Surveys are fun to read and fun to write about. Just as in traditional media, too often when the surveys are presented in blogs, a lot is left out. There is often little, if any, discussion of the background, possible motives for the survey, methodolgy and how the results are reported. This echo effect – just publishing the results – may lead to a misrepresentation of the true character of the survey. It could be taken as endorsement. It may also lead people to believe something is true when that truth has yet to be proven.
For instance, Steve Rubel is writing about a corporate blogging study from a competitor. I’ve got a few questions, so, I ask:
OK, Steve. Your cut-n-paste skills are up to par. But, what do you think of the conclusions of the survey? You post it, but do not discuss it. I’m often curious when people post things without any thoughts shared. You know, is there a motive involved? Or, is this just sharing little bits of information? Either way, with his post, I don’t know the answer.
My questions. First, do we have all the information we need to judge whether or not this is a valid survey? Second, as David Maister suggests, should “(these) numbers … be shouted by every PR firm from the rooftops”?
If so, why? I followed the single link on the post Steve offered. I followed links found there and read the posts and claims. There is nothing there, really. Well – except for some claims tied to broad statements citing vague (undefined) percentages. They do not reveal what those percentages represent. No identity of the number of respondents surveyed, the larger potential respondent pool, the types of corporations surveyed, etc. are revealed. So, what – if anything – can we derive from this survey?
Ann Handley wraps herself around “63 percent said…” while not knowing what that 63 percent represents. Is it 63 percent of 30 respondents or 300? Wouldn’t that make a difference as to how much authority I can apply to the survey results? What if it was just 63% of pet food corporations? There are a lot of corporations out there. What business are those corporations in – tech, consumer goods, services? We don’t know, do we.
Please, I beg you. People, do the right thing. The sane thing. Put down the koolaid, folks, until you know what is in it.
What Steve posted, it turns out, is essentially a pitch for a free webinar:
Cymfony and Porter Novelli Announce Free Webinar Highlighting Findings from Corporate Blog Survey to Help Companies Seeking to Capitalize on the Blog Channel.
The full details of the research (which might answer some of those questions above) are apparently going to be provided this week.
On Tuesday, July 25, 2006, at 12:00 p.m. EDT, Cymfony and Porter Novelli will host a free webinar entitled “Corporate Blog Learnings — The Discovery Age.” … A full report on the survey findings will also be available on the July 25 webinar, as well as on Cymfony’s and Porter Novelli’s Web sites.
Now, the examples above come from the PR / Marketing area. I think we’ve all seen examples of survey research reported in more traditional media and the details were brushed over, or entirely left out. This is bad practice, no matter where it occurs.
I’m thinking it would be wise to wait for the details to determine whether or not anything should be embraced as noteworthy and shouted from any rooftops. To their credit, Cymfony/Porter Novelli note:
All efforts were made to reach a broad cross-section of corporate bloggers; however, the corporate blog environment is less mature than the consumer blog environment, creating a challenge in finding corporate blog owners and getting them to answer questions about ROI, resources and strategy.
Now, the emphasis in that last quote is mine. Quite telling, isn’t it? This is a pitch to encourage participation in an immature market. See, now we can derive some idea of the possible motivation behind such research. They want to encourage more participation. They, perhaps, want to sell services to help clients accomplish this task.
So, for my students, I will suggest that all you read online (and everywhere, for that matter) should be investigated a bit before wrapping yourself around it as earth shattering news – or fact. Also, if you take the time to do that little bit of further research on your own part – your blog posts will likely provide a better service to your readers, and a worthwhile learning experience for yourself.
I’d rather read a news story or blog post about such survey research with some form of commentary included by the blogger. Hey, even if I don’t agree with their conclusions, it provides much more food for thought than a blanket cut-n-paste. It is even more important, I believe, for those claiming to be the “thought leaders” to actually include – well – some thought in their posts. What a concept.
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