The Scott has had a busy week culminating in the BMW Auto Africa blog going live. All credit to him, it’s great to see a company like BMW getting into blogging and I firmly believe that they wouldn't have done it without someone like (ex QuirkStar) Scott at the helm. You go boy… change that lumbering corporate mindset!
One thing I do disagree with is the fact that they haven't humanised the blog – you'll note that they reply to comments as BMW. I want to talk to a person, not a faceless entity.
At the moment it seems they are testing this blog around the Auto Africa event but let’s hope it generates enough interest for them to consider keeping it on. With the kind of reputation BMW have on hellopeter.com they need to get involved in the conversation.
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If Quirk can do it, and Dell can do it, why can't BMW?
Whilst I see the benefits of both approaches (I can do this because I am a god), a typically conservative group like BMW should not necessarily be criticised for adopting a more neutral angle. They've arguably taken a big step forward in launching the blog, but there are inherent problems in big companies or groups with specialised individuals answering a potential full spectrum of questions. By taking an official line and commenting as the enterprise, no single individual can be targeted from outside as voicing an unpopular opinion. The opinion that is raised is the one of the entity, not of the individual. Should BMW be prepared to take on a more personal approach, it would perhaps be preferable that relevant spokespersons from each department be designated to answer questions which fall within their respective areas of expertise and responsibility. Ideally, these official commentators would be assigned profiles to identify their roles within BMW to blog readers, and they would then respond in their individual capacities to relevant questions (ideally, under the supervision of the blog administrator to ensure that no conflicting views are voiced on behalf of BMW). A united front is absolutely critical if this route is to be followed.
Of course, I'm not in the eMarketing game per se, and although I don't know either "scott" or "rob" (if those are indeed your real names), I'm guessing that I'm actually way smarter and less ginger than both of you combined.
Here endeth the lesson.
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The salami is omnipresent. I love you too, Salami Fan. I am hoping you're not a boy.
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Posted by scott on 2006/10/27