I’m glad you brought up the idea of negative vs. positive comments. Dell, for instance, was faced with thousands of negative comments. However, after a solid bit of time the company finally joined the conversation and spoke with angered customers. It can take time and money, but will benefit a company in the long run. Increasing the bottom line rarely ever comes easily, but corporations who listen to negative comments and change their operations based on that feedback will truly benefit in the long run.

I agree, I do not think that companies should expose every piece of information with their stakeholders. Some things just need to be kept secret. However, it is still important for companies to build levels of trust with stakeholders by being authentic and transparent. Disclosing information on business objectives and new products are relevant in building connections with audiences because after all you want them to have easy access and the opportunity to provide feedback. The rewards of transparency are often immediate because transparency creates clarity with real two-way conversations. You should participate in conversations whether audience feedback is positive or negative. By choosing to ignore negative feedback you anger audience members by showing them you simply don’t care about the needs and wants. Response shows that you do care, and as a result helps build levels of trusts.

I think this a great video. Shel Holtz really knows what he is talking about and understands the importance of tactical transparency. It really is important when developing a corporate blog or any blog for that matter. How will people respect bloggers if they are not open? It is the same as having a relationship with someone who always has their guard up, you never really get to know them and you always question what they say and do. If people dislike this form of “real-life” relationships, then why would they find it acceptable on the internet? If anything people need to be more open on the internet because the chances of actually sitting down and getting to know the blogger without the use of a computer is highly unlikely.

This website on tactical transparency that provides tips, reviews, and case studies on corporations and social networks that implement tactical transparency. It is a good source for companies to check out if they have questions or want to learn from the prosperity of one another. http://www.tacticaltransparency.com/