tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24784219.post8828622008731131108..comments2024-03-06T03:58:39.540-06:00Comments on The Viral Garden: Company Blog Checkup: HomeGoodsMack Collierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723628321171539590noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24784219.post-20582625402364663682007-06-09T22:41:00.000-05:002007-06-09T22:41:00.000-05:00Hello Mack,I too found your review of the HomeGood...Hello Mack,<BR/>I too found your review of the HomeGoods Openhouse site very positive and insightful. I'm also one of the 5 "evangelical" bloggers you speak of, (praise the Lord...). Yes we are passionate about HomeGoods, as many who shop there can atest. Recent years have produced an upserge of home decorating fanatics. HomeGoods provides the "perfect storm" venue where price, quality, and service come together to satisfy this passion. It fills the need to "nest" comfortably and affordably. So, we can't help ourselves if our biases are evident. We do enjoy and respond to any and all comments. It makes for a more personal and interesting forum for all. The site is still very new, I predict good banter to flourish and grow.<BR/>Its been great to be a part of this progress. <BR/>Thanks for your review,<BR/>CathyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24784219.post-73956334480150288012007-06-09T14:46:00.000-05:002007-06-09T14:46:00.000-05:00Thanks for stopping by Alli, and just being aware ...Thanks for stopping by Alli, and just being aware of what is being said about your blog online, and responding to it is a HUGE plus, and many companies that start blogging never get this. So kudos to both you and Stephanie for taking the time to stop by, and thanks!Mack Collierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02723628321171539590noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24784219.post-67968906498017036042007-06-09T12:23:00.000-05:002007-06-09T12:23:00.000-05:00Hi Mack,Thanks so much for your comments on the Ho...Hi Mack,<BR/>Thanks so much for your comments on the HomeGoods blog, Open House...I am actually one of the "bloggers". This venture has been so insightful, and a load of fun! HomeGoods and Hill-Holliday took 5 women (myself Included) who were virtually "infants" to the "blogasphere" (I hope that is the right word, I learned from Hill-Holliday) not to mention the web. Sure we knew how to surf the web, email, etc. But as for "blogging" , not a clue! HomeGoods and the folks at Hill-Holliday had to walk us thru everystep....from content to up-loading pictures. We actually had a practice blog and we of course had our share of stumbles...By no means are we "pros". We love shopping at HomeGoods and we are all indeed passionate about the stores and our finds.<BR/>We are having a blast with the blog, and I think I can speak for my fellow HG bloggers, in saying thank you to HomeGoods for going out on a limb with us. <BR/>Mack, again thanks for your comments and keep watching the blog...maybe you will see something you need from HomeGoods!!!<BR/>Warm regards,<BR/>alliAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24784219.post-76642825752637065192007-06-09T09:51:00.000-05:002007-06-09T09:51:00.000-05:00Thanks for responding Stephanie, it reflects very ...Thanks for responding Stephanie, it reflects very well on HomeGoods and Hill-Holliday. And I wanted to do this series because I thought I could give some good advice to companies, but I *knew* that my readers would definitely step up to the plate, as we've seen with both this post, and my entry on Kodak's blogs. We'll have to keep an eye on OpenHouse, maybe do a follow-up post?Mack Collierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02723628321171539590noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24784219.post-64205603568340447232007-06-09T09:25:00.000-05:002007-06-09T09:25:00.000-05:00Mack,Thank you for the thoughtful review of HomeGo...Mack,<BR/><BR/>Thank you for the thoughtful review of HomeGoods Openhouse. I work with the team at <A HREF="http://www.hhcc.com" REL="nofollow">Hill Holliday</A>, the agency that collaborated with HomeGoods on the strategy and development of the blog.<BR/><BR/>As you’ve noted, we found that there are many HomeGoods shoppers that are really passionate about the brand, and typically share their great finds with family and friends through word of mouth. We thought we’d tap into social computing tools like blogging in an effort to amplify the conversations that were already occurring naturally, albeit offline. We’ve been really pleased with the traction the blog has gotten in the month or so that it has been live. And we are of course indebted to the five fabulous women who agreed to embark on this effort with us, and bring so much fun and energy to the project.<BR/><BR/>We also really appreciate the constructive feedback you and your readers have provided, and intend to share it with our clients at HomeGoods. Interestingly, we have discussed references to HomeGoods in the posts themselves, and encourage the bloggers to speak openly about their shopping/decorating habits, but the HG references still appear (they’re passionate, remember? ☺ ); the spirit of the Code of Conduct excerpt was meant to avoid errant posts (e.g., spam) in the comments sections, but I can see how it could be misinterpreted; we will definitely address this with HomeGoods. The blogroll is a good consideration as well.<BR/><BR/>I'm glad we came across your blog; I personally look forward to reading more.<BR/><BR/>Best,<BR/><BR/>Stephanie RogersAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24784219.post-75914493475892275372007-06-06T11:47:00.000-05:002007-06-06T11:47:00.000-05:00Absolutely Michael, HomeGoods reaching out to thei...Absolutely Michael, HomeGoods reaching out to their evangelists to let them write the blog IS gutsy as hell, and they deserve a big pat on the back for that. And I was trying to make the point that even though I question if the writers are going too far in promoting HomeGoods sometimes, I don't blame them for this. Evangelists evangelize, and I think it's up to HomeGoods to communicate to their writers the tone they want for the blog.<BR/><BR/>And as a company, that's sometimes hard to do. Here you have customers that are willingly singing your praises, and that's a BAD thing? But again, you have to view the blog as your readers do. More to the point, as a reader that's just discovered the blog for the first time.<BR/><BR/>We get this because we are looking at the company blog from the reader's point of view. The key is to find a way to convince the company to come around to our point of view. <BR/><BR/>As with Kodak's blogs, I think OpenHouse does some things very well, and the areas in which they have some issues, can be easily corrected.Mack Collierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02723628321171539590noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24784219.post-12866318008012535512007-06-06T09:55:00.000-05:002007-06-06T09:55:00.000-05:00I agree with Mack, averaging 4 comments per post i...I agree with Mack, averaging 4 comments per post is good.<BR/><BR/>Mack, I don't know about you but I love the gutsy move of using customers to write for the company's official blog. To me, that alone makes the Home Goods blog better than other company blogs. It's very refreshing to see a blog that isn't authored by a CEO or marketing specialist. The blog does have room for improvement but I would give it two thumbs up!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24784219.post-86508043662802348802007-06-06T09:22:00.000-05:002007-06-06T09:22:00.000-05:00"Comments are very crucial to information flow. Ho..."Comments are very crucial to information flow. Homegoods not having many comments is an indicator of a lack of interest and/or marketing attempts."<BR/><BR/>Actually I think averaging 4-5 comments a post for a company blog is pretty good. And a big reason why they are averaging that many comments is because the writers are making a point to respond to readers that comment.Mack Collierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02723628321171539590noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24784219.post-13387367184607005512007-06-06T09:18:00.000-05:002007-06-06T09:18:00.000-05:00Comments are very crucial to information flow. Ho...Comments are very crucial to information flow. Homegoods not having many comments is an indicator of a lack of interest and/or marketing attempts.<BR/><BR/>Dan Schawbel<BR/><BR/>www.personalbrandingblog.comDan Schawbelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14059458754444112296noreply@blogger.com