Unspun

Apologies for late postings because Unspun has been busy playing new role of husband, father and family man. A totally new and exciting experience with a steep learning curve indeed.In the midst of all the homely activities Unspun‘s alter ego found some time to speak at Koran Tempo’s seminar on Corporate Blogging last Thursday.With Koran Tempo’s Wicaksono as moderator and major bloggers and corporate figures Nukman Luthfie of Virtual and Risman Adnan of Microsoft as panel members Unspun had a good time learning and fielding questions from the participants.

All speakers spoke about the need for credibility when it comes to Corporate Blogging. This is certainly a far distance from the compulsion of many corporations to “sell” themselves shamelessly and seek branding when they have an opportunity.

Some of the points Unspun brought up for consideration of the participants were:

• Indonesia is perhaps ready for Corporate Blogging (with specific uses such as crisis and issues management) but is not quite ready for marketing with blogs because of the relatively low penetration rate of the internet
• Blogging is not for all Corporations. Most Indonesian corporations, in fact, will not be ready to use blogging for some time until they switch to a more open culture and one in which they are prepared to engage the public, even those vociferously against them
• Maverick, Unspun’s workplace has been experimenting with corporate blogging for more than a year with Maverick Indonesia, and the results have been serendipitous. We’ve attracted curiosity; won a few clients; made competitors envious when our staff brag about their personal development fund (a month’s salary after a year’s tenure to take whatever course you wish so long as you can justify that it helps you develop as a person); and used it to change the landscape for media relations. (according to Nukman, who surveys such things, only his firm Virtual and Maverick have corporate blogs in Indonesia)