The new online image and reputation discipline, called Brand Journalism, centers around credible, transparent, legitimate and timely news. It is actual journalism and is not even remotely connected with PR or marketing.
Imperial Sugar Company (ISC) took home top honors for its news-oriented website at the recent 2010 International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) Houston Bronze Quill Awards dinner. The Houston chapter recognizes the outstanding efforts of the area’s best communicators each year.
The New Orleans-based Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board has chosen News Group Net LLC to manage online news and crisis communications as a result of the devastating impact on the seafood industry caused by the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Arizona-based public relations professional and writer Ryan Zuk writes for Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) about the essence of the dynamic new real-time news approach taken by Imperial Sugar Company to present news of the sugar industry and broaden its awareness.
Google “BP” or “Transocean” … and the first page of search results, alone, reveals the magnitude of the metastasizing online brand image and reputation crisis facing these two publicly traded companies. Tens of thousands of news stories about the Gulf oil spill.
How open and accessible online is your company or organization? For that matter, how accessible are personal blogs? We are entering an era in the digital revolution when the brand reputations of organizations will be judged by how well their ability to hear and respond to consumers through Web contact. Most have a lot of work to do before reaching that level of communication.