Create a Blog

Companies Using Blogs

 Figure 1 How Many Companies Are Using Blogs

Source:  http://smallbiztrends.com/2011/05/not-blogging-you%E2%80%99re-the-minority.html

HubSpot is a marketing software company that helps their customers understand how to use blogging. Per HubSpot’s 2011 State of Inbound Marketing Report they published several results after a survey was taken. They stated that blogs remained the most important social media channel.

An increase from 48% in 2009 to 65% in 2011 for those companies incorporated blogs into their existing business.

27% of this percentage say that blogging is critical to their business.

Figure 2 – How Frequently Did Businesses Use Blogging Between 2009 & 2011

Daily	Weekly	Monthly
15%-10%	62%-61%	23%-29%

Source:  http://smallbiztrends.com/2011/05/not-blogging-you%E2%80%99re-the-minority.html

Advantages & Disadvantages Of Corporate Blogging

I visited a site called New Thinking that reviewed the advantages and disadvantages of having a blog. Through this article I found that blogging is the new form of formal communication. I found it interesting that through bloging our society will be better informed which will be better for everyone in the future. You can also build better relationships with your clients and share information within you organization. Getting feed back from your blog is another way to stay informed and up to date about what is going on in your business. Disadvantages might be that whomever is writing in your blog for your company might not have much to say. Maintaing a blog is probably one of the most difficult things to do because it takes a lot of time to manage one and if your not putting anything in your blog you could discredit your company which could also turn off your readers or potential clients.

Two Examples of Companies Using Blogs
Two companies effectively using their blogs are Microsoft and Levi Strauss. I think that Microsoft has been especially effective in using their products internationally. For example, Microsoft's game station X-Box allows you to play games with anyone, anywhere, anytime, around the world. I would say that's some very successful marketing and communications strategy. Microsoft has an official Blog where you can learn more about X-Box and what the future holds for gamers as well as post there. You can also go to the X-Box Live Forum and review recent posts, post questions or respond to someone else's post. 

Levi Srausse has a blog where you can read and post with people globally as well. The company has been around since 1873 and has been moving into emerging markets. Levi is established and operates in over 110 countries and half of their net revenues comes in from those international countries. They attribute their success to, “an awareness of global trends and proven business practices that can be easily introduced into new markets.”

Resources

(primary)

http://www.gerrymcgovern.com/nt/2004/nt_2004_08_23_blogging.htm

McGovern, Gerry, August 23, 2004, Blogs and blogging: advantages and disadvantages,. N.p. July 25, 2011.

http://blogs.technet.com/b/microsoft_blog/

TechNet Blogs, July 13, 2011, The Official Microsoft Blog, News and Perspectives from Microsoft, N.p. July 13, 2011

http://www.microsoft.com/communities/blogs/portalhome.mspx

Larry Hryb (Xbox’s Major Nelson), Oct. 21, 2010, N.p., July 13, 2011

This site shows the latest Xbox release, release date and microsoft points.

http://blogs.technet.com/b/microsoft_blog/archive/2011/05/31/xbox-now-that-s-entertainment.aspx
Frank Shaw, Corporate Vice President, Corporate Communications, Microsoft, May 31, 2011, N.p. July 13, 2011.

This site explained what Microsoft has been doing with Xbox for the last 10 years. The author explains that Xbox  has connected people in communities more than any device.

http://www.levistrauss.com/about/global-workplaces
 John Andersen, President & CEO, Levi Strauss, N.p July 13, 2011

There was no date when this post was entered, but the author speaks about moving into emerging markets globally and how Levi Strauss has been sucessful in doing that.

http://www.hubspot.com/Portals/53/docs/ebooks/the%20state%20of%20inbound%20marketing%20final%20v3-2.pdf

This site gave a lot of information on how many companies are using blogs.

The 2011 State of Inbound Marketing, Feb. 2011,  hubspot.com, Pgs. 11 & 14, July 13, 2011

http://websitesetupguide.com/basic/more-information.htm

Website Setup Guide, Daniel Piechnick, N.p., July 13, 2011

This site gave all the information need to set up a website.

(secondary)

http://cindyking.biz/3-different-communication-challenges-of-an-international-blog/

Social Media & Cross-Culture Communication for Internationa Business, 3 Different Communication Challenges of An International Blog, Cindy King, November, 2009, N.p., July 13, 2011

This site was helpful in defining what was needed to have your blog work well with you international customers.

http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/

SocialMedia Examiner , Corina Mackay, July 13, 2011, N.p., July 13, 2011

This site explained how digital technologies are really paving the way towards the new social media.

http://forums.xbox.com/en-gb/uk_xbox_live_forum/f/232.aspx?ThreadSortBy=TotalReplies&SortOrder=Ascending
Xbox Forums, July 13, 2011, N.p., July 13

This is a forum where anyone can talk about xbox games and post questions or comments.