One of the benefits of being an IABC member is Communication World, the magazine for members.
The September/October edition, which arrived in the mail today, is packed full of great content and is one of the better issues I’ve read in a while.
One excellent feature is “How do blogs measure up” by Katie Paine.
With a deserved reputation as someone who really knows about communication measurement, Katie writes about a topic that should be required reading for every corporate communicator:
Forget reach and frequency. Success in today’s marketplace is measured not by how broad your reach is but how deep your network is.
The four-page article discusses the thorny issues surrounding blogs and bloggers, and what to measure.
As Katie points out:
[…] The standard maxim in the communication world is: “If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.” The problem is not so much how to measure blogs, but rather that “managing” them is impossible: You simply can’t manage what 10 million independent-minded, opinionated people are saying.
She then goes into what you can do to assess the impact and relevance of bloggers and blogosphere content as it relates to your business.
The feature includes some sensible and credible suggestions on what to track and why, including how to measure your own blog if you write one, how blogs affect your organizational goals, advice on what to consider if you’re thinking about starting a blog, and links to social measurement tools on the web.
IABC members can download a PDF of the article.
It’s well worth your time in reading.
