Corporate Blogging and Corporate Reputation
As my blog on corporate blogs and bloggers comes to a close, there is still one last point to be made. I feel that my blog will not be complete without mentioning the idea of corporate blogs and their effect on a company’s corporate reputation.
You may be wondering, “What’s the big deal with corporate reputation?” A company’s corporate reputation all depends on how its audiences, both internal and external, view the company, its business practices, and its ability to be both transparent and authentic. Corporate reputation, therefore, can have a large effect on the company’s overall profitability and bottom line because, for example, if a company is not being open and honest in its communication with its external constituencies, then they will begin to lose trust in the company and stop buying whatever product or service the company provides.
But what does this have to do with corporate blogs? With the blogosphere becoming such a convenient, open place for individuals to share their thoughts and opinions with one another and receive feedback in return, blogs are becoming more and more popular. This being said, blogs are also becoming an easy and effective way for those individuals sharing their opinions to voice those thoughts and quickly reach a vast number of people. So, what if a customer, much like in the case of Dell and Jeff Jarvis, has a complaint about a company? How would that company know what is being said about it on the blogosphere if it is not listening? And how could it either combat or praise those online messages? This is where the need for a corporate blog becomes apparent. Without communicating openly with its audiences and hearing what they have to say where they are already engaging one another in the conversation, a company has little control over its corporate reputation both now and in the future.
The following video is an example of this concept. During an interview on Fox Business, Rob Neppell, the President of Kithbridge, Inc., shares his advice on how bloggers can influence a company’s corporate reputation, as well as the importance of companies not being afraid to open up.
On the other hand, the following Dilbert cartoon posted on Marketing Pilgrim is an example of how a company should not respond to bloggers on the blogosphere because, rather than using blogs as a way to engage its audiences in a two-way conversation in order to positively effect its corporate reputation, this cartoon illustrates an event that can damage a company’s corporate reputation online.
In the end, while there are numerous benefits to establishing a corporate blog within an organization, not all business’s have a need for a blog. Either way, I hope that my blog on corporate blogs and bloggers has taught you something that you did not know before!
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