Should corporate blog deserve the journalism treatment?

The Diva Marketing Blog is upset with Jupiter Research.

In its quest for the truth, blog took a good look at a recent study from the analyst firm in which it predicted that 70 per cent of all site operators will have implemented blogs by the end of 2006.

The figure seems steep, the blog noted. But instead of blindly tearing the study apart, the blog decided to contact Jupiter Research and ask for additional details and a copy of the study. That's where things went wrong.

30 Jun 2006

> In Jupiter's defence, the firm tends to work with survey data. The 70 per cent prediction likely is based on companies telling the research firm about their blogging plans. The Diva Marketing Blog counters the Jupiter data by pointing to the Fortune 500 Business Blogging Wiki, which indicates that only 5.8 per cent of the Fortune 500 companies currently have a blog. The wiki howeer doesn't however show the number of internal blogs that aren't accessible to the general public.

The Diva Marketing Blog saw its request for additional information denied because the blog is written by a firm that offers commercial blog consulting services. That's enough to grow Jupiter's suspicion: the firm has an interest in reading the report so they can better inform their clients. By claming to be a blog/journalist they try to obtain a free copy of the report that otherwise would cost them thousands of dollars.

The firm actually is say that its willing to work with blogs just as it works with journalist, but that it verifies the blog's background and independence. In that, it treats bloggers the same as it treats journalists.

The Diva Marketing Blog is quick to cry foul, but Jupiter's decisions makes perfect business sense. It's like Toyota operates a car blog and asks Ford to testdrive its latest car for a review.

The analyst firm however could have been more proactive and address some of the fundamental questions that the blog raised about the research methodology without disclosing data from the study.

Tags: jupiter research, blogging, blog, weblog

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As a professional marketing researcher with almost 20 years in the industry, I do not have a blog or a website and I find these comments peculiar. Jupiter "tends to work with survey data." As opposed to what? Do other companies work with fairy tales? I have experienced many of Jupiter's (and their kind) wrong turns and this could be one of them. If the lion's share of the 70 percent are companies claiming they will be implementing internal blogs, then the data is misleading. External blogs are used for marketing purposes while internal blogs are used to communicate with employees. There is an ethical issue here and disclosure of the sample and statistical precision is necessary. Otherwise, Jupiter is misleading the market.

Posted by: Rob 30 Jun 2006

Thanks for the shout out. To clarify and set the record straight, I never asked JupiterResearch for a copy of their report. My request was only for clarification of their methodology. It is SOP for marketing research firms to provide that information when they quote results of their findings. It serves to add credibility to the research. I also never claimed to be a blog/journalist. I did in true "blog transparency' inform Jupiter/their agency know that I was a blogger, that I wanted to blog about their results, that I had concerns about their findings and asked for clarification of their methodology. Bloggers get put on the carpet for posting without fact checking .. I took the extra time and efforts to try to ensure that the information I presented on Diva was accurate and to provide Jupiter with an outlet to provide additional information about their study, which would have increased the credibility of their findings.

Posted by: Toby 30 Jun 2006

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