Forbes: Attack of the Blogs?

Today's Forbes magazine's "Attack of the Blogs" article (free registration) and a quote attributed to me warns that bloggers can be a threat to companies and corporations. It's a sentiment I've expressed numerous other times iin presentations, speeches, workshops, seminars and articles about the impact of consumer-generated media (which includes blogs) on corporate and brand reputation. The two are intertwined, postively AND negatively. Was I quoted out of context?  Sure, in the sense that the article focused on extreme (e.g. Bloggers as "Lynch Mob") examples of what can go wrong in the blogosphere. These attacks are not commonplace, and this kind of behavior is only a tiny piece of what blogging is about.  My very long interview with the reporter centered specifically on the new rules of "accountability" and how real consumer experiences with products and brands are heightening corporate exposure and vulnerability.

Bad Advice from Forbes for Companies:  What I will really take issue with, however, is a sidebar to the story that includes tips for "Fighting Back." Some of them are way off base and represent exactly what NOT to do, including suggestions to pay bloggers to write on your behalf, or dig up dirt and feed it to sympathetic bloggers as part of a discrediting campaign. This is just plain bad advice for companies and brands. Transparency is essential, and any attempts to fudge identities or fudge the truth will only taint (and backfire in) the blogosphere. It will also further erode the already-fragile "trust" factor between consumers and companies. 

Comments

[Debbie Weil]

Pete,

Funny... as soon as I saw you quoted in the Forbes article I knew it was taken out of context! Glad to see you've addressed that on your blog.

[lyngperry]

Okay, okay. Enough search string silliness and headline humor. No more National Spotlights on Kansas News. (Who cares about Kansas anyway?) You've had it with caption contests and Don Surber references. You want content! And you won't be content without it. So. Here I go. Get ready. Forbes Repents! That's right. The magazine which otherwise gets it right blew it last month with Attack of the Blogs. But Rich Karlgaard makes amends in this month's issue. We blog about it at Bloggin' Outloud.

[Jordan]

It’s been long said in classrooms and boardrooms alike, that word of mouth is the most powerful form of advertising. The Internet has just expanded that on a global scale. The question is what will consumers tolerate and how do advertisers break through the clutter. I do not believe banner ad’s or ads before viral videos are the answer. I much prefer Stizer content, in which consumers are able to create viral videos with the products that they enjoy in a creative way a prime example of Stizer content would be the mentos coke experiment http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1450915772177922792