Blogging as a Marketing Tool

Companies are starting to realize exactly how powerful blogs can be, especailly as marketing tools.  According to Geoff Livingston, a PR strategist and social media expert, “It’s a phenomenal promotion vehicle for a company, or a great crisis tool or a great customer service tool.”  Microsoft is using a blog for Windows 7 with the hopes of building an overall better product that satisifes customer needs and wants.  In fact, there are a lot of fortune 500 companies that are using blogs to engage with and interact with their users.  Some of the fortune 500 companies with blogs include:

• Sun Microsystems
• GM
• Cisco
• Raytheon
• Oracle
• Starbucks
• IBM
• FedEx
• and many others

An article by the Washington Post quotes Bill Marriott as saying: “that’s the importance of public relations, of advertising, of everything we do and this [blog] is just another channel.”  A blog also shows the personal side of a company leader.  People like and appreciate the human side of corporate America.  It’s not always about business and when a company leader opens up a bit, readers respect that.

A blog is indeed a powerful medium with many benefits such as:

• allowing readers or prospective employees get a sense of the corporate culture or work environment
• creating an online presence that builds brand equity and awareness
• allowing readers to post feedback directly on issues or features that they may or may not like
• shows the personal side of a company or a company leader
• let’s companies and individuals build quality relationships with loyal readers or users
• allows companies or individuals to make important news or event announcements

These are just a few of the many ways that companies can use a blog as a valuable marketing and relationship building tool.

How are you using your blog?  How is your company using it’s blog?

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