10 fears of a corporate blogger
I recently translated part of an article on corporate blogging risk. With some additions and comments from NetMind , I publish it here. There are ten main risks, and the degree of probability of each occurrence is estimated in percentages and by categories - Unlikely Probably and Probably. Of course, these are very basic assessments and for each company the risks are assessed very individually, but, nevertheless, they will help to create a general picture of what the companies leading a corporate blog are at risk. <O: p> What are the risks of companies leading a corporate blog? <o: p> 1. Negative comments ( high probability - 90% ) Companies are very sensitive to criticism, especially occurring in "their territory". The appearance of negative comments can be regulated by a specially developed commentary and moderation policy . Negative comments to some extent raise the credibility of the information presented in the blog, very few people will take the blog seriously with extremely positive feedback about the work of the company. If there is too much negative, experts suggest using the blog as an online “book of complaints and suggestions." <O: p>
2. Loss of control over information (quite likely - 75%) . In many companies, the process of agreeing public statements and comments is strictly regulated. The blog is much more independent and this is alarming for company management. At the same time, people probably already discuss your company at some other sites - and why not listen to their point of view as well? <O: p> 3. Drop a blog. ( probably 75% ) Starting a corporate blog and leaving it halfway is one of the significant risks of corporate blogging. It is necessary to immediately calculate their strength. By the way, I want to immediately note that in our study of Russian-language corporate blogs (the first part of which we will soon show to everyone) - the percentage of abandoned blogs is quite small. So for our market the percentage of probability will be lower. <o: p> 4. Do not fit into the blogosphere . ( probably - 30%) The blogosphere is a specific environment with its own rules and etiquette. The consequences for dull offenders can be serious. To avoid this is simple - do not start without preparation, understand the essence of the new culture, and start communicating in the blogosphere before starting a corporate blog. <O: p> 5. Untrained staff. ( perhaps - 5% ) Company employees acting as corporate bloggers, but who have not undergone special training, can be a serious risk and negate all good undertakings. The problem will be solved by the program of special trainings and “instructions of the corporate blogger”. Another important point is dismissal. If a former corporate blogger believes that he was fired unfairly - public accusations could be an additional risk.
Actually, this is a risk not only for companies leading a corporate blog, but also for those who do not conduct any activity in the blogosphere at all. With the proliferation of blogs, corporate secrets often come to light in the most unexpected places. “Our customer is angry. Soon he will begin to set fines under the contract ”- this is a slightly adapted quotation from the blog of a large company employee, where he writes in detail about the process of negotiating with another very large and well-known company - with names, numbers and texts of internal documents ... <o: p> 6. Become the object of criticism. ( maybe 10% ). One of the worst nightmares of a company’s public relations professional is to start a corporate blog that will be the object of rapt attention and criticism in the blogosphere. Dell once started a Direct2Dell blog, which was at first very much criticized, but Dell was able to turn its blog into an influential and effective distribution channel. <O: p> 7. Civil responsibility. ( unlikely - 0.05% ) A corporate blog should not violate existing laws, such as the law on consumer protection, the law on advertising, etc. <o: p> 8. Reveal the Main Commercial Secret. ( unlikely - 0.05% ) Still, this is a corporate blog, and you have to try very hard so that a company employee who has access to a blog is so unprepared to reveal some secrets, and the PR man must be very relaxed so as not to control going on in the blog. <o: p> 9. Corporate blog has a negative impact on the value of the company's shares. ( unlikely -0.05% ) And what if a blog post causes a drop in stocks? For public companies, this is a serious issue - all their statements can directly affect the value of shares. <O: p> 10. Lawsuits. ( unlikely 0.05% ) Charges of defamation, damage to reputation and other possible charges caused by the content of blog posts. This is especially worried about the corporate blogger, since it is obvious that there is something to take from the corporation. Experts recommend to take into account the information published in the blog in the corporate workflow in order to use it in case of lawsuits. <O: p>
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2. Loss of control over information (quite likely - 75%) . In many companies, the process of agreeing public statements and comments is strictly regulated. The blog is much more independent and this is alarming for company management. At the same time, people probably already discuss your company at some other sites - and why not listen to their point of view as well? <O: p> 3. Drop a blog. ( probably 75% ) Starting a corporate blog and leaving it halfway is one of the significant risks of corporate blogging. It is necessary to immediately calculate their strength. By the way, I want to immediately note that in our study of Russian-language corporate blogs (the first part of which we will soon show to everyone) - the percentage of abandoned blogs is quite small. So for our market the percentage of probability will be lower. <o: p> 4. Do not fit into the blogosphere . ( probably - 30%) The blogosphere is a specific environment with its own rules and etiquette. The consequences for dull offenders can be serious. To avoid this is simple - do not start without preparation, understand the essence of the new culture, and start communicating in the blogosphere before starting a corporate blog. <O: p> 5. Untrained staff. ( perhaps - 5% ) Company employees acting as corporate bloggers, but who have not undergone special training, can be a serious risk and negate all good undertakings. The problem will be solved by the program of special trainings and “instructions of the corporate blogger”. Another important point is dismissal. If a former corporate blogger believes that he was fired unfairly - public accusations could be an additional risk.
Actually, this is a risk not only for companies leading a corporate blog, but also for those who do not conduct any activity in the blogosphere at all. With the proliferation of blogs, corporate secrets often come to light in the most unexpected places. “Our customer is angry. Soon he will begin to set fines under the contract ”- this is a slightly adapted quotation from the blog of a large company employee, where he writes in detail about the process of negotiating with another very large and well-known company - with names, numbers and texts of internal documents ... <o: p> 6. Become the object of criticism. ( maybe 10% ). One of the worst nightmares of a company’s public relations professional is to start a corporate blog that will be the object of rapt attention and criticism in the blogosphere. Dell once started a Direct2Dell blog, which was at first very much criticized, but Dell was able to turn its blog into an influential and effective distribution channel. <O: p> 7. Civil responsibility. ( unlikely - 0.05% ) A corporate blog should not violate existing laws, such as the law on consumer protection, the law on advertising, etc. <o: p> 8. Reveal the Main Commercial Secret. ( unlikely - 0.05% ) Still, this is a corporate blog, and you have to try very hard so that a company employee who has access to a blog is so unprepared to reveal some secrets, and the PR man must be very relaxed so as not to control going on in the blog. <o: p> 9. Corporate blog has a negative impact on the value of the company's shares. ( unlikely -0.05% ) And what if a blog post causes a drop in stocks? For public companies, this is a serious issue - all their statements can directly affect the value of shares. <O: p> 10. Lawsuits. ( unlikely 0.05% ) Charges of defamation, damage to reputation and other possible charges caused by the content of blog posts. This is especially worried about the corporate blogger, since it is obvious that there is something to take from the corporation. Experts recommend to take into account the information published in the blog in the corporate workflow in order to use it in case of lawsuits. <O: p>
<o: p>
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Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/31044/
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