"Don't Blog" and other advise...
Tuesday, July 4, 2006 at 20:37 Don't blog... that's the advise of Citigate First Financial, a communications consultancy specialised in financial and corporate communications based in the Netherlands. I found their website and articles through a post on Corporatewebsite.com.
Strange to hear this from a Dutch agency... Their weekly article on the topic has some very strong quotes like:
"When visiting a number of weblogs on the internet, you end up feeling like you are in the Wild West, with snipers on the roofs and boobytraps all over the place."
"Nevertheless, a Dutch listed company would rather want to control publicity itself..."
Now when you read the full article you sense the fright the blogosphere brings to financial communicators. Their advise to clients is "Read blogs, but don't leave a message. Don't blog."...
They have the wrong approach I think. Monitor blogs, comment where needed and start blogging yourselves. Learn the medium, talk to other companies who do use new media to communicate to their investors. Once the first fear is gone, start small... but start, otherwise you miss out on a great opportunity.
Citigate also has a great article on how Dutch companies inform and communicate with the press and analysts. Shows that you need to translate material in local language, that you need to tailor your info and delivery to your audience and that webcasts are great with analysts...
Reader Comments (1)
I'm glad you've pointed this out - I think a lot of companies have an irrational fear of blogging.