Interesting conversation today at the Blog Business Summit about the use of ghost writers by corporate executives. Dave Taylor, a blogging pro who operates several blogs on tech issues, management, and parenting, was presenting advice for corporate bloggers when he suggested it is perfectly appropriate to have someone write for the CEO on a corporate blog.
The reaction was a predictable range of agreement and shock. Bloggers who think in terms of a purely personal medium expressed concerns that anyone would think of blogging for someone else. Even editing of blogs by someone other than the writer was questioned.
"It all comes down to this," Taylor said. "You need to be credible. You need to be the expert in your space. The way to get there is to recognize that it is not about you, that it is about what you are selling."
The blogosphere is a public environment. It is not surprising to me that organizations want to address people in that venue with the most effective message possible. General Motors CEO Bob Lutz, whose blog, FastLane Blog, is widely read works with a staff of five to get the postings right, Taylor said. They make it incredibly personal, just as presidential speech writers who shape their boss' many scripts to make the myriad events where they speak touch the audience in an intimate-seeming way.
A CEO blog needs to accomplish the same magic as a great political speech—it must engage and persuade. Entering the blogospheric conversation is like deciding to give a speech at a conference. The CEO must think about where she wants to be heard and whether what she has to say will be welcomed there. It's vital, if they don't have the natural social skills required to connect with people verbally, that she use professionals to help shape her message.
At the same time, it's important to create a culture where smart expression is encouraged. I was struck during a later session by Robert Scoble's comment about video blogging at Microsoft and how little willingness at most companies there is to allow employees deep in the org chart to speak to customers: "You don't see some seventh-level employee at GM walking onto the factory floor with a video camera and asking people on the line to talk about what they are doing."
Blogging works best when it is generously spread through the organization. That means everyone has to be smart, aware of their environment when they write and aware of the company's goals.
