Managing Your Brand in Online Forums Stephan Spencer President, Internet Concepts sspencernetconcept

1
Managing Your Brand in Online ForumsStephan
SpencerPresident, Internet Conceptssspencer_at_netc
oncepts.comwww.netconcepts.com
2
Managing Your Brandin Online Forums

• Introduction to online forums
• Reactive methods for damage control
• Proactive methods for damage control

3
Online Forums

• Usenet newsgroups vs. listservs (email) vs.
  Web-based forums vs. chat
• Moderated (approval of postings by a moderator)
  vs. unmoderated (anything goes)
• Archives of Usenet available via
  http//groups.google.com, of Web forums via
  google.com

4
Email-Based Discussion Groups

• Definition
• Bi-directional mailing list, a.k.a. listserv
• Advantages
• Easy to access ubiquitous
• Disadvantages
• Clogs up users mailbox non-regulated
• Example
• bnb-list_at_innsite.com

5
Usenet-Based Discussion Groups (Newsgroups)

• Definition
• Worldwide network of newsgroups on 50,000
  topics, accessed via newsreader (such as
  Netscape) or Google Groups
• Advantages
• Regulated topics are unique separate from email
• Disadvantages
• Need newsreader messages periodically deleted
• Example
• rec.travel.bedbreakfast

6
Web-Based Discussion Groups

• Definition
• Discussions are posted on a World Wide Web site
• Advantages
• Drives traffic into your Web site
• Disadvantages
• Non-regulated requires Web access
• Example
• http//www.writers.net/forum/

7
Reactive Methods forDamage Control

• Respond directly to the poster and solve their
  problem
• Respond to the group from the companys
  perspective
• Respond to the group from an employees
  perspective
• Ask others to post positive opinions in response
• Cancel the message using cancelmoose (careful!)

8
Handling Negative Posts

• Are people posting negative comments about your
  company or products?
• How do you find out?
• How do you respond?
• Are you doing anything to avoid and/or contain
  future occurrences?

9
Handling Negative Posts (cont.)

• Examples in Usenet
• Intel Pentium bug fiasco
• Posted by Prof. Thomas Nicely in October 1994
• Thousands of messages to Usenet followed
• Cost Intel approximately 500 million
• American Express bad service thread
• Your company?
• Remember archived Usenet postings never go away!

10
Proactive Methods forDamage Control

• Monitor discussion forums
• Participate in discussion forums
• Create your own discussion forums
• Moderate discussion forums
• Write a FAQ

11
Monitoring Discussion Forums

• You can monitor...
• Usenet with http//groups.google.com
• Web forums with google.com
• Email lists with CataList at www lsoft.com
• Advanced searching
• Boolean logic (and, or, not)
• Searching for a phrase (use )

12
Participating in Discussion Forums

• Post frequently
• Answer questions, add value, and dont advertise!
• Use your signature line to soft sell your
  company
• As a general rule focus on Usenet newsgroups
  before listservs

13
Creating Your Own Discussion Forums

• The benefits
• Control, visibility, brand awareness
• What type(s) of discussion forum to create
  (listserv, Usenet newsgroup, Web forum, or chat
  room)?
• Moderated or unmoderated?

14
Why a Usenet Newsgroup?

• Millions of people participate in newsgroups
• Over 250,000 messages are posted to newsgroups
  each day
• Newsgroups are automatically promoted
• Newsgroups are limited to one per topic,
  effectively locking out your competitors if you
  are first to market

15
Why Moderate?

• Editorial control
• Protection from liability
• First view of new posts
• The ability to place a footer message at the
  bottom of each posting to drive traffic to your
  web site (e.g. Archives of this newsgroup can be
  found at our web site)

16
Setting Up a Usenet Newsgroup

• The process
• Takes several months and does not cost anything
  but your time
• Look at the Usenet newsgroup news.announce.newgrou
  ps for more info
• Step 1 Request for Discussion (RFD)
• Step 2 Usenet Volunteer Votetakers (UVV)
  Questionnaire
• Step 3 Call For Votes (CFV)

17
Maintaining a Usenet Newsgroup

• No hardware required
• Moderation may take anywhere from 15 min to 1 hr
  per day
• Dont fall behind on the moderation. Approve
  postings at least daily if possible.
• Try to offer archives, a FAQ, and an email list
  (listserv) gateway to the newsgroup, if possible
• If you are also maintaining a listserv, prepare
  to spend 2 hrs per month on administrivia

18
Discussion Group Archives

• Definition
• Searchable repository of previously posted
  discussion group messages
• Examples
• http//www.innsite.com/rtbb/

19
Writing and Maintaining a FAQ

• Definition
• A Frequently Asked Questions document that
  answers commonly asked questions on the
  discussion forum
• Refer to the FAQ when answering repeated
  questions
• Draw from participants postings for the FAQ
• Promote your FAQ
• FAQ Archives news.answers, .answers, MIT, OSU,
  ...
• Example
• http//www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/usenet
  /Satellite-TV/FAQ/faq.html

20
Summary

• Why
• Discussion forums have a great deal of potential
  for negative branding
• Discussion forums are often overlooked by
  companies. Dont make the same mistake!
• How
• React quickly to negative posts
• Be proactive!
• Monitor, participate, create your own, moderate,
  write a FAQ

21
Questions?

• Feel free to email me at sspencer_at_netconcepts.com
• Thank you!