Corporate Blogging, Anyone?

A blog may be in your company’s future, and Debbie Weil’s The Corporate Blogging Book is an excellent how-to guide for getting it right.

An aside: If you know me at all, you know I discount hype. It makes me crabby and all too often I'm let down when I actually get the final product.

I'm pleased to report that this book, despite its advance hype, does not disappoint. It’s a definite keeper.

Weil provides the necessary background on the first, second, and third waves of blogging. But only what’s necessary. From then on her book is an easy-to-read primer on everything you need to know about blogging, like

o writing a blog people want to read,

o using blogs to create two-way communication with customers,

o launching the thing, including what you need to know about tools and technology, and

o making the case for a corporate blog to your CEO, in case she's not as market-savvy as she could be.

Weil also provides a well-stocked “Bonus Resources” section that includes, among other things, sample blogging policies and guidelines, a glossary, and an annotated blog entry and blog home page.

Best of all, she practices what she preaches. Noting that a blog should be written in a “compelling bloggy voice that invites interaction with readers,” Weil does likewise. The text is extremely accessible and personable—exactly the kind of model to use for putting a face on a megacorporation.

And given what I’ve said about hype earlier, to her credit, Weil does not cheerlead. Rather than “rah-rah” blogging, she presents compelling and well-researched examples of the pros and the pitfalls associated with starting and maintaining a blog.

To my surprise and delight, I give this book five stars.

Here are two more reviews of Weil’s book, in case you want more than my perspective:

Corporate Blogging: Great Liberator or Oxymoron?

Meryl's Book Review of The Corporate Blogging Book