rear view mirror backchannel story
Objects in Mirror are Closer than they Appear
Last summer there erupted a little blamestorm in the blogosphere around soliciting visits and (if so moved) comments for a client’s blog. To me, it illustrates the reality of the blogosphere for business in one succinct post.
The why’s of the drama:
- Debbie Weil is a well-known, high-profile blogger and author of The Corporate Blogging Book.
- Bloggers love to fell the mighty.
- Bloggers love to link to controversy and align their blog with high-profile bloggers, hoping to boost their rankings.
- The story involved a “backchannel” (in this case, a personal, private email) solicitation for a client.
- Debbie invited trusted colleagues and friends to see a client’s blog and comment if they were so moved - and she simply included too many people.
- One of them posted the personal email on his blog in its entirety without her permission - violating one ethical standard while calling her out for violating another.
- The story was about a corporate blog called alliConnect - alli is new weight loss drug from GSK.
- Bloggers love to fell the mighty….
- Bloggers love to pick on large corporations - since so few large businesses blog, every one of them is held under the collective microscope for exhaustive analysis.
The good news? GSK came away with additional awareness of the alliConnect blog. Debbie’s email was the focus of any negative attention, and she’s experienced enough to handle it with aplomb.
The moral of the story?
As is mirrored in real life, support is closer than it might appear. Especially when you are transparent, authentic, and are smart enough to build relationships before you need them.
BTW - Debbie’s book is a highly entertaining and engaging read. I recommend it without reservation to those considering blogging for business.
