I found a really interesting annual study by Technorati called, “State of the Blogosphere 2011: Introduction and Methodology.” Of particular interest to me was the breakdown of the different types of bloggers and the motivations and consequences for blogging.  If I were to categorize myself in relation to this study, my blogging falls in two categories.  I am the Entrepreneur Blogger as well as the Hobbyist. I definitely don’t fit in the Corporate or the Professional Full Time or Part Time blogger.

As the Entrepreneur, I use blogging to discuss industry topics and to share my perspectives on public relations, social media and technology. I also enjoy blogging every week, because it’s my hobby. When I was younger I would horseback ride and participate in kick boxing.  Today, I find myself blogging for fun, to express myself, and my views about the changing media landscape. I’m also blog for my own personal satisfaction.

The Technorati study stated, “… we are seeing bloggers updating their blogs more frequently and spending more time blogging.  The type of information influencing blogging has shifted from conversations with friends, which was the primary influence in 2010, to other blogs, which for 68% of bloggers are having more of an influence in 2011.”  I recall in 2010, there was a question of whether or not people found blogs useful and if we were completely moving over to shorter forms of news and information (media snacking).  However, I still believe, blogging serves a specific purpose that you can’t find through other forms of social media, i.e., Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.

The main reasons why I rely on blogs/favorite bloggers is to get an inside view, deeper perspective, more insight on a subject or topic, to see if my perspective aligns with my influencers, and for information that only a particular blogger can review, breakdown and even translate for me (when a topic is complicated, i.e., technology).  I have been reading the same blogs for the last 3+ years and there’s a reason why I don’t deviate.  I am constantly learning from my blogger friends and I value the information that they are sharing. I trust them and the information they provide. I feel like I know them (in most cases I’ve even met them in person or had conversations).  I always look forward to receiving their posts through my RSS feed or even in my email inbox. As you can tell, I place a high value on these relationships.

Take a look at the Technorati study.  If you’re a blogger, it’s interesting to categorize yourself and to review the percentages of blogger motivations and consequences.  However, moving beyond the statistics, think about what really makes you want to blog and why you also rely on your favorite bloggers.  You might even want to let your bloggers know what it is you like so much about their community, so they keep delivering the most meaningful information.  I don’t think one study will ever make or break the State of the Blogosphere, but it’s great to see that bloggers are having more of an influence in 2011.

Every week, it seems there is a new PR crisis sweeping across our Twitter streams. Groupon, Airbnb, Kenneth Cole, Esquire, the list goes on and on. Most recently, Netflix has faced backlash for their price hikes and response or lack there of. With all of these instances, it seems that companies still aren’t understanding the importance of a sincere apology. If they don’t understand, maybe they don’t know where to begin in this transparent climate. Well, here is the DNA of a good apology…

Timeliness

Growing up, my mom always made sure that I knew that an apology meant much more, sooner rather than later. The ability to apologize in the heat of an argument, issue, or mistake took great strength but resolved issues much quicker, and exhibited sincerity because it took courage to say and admit. Apologizing days or weeks later doesn’t mean nearly as much as a quick apology.

Companies and PR departments still are trying to grab this concept of timely transparency when it comes to admitting mistakes. It took Netflix weeks to address the price hike, as did Groupon when they were under fire for their Super Bowl commercial fiasco. Incidentally, those apologies were seen as hollow and didn’t diffuse the complaints that had been building. The opportunity for a calming voice came and went long before they actually stepped up.

Sincerity

As a 21 year-old in a long-term relationship, I guess you can say that I’ve had my fair share of experience in apologizing. First rule: Never say, “I’m sorry you felt that way.” Saying that, says that you’re not actually sorry for your actions; but rather you’re sorry because of the reaction you received. I can tell you right now that this is not a sincere form of apology and customers see right through it. Again, Groupon failed at this a while back, as have many other companies.

In today’s transparent line of communication from brands to consumers, you must admit fault or at the very least empathize with the angry customer. Remember, they don’t HAVE to give you their time and money. So, if you make a mistake, be sincere in your apology and understand what you did wrong… The customer is much more likely to understand and forgive for sincerity.

Resolution

I’ll tell you right now… an apology is not enough anymore.  Resolutions both requested and unrequested have become the standard. If you give an unhappy customer a resolution along with your apology at their request, they’ll be satisfied. Give a customer a resolution or gift without a request? You’ve just turned an angry customer into an evangelist. Don’t do either? Good luck.

People want to know you care, and while offering coupons and resolutions can’t save a bad product, it can definitely turn mistakes into fruitful opportunities. But beware, make sure that your customers would welcome these resolutions. I’m not positive how Netflix’s split into Qwikster will work out in the long run. But, I can tell you that it wasn’t a well-sourced change on Reed Hastings and co.’s part. The apology and resolution finally came, but the customer’s can tell that they are still not a priority.

We all make mistakes and will make many more. What separates the great companies from everyone else is the ability to express a human reaction in times where transparency is key. Being able to apologize and empathize in a sincere manner turns even the angriest of customers into believers.

Remember: “Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.” – Bill Gates

This blog post was contributed by Harrison Kratz. Harrison is the Community Manager at MBA@UNC, the new MBA program offered through the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill which gives students the opportunity to earn their MBA online from a business school with a top twenty MBA ranking.  Harrison also sticks to his entrepreneurial roots as the founder of the global social good campaign, TweetDrive.

I’m kicking off a PR guest blogger series on October 3, 2011.  Several of my blogger friends have offered to help out while I’m working on a new project, which I’ll be sharing soon.  I’m excited to announce the names of my blogger friends …

My 16 year-old-daughter first introduced me to Tumblr when she told me that she wanted to start her own blog.  She used to spend countless hours on MySpace checking out bands, on YouTube sharing funny videos and she used her Facebook profile to keep in touch with many of her friends after we moved from North Jersey to Central Jersey a few years ago. I would say that YouTube and Facebook are still among her favorite social sites. However, Tumblr has come onto her radar and clearly captured her attention.  Based on her behavior, Tumblr is her new social media habit.

For those not familiar with Tumblr, it’s an easy platform to express your thoughts and share information through a variety of formats including text, photo, chat, links, audio and video.  Tumblr is recognized today as a platform somewhere in between a WordPress blog and Twitter stream, which lets you share media in short form or as “media snacks.”

I’ve been investigating Tumblr to see exactly what it is that makes the platform so special.  Here’s what my 16 year old has to say about Tumblr:

• Tumblr is a place where you can express what you like and how you feel.
• Tumblr is about yourself, above everything else … it can encompass all that you do and what you want.  Although, some people might criticize, there are so many more supporters; the community is generally supportive of what you post.
• You can find a lot of people with similar interests. When someone reblogs a picture that I like, I look at their blog to find other things that interest me.
• Tumblr is better than Facebook…anyone can have a Facebook, but with Tumblr it goes deeper into your personality.
• I’m on Twitter too. Although my Tumblr is linked to my Twitter, I spend more time on my Tumblr dashboard.  It’s all right there for me, and it’s so much easier to use.
• Tumblr is the more complex version of Twitter, yet, at the same time, it’s easier to use and manage.
• Twitter is something you do when you’re out…”eating with my friend …” It’s what’s happening now and Tumblr is your online journal.
• Twitter is like a memo pad and Tumblr is like a daily journal.
• It’s the most addictive thing ever!

Here is a quick snapshot from Compete comparing Posterous (another short form blogging platform) to Tumblr, with respect to unique visitors and visits to the sites:

Unique Visitors:

Source: Compete.com

Monthly Visits:

Source: Compete.com

As you can see, there has been a significant increase in traffic and unique visits to Tumblr over the past year.  As communications professionals, it’s our job is to understand the market and to identify where various audiences congregate.  Tumblr is definitely a place of interest and focus for the Millennials.  Based on the information from February 2011 (see chart below), Tumblr is poised for growth as a simple microblogging platform.

Source: 1WD.CO

The key to building an effective social media policy is to customize the guidelines to meet the needs of your organization. A well developed policy will guide your employees in the many ways that they engage in social communications. The best practice approach requires that your organization invest the time, resources, and effort to plan and build a policy that empowers the organization, allows people to understand the value of social media and helps them to see how they can better participate as internal brand champions.

I had the pleausre of working with PRSA to assist in the development of their social media policy, which was rolled out today. It was a great exercise because of the intricacies of an organization that serves more than 21,000 members. It’s a comprehensive policy, one that sets the standard for social media participation, gives guidance on engagement, and offers social media best practice resources to employees, volunteers and leaders. PRSA’s policy will grow and evolve as the organization extends its social footprint.

A best practices approach to creating the PRSA social media policy included the following steps in the development process:

• Finding a champion (in this case the PR manager) to spearhead the effort, corral the team and manage the process from start to finish.
• Building a coalition or core team that developed policy objectives across the organization so it would not only guide employees, leaders and volunteers, but also PRSA chapters, sections and districts. The coalition consisted of PR, marketing, executive leadership and the PRSA legal team.
• Conducting an in-depth audit to evaluate the current state of PRSA social media and to help standardize and promote better brand guidelines connected to social media participation.
• Encouraging participation and not stifling communication, going well beyond just the do’s and don’ts of social media. The policy also carefuly reviewed situations specific to the Society, and focused on where the organization needed to convey stronger messages, including legal concerns like privacy, intellectual property and disclaimers.
• Covering employee participation on behalf of PRSA, as well as including a statement on personal use. Understanding that employees will participate during their work hours and their own free time, it’s important that employees know the type of representation, responsibility and respect they must have for PRSA at all times.
• Considering several key areas in the policy, including access, account management, acceptable conduct and the rules of engagement, content, security and legal issues.
• Introducing leaders and members to the draft policy, asking them to evaluate usefullness by participating in a survey prior to launch. Feedback from the survey was incorporated into the social media policy to create an even stronger set of guidelines.
• Including other organizational policies — the PRSA Code of Ethics, the PRSA Branding Guidelines, the PRSA Style Guide and the PRSA Media Policy — fully integrating these policies into the social media policy, as they now relate to social outreach.

This is only a starting point for PRSA and its new social media policy. The Society’s policy will continue to evolve as the organization grows its social media presence and identifies increased opportunities for engagement.

It’s critical that the process of policy development continue throughout every phase of social media planning. PRSA will continue its best practices approach by implementing an organization-wide social media plan that allows departments to tailor it to their goals and strategies;  re-evaluating its policy during the strategic planning phase each year; and sharing the direction of its own social communications with leaders, volunteers and members.

What is your best practice approach to social media policy development and how has the overall process helped to create a strong set of guidelines for your organization?

You may have heard me say this before, but it’s really important to read everyday to stay on top of the trends, news and industry information.  There are so many great resources for professionals to keep us in the “know.” However, we also need to set up a daily reading regimen to peruse interesting articles, blogs, newsletters, etc.

Here’ my video blog on my personal reading regimen and the magazines, email newsletters and blogs that keep me up to date on industry and business news.  What are your reading resources and how do you stay on top and in the “know?”

When Traackr reported the Top 25 PR Influencers, I thought it would be fun to quickly find out a little more about some of the bloggers on this list (beyond the “Footprint” that was provided). I decided to take a few of their blog posts and drop them into Wordle.net, turning them into beautiful word clouds.  You can tell a lot about these influencers, their interests, critical issues and what they love to share with their communities. Now, remember copying three or four recent posts into a word cloud tool is only a brief snapshot of what could be years of blog posts and PR information.  Keeping that in mind, here five of the top 25 influencers and their word clouds, selected randomly.

Before you go to visit the influencer’s blog community, take a look at each one’s word cloud to help you understand the community focus and how you can engage the right way by sharing relevant information.

Here’s the list of a few of the PR Influencers from Traackr, with their word clouds below:

#2 Lee Odden: TopRank Marketing Blog

#12 Sarah Evans PRSarahEvans.com

#13 Heather Whaling: prtini.com

#21 Peter Himler: The Flack

#25 Katie Paine: PR Measurement Blog

I’ve been studying brand responses to blog posts and comments for quite some time. However, a recent Facebook incident made me build my own personal comment policy for my online persona.  No matter who you are, or your level of influence, you need to be prepared to respond when someone takes the conversation to a level that is uncomfortable, inappropriate and/or just does not belong in a conversation with you or your constituents.

For me, there are several phases or tiers of responses.  I want to be able to discuss topics, give and hear differing opinions and welcome critique as a “gift.”  I learned about 20 years ago, in an organizational behavior class, that both the ability to give and receive feedback is the best “gift” for professionals who are looking to learn and grow.  However, there are times when you can see a conversation is moving in the wrong direction and just like a brand that’s responsible to answer questions, you can’t always just sit back and hope the commenter goes away.

A helpful tool that I came across is the Air Force Response Chart.  If you haven’t studied this chart yet, you should definitely take a look.  It walks a brand through a process of how it should respond based on the nature of the comment.  Of course, this could be your personal brand. Here’s how I evaluate personal blog comments and messages that people direct toward me on social sites:

Comment or Blog Post Validity: Is the comment or the blog post valid, related to the conversation and present a different but legitimate perspective? If yes, accept the comment and thank the individual for the information. If not, you can explain any misinformation or how you feel the information may not apply to you or your community.  This is considered healthy debate and you can at some point agree to disagree.

Level of Responsibility: Does the comment show that the commenter understands the needs of the community and is trying to be helpful or just purely representing his or her own interests?  If there is a level of respect and responsibility, by all means accept the comment and engage in the dialogue.  If there is no level of respect or responsibility, you can choose not to allow the comment to go through or you can let the comment pass.

Level of Respect: The comment reaches an unexpected heightened level of disrespect. Sometimes conversations can go in the wrong direction because of a misunderstanding or purely because the commenter does not have a level of respect for you or your community.  If someone misunderstands something that you have said and gets upset, then you should immediately apologize and be accountable.  If they have offended you and it was a misunderstanding you should work toward resolving the issue. If there is no respect involved and the comments are nasty, harassing, defamatory, etc., you have the right to not accept the comment on your blog.

The Commenter is a Troll: If the commenter is clearly a Troll or what’s known as a Rager (according the Air Force Response Chart) and has not contributed anything positive to the conversation, but is immediately bashing and degrading or ranting and sarcastic, this commenter does not deserve a response.  I do not recommend blocking Trolls or Ragers on Twitter, as it’s always important to listen and monitor what they are saying.  In more cases than not these Trolls and Ragers are put into their place by the community. Here’s where it helps to have a supportive community in place.

The Commenter is a Spammer by Nature: There are times that the commenter is not quite a Troll or Rager, yet has been able to become a friend and access your network on different social sites.  Then, he or she decides to start spamming your wall.  By all means, you have the option of using your privacy settings to block your wall, so this individual can’t make any comments that are uncomfortable and inappropriate and would be offensive to those who are conversing with you.

I’m all for healthy debate and there should always be mutual civility in our conversations.  If we all had the same opinions, it wouldn’t be as interesting or educational.  However, its important to be prepared and set up a system that tells you when its time to respond and thank someone for a different perspective and when it’s time not to respond at all or to change your privacy settings.  In most cases, I find that people want to give opinions and to help one another.  However, spamming and nasty and inappropriate comments just don’t belong in our conversations.  When do you say enough is enough and it’s time to discontinue the conversation or block the person you thought was a friend?