Blogs today have become a potent marketing tool and have made marketers wake up with a rude jolt to realize the impact they are having on their businesses. However, in spite of the inroads that blogs have made in the user decision making process, there still exist glaring instances of companies being blissfully unaware of all the conversation that is happening around their services and offerings on the blogosphere and, in some extreme examples of blinkered vision, how the conversation might be the going antithetically to their current marketing communication and actually rebuking the claims being made by them. The impact of these conversations becomes particularly damaging if it goes on uncontrolled or uninhibited as in essence, it just reflects the point of view of the users without any perspective from the service owner or service provider. It is imperative, therefore, if one is in the marketing profile in a services industry to keep ones ears peeled to the blogosphere and make sure that they are cognizant of the voices that are coming in their direction. Blogs are also an easy and economical way to carry out your brand building exercises by using your satisfied customers as evangelists.

1. Blog as a
Marketing
Tool
Amita Singh

2. Acknowledgement
I would like to take this opportunity to thank my guide, Dr. Rajeev Roy, Associate Professor –
Marketing, Xavier Institute of Management Bhubaneshwar for giving me the opportunity to
undertake an Individual Research Project under him, for it has been a great learning
experience for me in more ways than one. His timely advice, valuable guidance and constant
support have helped me immensely in shaping the research.
I would like to extend a special thanks to Anupam Dikhit for giving me insights into the
Internet industry. I would also like to thank all my friends who have supported and
encouraged me in this endeavour, particularly Aditya.
I am thankful to all the industry professionals who allowed me to use their reports for the
purpose of my research.
I am grateful to all my respondents who were kind and patient enough to spend time
answering the questionnaire to the best of their abilities.
Amita Singh

3. Abstract
Blogs today have become a potent marketing tool and have made marketers wake up with a
rude jolt to realize the impact they are having on their businesses. However, in spite of the
inroads that blogs have made in the user decision making process, there still exist glaring
instances of companies being blissfully unaware of all the conversation that is happening
around their services and offerings on the blogosphere and, in some extreme examples of
blinkered vision, how the conversation might be the going antithetically to their current
marketing communication and actually rebuking the claims being made by them.
The impact of these conversations becomes particularly damaging if it goes on uncontrolled
or uninhibited as in essence, it just reflects the point of view of the users without any
perspective from the service owner or service provider. It is imperative, therefore, if one is
in the marketing profile in a services industry to keep ones ears peeled to the blogosphere
and make sure that they are cognizant of the voices that are coming in their direction. Blogs
are also an easy and economical way to carry out your brand building exercises by using
your satisfied customers as evangelists.
Keywords
Blog, Blogging, Social Media, Marketing, Marketing Tool, Online Marketing, Internet
Marketing

4. Executive Summary
A Blog or Web Log is a website comprising of blog posts, or pieces of content written by the
blogger(s) (essentially the writer(s) of the content) which is typically organized into
categories and sorted in reverse chronological order. Most blogs allow readers to comment
on individual blog posts. (Jeremy Wright, 2006).
Blogs have become potent and powerful influencers of our times. One cannot ignore ‘Blog
as a Marketing Tool’ since even a minority on the web can make or break a brand. Blogs
represent the paradigm shift from ‘the thoughts of the few’ to ‘the thoughts of the many’ that
has been facilitated by the digital revolution. In such a scenario, it is imperative for
marketers and brands to have an active presence in the blogosphere, where they can play a
role in influencing consumer opinions.
For companies, an effective corporate blog one can present a human face to the business
with its informal interface and conversational style of functioning. By virtue of being
interactive, it can aid in improving customer service, provide an effective feedback channel,
and help in identifying problems and troubleshooting. It can also act as an information
dispensing system allowing more transparency in the company’s operations. It also helps a
company in carving out a space for itself and building credibility in an increasingly digital
world.
While initially it was seen just as a channel to share information and opinions, over time the
phenomenon of blogging has got structured, and now it has evolved from a service or
channel into a tool or technique.
Blogging as a concept in India is slowly catching on. In the latest South Asian Edition of Philip
Kotler’s book on Marketing Management, Abraham Koshi and Mithileshwar Jha mention a
study which found that online media consumption of young, high income, high education
customers exceeds that of television.
However, minimal work has been done to understand the nature and scope of blogging in
India. One of the very few books written on this subject is ‘Corporate Blogging in India’ by
Rajeev Karwal and Preeti Chatrurvedi. It carries a comprehensive account of how blogs are
being used in India for marketing, employer branding, internal communication, executive
leadership and, last but not the least, conversations. (Rajeev Karwal and Preeti Chaturvedi,
2009)
Though research reports are published annually on the Internet usage pattern in India by
various research companies like Juxt Consult, IMRB, ComScore, etc., all the researches have
been limited to estimating the quantitative presence of blogs and their followers; and what

5. motivates people in India to blog and the blogging behaviour of these people. (Sneha Gore,
2009).
The power of blogs as a marketing tool in India has long intrigued me. The lack of research
on the same has been conspicuous by its sheer absence. In India, blogs are increasingly
being used by marketers as a part of their integrated marketing campaigns. However, I feel
consumers treat blogs as a surrogate for their own experiences and it is this nature of blogs
which renders them unequally effective in marketing different kinds of products and
services.
Also, there is a perception that effectiveness of a blog is very tough to gauge, leave alone
measure it. It is partially true in a way, since a blog has many intangible benefits which are
difficult to measure and quantify. However, there is a need for some measurable
parameters to be arrived at in order to give a concrete foundation to the marketing efforts
that an organization puts into this medium so as to determine what a brand related
conversation in the blogosphere is worth to the brand’s bottom line.
Hypotheses
1. Blogs elicit a fair degree of trust and genuineness amongst users regarding the
information mentioned in them
2. Blogs are more influential in the case of products and services where first hand user
experience is not readily available
3. Blogs are potent enough to change the purchase decisions of users regarding a
product or service
4. Blogs are important not only for guiding customers before the purchase decision but
they also play an important role in reassuring people of their purchases
5. Satisfied customers can act as evangelists for the brand on the blogosphere
Please connect with the author to access the full research paper @
amitasingh20@gmail.com

6. References
1. The Cluetrain Manifesto: The End of Business as Usual, Levine, Locke, Searls &
Weinberger, 1999
2. Naked Conversations, Robert Scoble & Shel Israel, 2006
3. Corporate Blogging in India, Rajeev Karwal & Preeti Chaturvedi, 2009
4. Blog Marketing: The Revolutionary New Way to Increase Sales, Build Your Brand,
And Get Exceptional Results, Jeremy Wright, 2006
5. “I Blog, Therefore I Am”, Sneha Gore, 2009
6. Blogging for Business: Everything You Need To Know and Why You Should Care, Shel
Holtz, Ted Demopoulos, 2006
7. “Harnessing the Power of Blogs”, Jupiter Research, 2008
8. Social Media Marketing Industry Report: How Marketers Are Using Social Media to
Grow Their Businesses, Michael A. Stelzner, 2009
9. “Sources of Information That People Trust”, Forrester Research, 2008
10. Strategies and Tools for Corporate Blogging, John Cass, 2007
11. The Secret Power of Blogging: How to Promote and Market Your Business, Bruce C.
Brown, 2008
12. “Internet Forums as Influential Sources of Consumer Information”, Bickart &
Schindler, Journal of Interactive Marketing, 2001 & 2005
13. Marketing Management, Philip Kotler, Abraham Koshi & Mithileshwar Jha, Pages
480, 535-536
14. Advertising Management, Rajeev Batra, John G. Myers And David A. Aaker, 2001,
Page 153
15. Gillin, P. (2006), “Successful Corporate Blogs Strive To Keep 'Marketing Copy' Out”,
Vol. 91 Issue 1, Page 17
16. Heires, K.(2005), “The Blogosphere Beckons: Should Your Company Jump In?”,
Harvard Management Communication Letter, Vol. 2 Issue 4, Pages 3-5
17. Calculating The ROI Of Blogging: A Case Study – A Look At The ROI Of General
Motors’ FastLane Blog, Charlene Li and Chloe Stromberg with Jeffrey North and
Tenley McHarg, 2007
18. Listening Metrics That Matter: Avoid Data Overload By Targeting Metrics That
Support Specific Listening Goals, Suresh Vittal, 2009
19. The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell, 2000
20. Engadget: http://www.engadget.com/
21. Gizmodo: http://gizmodo.com/
22. TechCrunch: http://www.techcrunch.com/
23. Digital Inspiration: http://www.labnol.org/

7. 24. Toyota Auris Blog: http://www.aurisblog.gr/
25. Opel Astra Blog: http://astra.blogg.de/
26. Volvo C30 Blog: http://www.mijnc30mening.be/
27. OkTataByeBye: http://www.oktatabyebye.com/
28. OTTB Contest: http://www.contentsutra.com/entry/ok-tata-bye-bye
29. Trendy: http://www.trendy.in/
30. Ibibo: http://www.ibibo.com/
31. The Great Indian Blogger Hunt: http://www.contentsutra.com/entry/mih-launches-
great-indian-blogger-hunt-acquisition-soon-plans-qa-local-lang
32. Infosys Blogs: http://www.infosysblogs.com/
33. Pinstorm Blog: http://www.pinstorm.com/blog/
34. Webchutney Blog: http://www.webchutney.org/
35. Virgin Mobile Think Hatke: http://twitter.com/thinkhatke
36. Aamir Khan’s Blog: http://www.aamirkhan.com/
37. BigAdda: http://www.bigadda.com/
38. Amitabh Bacchan’s Blog: http://bigb.bigadda.com/
39. Get Gorgeous IV: http://gorgeous.trendy.in/
40. Dus Ka Dum: http://duskadum.blogspot.com/
41. LetMeStayForADay: http://www.letmestayforaday.com/
42. CNet: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-9719952-1.html?tag=mncol
43. Gaurav Sabnis: http://gauravsabnis.blogspot.com/
44. Gaurav Sabnis : http://gauravsabnis.blogspot.com/search?q=IIPM
45. Blog Metrics: http://www.kaushik.net/avinash/2007/11/blog-metrics-six-
recommendations-for-measuring-your-success.html
46. Blog Metrics:http://searchengineland.com/the-importance-of-link-development-
metrics-18847
47. Blog Metrics:http://www.emergingwebmemo.com/2009/04/lets-develop-quality-
metric-to-measure.html
48. Blog Metrics:http://commetrics.com/articles/2-sensible-metrics-a-framework-for-
measuring-blog-success/
49. Trendwatching: http://www.trendwatching.com - July 2009
50. Twitter: http://mashable.com/tag/twitter/
51. Twitter For User Engagement: http://www.successonline.in/using-twitter-to-build-
and-engage-your-audience/
52. Indian Elections on Twitter: http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/india-
election-results-top-trend-on-twitter-worldwide/
53. Dell Twitter Promotion: http://www.twitter.com/delloutlet
54. Twitter Potential In India: http://m-teknopologist.com/2009/01/potential-for-
twitters-in-india/
55. Twitter Users: http://www.sysomos.com/insidetwitter/

8. 56. Worldwide Influence of Blogs: Universal-Mccann-International-Social-Media-
Research-Wave-3
57. L.K. Advani’s Blog: http://blog.lkadvani.in
58. Narendra Modi’s Blog: http://www.narendramodi.com/
59. Obama For America Campaign: http://www.barackobama.com/
60. DailyKos: http://www.dailykos.com/
61. Drudge Report: http://www.drudgereport.com/
62. Fake Steve Job’s Blog: http://www.fakesteve.blogspot.com
63. NewsGroper: http://www.newsgroper.com
64. Nanopublishing:
http://www.macmillandictionaries.com/wordoftheweek/archive/050207-
nanopublishing.htm
65. Goosefish Media Ventures: http://www.gmv.in
66. AlooTechie: http://www.alootechie.com
67. BombayBitch: http://www.bombaybitch.com
68. iGovernment: http://www.igovernment.in
69. The Pink Chaddi Campaign: http://thepinkchaddicampaign.blogspot.com/
70. Mumbai Rains on Twitter: http://www.watblog.com/2009/07/14/mumbairains-
starts-trending-on-twitter-twitter-among-top-15-sites-in-india/
71. Sysomos: http://www.sysomos.com