report compiles good blogging advice for businesses and nonprofits; as always, beware of absolute truths

A University of Massachusetts marketing professor has published an interesting report based on a survey of bloggers.  "Behind the Scenes in the Blogosphere: Advice from Established Bloggers" contains useful information, and I recommend it if your nonprofit has a blog or is considering one.

However, in terms of using the report to drive decisions about business or nonprofit blogging, keep the second half of the study's title in mind: the ideas in this paper are based on the "self-reports" and opinions of bloggers who responded to an open call in May 2006 to participate.  The study did not measure the opinions of the blogs' readers, readers' use of the blogs, or the effect of business blogs on customer or stakeholder behavior.

Also consider that not all 74 of the survey respondents were truly "business bloggers," i.e., bloggers blogging as an employee of a company or organization.  As the author notes, 27% of them were "independent bloggers" such as Marketing Monger.

Therefore, I take the assertions in the report with a grain of salt.  I do agree that these "blogosphere truths," as author Dr. Nora Ganim Barnes calls them, are generally true:

1. Blogs take time and commitment.
2. Blogs must be part of a plan.
3. A blog is a conversation.
4. Transparency, authenticity, and focus are good. Bland is bad.

However, there are some assertions in the report that have been contradicted recently by other established bloggers:

-- "A good blog is one where posts are fresh and new posts are frequent."
-- "One respondent says, 'Don’t start a blog unless you have people in your organization to post to it daily in an open, friendly, and excited tone.' "
While regular posts are essential, the MarketingProfs blog recently argued that frequent posts may not be desirable.  Now that readers can elect to automatically receive new blog posts via email and RSS (news feeds), the promise of a new post daily is not necessary to lure readers, and the volume of daily posts can overwhelm readers and bloggers both.

-- "Participation is essential in the blogosphere. One respondent says... 'A blog is a conversation. Don’t open the line unless you’re ready to really talk.' ”
-- "It is important not to be afraid of giving up the mono-directed control that usually characterizes an organization."
While I believe that allowing for comments is beneficial for most business bloggers, Steve Rubel recently discussed why two popular independent bloggers don't accept comments.  More important, in my opinion, is that the content and tone of the blog are conversational, even if it is a one-way communication.

-- "Blogs will make or break your business."
-- "Blogs are not a fad. They are no longer even an option. Those businesses that choose to remain outside this online conversation, will be sidelined. Eventually they will become extinct."
While I believe that most businesses and nonprofits could benefit from some kind of blog, no less than Nicholas Carr, a former executive editor of the Harvard Business Review, argues the contrary, and offers some cautionary advice on corporate blogging: In advising businesses not to blog (or at least to be careful in doing so), he says, "And don't buy that nonsense about needing to have 'conversations' with the marketplace. That's an ideology, not a strategy."

I would turn Carr's statement around to say that blogs as conversations are a strategy, not an ideology.  For most organizations, blogs are extremely effective ways to build relationships with customers and stakeholders (in a nonprofit's case -- donors, volunteers, clients, and members), and I highly recommend them.  However, as I argued in my earlier post, "a blog can be like a business lunch," there are no absolute truths about business blogging.

Thanks to Dr. Barnes for the study and to the smart and succinct Steve Rubel for the tip.

Technorati tags: net2 nptech blogging nonprofit blogosphere business corporate marketing research study reference Web2.0 business_blog blogs bloggers

Comments

[Nora Ganim Barnes]

You make many good points. I was not sure, given all that has been written by consultants and bloggers themselves, what things of value needed to be studied. You have cited several areas that I think need attention. "The effect of business blogs on customer or stakeholder behavior" is really a key issue for a business. Thanks for the insightful comments and suggestions for future research.

[celeste w @studio 501c]

Thanks, Dr. Barnes, for your comments. Many people are very pleased that academics are studying blogging. I've seen a few comments on the Web suggesting that you set up a blog. It seems that it would be quite fitting. We'd love to have you in the blogosphere!

If you have any questions on using Typepad to blog (or on anything else, e.g., any of the features I've implemented on this blog), let me know.

[Jillaine Smith]

Celeste, great review of Barnes' study. Thanks for the tip on "be aware of absolute truths."
The study opens with a set of "absolute truths" without pointing to any research that backs up businesses going out of business if they don't set up a blog.

As I've commented elsewhere, I'd like to see more work done to understand the value proposition of blogging (and tagging, etc.) that makes a strong enough case to nonprofits (and the funders who fund them) to invest in blogging as a strategic communications choice.

-- Jillaine

[celeste w@studio 501c]

Thanks for dropping by, Jilliane. I agree that evidence-based benefits would be useful, and I think we'll start to see more of that thanks to groups like Netsquared.

Nonetheless, I believe that most nonprofits with a web presence would benefit from the kind of "business-lunch blog" I describe in another post. I think that offering a personal, but professional, connection to the goings-on of the nonprofit would help enhance almost any nonprofit's communications efforts.