Friday, November 18, 2005
It's a Matter of Trust...
In Ch. 6 of "We the Media", Dan Gillmor says blogging "is a question of trust." He describes the characteristics of blogs, including
+voice
+focus
+real reporting
+good writing
+credibility by listening to critics
In analyzing Sun's blogs by each of these characteristics, they are all written by individuals, allowing each person's voice to come through. If you read through any of these blogs, you will notice that each person's personality comes through. I've been reading Dave's blog for awhile,which is a good example of all of these characteristics. Dave has a unique voice when he writes, as the author of the blog software, so his focus is on sharing his knowledge, yet being open to questions and critiques from others. He reports and writes well enough that he is now putting his knowledge into a book, "RSS and Atom in Action." I have started (trying) to read other blogs (some are very technical) and luckily for me found one that is slightly less technical that I can enjoy, MaryMaryQuiteContrary. She lets you know right up front she is quite unapologetically a marketing vehicle. That is transparency for you.
In Ch. 7 Gillmor calls blogs "a tool that fosters trust by giving up control." The Cluetrain Manifesto would agree with this premise when it talks about the fact that businesses have to stop controlling information through marketing and PR departments and start engaging in the conversations that are already occurring about them as a way to become more trusted by the market.
Trust is a big research and professional interest of mine. I have been studying how to build and maintain trust for over 10 years, so this aspect of blogging is what convinces me that companies don't really have a choice about whether to participate in blogging, especially if they are concerned with consumers' perceptions of their trustworthiness.
One of the biggest ways to build trust with others is by listening, not just talking. Gillmor reinforces this in Ch. 4 when he supports blogging as a way to be "learning by listening." This is so contrary to natural corporate communications to think about actually listening to what your customers think of your product and/or service. Gillmor sees this as a PR opportunity, not a threat. What they teach you in B-Schools, however, is the 4Ps: price, product, place and promotion--telling people about your company in creative ways--listening is not part of the equation. There is a newer approach (created by UNC's own Bob Lauterborn and his co-authors Schultz & Tannenbaum) called the 4Cs Marketing model:
• Not Product: Customer wants and needs
• Not price: cost to satisfy those needs
• Not Place: convenience to buy
• Not promotion: communication with the customer
This approach actually puts the customer at the center of everything that is done to consider the best way to communicate and take care of the customer. This model is only effective by listening to the customer.
+voice
+focus
+real reporting
+good writing
+credibility by listening to critics
In analyzing Sun's blogs by each of these characteristics, they are all written by individuals, allowing each person's voice to come through. If you read through any of these blogs, you will notice that each person's personality comes through. I've been reading Dave's blog for awhile,which is a good example of all of these characteristics. Dave has a unique voice when he writes, as the author of the blog software, so his focus is on sharing his knowledge, yet being open to questions and critiques from others. He reports and writes well enough that he is now putting his knowledge into a book, "RSS and Atom in Action." I have started (trying) to read other blogs (some are very technical) and luckily for me found one that is slightly less technical that I can enjoy, MaryMaryQuiteContrary. She lets you know right up front she is quite unapologetically a marketing vehicle. That is transparency for you.
In Ch. 7 Gillmor calls blogs "a tool that fosters trust by giving up control." The Cluetrain Manifesto would agree with this premise when it talks about the fact that businesses have to stop controlling information through marketing and PR departments and start engaging in the conversations that are already occurring about them as a way to become more trusted by the market.
Trust is a big research and professional interest of mine. I have been studying how to build and maintain trust for over 10 years, so this aspect of blogging is what convinces me that companies don't really have a choice about whether to participate in blogging, especially if they are concerned with consumers' perceptions of their trustworthiness.
One of the biggest ways to build trust with others is by listening, not just talking. Gillmor reinforces this in Ch. 4 when he supports blogging as a way to be "learning by listening." This is so contrary to natural corporate communications to think about actually listening to what your customers think of your product and/or service. Gillmor sees this as a PR opportunity, not a threat. What they teach you in B-Schools, however, is the 4Ps: price, product, place and promotion--telling people about your company in creative ways--listening is not part of the equation. There is a newer approach (created by UNC's own Bob Lauterborn and his co-authors Schultz & Tannenbaum) called the 4Cs Marketing model:
• Not Product: Customer wants and needs
• Not price: cost to satisfy those needs
• Not Place: convenience to buy
• Not promotion: communication with the customer
This approach actually puts the customer at the center of everything that is done to consider the best way to communicate and take care of the customer. This model is only effective by listening to the customer.
# posted by Karen Mishra @ 2:57 PM 
