Corporate Blogging: A new marketing communication tool for companies

Corporate blogging is published, but rather than visiting it regularly most readers subscribe to new content with the help of online services or news aggregator software. Organization will used corporate blogs to reach its organizational goals and objectives. The advantage of blogs is that posts and comments are easy to reach and follow due to centralized hosting and generally structured conversation threads. More of the companies are using blogs for both internal and external communications, to improve customer relations and improve business processes.

Companies will create a place where customers and prospects spend more time with our brand. Blogging by its nature is more personal than other marketing communication. Corporate blogging can be a useful communication channel by providing companies with unvarnished feedback from customers. It can serve as an early-warning system for product or service problems. Corporate blogs have potential function such as CRM, media relation, internal collaboration and knowledge management. It can also provide an easy and inexpensive way to deliver specialized information to narrow segments of the market. Blogs is a snap; it can be a great way to distribute technical updates, new product announcements, and other periodic messages. Besides that, for many the blog provides a way to become their industry’s thought leader.

Companies that employ a well thought out blogging strategy encourage the strongest community goodwill, promotes significant marketing and sales gains. When that begins with a real desire on the part of the blogger to provide value and connect with their audience. This holds very true for successful blogs. The blogs can shares useful and engaging content such as the latest information, help, discussion topic and opinion. Furthermore, companies that harness their customers’ knowledge and ideas find better ways to satisfy their needs and wants, thus facilitating goodwill in the community.

5 Types of Corporate Blogs:
1. Company Blog
This is the most common form of the company blog. IMO, the corporate blog is definitely the next stage in the evolution of the corporate website, which (let’s face it) is pretty much static these days. Example: Google, Adobe, Flickr, Facebook, and Yahoo! Search.

2. CEO Blog
The most famous example would have to be the blog of Jonathan Schwartz, CEO at Sun Microsystems, and I’m amazed how he ever finds time to blog, but I’m really glad he sets such a stellar example. I’ve recommended CEOs to quit full-time blogging but rather work as active contributors to their company blog, which would of course depend on their busy schedules. Example: Boeing VP of Marketing- Randy Tinseth’s blog.

3. Industry Blog
This is an interesting type of corporate blog one that we should beware of, because it places some difficult ethical choices for the company at hand. Just last week, I wrote about Miller Brewing’s pseudo industry blog - Brew blog that purports to be an insider blog, while taking potshots at arch competitor - Anheuser Busch. Example: Miller Brewing’s Brew Blog.

4. Department or Product Blog
Department blog is another common style or kind of blogging, which is very popular and ultimately essential for large organizations. Cases in point are Microsoft, Sun, or SAP’s developer blogs in any particular space. Google’s extensive array of product blogs across their different product offerings probably is another great. Example: Microsoft Community Blogs, Sun Blogs and Google- Product Blogs.

5. Customer Service Blog
The customer service blog or community blog that I blogged of a few months back. Given the preponderance of community forums and discussion groups as the de facto kind of communication media that companies chose to use as conversation methods with their users (more on this later), I haven’t seen the evolution of this kind of a blog, yet. Instead, I find evangelists of companies choosing to talk to/respond/provide customer service with users who choose to ask on social media sites such as Twitter. Example: My response to Steve Rubel.

Reference:
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_blog
- http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/jul2006/tc20060718_932217.htm
- http://www.kommunikationsforum.dk/default.asp?articleid=11457
- http://www.backbonemedia.com/blogsurvey/
- http://mariosundar.wordpress.com/2008/05/19/the-5-types-of-corporate-blogs-with-examples/

Prepared by: Koh Kah Wang

E-Government in Malaysia: Its implementation so far and citizen's adoption strategies

E-government is small form of electronic government. E-government is an activity that takes place by digital process over computer network. It builds interaction between the government, public and private sector. E-government may define as new or transformed ways to build relationship and improve government process between citizens and government by networks.
E-government was launch and lead Malaysia to Information Age. It used internet technology as a platform in exchanging the information, providing services for citizens of Malaysia. It seeks to improve the convenience, accessibility and quality of government services. It improves information flows and processing speed of deal with government.


Implementation of e-government started since the introduction of Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) in 1996 by the Malaysian government.



The implementation status of e-government project in Malaysia:
* Project Monitoring System (SPP II)
* Human Resource Management Information System (HRMIS)
* Generic Office Environment (GOE)
* Electronic Procurement (EP)
* Electronic Services (E-Services)
* Electronic Labour Exchange (ELX)
* E-Syariah





Citizen’s willingness to adopt & utilize the services will influence the successful of e-government. Security and privacy is the main problem face when use internet to transmit information. Therefore, government needs to gain trust & confidence of citizen by protecting of their personal data within an open & accountable government. The other problem is resistance to change, due to old age, unfamiliarity with ICT, lack of access and etc. From my point of view, e-government less attracted for citizen to adopt because the data base is outdated. Example: statistics that generated and maintained by various government agencies. The animal health statistics still showing the data for year 2003, so who’s the one who have problem or responsible in this cases?
In order to encourage or attract citizens to adopt e-Government, government should know the citizens’ needs and give some incentives for those who use that service. Government should make sure that e-transaction is highly secure; this can build confidence among citizen. Citizens expect high quality of government services that available in 24/7.

Reference:
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EGovernment
- http://www.gov.my/MyGov/BI/Directory/Citizen/Home.htm
- http://smart.gov/information/Forman_G2BFinal/index.htm
- http://www.american.edu/initeb/ym6974a/egovernment.htm

Prepare By: Chee Seng

How E-commerce can reduce cycle time, improve employees' empowerment and facilitate customer support

E-commerce bring a lot of benefits to us, E-commerce has improved our living standard because it allowed us to conduct transaction easier than before.

In this section, i will discuss how E-commerce can helps to reduce the cycle time, improve employees' empowerment, and facilitate customer support.

I will divide the article into 3 parts:

1) How E-commerce help to reduce cycle time?

As what we have learned, E-commerce allows people to conduct the business without barriers of time and distance. Neither buyer or seller can log on to the Internet and conduct the transaction by just at a single click on the mouse. E-commerce helps us to save our time because we can purchase/track a certain product without travel to a physical outlets. Less time is spent in resolving invoice and order discrepancies if we are using e-commerce. Some of the software which is used to support E-commerce can help to improve document preparation process, order filling, delivery, and etc.

When we compare with traditional method and E-commerce method, the biggest difference between both method is the time of the operation. E-commerce operates 24 hours per day and it allow buyers to make an order other than during office hour. The order filling is continuously processing in 365 days.


2)Improve Employees' Empowerment

An E-commerce company such as dell, has developed a central database around the world and it allowed its employees to obtain the information from difference places. A well functioned software can enhance the performances of employees because it give more power to the employees to handle over their customers' information. Customer's details is accessible by employees and it allowed them to provide a better customer service.

Another example from Dell: Employees is assigned to serve the customer at one-on-one basis. This method allow employee to understand better over their customers needs/desire and try to satisfy their customers.


3)Facilitate Customer Support

The E-commerce applications such as CRM, consulting services, mobile CRM, discussion list, E-mail Newsletters, well designed web site can help to facilitate the customer support.

The CRM system can helps to increase customers' satisfaction. Well designed web page provide accurate/relevance information to customers and it helps to reduce their doubts and problems. The latest update can be obtained immediately compare to traditional method. Customer can log on to the forum to search for more opinions from others forumers before they make a decision. FAQ is provide within the website to helps to minimize the uncertainty and increase the feeling of secure.

There are many applications can enhance the customer support, these applications has improved our living standard and it bring the feel convenience.

In facts, E-commerce brings a lot of benefits to us rather than the 3 benefits which is discussed at above.

References :

-http://wiki.media-culture.org.au/index.php/E-commerce_-_Overview_-_Advantages
-http://www.ecommerceprogram.com/ecommerce/benefits-of-ecommerce.asp
-http://wiki.media-culture.org.au/index.php/ECommerce_-_Benefits
-http://www.bizfab.com/ecommercebenefits.html
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E_commerce
-http://www.ecommerceoptimization.com/ecommerce-introduction/


Prepared by: Teo Muh Chow