Corporate Blogs & Rules of Engagement

I've been talking about the benefits of blogging for a long time. There is no doubt blogs can help achieve a variety of objectives, e.g., targeting niche communities; providing additional touch points for customer interaction, increasing responsiveness. Blogs can even help boost natural search engine ranking for websites. The list goes on and on.

Now that many of my clients have launched ambitious blog programs, I'm finding it increasingly necessary to formalize "rules of engagement." How do you harness the power of blogs to build community, empower customer evangelists, and nurture relationships, without getting into trouble?

There's, of course, the basic stuff: Do you filter comments posted to your blog? Do you copyright everything? Do you run commentary by legal and media departments before posting? (No, no and no). Be upfront and honest about your policies and you'll be okay. Take a page from Blogspotting, BusinessWeek's new blog. They spell out the context for decisions regarding "comment filtering." It's out there in the open and they invite discussion about it - they involve their community of readers in the debate over the pros and cons of their policy.

But now there is a much trickier set of issues. What do you do with corporate fans who create well-meaning and passionate blogs, but get it all wrong? Regardless of intent, there are going to be instances where fan blogs help germinate misinformation, or divulge information that could be damaging.

My advise: Do the exact opposite of everything Apple is doing right now. They have created a textbook example of what not to do.

Hally Suit has a nice post at WorthWhile that hones in on the problem for Apple. Back in January, Apple filed a lawsuit against Nicholas Ciarelli, a nineteen year old blogger and Mac enthusiast. He's been writing about Apple rumors and insider scoops for several years, and in December he happened upon some information about the secret and yet to be released Mac Mini. When he published the scoop on Think Secret, Apple launched a lawsuit, for monetary damages, claiming that Ciarelli and his site induced Apple employees to violate nondisclosure agreements.

Word of mouth communications can be a venue for rapidly spreading negative brand information, as much as positive endorsements and promotion. And in this case, a mini-movement has emerged - I imagine comprised primarily of fellow Mac lovers - who are pleading the case of Ciarelli and circulating petitions. One petition already has 5,028 signatures. Nothing squelches customer loyalty and enthusiasm like a David and Goliath story. To make matters worse, Steve Jobes is on the attack again, attempting to squash the release of Jeffery Young's unauthorized biography. PR nightmare, redux.

It's tricky business harnessing the power of your most loyal customer evangelists, while retaining control over brand messaging and staying ahead of a news cycle increasingly tied to citizen journalists and participatory media. There are no simple answers, but I would recommend establishing the rules of engagement early on and have a protocol in place to respond to corporate fan bloggers when the information they report crosses the line.

1. Use tools like blogdigger.com, blogpulse.com, and technorati.com  to monitor blog-driven dialogue about your brand.
2. Reach out to corporate fans and bloggers early and often, involve them in pre-releases, previews and other VIP access.
3. Subscribe to their feeds and loop their discussions into the mix of off-line media monitoring your PR agency is already doing.
4. If a blogger publishes something that doesn't reflect accurate information or involves information attained through questionable means, respond publicaly and engage the blogger in a conversation. Don't run to your legal department and start drafting letters.

When done right, corporate fan sites and bloggers can be an incredible asset - the upside far outweighs any potential negatives. The key is to have a framework in place that involves bloggers in your mix of corporate communications. And make sure to allocate resources so you can be as responsive as possible.

UPDATE, May 5, '05: Over at BrandShift, Jennifer Rice hits the nail on the head:

"A company's ability and willingness to flex in the grassroots economy, rather than rigidly trying to maintain a fixed brand, will be the one that endures. Yes, there will be bloggers writing about your company. There will be creative souls who decide to make their own commercials for your company. Customers will break your rules and create their own. You will wring your hands in anguish because what's happening isn't consistent with your brand strategy. You can either ignore them, sue them... or flex. Like it or not, they're part of your brand ecology."