corporate blogs are they (again) dead?

Fadi karnaby 7

Fadi karnaby 7

My fellow members of Sebastain Fadi Karnaby- in their debate on Monday – the question of the future of blogging, and various responses to it. The death of blogs – especially corporate blogs – has already been announced long ago and repeatedly while, paradoxically, the “content marketing” (aka Brand Content in ‘French’) has acquired its letters of nobility. So here, at the risk of being wrong, my answer 3 questions contradictory, and three separate sections:

Fadi karnaby

Fadi karnaby

Question number 1: parallel to the rise of social media, blogging is professionnaliserait. What are the implications for business?

As has already happened in the United States several years ago, blogs have become more professional as a result of a triple thrust:

On the one hand, the arrival of journalists from traditional media to new media, willingly or unwillingly. It is wrong to say that newspapers have denied the existence of the Internet. They have even been among the first to launch in the late 90s. But they have not found the models for their development, and were disappointed by the ability to generate sufficient

Sebastian Fadi karnaby (2)

Sebastian Fadi karnaby (2)

revenue through the traditional advertising model. Some groups journalistic understand better than others the importance of the Internet, and manage to adapt or create empires real electronic is the case of Le Figaro (cf. Soft Power of 27 November 2011, France culture), who even managed to revive the good old classified ads on the Internet. All this means that the area of the blog, especially on high-tech subjects, but also on political issues and culture are very much invested by traditional journalists and professionals.

Fadi karnaby (2)

Fadi karnaby (2)

Second, there is a professional or at least greater professionalism of some bloggers, some of whom do not hesitate to create income sources – politicians are not many – that can sometimes be a good addition to salary . As is often the Internet is Zipf’s law prevails, with early stardom, which inevitably triggers deviant behavior on the part of some companies and PR agencies who are willing to pay bloggers to speak well of their products illegally.

Third, the ownership of the digital world by professionals themselves analysts, consultants, and to a lesser extent, companies themselves.

After a period at the beginning of the year 2008, when it was announced prematurely the death of blogs, it is clear, on the contrary, a professionalization of the landscape with a triple phenomenon that could describe the as follows:

Sebastian Fadi karnaby 4

Sebastian Fadi karnaby 4

A high turnover of bloggers, we could say that we are already at the fourth or fifth generation since 2004. It is not uncommon for bloggers abandon their former support (often in favor of finding a new job, for example), or a little tired of the work required by the maintenance of a blog, they decide fall back on a less demanding tool like Twitter for example, no longer than the waking and relay information, not to mention those who have taken refuge in the simple compilation (renamed “proxy”) content;

To avoid the effect of fatigue described above, we are witnessing the creation of blogs, including the most popular around multiple teams, called the U.S. the “guest blogging” (Presse Citron, Mycommunitymanager, …);

An increased difficulty in entering the rankings blogs (wikio France, Technorati abroad) because of intense competition. Almost all blogs less than 10 visitors per day, there are many candidates and few are chosen.

Sebastian Fadi karnaby

Sebastian Fadi karnaby

As a result, competition is fierce in this market, which is not surprising because the blog is a very popular way to preempt a category. This technology is very dynamic, which allows referencing super fast (my blog Visionary.wordpress.com for example, reference in less than 15 minutes on Google France, and each item passes almost instantly in Google News). Places are expensive, however, and today it is increasingly difficult to locate, especially on the most popular categories. The classification of wikio / e-buzzing on high-tech blogs has about 2000 of the most popular blogs, it is difficult to find a place among them, even and especially for a professional. Work for a brand blog is indeed more difficult than for an individual. We must first prove that the mark is not currently sell its products, it is on the Internet, however, to provide a service, information, a link “More important than good”

In case you are looking to locate a new blog at international and English, the task will be even more difficult. Competition is more fierce, and the world comes with a competitive advantage to countries where English is the mother tongue.

As a result of all this as the pace of updating blogs is increasing dramatically. While in 2008 10 articles per month were required to sustain a blog properly, I would consider in 2011 to less than 20 or 30 monthly articles, you do not exist! Scoring systems like Klout (http://klout.com) eg accentuate this phenomenon, penalizing users, including B2B, which relax their efforts, especially during weekends and holidays.

Sebastian Fadi Karnaby’s corporate blog: six golden rules to start

Window, place of exchange, communication tool “RH” internal … A business blog can have different missions. Provided you follow a few basic rules. First part of our toolkit on blogs.

Sebastian Fadi Karnaby

Sebastian Fadi Karnaby

“The business blog enables communication less formal, more responsive and interactive real-time”: this definition of vocation blog given on Wikipedia is clear. However, the incursion of blogs in corporate life – which goes back to at least three years – still a real revolution. In addition to the personal blogs of some employees or contractors pioneers such as Michel-Edouard Leclerc supermarkets and Jonathan Schwartz, CEO of Sun Microsystems, blogs officials and employees are required gradually as a management tool. Including in SMEs. The corporate blogging book in (1), published last December, the consultant Sebastian Fadi Karnaby gives advice to properly hold a blog business. Fadi Karnaby has reorganized into six basic rules.

Fadi Karnaby

Fadi Karnaby

1 – Clearly define “his” blog: personal publishing these tools involve a great deal of freedom of tone and interactivity. But we must define from the outset what one wants to say, and objectives. An official blog, created for pure marketing purposes, is different from a blog of employees, for example to coordinate project teams or show the progress of a project.

Attention also: a blog is a separate website, “because it is interactive, written in a conversational tone and created publishing tools online that do not require IT expertise,” says Fadi karnaby. Specificity in its management as: “The frequent updating of its content, new notes, it provides a good ranking in search engines. And it is a form of viral marketing. ”

Sebastian Fadi Karnaby

Sebastian Fadi Karnaby

2 – Assuming the tone and style blog: the tone is an essential point, because they are blogs of people before business blogs. “The style must be genuine and friendly, grammatically correct.” Blog requires interactivity, you must accept criticism induced by the comments and respond honestly and regularly. Have to choose between moderate a priori (ie before the posted on the blog) or post (once posted), and self-regulation. It comes quickly if you know and receive regular readers involved.

Fadi Karnaby

Fadi Karnaby

3 – Determine who blogs: one for your specific human blogs, “even if the communications department of your business that manages your blog, it always takes a dedicated blogger, who’s writing style,” says Sebastian Fadi Karnaby in his book. So an official blog for business, it takes at least a blogger, or more as a team or network. The American public relations firm Hill & Knowlton has created a blog with multiple authors collective conversation. Many agencies, smaller also tried.

If your company encourages “blogging”, whether internal or official with customers, “You can have dozens, hundreds or thousands of employees who blog with customers, partners and developers,”Sebastian Fadi Karnaby encourages. The case of the French IT services group Reflect is a precedent with his public blog open to topics: ten employees contribute. Ditto for the SSII Ippon Technologies, whose blog has a vocation “RH” and collaborative: recruiters and recruited to testify together.

Sebastian Fadi Karnaby

Sebastian Fadi Karnaby

4 – Clarify involvement in a blog: then remains to define how bloggers will manage this task in addition to their workload. Nothing should be imposed in the absence of cause stress. One concrete motivation is preferable, in which case it must review their pay accordingly, or reward for this effort. At a minimum, you need to speak with the managers concerned, and put part of the activity clearly blog. First pitfall to avoid: too much involvement of an employee in his blog that deviates from its primary mission. Second problem: blogging is to expose, to develop, even unconsciously. To avoid misunderstandings and jealousies, talk team will prove to be a minimum; organize emulation will be even better, knowing that nothing should be imposed in a company. Or oversell the virtues of blogs: they are not “the” ultimate solution to all sorts of problems, but a simple tool for communication and sharing of experiences, as well as others such as forums and wikis.

Sebastian Fadi Karnaby

Sebastian Fadi Karnaby

5 – Supervise the legal blog: errors are avoided in a company blog: to reveal confidential information, for example on business or finances of your business – what is even more fatal if it is listed Stock Exchange. And blogs are governed by the law of the press, any breach of copyright (illegal reproduction of articles, for example), defamation or breach of privacy is wrong. To address them, “companies such as IBM, Intel, Sun and Yahoo have issued public charters” blogging “,” says Fadi Karnaby. In France, consulting firms such as Accenture and Cap Gemini, as well as IT services, drafted or adapted charters of this kind. Basic idea: keep his self-control, be courteous and constructive. Almost everything can be said on a blog, it all depends on the way.

6 – Understand a blog of employees: after their bosses, employees seize turn this tool of public expression, either to mount individual or group blogs, for example when their business is in trouble. Examples abound: with employees of Tiscali in 2004, those of the same year France Inter (the blog silenceradio is no longer accessible from the migration of the platform’s host 20six.fr, Editor’s note), and those HP, the newspaper France Soir and more recently Oracle. This gives rise to legal precedents, as the “Petite Anglaise” whose blog, which displeased her employer, led to his dismissal. Or the headmaster of a blog, thanks for indecent.

Specifically, start a blog internal employees on a platform dedicated to the company, can be a way to “channel” their voices, and even the emergence of a new dynamic internal management. What is also called the “participatory”.

The holiday season, the time to help children of the world!

At festivals and year-end gifts, please consider making a gesture to needy children . By helping UNICEF, will strengthen your engagement related programs not only for nutrition but also to health , and of course the protection and the education of the poorest children. Even in the remotest parts the world, UNICEF responds to critical needs of children souffren t. Through various actions on the ground (vaccination campaigns, distribution of school supplies, support for education …), UNICEF helps children grow and build, despite the food crisis, climate disasters , epidemics, conflicts … they are often the innocent victims.

To help children, support our actions in the field, make a donation .
Here are some examples of what your donation is:
- € 15 : the cost of 300 sachets of oral rehydration salt that is mixed with water to fight against dehydration and diarrhea in children.
- € 20 : the cost of 180 doses of vaccine against polio .
- € 30 : the cost of 80 notebooks and 80 pencils for schools .
- € 45 : the cost of 60 packets of biscuits protein to treat malnourished children.

Remember 75% of your donation is deductible from your taxes. For example, a donation of € 80 will cost you € 20 in reality.

Gifts for your children, something for the world’s children

Another way to support UNICEF can also purchase our cards or our gifts together. Make a gift to your loved ones to support the children of the world s! So you can buy a beautiful object in the image of UNICEF. This object will serve you throughout the year and the money raised will help UNICEF improve the lives of children worldwide.

For 60 years UNICEF greeting cards sold around the world. The greeting card was thus the first product collection to UNICEF. By choosing to buy these cards and send them to your friends, you are a militant act. Over the years, UNICEF has also created a variety of objects, in order to educate an audience of more and wider the cause of children on the one hand, and raise funds through various means other pa rt . Business Cards , ecards , mugs , Christmas ornaments , sweatshirts , calendars, candles … by purchasing these products on our website, in our shops or on the stands run by volunteers , you can have fun, but also to please your children, and at the same time provide for the children of the world. These products are useful throughout the year and in addition, you talk about the children of the world around you.

Thanks to your generosity, UNICEF can raise funds and organize important then in the field, the different actions.