Evaluating the blogosphere

This is currently the hottest of topics for many communication professionals.

In recent weeks we have visited several clients to discuss the impact that the blogosphere may be having on reputation and how we can effectively assist them to monitor and evaluate this for them. While there is no formulaic response for each client we have identified some key questions that need to be answered before we can deliver a solution.

Among these would be:

1. Which online media key journalists use to source information/stories?

2. Which sites people who don’t read newspapers use to find their news information?

3. How much information can organisations reasonably be expected to assimilate? (The enormity and speed of the online world makes it unlikely that all coverage is required)

The response to each of these, and numerous other, questions, will assist in forming a basis for further discussions on how projects can be shaped. Together we are then in a position to work towards a model that allows companies to effectively develop their online reputation management.