from any way?) let me explain the rationale. Assuming you didn’t get a government bailout, companies must take money from customers to exist. There will be no media relations, no press releases, no employee newsletters if the money doesn’t flow. Marketing is responsible for bringing in more money, from more people, more often. Everything in the company directly, or indirectly, supports that. Including the blog. A blog is just another way to influence people to do something. What is that? What is the ultimate call to action? What is that blog driving for over time? If you can explain that, it will help you determine how you will …
3) Measure what you treasure – Well, you ARE going to measure aren’t you? Of course you are. Without a measure of success, how would you know if you are doing better or worse? Or if you should spend more or less money on blogging? Or if you have the right people doing the blogging? Or if you are covering the right topics? Most important, when the budget axe falls some day in the future (and it will), and some outside cost-cutter visits your department and asks “what do you do?” you better have some charts to show how you are adding to stakeholder value on a daily basis.
4) Assess your resources– It’s time to get real. You know all those people who are telling you they’re going to help you with the blog? Don’t count on it! It sounds like a good idea but when it comes time to put pen to paper, many people can’t, or simply don’t deliver. What happens if key bloggers get too busy or don’t follow-through? What counter-measure do you have in place? If it’s not a compensated part of their job, it may not be reliable. How will you sustain the blog?
Also in the category of resources is assessing existing content that can be re-purposed. Get more bang for your marketing buck by using speeches, videos, slide presentations and marketing materials in your blog.
5) Look at the outside world. Talk to your customers and ask them what they would like to see on your blog. Just makes sense, but usually overlooked. What do your competitors offer? How are you going to be different?
6) Who’s in charge — The dreaded approval process is part of company life. Don’t fight it. Just make sure it is well understood before you start. You don’t want to start blogging and then have a whole new set of rules thrown at you.
7) Create a plan, then abandon it – Plot out your first 25 blog posts. How does it align with strategy? Meet customer needs? Blend with management expectations? It’s a good idea to have some sort of a plan before you start, but don’t become too wedded to it. Don’t miss what is going on all around you and all the great story ideas flying at you every day!
Whew. That’s a lot to think about, isn’t it? And I probably missed a bunch of ideas. Will you help make this a better post for everyone and all of eternity by adding your suggestions in the comment section? Thanks!
Thanks for the question Tabatha! Tabatha Bourguignon blogs at www.bantameant.blogspot.com and submitted this question through the recent B2B blogging webinar I provided through MLT Creative.
The 10 Best Corporate Blogs in the World
Jan 5th
My reaction to most company blogs: “Blah, Blah and Double Blah!”
I recently taught a class on corporate blogging at the amazing social media marketing graduate program at Rutgers University. In my research for the class, I pored through hundreds of websites looking for examples of the best company blogs in the world.
Amid the coal pile that is the state of corporate blogging today, I did manage to find a few diamonds that don’t bore to tears with pronouncements, promotions and product announcements (the Killer P’s).
Before I provide my view of the best of the best, here are a few general observations about the state of corporate blogging:
1) The best blogs are dominated by the tech sector. In fact, they are so far ahead of the rest of the corporate world that I found it unfair to rank the professionals with the amateurs! IBM, SAP and Oracleare examples of innovative and remarkable blogs. Nearly every hardware, software and services company “gets it.” I thought it would be more interesting here to focus only on the non-tech sector. I also excluded any reference to Zappos simply because I am sick of Zappos and it’s my blog dammit.
2) Corporate blogging has evolvedfar beyond the idea of personal journaling. Think of any company goal and there is likely to be an example of a company blog supporting it. You may be surprised at the diversity of blogs in these examples.
3) There is a chasm between the adoption of blogs at large companies versus the rest of the world. The Center for Marketing Research at the University of Massachusetts showed in a study that just 22% of the Fortune 500’s blog compared to 45% of the Inc 500′s and about 80% of non-profits. And even when some companies claimed to have a blog, I couldn’t find it. Corporate blogging is still a wide-open area for marketing channel development since there are so many proven benefits of blogging! And many of these blogs are U.S.-based because the adoption of corporate blogging is even lower in the rest of the world.
In no particular order, here are ten examples of exceptional non-high-tech blogs:
Goals: Problem-solving, community-building, loyalty
So you don’t think blogs have a place in the B2B world? Can’t imagine somebody from a road construction crew logging in to read a blog? Think again.
Caterpillar established separate blogs based on industry (construction, electrical, marine) with sub-categories under each industry (products, safety, problem-solving). This company does a wonderful job engaging customers, using the community to solve problems, and rewarding customer ideas.
Goals: New product development, engagement
Well-managed companies usually excel at many things and Starbucks is no exception. They are leading the way in social media marketing but the unexpected aspect of their blog is that it only tangentially has anything to do with coffee. Instead, Starbucks employs its blog as a global brainstorming platform. Customers submit ideas for new drinks, food items, packages, even store designs. The company blogs about the ideas (about 100,000 so far!) and readers build on the ideas through comments and ratings. The idea is brilliant.
Goals: Customer satisfaction, sales, crisis management
Bill Marriott is one of the most famous corporate bloggers in the world. Yes, the company chairman actually does his own posts, dictating them on a weekly basis. This personal involvement has won the site loyal fans since they know they are getting the word from a real executive — a powerful point of differentiation. The company has reported generating millions in direct sales from this blog and has also used this as a platform to set the record straight in the event of a bombing or hostage situation involving one of their properties. Another “personal journal” blog I’ll submit as a runner-up in this category is Randy’s Journal from Boeing.
Goals: Direct sales, loyalty
In a hotly-competitive, low-margin business, this regional grocery chain is trying to stand out with a fun, easy-to-navigate site. The blog design changes every few weeks to reflect colorful seasonal themes. The company has managed to attract a loyal and engaged audience through posts from president Danny Wegman and other store employees on ideas for entertaining at home, recipes and nutrition. I saw one post where the deli chef was responding to questions by telling customers which aisle to find ingredients for some tasty muffins. I love the fun, down-home and authentic engagement on this site!
Goal: Thought leadership
Here’s how blogger Mark Toth describes the mission of the blog: “When we asked visitors to the Manpower US website what information they wanted most, the answer was employment law. This bLAWg is an attempt to meet that demand and engaging and educational content.” You mean they actually listened to customers and created a blog around their information needs? Seems like such a simple idea but unfortunately ignored by most companies.
Goal: Brand Awareness
When I use the GE blog as an example in my classes there is usually a comment like “Oh … I thought they were only lightbulbs.”
This blog is aimed squarely at breaking this image through wonderful story-telling. If you want to see a blog that is doing a good job spinning some entertaining stories, look no further. It’s not uncommon to see wonderful photography, video, and even art and music used in a blog post to illustrate a point. The one area that needs to be improved — I think they are trying to hit too many diverse customers with one blog. It’s time to segment with multiple blogs.
Goal: Customer engagement, brand awareness
How in the world do you create passion for scissors? Fiskars has done it in one of the most creative blogs in the corporate world. The company solicited help from four scrapbook fanatics who demonstrate their love of crafting — and the tools they use — with this customer-generated content. One of the greatest marketing applications for blogging I have seen.
Goal: Enhance corporate image and integrate with traditional media
This is one of the world’s best-known corporate blogs but I would be remiss if I didn’t include it here. People generally hate airlines but somehow Southwest has risen above this with a quirky, honest blog about travel and the people who make it happen. This is the anti-corporate-press-release blog. They also wisely use this as a way to connect with employees. Smart business.
Goal: Complement brand image, engage community
Patagonia is a company that sells high-end adventure gear and this no-frills site does a marvelous job featuring reader stories of what else … high-end adventure! You have to love a corporate blog that features a post called “Waking up puking.”
The magic of social media is finding a way to enable your customers to carry your brand promise through to their stories and this site is a best practice.
Goal: Complement brand image, direct sales
Like Starbucks and Zappos, Whole Foods is a social media darling, and for good reason. They do great work! This popular blog is full of how-to’s, best practices and exciting product ideas.
Of course it would be impossible for me — or anybody for that matter — to do a comprehensive evaluation of every corporate blog in the world but these are some that demonstrate the use of compelling content to align with tangible business objectives.
I would value your comments on these wonderfully diverse blogs. What company blogs should I consider for my next class? I’m especially interested in any small businesses that are effectively working the blogging channel.
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