Often referred to as a great example of a successful corporate blog, General Motors FastLane was one of the first blogs personally written by a senior executive. On FastLane, GM's Vice-Chairman Bob Lutz and others share their thoughts and opinions about the automaker's product line. Recently, GM has used its blogs to correct biased or inaccurate reporting in the mainstream media. The site has been closely analyzed and, along with critical praise, it has also received some criticism for not responding to all comments. Despite the criticism, GM has found the balance that works for them, answering questions they see as important and staying focused on the primary goal of the blog - discussing GM products.

Company:	General Motors
Vendor:	Six Apart
Products:	Movable Type
Summary:	Corporate Blogging

We recently interviewed Michael Wiley, Director of New Media at GM, about FastLane, which currently attracts 7,500 unique visitors a day and an average of 70 comments per post.

What were the key lessons learned from the beginning?

We started small so we could test the medium. Since this was back in October of 2004, we knew it would create news and get reactions from customers. Our goal was to begin a different conversation about GM, and we wanted to hear from readers. The key lesson was that we were indeed under a microscope, and therefore it was very important to be open as well as genuine. We did not want to create a fake marketing blog. So although it can be a challenge to feed the blog with good content, we do not use ghost-writers. We have a team of 6 people - all with other responsibilities - who work on the blog. Although I do edit, Marketing and PR does not get to put the blog through corporate cleansing. Instead, we have weekly meetings to brainstorm, and we have one person who vets comments to bubble up important issues.

How did the blog idea come about?

I'm always looking at new media and how to take advantage of it. I had been studying blogs for a few years, and felt that a blog would have the potential to help humanize the company. And, being able to hear customer feedback was an important. It wasn't until political blogging gained attention during the elections that we finally realized that the smallblock engine's 50th anniversary would be the perfect testing scenario for blogging.
What do you think is unique about the GM blog?
In addition to being on of the first prominent senior executive blogs, I think what is important is that we have a core group of engaged visitors. And they can reach GM's senior execs via their comments. We do listen.

What has been the most difficult in terms of managing the blog?

The biggest challenge has been to defend and manage our reputation beyond the blog. I spend a lot of time reviewing the blogosphere to read what others are saying.

When false statements are made, we respond, which surprises everyone. But if we explain, they listen, and are ultimately blown away. The first three or four months were the most critical, and we spent a good amount of time contributing to the way we were perceived. For example, there was someone who charged that Bob wasn't writing his own posts. When we explained and defended ourselves, this person was satisfied and rectified his misstatements.

But it's also important to set expectations in corporate blogging. Our blog was a product blog, and we had to be clear that the blog was not going to respond to other issues such as policies or customer service issues. Once that was clear, readers understood that we weren't avoiding issues, but were keeping on topic. But we don't ignore inquiries either. If a reader posts an issue for customer service, we forward that, but don't post it. This way, the blog stays focused, yet we still answer questions.

One other difficulty was being realistic about the time commitment necessary to make the blog successful. In addition to posting relevant material, as mentioned before, one should also be prepared to stay abreast of what's being said in the "blogosphere."

What have been the results in creating and maintaining the blog?

In line with our overall goal, we are now more responsive to customers, and they know we listen to them. Instead of acting on hunches, we are more in touch with people. I think people really appreciate that. In addition, the company has opened up more internally, and there is more interest in experimenting with new media. We are currently looking into launching internal blogs.

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