Blogging for Rumour Control

Via Steve Rubel, an interesting post from Liana Evans on Ranking Basics about using blogs as a tool for rumour control. Evans uses Alan Meckler, CEO of JupiterMedia as an example of how companies can use blogging to stay on top of the rumour mill and keep their public informed in an authoritative, yet casual way.

Yesterday a story appeared on Silicon Valley Watcher that JupiterResearch (a division of JupiterMedia) was up for sale. “Hmmm” I thought to myself, quickly heading to my Bloglines feed to access my feed to Meckler’s blog. Not finding anything, I simply figured, either this was just a rumor, or we’ll see some sort of response from him in a few hours.

Mr. Meckler, the wise CEO that he is not only posted once, but now has three entries about the rumors floating around. He very accurately points out that the sources for the stories weren’t even from JupiterMedia, but rather from rival Forrester Research. Fast forward to earlier this morning and another story entitled “Jupiter Research is up for sale with multiple bidders” appear on Silicon Valley Watcher. Apparently Silicon Valley Watcher doesn’t have a subscription to Allan Meckler’s blog.

Silicon Valley Watcher has a wide readership, but anyone looking for more information on the subject will have a good response from the CEO, without the company having to release an official statement on an unqualified rumour. This is a great example of one of the many ways businesses can use blogging to effectively communicate with the public.