The Executive Blogger’s Guide toBuilding a Nest of Blogs, Wikis & RSS.

“People build brands as birds build nests, from scraps and

straws we chance upon… People come to conclusions about

brands as the result of an accountable number of different

stimuli: many of which are way outside the control or even

influence of the products owner.”— Jeremy Bullmore, former chairman JWT London, and director of WPP

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n Welcome to theBlogosphere: The End of Top-Down Talk

n What are Blogs?n How Powerful Have

Blogs Become?n The Unique Characteristics

of Blogsn Business Blog Examplesn How To Use RSS

Newsreaders

n Searching andMonitoring Blogs

n Launching Your Blogn Corporate Policies and

Bloggingn Blog Backfiresn Moblogs & Vblogsn Wikisn Conclusion:Your Game Plan

Welcome to the Blogosphere:The End of Top-Down TalkChanges in online technology havetaken what was already a revolutionin communication and now morphedthe internet into a real-time forumwherein for the first time, participantsare as powerful as traditional controllers of media and publicrelations messages. Blogs areunmasking improprieties, endingcareers, and damaging brands.Yet Blogs are also building andstrengthening brands. UnderstandingBlogs and their unique culture andvoice is imperative; trying toexploit this new format withoutthat understanding will surely endin a vitriolic stoning of your brand.But choosing to ignore Blogs will

leave you at the mercy of the stonethrowers as well.

While the advent of the Web spawnedmillions of new communicatorsand content providers around theworld, the Web page format stillfollowed the old broadcast modelof one source beaming out tomany. Granted, chat groupsallowed for more of a conversation,but nothing compared to the noisebeing generated via Weblogs(“Blogs”). The creation of Blogsand Wikis has enabled a verydifferent approach: the real-timeopen forum. Blogs may have startedas online journals for computergeeks or angst-ridden teens, butnow they have become a force to

be reckoned with in the corporateand political spheres, many timesacting as gatekeepers or evenoverturning the mainstream mediaworld, ending powerful careers orkilling product lines. And yet,understanding and harnessingthese new technologies can serveas both an early warning system forwhat is being said about your com-pany, and as a way for your compa-ny to lead the conversation in amanner that positions it as a trust-ed leader.

What are Blogs?The term “Weblog” was coined in1997 by Jarn Barger whose site“Robot Wisdom” was an effort tolog various sites he encountered on

OgilvyInsightsOgi lvy Publ ic Relat ions Wor ldwide

the Web. But an accumulation ofinteresting links is only part ofwhat a Blog has become. DaveWiner, creator of an early Blogcalled “Scripting News” said:“Weblogs are often-updated sitesthat point to articles elsewhere onthe web, often with comments, andto on-site articles. A weblog is kindof a continual tour, with a humanguide whom you get to know.There are many guides to choosefrom and each develops an audience.”

So blogs are a sort of frequentlyupdated, online journal that mixespersonal opinion and daily life withobservations and links to othersources and allow for readers tocontribute their own thoughts andreactions.

Winer created software making iteasy to create a Blog (RadioUserland). And others such asLiveJournal, Blogger.com andXanga created Web-based blog-ging templates that allow anyoneto start their own blog in minuteswith no knowledge whatsoever ofprogramming. The revolution wasunderway. Today there are between10 million and 35 million blogs inthe US and some countries, suchas Korea, claim more than 10 million.

When it comes to business, blogs are being used to hold aconversation with customers, withemployees, and with media. Theycan serve as effective vehicles formarketing, idea testing, knowledgemanagement, crisis communication,and thought leadership.

How Powerful Have BlogsBecome?On September 12, 2004 someoneposted on a blog that a disposableBic pen could open the supposedlyimpenetrable Kryptonite bicyclelocks. Word spread via blogs.Kryptonite issued a statement that

its locks still deterred theft. TheNew York Times published thestory the next day. Then, accordingto blog monitoring companyTechnorati, nearly 2 million peoplevisited blogs to read more about it.In the end, Kryptonite paid $10million in replacement locks—that’sout of $25 million in total revenues.

According to Technorati, 23,000blogs are created every day—that’sone every 3 seconds—and thenumber is accelerating. While thevast majority are diary-type blogsonly of interest to a few familymembers or friends, some havegained large audiences.

According to the findings in thePew Internet & American LifeProject (November 2004):

n 27% of all internet users in theUS now read blogs

n that equals 32 million Blog readers

n that’s a 58% jump in just 9months

n 7% or 8 million have createdtheir own Blog

n 12% or 14 million have postedcomments on a Blog

n and that is while still 62% do noteven know what a Blog is

Clearly the tipping point has beenreached and the numbers of Blogreaders and creators will continueaccelerating. And just who arethese people? The Pew studyreports that in the US they are:

n 57% male

n 48% are younger than 30

n 42% live in households earningmore than $50,000

n 39% have college or graduatedegrees

So they are a well-educated andaffluent community. Yet Pewreports in this latest survey, “therehas been greater-than-averagegrowth in blog readership amongwomen, minorities, those betweenthe ages of 30 and 49.”

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Among the most popular blogs arethose that look at politics, such as“Instapundit,”and those that chroniclelife in a gossip column (“Wonkette”)or catalog the latest in gadgets andtechnology (“Gizmodo” and“BoingBoing”). But business blogshave amassed large audiences aswell. Perhaps the most influentialare those written by Microsoft’sRobert Scoble (“Scobleizer”) andJonathan Schwartz (President of SunMicrosystems).

Scoble was formerly with NECand a blogger who never held backin his criticism of Microsoft. In agutsy move, Microsoft hired himand not only allowed him to continue blogging, it does notappear to censor him.

“Impressively, he has also succeededwhere small armies of more conventional public-relations typeshave been failing abjectly foryears: he has made Microsoft,”writes the Economist, “with its history of monopolistic bullying,appear marginally but noticeablyless evil to the outside world, andespecially to the independent softwaredevelopers that are his core audience.Bosses and PR people at othercompanies are taking note.”

The Unique Characteristics of BlogsBlogs are anti-establishment. Theyare personal, candid, irreverent, andinformal. You will find a personalcomment about last night’s restaurantright in the middle of a seriousanalysis of software, a gossipy jokein the midst of an industry overview.Blogs are no place for so-calledbrochure ware or the official line.They are the insightful aside byShakespeare’s fool. The Blogger,while acerbic, is also humble in thathe or she is quick to give credit tothe writing and thinking of others byway of embedded links. Here’s achecklist of Blog attributes:

Blog Attributesn personal, candid, informal,

transparent

n frequently updated

n journal entries in reverse order(most current on top)

n includes links to third parties

n includes reader comments

n includes “Trackback” functionshowing who is linking to it

n includes “Blogroll” of links toother Bloggers

n offers RSS feed (more on thislater)

n includes archive of past entries

Sample Blogger Code Of Ethicsfrom Forrester’s Charlene Li:1. I will tell the truth.

2. I will write deliberately and withaccuracy.

3. I will acknowledge and correctmistakes promptly.

4. I will preserve the original post,using notations to show where I have made changes so as tomaintain the integrity of mypublishing.

5. I will never delete a post.

6. I will not delete commentsunless they are spam or off-topic.

7. I will reply to emails and comments when appropriate,and do so promptly.

8. I will strive for high quality withevery post – including basicspellchecking.

9. I will stay on topic.

10. I will disagree with other opinions respectfully.

11. I will link to online referencesand original source materialsdirectly.

12. I will disclose conflicts of interest.

13. I will keep private issues and topics private, since discussing private issueswould jeopardize my personaland work relationships

http: / /scoble.weblogs.com

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Business Blog ExamplesWhile the earliest blogs may havebeen either tech or politics, theyhave taken root in many industriesfrom autos to airplanes, fromyogurt to appliances. Here’s a lookat several examples.

GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutzwrites “FastLane” while GM alsoproduces the micro interest “Small Block Engine” blog.

http: / / fast lane.gmblogs.com/

http: / /smal lb lock.gmblogs.com

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To illustrate the power of blogs,let’s look at Autoblog.com.While it is in a crowded field thatincludes stalwart print brands such as Motor Trend and PopularMechanics and AutoWeek withtheir own Web sites,

using BlogPulse’s trend tool wecan see that Autoblog has nearlypulled even with the big players.

http: / /autoblog.com/

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Boeing marketing chief RandyBaseler is connecting with mediaand customers via his blog at www.boeing.com/randy

Stonyfield Farms catapulted itselffrom a little town organic dairyproducts company to a global player through four blogs includingone written by a farmer. But perhapsits greatest insight was that itsorganic products were the choiceof independent-minded, educatedwomen. So one of its more popularblogs is “Strong Women” featuringarticles and info perhaps notdirectly related to yogurt but righton target for the yogurt buyers.

http: / /www.stonyf ie ld .com/weblog

http: / /www.boeing.com/randy

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NewsGator

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How To Use RSS Newsreaders Blogs can be read like any otherWeb site by going to its URL (ex:www.autoblog.com). However,about all blogs offer another optionvia something called RSS.

RSS stands for “really simple syndication.” It is a form of programming that allows users to shop for, or subscribe to content,and bundle it together into a custom kind of browser called afeed aggregator or Newsreader.RSS or another similar technologycalled Atom, pushes or feeds theupdated content automatically soall the user need do is open theirNewsreader and all the RSS feedswill deliver the absolute latest

content from Web sites or blogs.This means the reader need nevercheck back with or visit the originalWeb site where they found thecontent. And they need not register for an email newsletter,nor risk being spammed. MostRSS links look like this:

The signature orange rectanglecontains the letters “XML”because that is the programminglanguage used—a sort of Rosettastone of Web languages. But nowyou may also see custom links

designed for specific Newsreaderssuch as these:

Using RSS means a constant, auto-matic stream of headlines, updatedblog entries, or press releases.Soon media will come to expectcompanies to provide all releasesin this format.

Here are examples of aggregators and readers:

www.newsgator.com

FeedReader

Bloglines

www.feedreader.com

www.blogl ines.com

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FeedDemon

Aggreg8

Some of the readers are free, Web-basedservices while others require downloadingsoftware and may require a subscriptionfee. The best allow you to bundle likecontent into custom folders. Some willintegrate directly into MS Outlook.

www.aggreg8.net

www.feeddemon.com

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Searching and Monitoring BlogsYou can use Google to find blogs ifyou know what they are called. Butspecialized blog search enginescan help you find blogs even whenyou don’t know what they arecalled. For example, what if youwant to find blogs on the topic ofautos but have no idea who writesthem or what they are called?Here are some blog search engines:

www.blogsearchengine.com

www.daypop.com

www.technorati.com

www.feedster.com

www.blogdigger.com

www.blogstreet.com

www.pubsub.com

Blog monitors will display a sort oftop hits ranking for blogs. Some maylook at traffic, which blogs themost influential bloggers link to,and complicated metrics trackingthe pass along viral nature of givenblogs.

www.blogdex.net

www.blogstreet.com

www.technorati.com

www.blogpulse.com

One particularly interesting blogmonitor is Intelliseek’s BlogPulse.BlogPulse not only gives a ranking,it uses a trend graphing tool todraw the buzz volume of topics orkeywords over time. It will evenallow you to input your own itemsto track. So imagine tracking yourcompany against the competitionas an early warning system. Herewe have tracked the drugs Vioxxand Celebrex.

www.feedster.com

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Launching Your BlogThere are three ways to start publishing your own blog.

n Use free Web-based commercialservices

n Use subscription, hosted services

n Use software on your own company server

Each option has its merits anddrawbacks. So here is a checklist.

If you want to dabble with non-professional blogging:Choose free, advertising supportedblog services such as:

Xangawww.xanga.com (free with ads,premium service available)

LiveJournalwww.livejournal.com (free andpaid versions)

MSN Spaceshttp://spaces.msn.com/ (free)

Pros: free, simple to use

Cons: communities of kids withads on the blogs; lacks professionaltools; you won’t own your content

If you want a more professionallook that you can slightly customize:Choose hosted services such as:

TypePadwww.typepad.com

Bloggerwww.blogger.com

Pros: good enough quality for professional blogging; hosted onlineso no need for an IT department

Cons: modest subscription fee,limited customization, must useprovider’s domain name

If you want a very professionalservice combined with powerful tools:Choose so-called “server side”software to be installed in yourcompany such as:

Word Presshttp://wordpress.org/ (free download)

Radio Userlandhttp://radio.userland.com/

Moveable Typehttp://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/

Pros: total control, good metrics andtools, your company domain name

Cons: need IT department to manage it on your company server

CorporatePolicies andBloggingDeciding whether or not to allowemployees to blog is worth somecareful thinking. There have beenmany cases of embarrassment oreven firing bloggers.

Here is a set of guidelines offeredby Gartner’s blogger Charlene Li:

1. Make it clear that the viewsexpressed in the blog are yoursalone and do not necessarilyrepresent the views of youremployer.

2. Respect the company’s confidentiality and proprietaryinformation.

3. Ask your manager if you have any questions about what is appropriate to includein your blog.

4. Be respectful to the company,employees, customers, partners,and competitors.

5. Understand when the companyasks that topics not be dis-cussed for confidentiality orlegal compliance reasons.

6. Ensure that your blogging activ-ity does not interfere with yourwork commitments.

The goal is to try to allow for thecandor required of bloggers whilenot compromising the company.Here are some other examples ofcorporate blogging policies:

n Sun Microsystems policy:http://www.tbray.org/ongoing/When/200x/2004/05/02/Policy

n Groove Net (Lotus Notes inventor Ray Ozzie):http://www.ozzie.net/blog/2002/08/24.html

n Harvard Law School:http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/terms

While some are a bit laid back andconversational, asking employeesto use common sense (Sun, Groove),others are more button-down andlegalistic (Harvard Law). It is particularly important that companybloggers understand they mayneed to comply with such sensitivematters as IPO quiet periods.

“Talking about revenue, future productship dates, roadmaps, or our share priceis apt to get you, or the company, orboth, into legal trouble.”

— from the Sun blogging policy

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Blog Backfires“If you fudge or lie on a blog, youare biting the karmic weenie. Thenegative reaction will be so greatthat, whatever your intention was,it will be overwhelmed andcrushed like a bug.”

— Steve Hayden, Vice Chairman,Ogilvy & Mather

Seeing how influential blogs arebecoming, it can be tempting to tryto co-opt them as part of a publicrelations effort. Given the somewhatskeptical, anti-establishment toneof blogs, attempts to make thempart of the plan can backfire. Hereare a couple of examples.

Mazda’s CrashFirst, Mazda created a blog calledHalloweenM3 via a 23-year-oldcode-named “Kid Halloween” wholisted his movie interests as all carchase movies. He linked to what hesaid were cool videos a friend of hisrecorded off local public accesscable TV (which carries no ads).The videos were of Mazda carsbreak dancing, imitating skateboarders, and driving onHalloween night. Bloggersunmasked Kid Halloween as partof a corporate PR effort when theynoticed the production values andthe same videos posted on theWebsite of the agency that pro-duced them. The response was anangry Blogosphere and thousandsof pick-ups and links to the story.Mazda pulled the site.

The Mazda M3 skateboarding v ideo

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Dr. Pepper’s Raging Cow TurnsBlogosphere SourCadbury’s Dr. Pepper divisioncreated a new milk beveragecalled Raging Cow with hip,youth-oriented, edgy flavors such as “chocolate insanity” andan angry cow icon. Dr. Pepperhired Richards Interactive tocreate an obviously mock blogwritten by the cow. So far sogood. Then Richards recruitedsix bloggers in the target

demographic (18 to 24), flewthem to Dallas to brief them andwork with them and give themproduct samples. This was thepart that angered the bloggerworld to such a degree that therewas even a call for a boycott ofthe product with a boycott viralgraphic that spread throughblogs. They see the blogosphereas strictly a bottom-up grassroots world and react badly toany top-down marketing efforts.

Moblogs & VblogsNow blogs have moved on beyondtext and graphics. Moblogs areblogs created by contributions from mobile devices. Some featurephotos taken from mobile phoneswith cameras. The most popularsuch site is called “textamerica”(www.textamerica.com).

Vblogs add video to the format.

www.textamer ica.com

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Podcasting is a form of audioblogging. Content creators makeradio-style shows or interviews andfeed them via RSS. Then youdownload them on your iPod orother MP3 player.

WikisAnother emerging, collaborativeonline platform useful for businessis the Wiki. It is named after theHawaiian word for “quick” andperhaps even the Honolulu airportbuses known as “Wiki Wikis.”

Wikis are Websites that can easilybe edited by anyone visiting it. Thebest example is a giant onlineencyclopedia (Wikipedia) growingevery day through contributors.

Now the Wiki format is being usedby corporations for internal projectcollaboration, information sharingand knowledge management.

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Conclusion: Your Game PlanHere’s how the Asia PacificPresident of Ogilvy PublicRelations, Christopher Graves, suggests companies approach theBlogosphere.

1. Start reading business blogs toget a sense of tone, voice andcontent. Familiarize yourself withblog search engines and monitors.Check out the blogrolls andtrackbacks.

2. Plan with your communicationscounsel to decide whether you are looking for a blog to:raise company profile throughpositioning you as a thoughtleader; create buzz to raise company and brand awareness;be a sales tool talking to prospectsand existing customers; commu-nicate internally for project col-laboration; use as an internalknowledge management tool.

3. Be comfortable in your ownskin. “Do not try to be funny orwisecracking if that’s not you,”advises Graves, “since blogs areabout being candid and ringingtrue.” It is better to be informaland personal, he says, butremain true to your own voice.Update frequently, even ifbriefly, and do not use a ghostblogger. Use loads of links torelevant information; remember— as a blogger you are the tour guide.

4. Write a company blogging policy(use the models in this paper).

5. Choose a publishing platform.While using a community, commercial and Web-basedservice such as LiveJournal orXanga or MSN Spaces, “it’s notappropriate for a corporate blog,”suggests Graves. He advisesusing either a hosted professional

service such as Typepad or evenbetter, if your IT department is upto it, use software on your ownserver such as Moveable Type orWord Press or Radio Userland.

6. Make sure your trusted communications counselor holdsa briefing session with your teamso everyone understands the keypoints, the goals, the groundrules and the risks.

7. Make sure the blog is promotedvia search engines and otherblogs. Mutual links, or blogrolls,are the way to network in theblogosphere.

8. While influencing key bloggersmay be a sound strategy,approach this with extreme caution and transparency.The blog world punishes top-down tactics or undisclosed co-opting of bloggers.

GlossaryAtom: A form of programming forWebsites or blogs that will feed thecontent to end users rather thanrequire them to return to the sitefor updates.

Blog: An online journal that mixescandor, informality, opinion andlinks third-party information. It iseasy to update with no program-ming needed and allows readers toadd their own comments.

Blogroll: A link within a blog, usually in a vertical menu along the side, to other blogs.

Moblog: A blog created throughthe input from mobile devices suchas PDAs or phones. They may alsoinclude photos from mobile cameraphones.

Newsreader: Browser-like windowthat allows readers to shop for andsubscribe to different contentproviders (using RSS) and thenaggregate all the feeds into thebrowser.

Podcasting: Audio content similarto blogs that can be downloaded toiPods or other MP3 players.

RSS: Really Simple Syndication.A form of programming code thatallows Website or blog readers tosubscribe to them in order to auto-matically get updates fed to themin a Newsreader. The content canbe anything from thin slices towhole blogs or press releases.

Trackback: A piece of program-ming that shows a blogger who islinking to their blog and deliversthe snippets of what they said.

Vblog: Video blog.

Wiki: From the Hawaiian term for“quick,” this is a form of Websitethat allows readers to edit and con-tribute to the Wiki. It is an open,collaborative site on the Web.

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Appendix The Corporate Weblog Manifesto(by Robert Scoble)

1. TTeellll tthhee ttrruutthh.. The whole truth.Nothing but the truth. If yourcompetitor has a product that’sbetter than yours, link to it. Youmight as well. We’ll find it anyway.

2. PPoosstt ffaasstt oonn ggoooodd nneewwss oorr bbaadd..Someone say something badabout your product? Link to it— before the second or third sitedoes — and answer its claims asbest you can. Same if somethinggood comes out about you. It’sall about building long-termtrust. The trick to building trustis to show up! If people are saying things about your productand you don’t answer them, thatdistrust builds. Plus, if people aresaying good things about yourproduct, why not help Googlefind those pages as well?

3. UUssee aa hhuummaann vvooiiccee.. Don’t getcorporate lawyers and PR professionals to cleanse yourspeech. We can tell, believe me.Plus, you’ll be too slow. If you’rethe last one to post, the joke is on you!

4. MMaakkee ssuurree yyoouu ssuuppppoorrtt tthhee llaatteessttssooffttwwaarree//wweebb//hhuummaann ssttaannddaarrddss..If you don’t know what the W3Cis, find out. If you don’t knowwhat RSS feeds are, find out. Ifyou don’t know what weblogs.comis, find out. If you don’t knowhow Google works, find out.

5. HHaavvee aa tthhiicckk sskkiinn.. Even if youhave Bill Gates’ favorite productpeople will say bad things aboutit. That’s part of the process.Don’t try to write a corporateweblog unless you can answerall questions — good and bad— professionally, quickly, andnicely.

6. DDoonn’’tt iiggnnoorree SSllaasshhddoott..

7. TTaallkk ttoo tthhee ggrraassssrroooottss ffiirrsstt.. Why?Because the main-stream pressis cruising weblogs looking forstories and looking for people touse in quotes. If a mainstreamreporter can’t find anyone whoknows anything about a story,he/she will write a story thatlooks like a press release insteadof something trustworthy. Peopletrust stories that have quotesfrom many sources. They don’ttrust press releases.

8. IIff yyoouu ssccrreeww uupp,, aacckknnoowwlleeddggee iitt..Fast. And give us a plan for howyou’ll unscrew things. Thendeliver on your promises.

9. UUnnddeerrpprroommiissee aanndd oovveerr ddeelliivveerr..If you’re going to ship on March1, say you won’t ship until March15. Folks will start to trust you ifyou behave this way. Look atDisneyland.When you’re standingin line you trust their signs.Why? Because the line alwaysgoes faster than its says it will(their signs are engineered to saythat a line will take about 15%longer than it really will).

10. IIff DDoocc SSeeaarrllss ssaayyss iitt oorr wwrriitteessiitt,, bbeelliieevvee iitt.. Live it. Enoughsaid. (Note: Searls is author of“Cluetrain Manifesto”).

11. KKnnooww tthhee iinnffoorrmmaattiioonn ggaattee--kkeeeeppeerrss.. If you don’t realizethat Sue Mosher reaches moreOutlook users than nearlyeveryone else, you shouldn’t beon the PR team for Outlook. Ifyou don’t know all of her phonenumbers and IM addresses,you should be fired. If you can’tcall on the gatekeepers during acrisis, you shouldn’t try to keepa corporate weblog (oh, andthey better know how to getahold of you since they knowwhen you’re under attackbefore you do — for instance,

11. why hasn’t anyone from theHotmail team called me yet totell me what’s going on withHotmail and why it’s unreachableas I write this?).

12. NNeevveerr cchhaannggee tthhee UURRLL ooff yyoouurrwweebblloogg.. I’ve done it once and Ilost much of my readership andit took several months to buildup the same reader patternsand trust.

13. IIff yyoouurr lliiffee iiss iinn ttuurrmmooiill aanndd//oorryyoouu’’rree uunnhhaappppyy,, ddoonn’’tt wwrriittee..When I was going through mydivorce, it affected my writingin subtle ways. Lately I’ve beenfeeling a lot better, and I noticemy writing and readership quality has been going up too.

14. IIff yyoouu ddoonn’’tt hhaavvee tthhee aannsswweerrss,,ssaayy ssoo.. Not having the answersis human. But, get them andexceed expectations. If you sayyou’ll know by tomorrow after-noon, make sure you know inthe morning.

15. NNeevveerr lliiee.. You’ll get caught andyou’ll lose credibility that you’llnever get back.

16. NNeevveerr hhiiddee iinnffoorrmmaattiioonn.. Justlike the space shuttle engineers,your information will get outand then you’ll lose credibility.

17. IIff yyoouu hhaavvee iinnffoorrmmaattiioonn tthhaattmmiigghhtt ggeett yyoouu iinn aa llaawwssuuiitt,, sseeee aallaawwyyeerr bbeeffoorree ppoossttiinngg,, bbuutt ddoo iittffaasstt.. Speed is key here. If ittakes you two weeks to answerwhat’s going on in the market-place because you’re scared ofwhat your legal hit will be, thenyou’re screwed anyway. Yourcompetitors will figure it outand outmaneuver you.

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18. LLiinnkk ttoo yyoouurr ccoommppeettiittoorrss aannddssaayy nniiccee tthhiinnggss aabboouutt tthheemm..Remember, you’re part of anindustry and if the entire indus-try gets bigger, you’ll probablywin more than your fair shareof business and you’ll get big-ger too. Be better than yourcompetitors — people remem-ber that. I remember sendinglots of customers over to thecamera shop that competedwith me and many of thosefolks came back to me and said“I’d rather buy it from you, canyou get me that?” Rememberhow Bill Gates got DOS? Hesent IBM to get it from DRIResearch. They weren’t all thathelpful, so IBM said “hey, whydon’t you get us an OS?”

19. BBOOGGUU.. This means “Bend Over and GreaseUp.” I believe the term origi-nated at Microsoft. It meansthat when a big fish comesover (like IBM, or Bill Gates)you do whatever you have todo to keep him happy.Personally, I believe inBOGU’ing for EVERYONE,not just the big fish. Younever know when the janitorwill go to school, get anMBA, and start a company.I’ve seen it happen.Translation for weblog world:treat Gnome-Girl as good asyou’d treat Dave Winer orGlenn Reynolds. You neverknow who’ll get promoted.I’ve learned this lesson thehard way over the years.

20. BBee tthhee aauutthhoorriittyy oonn yyoouurrpprroodduucctt//ccoommppaannyy.. Youshould know more aboutyour product than anyoneelse alive, if you’re writing aweblog about it. If there’ssomeone alive who knowsmore, you damn well betterhave links to them (and youshould send some goodies tothem to thank them forbeing such great advocates).

21. KKnnooww wwhhoo iiss ttaallkkiinngg aabboouutt yyoouu..

Christopher Graves, President, Asia Pacific,Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide.Chris joined Ogilvy PR in early 2005 after 23 years in businessnews. He spent the last 18 years with Dow Jones on both theeditorial and business sides. He was one of the founders ofWall Street Journal Television, Managing Editor of Asia BusinessNews (ABN), Vice President of News and Programming forCNBC Asia, Vice President of News and Programming for CNBCEurope, Managing Director of Business Development (EMEA &Asia) for Dow Jones Consumer Electronic Publishing (WSJ.com),and Managing Director of Far Eastern Economic Review.