Blogging
Blogging
July 2005
Lead Contributors
Anthony Rhind
Media Contacts Global
Chief Strategy Officer
anthony.rhind@mediacontacts.com
Matt Bamford
Media Contacts UK
Campaign Manager
matt.bamford@mediacontacts.com
Jill Griffin
Media Contacts US
SVP, Group Account Director
jill.griffin@mediacontacts.com
If you want to receive the MC Insight periodically, please subscribe to
www.mediacontacts.com.br/mcspeaks/signin
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
2
Contents
1. Introduction
4
2. What are blogs?
6
3. The blog as a marketing tool
10
3.1 Monitor your brand
11
3.2 Support an existing blogger/let an employee blog
12
3.3 Use blogs to deliver targeted messages
14
3.4 Develop a fully sanctioned blog to promote
the company and its products
16
4. Measurement
19
5. The blog police...
20
6. Final thoughts
21
7. Appendix
22
Selected (we)blog sites
22
Timeline of Blogs
22
24
8. Glossary of terms
25
9. Contact us
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
3
1. Introduction
Whenever anybody looks to the future, it appears more complex than the “today” of
the day. However, “today” not only does the future look incredibly complex, it also
seems to be accelerating towards us ever more quickly.
From a media and advertising standpoint, Media Contacts feels there are three
drivers that need to be highlighted when planning for the future from tomorrow:
An information revolution sparked by the Internet
A shift in consumer expectations that manifests as wanting
everything more quickly
The adoption of technology by the general population.
All have been significant in the rapid development of the blogging phenomenon.
The Internet heralded a revolution by empowering the individual to seek out
information on a self-regulated basis. Now that we are familiar with the search
engine, it is almost impossible to believe the time it took “pre-Internet” to find
information. The Internet is central to our working lives and our leisure time, both
helping us research leisure activities and, indeed, being the leisure activity.
1
The Internet already accounts for 20% of media time in online homes . The
European average penetration now exceeds 50%, with advanced markets in North
2
America and Northern Europe commonly between 60% and 70% . The time now
spent using the Internet has been ”bought” from other media. TV has been the
biggest loser, especially among the most difficult to reach demographics of young,
up-market and male. However Internet time is also eating into traditional social
activities; 15% of Europeans claim to spend less time outside because of Internet
3
use, and 13% claim to spend less time with family and friends .
At the same time, consumer expectations have become much greater, and patience
has diminished. Whether your business is consumer- or business-focused, this trend
will have directly affected how your company's service offering has developed over
the last ten years. One of the clearest manifestations of this trend has been that
customers expect everything to happen more quickly; short lines in shops, phones
answered in three rings and immediate delivery (ideally without extra charge!).
The third factor, the mass adoption of technology, has certainly been driven by the
extent to which cell phones, the Internet and email pervade early 21st century life.
There is a clear acceleration effect on consumers' digital behavior once they mature
as web users; this is driving already broad trends like network gaming, wireless
devices and on-demand TV adoption plus interactive TV usage.
1 - EIAA European Media Consumption Study II. Pan-European Results [October 04] Conducted by Millward Brown
2 - Jupiter, Data Essentials
3 - EIAA European Media Consumption Study II. Pan-European Results. [October 04] Conducted by Millward Brown
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
4
Introduction
Without this widespread social comfort with technology, the newest communication
trends enabled by technology, such as blogging, podcasting and blue-jacking would
never have extended beyond the technology evangelists. To understand why
podcasting, blue-jacking and especially blogging have been adopted broadly, we need
to consider the impact of the Internet information revolution, the heightened consumer
expectations and the mass adoption of technology on media.
The current consumer demand for “quicker” is nowhere more evident than in the media
space. People won't wait until the next day for their news to be supplied by a
newspaper. The Internet has taught people that information is available immediately.
The mass adoption of technology means they are comfortable using a broad variety of
digital sources to access information, regardless of location.
It is Media Contacts' view that the use of wireless devices to access data will grow
incredibly in the next couple of years. The current penetration of cell phone networks
and prevalence of wireless hotspots offer fairly extensive connectivity; this will grow
further, particularly as underground transport systems and airplanes roll-out full
wireless access. The development of cellular/mobile phones, pushed by technology
“progress” and network operators seeking to prompt data usage, will mean an ever-
growing majority will have wireless Internet access permanently in hand. We feel
people will embrace the capability as it becomes more flexible, both for work and
leisure purposes. The adoption speed of GPRS will particularly influence usage levels.
The news media has responded by developing multiple platform distribution with a
consistent “brand” approach to the news content. However, the incredible choice of
information, generally with no access cost linked to individual sources (merely
platforms), has encouraged people to develop a repertoire of preferred information
sources. Source selection is dictated by mood and will vary accordingly.
Increasingly the mix will include both official sources, such as the BBC (via TV, PC or
wireless device), and an alternative set of unofficial sources, such as community areas
and blogs. Part of the appeal of blogs is certainly the fact that the information has not
been filtered by an official source; a mistrust of “official” news sources is becoming an
increasingly visible social trend in many countries post-Millennium. However, blogs
don't simply appeal because of being unofficial. They are now often the quickest
means of hearing breaking news, as blogs often break news ahead of the official news
channels.
Blogs have a social momentum and their usage is enabled by technological comfort.
They need to be monitored today both as a gauge of social issues and, specifically,
from a marketer's perspective, for the insight into consumer attitudes about brands.
Media Contacts feels that blogs can be employed for proactive marketing purposes as
well as insight into consumer behavior. This MC Insight shares our conclusions and
makes recommendations about a marketing approach to blogs.
Marketers ignore blogs at their peril; the burgeoning importance they have now is
nothing compared to what they will have as the current teenage generations mature. It
is estimated that approximately 80% of blogs are run by people under 20 years old.
This is already a powerful consumer constituency, but it will, of course, become more
powerful in the future. For this group, blogs will be established as a primary information
and communication resource. Such is our belief in the power of blogs, we have
established a team within Media Contacts to monitor the visibility of our clients within
the blog environment.
Please contact your local Media Contacts office or Anthony Rhind to discuss
employing Media Contacts to manage this service for your company
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
5
2. What are blogs?
“blog: n; an online diary; a personal chronological log of thoughts published on
a Web page; also called Weblog, Web log. Typically updated daily, blogs often
reflect the personality of the author.” www.dictionary.com
One of the great influences of the Internet is how it has facilitated a shift in the
control of information from the center (media companies) to the “fringe”,
individuals or community groups.
The Internet allows the mass sharing of personal insights and thoughts with
anyone regardless of geographic location. However, it is the rapidly developing
weblogging software, often free, that enables the millions of voices to be linked
and accessed easily worldwide.
Blogs are a simple way for people to create a journal of ideas and opinions in a
format for any web user. While individual consumers at times view them as
personal diaries, many companies use them as a feature in internal
communications or on the company's intranet. Creating a blog is similar to an
individual developing his or her own webpage. The main difference is that a
blog is updated hourly or daily with new content, and the readers of blogs can
post comments and receive feedback. Through the sheer word-of-mouth
(WOM) acceleration of the web, a single Internet post can reach thousands in
seconds.
Blogging enables the “writer” to become a reference source of information,
something that had previously only been available to the journalists, writers, or
similar “appointed” experts. A variety of inexpensive and free blogging tools are
available on the web, which make it easy for anyone to set up a site and create
new material daily or hourly. Adding content chronologically, managing and
linking to other sites and syndicating and distributing content all can be
achieved through simple blog tools. No html coding or page formatting is
required; if you have something to say, this is your soapbox to the world.
Blogging is not a new phenomenon. The term was coined in 1997 by Jorn
Barger (see Appendix: Timelines of Blogs), but they really have only started
entering the mainstream in the last couple of years.
The beginning of the Iraq conflict in 2003 provided a significant catalyst.
Journalists adopted blog communication early, using blogs as a means of
entertaining and keeping in touch with family, friends and peers. However, the
momentous events in Iraq lent major significance to the contents of the
journalist blogs coming out of Iraq. The fact that the official media, under great
pressure from the U.S. and UK governments, often reported cautiously meant
that blogs became a major focus of dialogue.
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
6
What are blogs?
In the U.S., the 2004 Presidential Elections carried the momentum of blogs,
blogging and bloggers even further. They were a means for activists to share
opinion and reaction and to shape mass response. They also provided a key
diagnostic tool for the politicians. Jill Griffin, SVP Media Contacts U.S., was
prominent in the communications planning for the Kerry camp and ensured this
new channel was carefully monitored and, where appropriate, used for
communication purposes.
In the UK, a different type of “personality sell” brought blogging to popular
attention. A blog called the “Belle De Jour diaries” (http://belledejour-
uk.blogspot.com/), purporting to be the diary of a London call girl, was seized
upon by a number of UK national newspapers. It so caught the popular
imagination that The Guardian followed the story for over a month in both print
and electronic format: (http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,1177196,00.html).
Subsequently the blog became a book (fictional status unclear), and one can
expect a film in the near future!
4
Even though the number of visitors to specific blog sites is still small, Forrester
suggests that 5% of the U.S. online population reads blogs; the defined nature
of the audience and their inclination to share their opinions makes the blogging
population very attractive to marketers.
Blogs are very much a viral concept, organically developing through postings
and syndication feeds (something we will discuss later). As illustrated by the
diagram below, viral marketing relies on the passing on of information that the
user feels is either interesting, relevant or both. The initial communication is
sent out with “valuable information” which the primary recipient then refers on to
interested contacts. These contacts then forward this message on, or not, as is
often the case. Again, the main difference in blogging is that there is constant
interaction between the blogger and the reader.
Viral Ad
Information
Value
Copy tag line
Copy and Send
Copy
Copy
The Viral Process: Web Marketing Dictionary, Lawrence Harte
4 - Blogging Bubble or Big Deal - Forrester November, 2005
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
7
What are blogs?
In order for a viral effort to work, the information needs to generate enough of
an interest to become viral. However, the blog phenomena takes viral
communication one step further, not only by motivating users to spread the
information through links on their own blog pages, but also to interact and
respond. See diagram of blogging below.
Blogger A reads and
Readers of blog A read
Blogger Post
respond, and post
comments and respond,
Journal Entry
links on own site
but read other blogs
Blog A
Blog A
Blog A
Initial
Blog
Blog B
Blog A
Blog C
Blog A
Blog A
A well-written, informative blog can provide a huge interaction point for a large
number of people. This is where blogs then become of use to marketers and
their companies. Clearly, the key is to understand how to harness this
interaction and use it to benefit a brand.
Monitoring blogs is the first step towards understanding how this channel can
affect a brand. It will also tell a marketer as much about what not to do as it will
indicate how to stimulate customer and prospect interaction. Media Contacts
believes that every company should monitor blog mentions and develop policy
for how to respond to negative posts, as a matter of course. In addition to
monitoring blogs, there are ways that advertisers can approach blogging as a
communication channel, which we will discuss in the remainder of this MC
Insight.
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
8
What are blogs?
Example1: The power of blogs
One prime example of the power of blogs is the recent firing of a CNN news executive.
The man from CNN, Eason Jordan, had stated that he knew about circumstances
surrounding the deaths of 12 journalists killed by U.S. soldiers in Iraq. A “blogger” who
was working for another newspaper questioned this, and Jordan retracted his
statement. However, the whole conversation was posted on the blog for the World
Economic Forum. The viral effect was massive and shocking; mainstream media
(MSN) picked up the story, which led, it is believed, to a push from CNN to get Jordan
to resign.
Example #2: Kryptonite
locks recently got quite embarrassed when it was shown online how an ordinary Bic -
pen could be used to pick the lock in 30 seconds. Huge backlash from the public via
blogs brought the attention of the The New York Times, which wrote about the security
flaws, “Many cyclists erupted in disbelief and anger this week after videos were posted
on the Internet showing how a few seconds of work could pick many of the most
expensive and common U-shaped locks, including several models made by
Kryptonite, the most recognized brand.” Kryptonite has known since 1992, and until
now, they haven't been publicly shamed for the flaw. The powerful voice of the people
along with the speed of the bloggers' message could have put them out of business.
Luckily, Kryptonite is doing the right thing and replacing vulnerable locks.
Example #3: The infamous firings: Delta Airlines and Google.com
Diary of a Flight Attendant. http://queenofsky.journalspace.com/
A Delta Flight Attendant began blogging about her life, her job and other random
topics in addition to posting provocative photos of herself - while on the job. Delta fired
the employee for what was called "inappropriate comments." Similarly, Mark Jen wrote
information about his employer, Google, on his blog. Google executives fired Mark
because they believe he also made “inappropriate comments” about the company,
revealing insider and confidential information. This raises the white-hot topics of
freedom of speech and making sure that an employee's “personal time” is aligned with
what corporate insiders believe their brand represents.
http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,119715,00.asp
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
9
3. The blog as a marketing tool
Despite the eight-year existence of blogs, commercial exploitation was not
considered until the technology phenomena became a social one. Before her
work with the Kerry campaign, Jill Griffin worked with the Gawker network to
advertise ABSOLUT vodka across a collection of blogs in mid-2003. The
consumer response was overwhelmingly positive in terms of viral and WOM
benefits. From the marketer perspective, it was also an unqualified success, as
it was low-cost and proved an effective means of reaching relevant consumers
in a highly personal space.
Of course, companies who wish to enter this space need to keep in mind that
this is not a “one-size-fits-all marketing solution.” While blogs can be an
unmatched tool for speaking to customers, companies need to feel comfortable
with initiating a close, two-way customer conversation that develops at great
speed and, once initiated, will be controlled by the customer, not the marketer.
To date, there are four key levels of involvement that Media Contact would
recommend:
Monitor your brand
Support an existing blogger/let an employee blog
Use blogs to deliver targeted messages
Develop a fully sanctioned blog to promote the company and its
products
We will consider each in order.
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
10
The blog as a marketing tool
3.1 Monitor your brand
Blogs are a very effective way for companies to monitor the pulse of their
industries, and more importantly, to monitor the way consumers perceive the
company. Most companies have an interest in receiving this kind of feedback;
this alone should be enough reason to start a program to track blogs for
references to your company. Of course, not all companies receive equivalent
coverage: the world's favorite soft drink, Coca Cola, is referenced 65,090 in
blogs whereas Scotland's favorite soft drink, Irn Bru, is referenced only 1,214
times (Intelliseek BlogPulse).
Media Contacts can offer as a service to clients the monitoring of open blog
networks for references. However, there are a number of software options
available that allow companies to do this for themselves. Essentially a clipping
service for the 21st century, blog search engines such as www.Pubsub.com,
www.feedster.com and www.bloglines.com track across open blogs and send
alerts to the registered user for each requested topic and brand mention found.
This is known as Real Simple Syndication (RSS) and is, of course, also
extremely valuable to the bloggers as it enables them to scan the universe
automatically. In addition, Intelliseek's BlogPulse facilitates live searches about
specific topics or brands and pulls up blogs with an associated match.
Proactive “push” communication via blogs will not suit every company or
communication task but will offer feedback relevant to all.
Please contact your local Media Contacts office or Anthony Rhind to discuss
employing Media Contacts to manage this service for your company
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
11
The blog as a marketing tool
3.2 Support an existing blogger/let an employee blog
The initial level of push communication is to support an established blog or
create a “sanctioned” blog that is obviously not a corporate blog.
The easiest approach for a company is to find an established blog (or blogger)
that is felt to have a broadly positive attitude toward the company/brand (and
ideally significant reach!) and support the blog with information.
Involve the blogger in development plans (at an appropriate moment) and
inform him/her of corporate plans slightly ahead of the general release. The
blogger will therefore be better informed, and the blog will have accurate
information. It is critical not to try to direct the content beyond ensuring clear
understanding. If the blog is critical, it can provide an opportunity to respond,
not a reason to reject the blog. The speed and authority of the response is
critical to demonstrate that importance of the blogger and blog to the company,
even if the response does not change policy to address the blog criticism.
A perfect example of an independent product blog that also enjoys ongoing
dialogue with the brand company is Treonaut (www.treonaut.com). It is not a
surprise that this blog is an example of best practice, as it is run by Andrew
Carton, a blog evangelist and communications consultant.
Finding the candidate is simply a matter of looking! Who is talking about us?
What are they saying? Is it relevant? A basic search in obvious places (Google,
MSN, Yahoo) will show blogs, but the previously mentioned RSS software tools
are the most efficient way to find and evaluate spokespeople.
Not only are the RSS tools a means of tracking, they also allow information to
be seeded. Therefore, RSS tools offer a form of “advertising”; anybody
registered to receive subject alerts can be pushed authorized information.
Whether it is given credence depends on what is communicated, but in an era
of information overload, this is a vital way that many business professionals
keep on top of their particular industry.
RSS is essentially a retrospective search as it pulls content that has already
been published. Another software application called “persistent search” acts as
a prospective search, in that it is set up to alert of news when/should it be
published. This is another tool that bloggers will rely on; it is not suited to push
communication by a brand, but the existence of persistent search must be
acknowledged as part of a company strategy of tracking corporate visibility.
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
12
The blog as a marketing tool
To illustrate persistent search: in the March 29, 2005 issue of The Wall Street
Journal, journalist Scott Patterson wrote, “PubSub, a closely held news
aggregator that provides persistent-search services on its Web site, discovered
news of the massive earthquake that struck off the coast of Indonesia minutes
before the information appeared on the U.S. Geological Service's [USGS] own
Web site. The New York company subscribes to a raw data feed provided by
the agency, and its search engine picked up a warning distributed by the Alaska
Tsunami Warning Center in Palmer, Alaska, at 11:30 a.m. EST. That was about
five minutes before the U.S. Geological Service posted news of the quake on its
site, acknowledges the USGS. Persistent search also has interesting
implications for a company's insight on their competition, stock market trades
and potentially insider trading by noting the web “chatter.”
Either way, setting up one's own aggregator of both RSS and persistent search
alerts would enable companies to have access to all discussion about their
brand. Understanding this process, and, where possible, managing it, offers a
unique competitive advantage.
Once a company finds an external blogger or an employee they want to
support, it is essential to let that blogger continue to have his/her own voice. If it
is an employee who is blogging, it is important to set corporate “common sense”
guidelines, much like corporate email policies, to allow freedom-but not too
much!
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
13
The blog as a marketing tool
3.3 Use blogs to deliver targeted messages
With such deep, highly relevant content and a dedicated readership, there are
few places in any media where you can reach such a targeted audience in such
a highly relevant environment. Many blogging networks provide some exciting
and easy ways to manage media buys for text and image ads. Keep in mind
that the same things that make blogs great can also work against the marketer.
Content is uncontrollable, and it can proliferate instantly, so marketers must
have the ability and be prepared to withdraw the ads very quickly should
circumstances require it.
A few of the key players in the blog media sales arena are: Blogads, CrispAds,
Pheedo and Burst! Media. Because an advertiser is often entering a niche
community, it is rarely appropriate to simply use website assets or reformat
existing ad units used across the traditional websites the constitute the brand
digital media plan.
Blog ads need a human voice, something that enables people to
connect with it. Blog users do not expect to encounter a ”sales
representative,” so unless it is for charity/political donations, ads that talk
about discounts or incentives usually do not pull strong immediate
response.
Integration with content and alignment of advertising alongside a recent
news event are generally effective tactics that deliver high response. We
have put advertising alongside interest rate blog content for a number of
our financial category clients and seen good response. By the same
logic, Jill's Kerry campaign logically focused political fundraising
communication on politically charged blogs.
In our experience, a successful blog ad most often avoids the technical
richness associated with impact in traditional online placements. Often creative
that simply presents a headline, an image and some thought-provoking text
creates the right reaction (in blog space far more important than impact).
Below is a summary of our suggested creative considerations:
Avoid animated ad units (check with the blog and/or network to see what
its technology can handle, but many bloggers do not want their blog to
look like a 24-hour casino).
Use few words with large fonts. Think eight-word billboard rule!
Sarcasm, humor, snappish and hard-hitting tones tend to work well in
this space.
Photos and logos should be used on the top or the bottom, but not in the
middle.
Call-to-action should intrigue readers to want to learn more, not
“buy now.”
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
14
The blog as a marketing tool
An interesting idea we have discussed with a number of clients and creative
agencies is to enlist bloggers in the campaign development phase. One
successful example is Audi US. Blog media placements were bought for the
Audi campaign via Jalopnik.com with the goal of influencing auto opinion
formers. Instead of designing the creative ads internally, Audi asked
Jalopnik.com to develop the creative design. The publisher of Jalopnik.com,
Nick Denton, gathered all the positive comments that had been said on blogs
about Audi and ultimately put them into the creative execution that then ran on
his blog. Thus, enabled by the blogger/publisher, the consumers created the
creative. (Jarvis - iMedia Brand Summit)
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
15
The blog as a marketing tool
3.4 Develop a fully sanctioned blog to promote
the company and its products
Corporate-sponsored blogs are a tremendous opportunity for a company to
build loyalty by providing insight into the important issues and trends that affect
its customers. Corporations have been slow to get involved, mostly due to legal
repercussions. However, we suggest it is possible to use information that is
already public to start building a dialogue with interested consumers.
In a recent imediaconnection.com article, R Moskowitz highlights the real
reasons that companies should blog (See Appendix for longer version):
To put a human face on the company
i.People that are passionate about the brand
To obtain free market research
i.A forum to find out what people think of you (good or bad)
To offer a “buy-in” to company
i.People who comment are more likely to be satisfied with
Company/product
To leverage key motivators influence
i.Mobilizing opinion leaders to create awareness
If you are a little guy
i.Can increase brand recognition of smaller names
Personal interactivity sets the corporate blog apart from the corporate website;
so as soon as a company starts publishing material, it must have the resources
and policies to maintain an ongoing dialogue that shares meaningful company
information.
So key questions to ask (and answer!) honestly are: Does your company have
something unique to share? Does the company need to disseminate
information quickly, then listen and act on the response? Is the company willing
to share sensitive information and answer difficult questions honestly? If the
answer to any of these questions is “no,” then a corporate blog is probably not a
project the company should undertake.
Once the philosophical questions have been considered, the next questions are
more practical: e.g., Should you use discussion boards or blogs? As consumers
are using instant messenger programs, email and blogs increasingly, it is critical
to ensure that a corporate blog builds trust and credibility with users rather than
sounding like a corporate marketing lecture. To be successful, a blog needs to
be more about the people behind the brand, than the actual brand. If the
blogger starts pushing products, the audience will question exactly why this is
happening, thus the credibility and persuasiveness can be lost. Keep it real,
provide some value, and the current and potential customers will keep coming
back. Additionally, staying on the topic, acknowledging mistakes, and not
deleting a posting are all vital to the integrity of corporate blogs.
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
16
The blog as a marketing tool
In summary, some considerations when planning and evaluating a corporate
blog are:
Speak like a consumer, not like a marketer.
Tell the truth.
Be an authority on the category your business resides within; do not
bash competitors, instead tell the whole story.
Be fast and ready to react.
Do not ignore the press - or bloggers as they are in effect. electronic
press. See the “netflixfan” evaluation of Blockbuster below
(http://netflixfan.blogspot.com/):
In which, Dr. Mabuse comes in two parts, or "Blockbuster Online doesn't know what it has"
I had must-see movie Dr. Mabuse: the Gambler (1922) in three
queues at the same time: Netflix, Nicheflix, and Greencine,
because all of them had it as "very long wait". I was going to see
who would send it to me first.
Nicheflix was the first to send it to me. They sent Disc One, but
Disc Two was "very long wait".
Imagine my surprise when I discovered that Blockbuster Online
had it, and it was "available now"! Blockbuster is not known for having the rare, arty-farty
titles. They had the same listing, same cover art, but their description doesn't say if it's a
one-disc or two-disc title. I was expecting to get both discs, even though I needed only
Disc Two.
Lucky me, Blockbuster Online sent me ONLY Disc Two (!) of Dr. Mabuse, in a sleeve that
was marked 1 of 1. I still reported it as a "disc issue", saying I received the wrong movie,
An example of a company that has embraced corporate blogging with incredible
success is Microsoft. Unsurprisingly, Microsoft was one of the first global
companies to understand that the blogging community is an untapped resource
useful for opinion, research and product development.
Microsoft, of course, has a Jekyll and Hyde reputation. Although viewed as a
ruthless and dominating corporation, it is simultaneously and consistently listed
as one of the “best places to work” (Fortune magazine). Microsoft wanted to
bridge the external and internal divide for an audience key to current profitability
and future development - developers.
Developers have long used email lists and newsgroups to share information
about products. Developers, of course, relied on Microsoft for information but
would expect a corporate perspective rather than the advice of a peer. Microsoft
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
17
The blog as a marketing tool
was very smart to realize that being the authority while also endorsing free
speech was a means of supporting and involving developers to the benefit of its
own credibility and, of course, ultimately its bottom line.
The resultant blog, Channel 9 (http//channel9.msdn.com/), is run by the
Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) but funded and supported corporately. (It
is named after the airport control back channel that enables all traffic and
activity to be tracked.)
The MSDN team developed its own ideas of what needed to be released to
developers. The overriding principle was to create a freewheeling environment
where ideas, reviews and information could be shared, and so Channel 9 was
created. The blog is regularly updated and features audio streaming interviews
with key and non-key Microsoft personnel, thus giving the essential human side
that Microsoft was looking for while maintaining its credibility.
The site not only helped show what motivated the Microsoft personnel but also
motivated developers to respond by getting the them to discuss the product,
give reviews and make improvements in collaboration with the external
developer community.
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
18
4. Measurement
Like the early days of advertising on websites, there are limited rules of
engagement. The cost of entry is relatively low, but the CPM may be
considered high in comparison to other media. Media Contacts strongly
believes that measuring the expenditure with a CPM comparison is not the right
model. It's not about absolute reach, it's about reaching the right people and
eliciting the right reaction.
There are three aspects to measuring blog activity:
Accurate audience and author metrics - Who are they? How big
Are they?
Relevance of content - Efficiencies will be realized once we can buy
niche audiences and categories of interest.
Effectiveness metric - How do we really measure influence?
Some of the techniques Media Contacts would recommend marketers employ
to gain campaign performance insights include:
Counting the number of subscriptions and logins to the sites.
Sponsoring and then tracking the blog's newsletter alerts. This can
indicate newsletter circulation, which will help to calculate Influence.
Checking site stats, which are a strong sign of transparency and
thus credibility.
The following blog screen shot below clearly shows the site stats
available and allows click-through for further details.
Monitoring of traffic across a site/blog. Alexa Web Information Tool.
(http://alexa.com) can help with this.
Keeping an eye on incoming links as a measure of the blog's influence.
Developing satisfaction surveys and segment results based on whether
respondents are blog readers or not.
Measuring the reduction in customer service inquiries.
Monitoring the transactions that come from blog postings.
Systematically collecting and tracking anecdotal comments on brand
loyalty and equity as posted on the blog by users.
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
19
5. The blog police...
As we write this document, we see the creation of blogs outstripping the actual
growth in readership of them. New blogs are starting every hour, and this may
create problems. The lack of regulation of blogs is in essence part of their own
unique offering. However, this lack of regulation is causing a distinct level of
worry among corporations, smaller companies and even governments. After all,
one negative opinion can lead to a damaged reputation for any of the above.
In recent days, China has become so worried about this and other effects that
all websites owners/bloggers have to register in order to publish their musings.
Today, Microsoft and China have taken this one step further by implementing
software technology that prevents users from employing the words “freedom”
and “democracy” (among others). This interesting alliance of a global
corporation and a Communist government will be backed by 10,000 “Internet
police.” Clearly, the change in climate has been very dramatic, leading to calls
from civil liberties groups, who see this as a breach of human rights.
The impact of this globally is, frankly, anybody's guess. Although Microsoft
says that, “the restrictions were the price the company had to pay to spread the
positive benefits of blogs and online messaging,” it is just possible that
Microsoft is trying to get the Chinese government on its side to facilitate greater
access to such a strategically important and large “emerging” market.
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
20
6. Final thoughts
The transition of blogs from a niche communication tool for technophiles into an
increasingly mass personal publication platform is incredibly interesting.
Advertising and marketing specialists need to grasp the implications for
communication. However, the significance of blogs does not end there. Blogs
reflect a broader cultural trend that has consumers taking a greater control in
information origination and desiring more human perspective to inform their
buying decisions. Thus, blogs need to be evaluated outside of the marketing
environment.
Currently, most blogs are operated by one or two people and only seek to
reflect their own thought. However, we feel a natural evolution will see more
coordinated blogs being managed by self-regulated communities of like-minded
individuals. As such, they will become much more powerful drivers of popular
opinion.
Recent credibility issues affecting CNN, Newsweek, CBS' “60 Minutes” news
program and The New York Times have indicated that the urge for breaking
exclusive news stories can prompt “corner-cutting.”
There is no control over blog content at the moment. Yet the Kryptonite locks
example has demonstrated the power of blogs over very large corporations.
There is no guarantee that the power of the blog will always be deployed
responsibility with full knowledge of the fact.
Media Contacts feels it is impossible that this lack of control will continue as the
power of blogs increases. According to PubSub, the number of RSS-enabled
blogs had soared from less than one million in April 2004 to more than nine
million in March 2005. However, marketers planning to utilize blogs for
advertising or corporate communications must not ignore the fact that this is
currently an unregulated space.
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
21
7. Appendix
Selected (we)blog sites
www.gawker.com
One of the original blogs, posted by Nick Denton. A very influential blogger,
Denton has entered mainstream media and is a driving force behind blogs. We
refer to him in the Audi discussion.
www.bloglines.com
A blog search engine. It enables users to do keyword searches to find blogs
that mention a particular topic. You can also set up your own blog here.
www.msnspaces.com
Potentially the biggest blogsphere that will be available. MSN spaces can be
connected to both hotmail and messenger, making basic blogging very much
easier.
www.nowpublic.com
As the title says, this website makes the news public. Initially, this started as a
photo-sharing site but has developed into a joined photo and news site where
photographers can integrate photos with blogged news stories.
http://www.wikinews.org/
Wiki news brings together multiple contributors to deliver in-depth news stories.
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/news/
A blog produced by The Guardian. A very interesting blog and one of the first to
be consistently updated and published offline/online.
www.blogger.com
Owned by Google, this is now one of the most developed blogging tools on the
web. It evens allows you to update your blog via your cell phone!
Timeline of Blogs
Dawn of Internet Time: Tim Berners-Lee at CERN begins keeping a list of all
new sites as they come online.
June 1993: NCSA's oldest archived ìWhat's New!î list of sites is created.
June 1993: Netscape begins running its ìWhat's New!î list of sites.
Jan 1994: Justin Hall launches Justin's Home Page, which would become Links
from the Underground.
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
22
Appendix
April 1997: Dave Winer launches Scripting News. His company, Userland, will
release Frontier, Manila and Radio Userland, all website and blog content
software.
Sept 1997:
Slashdot launches its news for nerds.
Dec 1997:
Jorn Barger coins the term ìweblog.î
November 1998: Cameron Barrett publishes the first list of blog sites on
Camworld.
Early 1999: Peter Merholz coins the term ìblogî after announcing he is going to
pronounce web blog as ìwee-blog.î This was then shortened to blog.
Early 1999: Brigitte Eaton starts the first portal devoted to blogs with about 50
listings.
July 1999: Metafilter establishes its earliest archives.
July 1999: Pitas launches the first free build-your-own-blog web tool.
August 1999: Pyra releases ìBlogger,î which becomes the most popular web-
based blogging tool to date and popularizes blogging with mainstream Internet
users.
The rise of the blog
8.0 Millions
Weblogs Tracked
March 2003 - February 2005
7.0
6.0
5.0
4.0
3.0
Doubling in size approx.
every 5 month
2.0
1.0
Doubling
Doubling
Doubling
Doubling
0.0
3 3
3
3
3
3
3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 5
0
/ 0/
/
0
0
/
0
/
/
0
0
/ 0/ 0/ 0/ 0/ /0 0/ /0 0/ 0/ /0 0/ 0/ 0/ /0 0/ 0/ 5
3 4
5
6
7
8
9 0 1 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 1 0/
0 0
0
0
0
0
0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 20
Source: Technorati
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
23
8. Glossary of terms
Blogs
The key feature of the article. Also known as Weblogs, these are online
journals which are frequently updated. Generally they are written by an
individual who will post informal writings of their thoughts, comments,
philosophies etc
Blogging
The act of writing a blog and publishing the blog for public consumption. The
topics will vary based on the 'author's' interests and passions.
Bluetooth
Bluetooth wireless communication systems are one of the many features on
PDAs, mobile phones and laptops. Bluetooth means that Bluetooth enabled
devices can send things like phonebook/address book contacts, pictures &
notes to other Bluetooth enabled devices wirelessly over a range of about 10
metres. Bluetooth was created as a way for mobile phones to easily connect to
other handsets as well as devices such as headsets, home computers and
printers.
Blue-Jacking
Involves sending anonymous text messages to other phone users via Bluetooth
short-range radio. Bluetooth works over a range of about 10 metres and
phones fitted with it can be made to search for other handsets using it that will
accept messages sent to them.
Podcasting
Is a method of publishing files via the Internet,
allowing users to subscribe to a feed to receive new
files automatically. Although a recent follow on to
blogging, podcasting has seen adoption by many
advertisers already. MC and MPG have combined to
produce a MPG Thinks document on this which can
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
24
9. Contact us
We encourage you to contact us directly to discuss any concern you may have regarding
cookie deletion and its implications in more detail. We will be happy to assist you.
GLOBAL anthony.rhind@mediacontacts.com
UK matt.bamford@mediacontacts.com
US jill.griffin@mediacontacts.com
OR contact YOUR NEAREST MEDIA CONTACTS OFFICE
MC Amsterdam
MC Frankfurt
Address: Maassluisstraat 2,
Address: Hedderichstrasse 108-110;
1062 GD Amsterdam; Postbus 9484,
60596 Frankfurt, Germany
1006 AL Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Phone: +49 69 609191 73
Phone: +31 0 20 408 90 00
Fax: +49 69 610462
Fax: +31 0 20 408 90 01
Managing Director : Jens Hofmann
Managing Director: Björn Brouwer
Email: jens.hofmann@mediacontacts.com
Email: bjorn.brouwer@mediacontacts.com
MC Barcelona
MC Lisboa
Address: Avda. Sarrià, 102-106, 9ª
Address: Avda. Miguel Bombarda 36, 2º ;
08017 Barcelona, Spain
1069-149 Lisbon, Portugal
Phone: +34 93 205 87 71
Phone: +351 21 791 33 88
Fax: +34 93 414 72 13
Fax: +351 21 791 33 40
Managing Director : Gabriel Sáenz de Buruaga
Managing Director : Jose Frade
Email: gabriel.buruaga@mediacontacts.com
Email: josefrade@mediacontacts.com
MC Bogotá
MC London
Address: Carrera 7 Nº 71-21; Torre A, Piso 12
Address: 11 Great Newport St.,
Bogotá, Colombia
London WC2H 7JA, UK
Phone: +57 1 317 3010
Phone: +44 0 20 7393 9000
Fax: +57 1 317 3464
Fax: +44 0 20 7393 2525
Managing Director : Viviana Toro
Managing Director: John McLoughlin
Email: viviana.toro@mediacontacts.com
Email: john.mcloughlin@mediacontacts.com
MC Boston
Address: 101 Huntington Ave.;
MC Madrid
Boston, MA 02199, USA
Address: Avda. General Perón, 38 - Planta 6
Phone: +1 617 937 2000
28020 Madrid, Spain
Fax: +1 617 937 2104
Phone: +34 91 456 90 00
Managing Director: Louis Jones
Fax: +34 91 556 54 20
Email: louis.jones@mediacontacts.com
Managing Director : Gabriel Sáenz de Buruaga
Email: gabriel.buruaga@mediacontacts.com
MC Brussels
Address: Rue de Hennin 67-69,
MC México DF
1050 Brussels, Belgium
Address: Ejército Nacional 418 - piso 7
Phone: +32 2 3491560
Col. Chapultepec Morales;
Fax: +32 2 3491570
11570 México D.F., México
Managing Director: Stephanie Radochitzki
Phone: +52 55 5545 1200
Email: stephanie.r@mediacontacts.com
Fax: +52 55 5203 8533
Managing Director: Mauricio Vázquez
Email: mauricio.vazquez@mediacontacts.com
MC Buenos Aires
Address: Talcahuano 833, piso 10;
MC Milano
C1013AAP - Buenos Aires, Argentina
Address: Via Gomes, 10;
Phone: +54 11 5777 7400
20124 Milano, Italy
Fax: +54 11 5777 7401
Phone: +39 02 6744 3216
Managing Director: Mariela Pol
Fax: +39 02 6744 3222
Email: mariela.pol@mediacontacts.com
Account Manager: Georgia Giannattasio
Email: georgia.giannattasio@it.mediaplanning.com
MC Copenhagen
Address: Dag Hammerskjolds Alle 13,
MC New York
DK 2100 Copenhagen O, Denmark
Address: 195 Broadway, 12th Floor;
Phone: +45 77334300
New York, NY 10007, USA
Fax: +45 77334433
Phone: +1 646 587 5000
Managing Director: Soren A. Bronee
Fax: +1 646 587 5005
Email: soren.bronee@mediacontacts.com
Managing Director: Louis Jones
Email: louis.jones@mediacontacts.com
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
25
Contact us
MC Paris
MC São Paulo
Address: 11 Square Leon Blum Puteaux
Address: Rua Luigi Galvani 42, 11º Andar;
Cedex 92806, France
Brooklin, São Paulo, Brasil
Phone: +33 1 46 933333
04575-020;
Fax: +33 1 46 933537
Phone: +55 11 5506 0604
Directeur Général Adjoint : Bruno Louy
Fax: +55 11 5506 4753
Email: bruno.louy@mediacontacts.com
Managing Director : Ricardo Reis
Email: ricardo.reis@mediacontacts.com
MC San Francisco
MC Toronto
Address: 555 Post Street;
Address: 1920 Yonge St.
San Francisco, CA 94102, USA
Toronto ONT M4S3ER, Canada
Phone: +1 415 345 66 11
Phone: +1 416 480 1393
Fax: +1 415 345 66 66
Fax: +1 416 480 6666
Managing Director: Louis Jones
Managing Director : Yann LeRoux
Email: louis.jones@mediacontacts.com
Email: yann.leroux@mediacontacts.com
MC Santiago de Chile
MC Warszawa
Address: Avda. Ricardo Lyon 222;
Address: ul Postepu 13;
piso 12 Of. 1201-B; Providencia.
02-676 Warsaw, Poland
Santiago de Chile, Chile
Phone: +48 22 843 66 60
Phone: +562 33 57 700
Fax: +48 22 843 66 61
Fax: +562 33 57 711
Managing Director: Slawek Kornicki
Managing Director : Gonzalo Parra
Email: slawek.kornicki@mediacontacts.com
Email: gonzalo.parra@mediacontacts.com
© 2005 Media Contacts :: MPG
26
