Moving Blogs To The Corporate World! : Blog - Communiqué
The first conversation you have with any corporate professional when discussing a blog starts with a deep gutteral announciation of the wretched beast. A " BLOG " or Web Log essentially is a diary of events be it one's life, project, or category of interest. As discussed in the The Value of A Blog Is A Two Edge Sword the Blog must overcome the stigma that politics bestowed on the tool such as the 2004 Presidential Race. Even today, Blogs continue to be pummeled by the mainstream news media as the fear of its value is realized. The President praises the Blog as its value and impact is undeniable. So, why is this tool condered a red-headed step child if its impact is so successful? The problem is Blog has a stigma on its creditability in public which manifests this understanding to business at the corporate level. It's a tool that can hurt, hurt means pain, and in this case the written word is a dangerous and lethal sword, thusly, its feared. Corporate justifies these fears and the wins are strong but not strong enough to shed a positive light.
Corporate "Blog" usage is real, can provide value and its time is coming for this communication workspace. We'll see a morphing into the inclusion of podcasts, video casts, powerpoints, video training, education and other applications yet to surface to the forefront. Today's Blog has undergone a growth in application and as the tool matures several variations have come of age sketchblogs, podcasts and Video Casts. This momentum provides users with active content that enhances the communication from the author to the audience. The same maturity will occur in corporations and the tools will bring forth richer interfaces and stronger integration into the current systems. Leverage Open Source Tools, Applicaitons and corporate specific data provides new areas to leverage in propel business to the next level. Practical application will find its way in the corporate world.
A change in the name is in order for business and corporate acceptance. Unfortunately the name's undergone a tipping point and this is hard to overcome. Again, a professional version has to provide an incredible publishing tool with a myriad of tools to assist corporate to gain the proper traction.
In order to move forward with this idea a new name has attempted to be employed in the real world, Communiqué. To date, using Communiqué has had very favorable results and moves the conversation straight towards the benefits and value add. Communiqué is the reference of choice and its being received well in corporate usage today. If it sticks it sticks, however, referring to a Communiqué as a communication workspace is a sales pitch that is opening doors. Changing the name to Communiqué removes almost immediately the tool from the stigma of political ramifications and its harsh sound. This is the first step convert the tool to the corporation.