EBlog

Let’s hold a secret meeting about blogging.

December 11, 2007 | Posted by: Lee

We're all struggling with how best to use blogs to promote our brands and connect with our customers.  There aren't many hard and fast rule (precisely what people like about blogs).  We're all learning as we go.  The same is true for large corporations.

So, it's not surprising that a new group called the Blog Council has been created.  Their mission is to help corporate bloggers "be more successful" by exploring best practices, policies, and issues surrounding blogging.  I love it.  Can't wait to hear what they have to say.

But wait, it's a closed community. You have to be a member to join in the conversation and you have to be from a large corporation.  They explain this in their press release...

"Major corporations use blogs differently while abiding by the same rules and etiquette.  Individual and small-business bloggers don't face the same issues.  For example, we still need to deliver a responsible and effective corporate message, but we need to do it in the complicated environment of the blogosphere.  We have to speak for a corporation, but never sound 'corporate.'  And we have to learn to do it live, and in real-time."

What? We all have to do that. It's no different for small companies than for large companies.  What is different is the number of people reading and commenting on their blogs and the exposure/risk they have.  I would have understood this better if they'd talked more about the logistics and issues around managing a conversation with potentially millions of readers than the reasons they gave. 

I assumed that that was what they meant and kept reading.  Then I got to the part where they said they didn't intend to blog about what they learning from each other.

Will the Blog Council be blogging?

Not much.  Our job is to provide a community for corporate bloggers.  We're not a publisher and we're not promoting a specific point of view.  Our members are the ones leading the conversation; our job is to support it.  It's less about the Blog Council's voice than helping our members have a stronger voice.

Wow.  You'd think an organization dedicated to helping bloggers be more successful would blog about it.  It's a great opportunity to use their "voice" to be a though leader and set the standards for others.  Large corporations could help guide all of us in making the blogophere the best it can be. 

I'm guessing that they think keeping all this close to the vest means they can regain some control over what's going on out there.  Let's face it, blogging has shifted power back to the consumer.  We now have a louder voice and greater reach than ever before.  Keeping all this behind closed doors makes it seem like there's something shading going on.  It makes me see that they haven't accepted the fact that they've lost control over the conversation.  Instead of trying to get it back, they need to embrace it as I wrote about last month.

And one more thing...the Blog Council is managed by Andy Sernovitz, the founder of the Word of Mouth Marketing Association.  You'd think someone who understands the power of spreading the word would want to promote what this group is doing.  I'm baffled.