Sunstar Creative

Being “Radically Transparent” Online

Jun 22, 2009 Social Media Marketing Victoria, Social Networking Online

For me, becoming radically transparent online took some getting used to. I first heard about this concept in a seminar on Social Media Marketing for business – Ross Dunn of Stepforth Marketing recommended we read the book Radically Transparent: Monitoring and Managing Reputations Online by Andy Beal & Dr. Judy Strauss.

It feels strange at first to begin typing into the abyss of the internet knowing full well that your ideas are available to your competitors, critics, stakeholders and fans alike – and once you hit “publish” there’s no looking back. For me it was scary to know that people would be reading my posts, but even scarier to imagine that my posts might collect dust and never receive any comments or even clicks at all. I’ve realized (with the help of this book), however, that you just have to put yourself out there and take the plunge with a few basic concepts in mind. Here’s a quote from the book I found helpful:

“Be your authentic self online, and be true to your values and personality. Identify knowledge competencies and communicate them relentlessly to important stakeholders online. Show you can be trusted by being true to your word. Finally, become radically transparent by revealing your personal side and interests in your online content. If you do this, you will reap great rewards” (pg. 60, Beal & Strauss 2009, Wiley Publishing)

I think they’re right: Authenticity is key. Beal and Strauss talk about having one voice that carries from the web to in-person conversations – you want to be genuine and consistent. I know that when I read blogs (which I seem to do a lot of – why read newspapers anymore where stories are days old by the time they get to me?), the most engaging posts are those where the author reveals his/her passion for a subject by writing fresh, insightful and original content. You know – the ones that make you feel like they’re speaking right to you, the ones that make you laugh out loud or feel you’ve stumbled across insider information that makes you look good if you share it with others?

I once heard an interview on CBC with an award winning blogger that said in order to keep him writing high-quality content he tapes a few pictures on the side of his monitor – ones of his favourite blogger idols. He said that if he can write content that would pique their interest or make them want to share it, then he knows he is on track. I liked this idea, and though I haven’t gone so far as to print off head shots of Jenn Slegg or any of the Mashable crew, I certainly keep them in my mind as I type.

Let’s talk about what it means to be radically transparent in your posts -

If you’ve been following me on Twitter or Facebook, or have read my bio on this site, by now you have a lot of information about me as a person – not just a whole bunch of marketing mumbo jumbo. You’ll know that I have a 100 pound mastiff puppy, that I pay attention to what I eat and love raw fruits and veggies, that I’m thrilled to be an Auntie now that my best friend just had a baby boy nearly 2 weeks ago. You’ll notice that I have a certain tone in my posts – I like to be positive and uplifting and aim to be polite and professional, though friendly. I do have boundaries of what I will share (e.g. I won’t post anything I wouldn’t want shared in a newspaper article about me) – but I also speak my mind and share what is important to me. I will share information on “what I am doing right now” if I feel it would benefit others, but most of the time its just too navel-gazing and yawn-inducing or personal. It’s difficult to say where this line between public and private should be drawn and I have seen countless people cross it. I really don’t care if you have pimples behind your ears (that’s a real example of a Twitter post – author shall not be named) but I do care if you’re having a beer at the Irish Times because it shows me where you like to enjoy your Friday afternoons – and perhaps you want company for good tweetup coversation.

When it comes to the “radical” part of transparency – I even give away information that Sunstar Media’s “competitors” will no-doubt benefit from (I put competitor in quotations because I believe there is enough business for everyone and prefer to think of similar businesses as my peers). I allow people in on information I could probably charge for and by so-doing build trust with my followers. I also invite open dialogue by allowing posts on my blog and responding to comments. OK, enough about me – let’s talk about what you can do to become radically transparent…

Beal and Strauss give 5 Rules for Radically Transparent Bloggers:

Direct quotes from the book Radically Transparent (yes, I’m transcribing them just for you! It’s worth it – they’ve got some great things in here!)

1. Your Blog Voice Represents Your Brand

“With the casual conversation style and ease of publishing, you may find yourself tempted to use your blog as an excuse to let your hair down and live a little. While we want to encourage you to be transparent and authentic in your blog posting – after all, that’s what stakeholders are longing for – that doesn’t mean you can afford to be reckless. Remember that your stakeholders will form brand perceptions and use your blog to measure your reputation. A cavalier attitude and a few off-the-cuff remarks might seem witty and endearing, but it is easy to inadvertently cross the line between being transparent and harming your brand.” (pg. 219)

2. Be First to Break the News

“In 2007, Dell faced a potential media crisis when news reports revealed its laptops were bursting into flames. Instead of waiting to respond to any resulting media attack, Dell’s Lionel Menchaca took the bold step of posting video of a Dell machine in flames on the Direct2Dell blog. While he took a lot of initial heat from Dell’s own legal counsel, Menchaca understood that this type of incident would quickly spread through the blogosphere, so Dell would be wise to play host to any comments or questions about the incident. By being one of the first blogs to post a video of the incident, Menchaca realized that he wouldn’t be able to stop the conversation, but he could at least attempt to minimize its impact… (pg. 219)

“As Robert Scoble explains ‘It’s all about building long-term trust. The trick to building trust is to show up! If people are saying things about your product and you don’t answer them, that distrust builds’. Obviously, you don’t have to use your blog to purely respond to negative incidents; you can also link your readers to the positive stories that involve your company. ‘If people are saying good things about you product, why not help Google find those pages as well?’ suggest Scoble.” (pg. 220)

3. It’s Better to Give than Receive

One of the hardest lessons for a new blogger to learn is that blog success often hinges on your willingness to acknowledge your peers. In fact, if you want to dramatically increase the chances that your blog will be well-read and respected, you should discuss your competitors and even link to them before you choke on that last sentence, consider this: ignoring your competitors does not make them go away. The media, your customers, and your employees are all aware of your competitors’ actions – and their impact on your business. You don’t have to sing your competitors praises, but by at least acknowledging their existence – perhaps comparing your products to theirs- you’ll continue to build trust with your blog’s audience.(pg 220)

“A giving attitude also means the willingness to give your readers as much information as possible. Many corporate bloggers become paranoid that information sharing will give the competition too much insight into their business. There’s no need to worry. Your competitors are probably already smart enough to figure out what’s going on inside your company walls, anyway, so why lose out on being open and transparent with your important stakeholders?” (pg. 220)

4. Engage Your Readers

“The next step is to encourage your readers to actually leave comments, knowing that you’re ready and willing to listen to their feedback. As Kodak’s Denise Stinardo suggests, ‘Make your readers feel as though they are directly interacting with your company through comments. You want to have a direct conversation with people who matter – your customers and influencers.’

“It is important to be consistent in your responses to the comments left by your readers. If you decide to respond to all blog comments, and then fall silent during a crisis, you’ll lose your credibility. Likewise, don’t attempt to respond to a comment – especially a negative one – without first collecting all of the facts.

5. It’s All or Nothing

“Your blog’s success will depend on your willingness to allocate the time a resources to its continual development… but note that blogs rarely become an overnight hit. In fact, unless you happen to be a celebrity or a Fortune 500 company, it may take many months before you see any noticeable benefit from your blogging efforts. During the initial launch stage, it’s important to remain focused on your goal – to build your brand while being radically transparent – and remain committed for the long term…

“Once you launch your blog and start the conversation, it will be very difficult to turn back without creating a negative perception of your brand…It is similar to the shame of having to close one of your retail stores or branch offices. Your blog needs to be nurtured, and to offer the company point of view at all times – no matter how tough things get or what crisis your company goes through. Your commitment will pay off handsomely with better access to stakeholders, faster responses to crises, and greater access to the media.” (pg. 222)

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Thank you to Andy Beal and Dr. Judy Strauss for this great information! http://www.radicallytransparent.com/