Remember to be honest...the most important aspect that we were taught as kids by our parents, seems now more than ever the hardest to follow. Not only is it something that we struggle with as individuals, but this is also seen in the corporate world.
Why is it so hard to be truthful and to share the good along with the bad?
Do we have a miss-perception that everything needs to be perfect and we do not make mistakes?
Why is it so hard to admit a flaw?
As corporations try to embrace this new idea of conversational marketing and creating their own blog, some companies struggle with sharing their mistakes and in some cases successes. I think this struggle comes back to a judgment factor. If companies knew that they could post a blog and not be judged by consumers or competitors, it would be a whole different story.
As a consumer, I want a company that is real and one that I can relate to. More importantly one that cares about what I have to say. If a company is willing to be honest and share the bad, for me that adds value the next time they share the good. It shows that they feel comfortable in their skin and are willing to be vulnerable at times. If all a company shares is good, to me that would weaken their brand and in a way create negative association.
Marketing is now a two way street and companies should take advantage of this and open up the channels of communication, through comments, and let successful conversations take place.
Hey, it's a tough world out there, but in order to prove to consumers that you are worth their time and more importantly money, it is important to be honest.
I really like the that you took a simple idea - honesty - and linked that to corporate blogging.
ReplyDeleteIt's such a simple concept and yet companies forget that they can control the message if they are just honest and straight forward from the get go.
I agree that companies need to post the good and the bad. It helps to hear all news from the company first before it's picked up by the media frenzy.
For me, a company owning up to mistakes gives credibility to the positive messages they broadcast.
ReplyDeleteA failure I think about is AT&T's ads with Luke Wilson. They attack Verizon (often with non-sequitor arguments), but never honestly admit their network lacks the widespread coverage offered by Verizon. They'll allude to it, but never admit their network is smaller. I wouldn't want to admit it either, but they could build credibility by admitting their flaws and then pushing their high-speed network, etc.
Its not a blogging example, but certainly any AT&T ad has lost credibility with me. Luke Wilson too.
Adeograc has hit the nail on the head with the credibility argument. If as, some say, GenX and GenY have less tolerance for traditional hype than others, admitting mistakes could help win them over.
ReplyDeleteHowever, it's not easy, for a number of reasons, to admit a mistake. First, the natural human tendency is to stay consistent with any publicly stated comment (Check out http://www.mistakesweremadebutnotbyme.com/ by Carol Tavris and Elliot Aronson.) Second, companies don't make mistakes, people in companies do; whoever made the mistake has a job on the line. Finally, if there are any liability issues involved, the legal department will likely advice against admitting anything.
Honest disclosure? A noble concept. Unfortunately not everyone can handle the truth (yes, I just watched A Few Good Men).
ReplyDeleteIf people could handle hearing the good and bad then I think full-disclosure, straight-forward, honest corporate blogging would be the way to go. Which makes me wonder, are people ready? Would they just focus on the negatives?
These are essential questions!