Blog PREZIntation

Okay, so let me get this out there: I chose the 'BLOG' topic because, admittedly, I am addicted. I love to blog. So, in signing up for a key topic presentation I thought "OMG, how hard could this be? I LUV BLOGZ! because I think in AIM shorthand/lingo. I was also really excited to use PREZI (After signing up for my Prezi account and playing with it, I've come to the conclusion that Prezi is like the new iPhone and Power Point is like my old Cingular flip phone that didn't have web access).

"INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL BLOGS?! What in the world .." is what I thought after reading pages 142-148 of our book. I immediately took to Google to learn a little more about the internalization and externalization of blogs. I actually came across some really informative sites. It was a lot easier to find information on internal blogs (blogs designed exclusively for employee readers) than external blogs (blogs that are public relations tools).

First website I came across gave Seven Reasons for Your Company to Start an Internal Blog.

[****]

The next one I stumbled upon was Benefits and Uses of Team Blogs.

[***]

Lastly, I found Internal Blogs: So, Are They Different From External Blogs?

[*****]

All right, those asterisks are my pathetic attempt at rating each website by stars.

Here's my reasoning:

Blog #1: The main idea was this "proponents say an in-house blog can be like a bulletin board, communication tool and culture enhancement. Plus, it's better than tracking projects by e-mail." I especially liked the culture enhancement part. I felt like these seven reasons were coming from a professional place. 'Too much time wasted checking in with employees,' 'Organizational openness and accountability,' 'With blogs, the humble and the egotist both win' were some of my favorite reasons.

Blog #2: The main idea was "good communication and interaction is part and parcel of a successful team." You can't really argue with that and an internal blog allows that axiom to remain true. Group, sharing, discussion, etc. were the words that resonated with me. Better Business Blogging bolsters the belief that (internal) business blogs are beneficial for the team.

Blog #3: The main idea was "an internal blog has a “closed” audience from an organization that has its own culture, its own set of rules of conduct, its own politics. " Dennis Hamilton, the author of the article, says that "to be successful, the author (or authors) of the internal blog must be sensitive to these perimeters." I like this guys style. He's speaking from his own experience as an internal blogger when he's giving his advice. He also touches on A LOT of guidelines that the book touches on, which makes me feel that this man knows what he's talking about. Hamilton also kind of lays down some ground rules when it comes to blogging, like "if you value your job, your organization certainly must never be criticized."

Sorry I wasn't a tad more helpful on the external blog front. Everything I know about that, I learned from the book.

I'll leave you all with some words of wisdom about the advantages of internal blogging from Darren Cornish, Director of Customer Experience at Norwich Union.

(I give Darren ten stars for speaking from experience and for having an accent)

-Courtnie Elston