1 Emphasise the risks of blogging and what it will cost the company if you do not start blogging soon.

2 If your company does not blog, you will not be part of the conversation in the blogosphere.

3 Bloggers may be saying damaging things about your company and if you are not listening to the conversation you have no way to respond quickly and appropriately.

4 You are missing out on a fast, efficient communications channel with
your customers, the media, investors and other important constituencies.

5 If you don’t blog, your company web site will be left behind and start to look very 1990s.

6 Blogs give you the opportunity to communicate with key customers in
real-time.

7 You can get positive and negative feedback from key constituencies.

8 You achieve high search engine rankings without having to spend a
fortune on search engine optimisation.

News that the UK government has published its “Twitter strategy for government departments” highlights how Twitter has crossed well and truly over into the mainstream.

However, the government paper is twenty pages (5382 words) long. As Alan Travis of the Guardian points out, this would equate to 259 tweets!

At ItsOpen we recommend that our clients create and publish social media guidelines and policies for communicators and staff in general. However… twenty pages on Twitter seems a little like overkill to me!

Twitter has obvious applications for ordinary folk, as we know from its burgeoning popularity in the past twelve months. But what are the uses for businesses?

Twitter itself has now addressed itself to this question, with a new website called Twitter 101 that explains how it is being used for marketing and customer service purposes.

The site kicks off with some nice examples:

‘When people working in the Empire State Building twittered that they were craving ice cream delivery, New York local chain Tasti D Lite was there to listen and meet their need. When electronics buyers look for good deals, the Dell Outlet Twitter account helps them save money with exclusive coupons. When Houston’s coffee drinkers decide where to get their daily dose, many choose Coffee Groundz, which lets them order via Twitter.’

It then gives tips as to how businesses can use Twitter.

‘For example, let’s say you work for a custom bike company. If you run a search for your brand, you may find people posting messages about how happy they are that your bike lets them ride in the French Alps-giving you a chance to share tips about cyclist-friendly cafes along their route.

‘Others may post minor equipment complaints or desired features that they would never bother to contact you about-providing you with invaluable customer feedback that you can respond to right away or use for future planning. Still others may twitter about serious problems with your bikes-letting you offer customer service that can turn around a bad situation.’

There’s a glossary of Twitter-related terms, case studies and lists of recommended books and blogs relating to Twitter marketing. It’s not just about Twitter: the site also talks about how blogging can help businesses, with tips for beginners and examples of best practice.

A thoughtful touch: marketers can download a slideshow of all the information on the site so that they can easily share it with colleagues.

A lot of people out there are getting frustrated with their web sites.

They are too clunky; getting through them is like wading through soup and they are not fast and responsive.

Which is why people are turning to blogs. But how is a blog so different
from a conventional web site?

1 It is interactive (people can post comments, and you can reply).

2 It is typically written in a conversational voice. (It is more personal than a dry, official-sounding corporate web site).

3 It is an efficient way to alert interested reader every time something new is added, without using email. (People can use RSS to easily subscribe to blogs and they will then know if a new post has been added).

4 Blogs are typically frequently updated, which  means they can get higher in search engine results than they can with a static site.

5 Blogs can act as a form of viral marketing.