My absence definitely was felt through the week and I apologize for that. The recent week from Wednesday to Sunday I’ve been camping at Midvalley Megamall from 10am to 10pm onwards. I was helping out with the Visit Malaysia Cyber Campaign event. So let’s try to get back on track here.
After this morning’s business network meeting, I spoke with a couple of other business professionals regarding one of their friend’s website project. She told me how her friend was using a Blogger account to post only event updates for their club.
This, in matter of personal opinion is a waste because today the blogs are shifting the political powers and threatening the reputations of brands like Adidas, Nike and etc. Friends, you need to realize the power of blogging especially if it’s for your company.
Starting a blog today isn’t difficult but as usual planning and executing the strategy for the blog is challenging. Coming back to my friend’s blog (who runs a club), they’ve made one of the biggest mistakes – under estimating the expectation and power of corporate blogging.
Their loyal customers may be blogging for them but the club will receive extensive exposure if the director or manager started blogging about the recent activities ran at the club. Customers and potentials would not only realize how cool the boss is but the activities being conducted at the club. Currently, the boss doesn’t realize how effective the blog can be used as a marketing tool.
This doesn’t only apply to clubs but other corporates as well. By running a corporate blog, it helps build a relationship with you and your audience. It allows you to be their ‘friend’ and not the director of the company sitting behind the desk ordering people around. Your customers will be able to perceive you as a person who’s friendly and knowledgeable.
Corporate blogging will help your company build ties or tighten loose ends. Not to mention it does help your company in the search engines as well. However, the biggest issue to address on running a corporate blog is; who’s going to update it?
This issue has been now addressed by services like Pay Per Post or bloggers who’re hired to write entries for some corporate blogs. Blogging has opened up job opportunities for many and sources have expanded vastly.
Malaysia companies should start realizing the power of corporate blogging. They need to start taking advantage of this channel before everyone in Malaysia hops onto the bandwagon.
What are the good local corporate blogs you’ve read?
[tags]Blogging, Corporate blogging, Business network, Visit Malaysia Cyber Campaign[/tags]
Here’s a few reasons why we won’t see any serious blogging in corporate Malaysia anytime soon.
First, many local companies score poorly in customer satisfaction. Many don’t even bother to measure it. The lower the company ranks in customer satisfaction, the more afraid the CEO will be to have a blog because he will not be able to manage a war zone. And as you know, when ito comes to complaining, Malayians can be number 1.
Secondly, most CEOs are so far removed from operations that they’re not going to be able to give an intelligent answer to a question. Try asking a telco CEO why a network is slow in a certain area and watch them panic and fudge an answer.
Thirdly, most local CEOs will say this is PR and marketing’s job. Many MDs will say the customer is number 1 but they will spend all their time hiding as far away from the frontlines as possible where the customer is. Their excuse: too busy lah or that’s not my job.
Sorry but I am just being realistic. Some CEOs will engage customers directly but most of them will laugh off the idea.
Once again Bryan, I can’t thank you enough for the insight from a real web user (their customer).
And how true it is, CEOs play golf and sit behind a desk overseeing operations but rarely get down and dirty with their team.
Relating to that, I can see why the Web isn’t growing at an exponential rate in Malaysia. It’s due to ignorance and arrogance.
Hi Danny,
I think the scenario is changing because web users are getting more sophisticated. What the industry needs is one success story and before you know it you’ll see a hundred copycats. That’s how Asians work I guess.
In my opinion there are many issues behind why local companies have lame web strategies. Sometimes it not the CEO but the fact that the model cannot support end-to-end fulfillment – due to cost or logistics. Sometimes it has to do with legislation. Will companies entertain product returns for example. Or how about rules regarding false online advertising, fraud, etc. Sometimes the customer’s psychographic limitations puts really weird pressures on web design.
What I’m saying is that for me, there are many factors that go into designing an effective web model. I won’t say it can’t be done in Malaysia because it most certainly can but it requires an open mind which, I’m afraid, is in very short supply in companies today. Like I said, once there is a successful model these minds will most probably open up.
Sophisticated, no. Simplified, yes.
The principles of 37Signals has taught many that less is more and it’s proven easily. It’s just that websites used to be complicated because it was jargon. But now thanks to the principles of simplicity, users don’t experience sophistication anymore. :)
Of course, that’s limited to the culture of our country. Lol.