Engaging the Blogosphere An Edelman/Technorati Study Richard Edelman October 6th, 2005

Why This Study? “Regular people” are three times more credible than established figures of authority…2005 Edelman Trust Barometer To better understand Bloggers and how would they would like to be engaged Why companies should be involved in the blogosphere Respond to bloggers who advocate banning e-mails and releases from PR firms.

Eighteen question online survey Methodology Survey conducted by Edelman/Technorati during week of September 26th 2005 Eighteen question online survey 821 respondents from list of influential bloggers compiled by Technorati Margin of Error +/-3.4%

Section 1. Who are the Bloggers ?

Many Blogging to Establish Their Authority Within Their Field What is the primary reason you blog? Plurality of respondents blog to gain visibility within their field Others see themselves as public diarists or part of a community

Most Bloggers Posting Frequently How often do you post? 44% post at least once a day

Most Bloggers Correct Themselves If one of your previous posts contains factually incorrect about a product or company how do you correct it? Few would not attempt to correct errors posted on their blog

How to Reach Bloggers When They Make an Error? If you get something wrong, what is the best way for a company to contact you?

Section 2. Why Should You Care ?

Companies, Products and Employees Are Often the Subject of Posts How often do you write about companies, their products or employees? More than 50% post about companies and/or products at least once a week

Most Bloggers Rarely or Never Contacted by Companies How often are you contacted by companies or their PR representatives? Only 21% report weekly contact from companies or PR reps

Most Bloggers Willing to Review Products on Their Blog Would you like product samples in order to evaluate products on your blog?

How Do You Engage Bloggers ? Section 3. How Do You Engage Bloggers ?

Vast Majority of Outreach is Not Personalized How do companies and their PR firms generally interact with you? Just 16% report a personalized attempt at interaction

Most Bloggers Unsure Who is Contacting Them What company representatives do you interact with most often?

Corporate Blogs Seen As Somewhat Credible What is the trustworthiness of a blog endorsed and produced by a company?

Employee Blogs Seen as More Credible What is the trustworthiness of a blog created by an individual employee?

Bloggers Would Prefer to Interact with Employee Bloggers When seeking information about a company or its products, who do you prefer to interact with? Company Executives received lowest rating

Companies Receive Strong Levels of Trust How much do you trust a message from a company? Scale between 1 and 10, where “1” is "not at all" and “10” is "complete trust"?

PR Firms Need to Improve Reputation How much do you trust a message from a public relations firm? Scale between 1 and 10, where “1” is "not at all" and “10” is "complete trust"?

Trust About Products Driven by Word-of-Mouth When you are looking for product information, which do you trust most?

Section 4. Open Ended Comments ?

How to Contact Bloggers How would you like to be approached by companies interested in reaching audience? (Number of open-ended responses) By E-mail (345) Comment on my blog with insights (53) By phone (28) Leave me alone (23) With honesty and integrity (14)

How Companies Frustrate Bloggers What are some of your current frustrations with companies interacting with the blogsphere? (Number of open-ended responses) Most companies don’t realize how influential blogs are (42) Don’t interact or respond at all, or as often as they should (40) Use Blogs as a PR or Marketing Tool (28) SPAM (24) Advertisements (24) Not honest enough (18) They just send press releases (14) Fake Blogs (13) They don’t listen (11)

Key Findings… Engagement: Most bloggers not being contacted regularly even though 51% of bloggers are frequently blogging about companies/products or employees. How You Contact Bloggers Matters: Personalized, Invitation to discussion, Transparent. Never Ever Spam. Direct Contact with Informed Principals Preferred: Employee Bloggers, Brand Managers Other Bloggers Most Trusted Source: Peer-to-Peer Horizontal Communications preferred

Published in The New Yorker September 12, 2005 By Alex Gregory