Handle Blogs With Care

Along with viral ads, a corporate blog can be an innovative, informal and informative way to learn from and share with your current and potential customers.

At Mediapost, David Berkowitz details how Dell has learned about corporate communications from its blog. He's on target when he talks about the need for allowing come criticism as the price you pay for critical feedback. If you want to just hear good things about your products, call your PR Firm.

Another important point Berkowitz mentions in passing is the importance of bloggers to companies. Just as a mention in a major newspaper can help or hinder a company's messaging, so can the rants of esteemed bloggers influence potential customers, and companies are noticing. Instead of the clipping services that used to collect printed copies of company mentions, today's dynamic web requires continually monitoring news aggregators, RSS feeds, and blog search engines to see just who is talking about you.

I've been contacted many times by companies mentioned on this and other blogs, and on several occasions the companies have responded to comments on the site to clarify or refute claims made in posts. Blogs are becoming even more important the PR wire services in reaching the intended audience, so invest in your resources appropriately.