AMY GAHRAN: The Right Conversation

Chase Visa, Complaints, Splogs, and Google: An Amusing Mix

I'm not kidding -- check out what comes up third in a Google Search for "Chase Visa." Amazing. Click the thumbnail above to see a full-size screen grab.

OK, this is such a classic example of why organizations need to pay attention to the public conversation that I can't resist noting it.

I just Googled for "Chase Visa," the credit card division of a major bank. Check out what the #3 result that search is, as of today: My Bad Experiences with Chase Visa, by Ted Montgomery. He originally posted it Sept. 9, 2006 and updated it a few times since. It's pretty detailed, and I didn't plow through it all, but it's fair to say his tale is quite specific and unflattering.

I was amazed by this search ranking. Montgomery's page is just a static web page. It's not a blog, there's no feed. The text doesn't look particularly search-engine optimized in any way. And yet, there it is, damn close to the top. If I were doing PR for Chase Visa, that would really scare me.

So I had to look into this a little further...

10 Ideas: What To Post to a Conference Blog

I've been working hard lately to get the unofficial conference blog up and running for the 2006 conference of the Society of Environmental Journalists.

Now that it's up and the crew of volunteer bloggers is mostly trained in how to use our blogging tool, Typepad, they're starting to request more guidance on content. Most of these contributing bloggers come from print media. They know how to write, but they've never blogged before -- and most of them also have little or no experience in creating any content specifically for online media.

Consequently, they aren't familiar with conference blogs. That's fine -- many people aren't, although that's starting to change. I've worked on some conference blogging efforts, so I've pulled together a list of 10 kinds of posts that work well on conference blogs.

As with any conversational-media effort, it helps to know your audience, as well as your community of contributors (both bloggers and commenters). What skills and expertise do they bring to the table? What do they want? Ultimately, that should be your guide.

Here's my list...

Beyond Blogs: Moleskine Goes Where the Conversation Happens

My Moleskine reporter's notebook -- which is holding up well, despite frequent abuse.

Like many media pros, I'm a die-hard fan of Moleskine notebooks -- especially their small, unlined reporter's notebook (see photo).

Moleskine notebooks aren't fancy. In fact, this brand's reputation hinges almost entirely on quality, and on a vocal, dedicated community of customer evangelists -- such as Merlin Mann of the popular productivity site 43 Folders.

Therefore, when sharply worded complaints about Moleskin's quality and service erupted on the 43 Folders Google Groups forum on Aug. 15, Modo & Modo (manufacturer of Moleskine notebooks) had a pretty big problem.

Apparently, some Moleskine notebooks started falling apart after just a few weeks or months of use. Some owners of these defective notebooks tried contacting Moleskine US, but got no response. Later, it turned out that Moleskin US is not the US distributor for this brand. The official US distributor is Kikkerland Design Inc. But in the meantime, these customers believed Moleskine was ignoring them. Not good.

Clued in by e-mails, Moleskine maker Modo & Modo began checking out the online complaints. On Aug. 30, the company posted a sincere apology on its blog. They offered an explanation of their late response: they're a small company, and in Italy everyone's on vacation in August -- not a great answer, but an honest one. They also offered clear instructions on how owners of defective notebooks could get their problem addressed.

Even smarter, Modo & Modo posted the full text of this statement onto the 43 Folders forum where the complaints arose. It's interesting to note that, despite earlier frustrations aired in that forum, all the responses to the company's apology were positive and supportive.

This story demonstrates the importance of three lessons for all organizations who understand how conversational media can help make or break your reputation...

READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE on the Capture the Conversation blog...

Conversational Media On Paper, Hold the Onions

I talk a lot about conversational media, but usually I'm referring to online media or things like call-in shows or virtual conferencing. However, can you have conversational media on paper? I think so!  Gray Miller of Satori Media was kind enough to let me know about a strikingly conversational menu he recently encountered at the Chicago restaurant Orange.

He's right: This menu is very conversational in tone. It almost reads like a blog. (Picture: A little clip of the top of the menu, courtesy Gray Miller.)

Here's a brief excerpt from further down in the menu:

"Our specialty. The theme changes weekly so ask your server...or, come to think of it, you should have a little card somewhere. if you don't...well, let's just say, there'll be hell to pay! Believe you me! Hell to pay! So take a moment and look around. I'm sure there's a specials card somewhere."

Does a conversational tone = conversational media? Not necessarily, in my opinion. I think, as it currently stands, this humble photocopied and stapled menu offers tremendous conversational potential beyond merely sounding conversational. That is, it could work to engage current and potential customers in two-way conversation.

Here are a few quick ideas on how they could do that:

Corante's Comment Spam Problem

I often read the weblogs offered by Corante, because they mostly choose excellent, thoughtful writers representing a broad range of expertise. They're rather nicely designed blogs too, with decent usability and readabilty. Obviously some people over at Corante know a few things about doing blogs well.

Why, then, is comment spam such a pervasive problem on Corante blogs? That's like making a nice dinner and then just dumping it directly on the table in front of your guests, without a plate -- an unnecessary and disturbing mess.

Here's what I mean...

Amazon "Plogs" -- What Do You Think?

Today on Amazon.com I noticed a new beta feature: a "Plog" (for product weblog), featuring a post by author Ben Hammersley, thanking me for purchasing his book "Content Syndication with RSS."

I think the idea of plogs may have great potential for relationship-building, if implemented carefully and with an eye toward timeliness and relevance. But frankly, this Amazon implementation feels off-base to me so far...

Why Conversational Media Is Newly Important, Even Though It's Definitely Not "New"

What's the big deal about conversational media? A lot of people get confused by that term because, rightly, they know that print and broadcast media have been used to facilitate certain kinds of conversations. So why bother talking about it if it's not new?

That's an important point: conversational media is NOT new. In fact, it's quite ancient. However, conversational media recently has attained crucial significance because, thanks to advances in communication and search technology, it's now more widely accessible and less controlled than ever before.

In media, conversation used to be a minor sideline to publishing. More and more, it's getting to be the main attraction -- not just in terms of popularity, but influence.

How old is conversational media? Well, do you have a Bible lying around?...

The Bakersfield Californian and the Mindset of Conversational Journalism

(NOTE: I cross-posted this article from the blog of my citizen journalism project, I Reporter.)

I just read an intriguing interview with Ray Hacke, Citizen Journalism Editor at the Bakersfield Californian -- an established print daily newspaper that has apparently made a strong commitment to fostering and showcasing citizen journalism.

SEE: "Narrative Journalism, CitJ and The Bakersfield Californian" (in Journalism Hope by K. Paul Mallasch, Jan. 31)

This excerpt, which opened the interview, caught my interest:

Journalism Hope: I like the fact you used the term "contributing writer." Did you consciously stay away from the "citizen journalist" term? If so, why?

Ray Hacke: Actually, we did choose to stay away from the term "citizen journalism." The reason was that we wanted average readers -- people who have little to no writing experience whatsoever -- to feel like they could have a voice in our paper, too.

The word "journalist" has some heavy connotations to it. We felt people might hear it and think they'd have to have some formal training or be thoroughly knowledgeable about grammar, spelling, style, etc., to write for us. We figured that might scare them off, and nothing could be further from the truth.

Our overriding mantra for citizen journalism is, "Journalism is a conversation," and we want people from all walks of life to sit down at the table and join in. So far, we've actually been pretty successful in that regard. We've gotten contributions from writers as young as 12 and as old as 90, from janitors as well as doctors.

That exchange really got my gears going on a whole lot of levels -- especially the concept of conversational journalism...

Washington Post, News Evolution, and Coping with Ugly

Conversational media is messy and not always pretty. There's the good (constructive, engaging exchanges), the bad (comment and trackback spam) and the ugly (rancorous conflict, flame wars, and misbehavior by online vermin).

The good and the bad are easy to handle. In contrast, "ugly" is a thorny, exhausting, discouraging, recurring, and utterly inevitable challenge.

However, the ugly parts of conversational media offer the most rewarding lessons. Here lies a tremendous opportunity: If you recognize and learn these tough lessons, and if you freely admit what you've learned and what you still need to learn, then you can gain lasting credibility and respect. You'll also relax more and worry less on this bumpy ride.

On Jan. 19, Washington Post Online decided to shut down comments on one of its most popular blogs, post.blog, following a firestorm over Post ombudsman Deborah Howell's explanation of her analysis into the paper's coverage of the Jack Abramoff flap.

I love the Washington Post because I think most of the time they do great work and handle tough editorial decisions well. Right now, this news organization has a golden opportunity to gain immense credibility in -- and for -- conversational media. That is, IF it chooses to learn constructive lessons from this difficult experience, rather than retreat into a tempting illusion of control over the public conversation...

What a Cross-Blog Conversation Looks Like

A cross-blog conversation is a public conversation that starts with a posting or comment to one weblog, and then spreads to a posting or comment in a different blog. This can get difficult to follow unless everyone involved makes an effort to include specific cross-links -- and even then it can get confusing!

If you're not sure what a cross-blog conversation looks like, here's a very simple example...

Marketing Your Skills: Why a Blog Beats a Brochure Site

One of the reasons I launched this new weblog is that I'd quietly grown embarrassed by the static site I'd been using as an online brochure for my professional skills.

My old Gahran.com site had degenerated into a "cobweb" because it was a relative hassle to maintain. I hadn't updated it in a long time, and it featured some broken links. That's not good marketing.

Yes, I'll admit it, I've gotten spoiled by the simplicity, speed, and flexibility of blogging tools. But that's not the only reason why I've killed Gahran.com and redirected all the traffic from that domain to The Right Conversation. The thing is, a weblog can serve as both a brochure and a conversation.

Here's how I've done that, in this case...