Nokia's 3GSM blog relations weighed, measured and found wanting

Normally one of the most progressive companies in the mobile industry when it comes to blog relations and blogging, Nokia appears to have dropped the ball with it’s 3GSM site.

Stefan over at Ring Nokia has been going spare. Nigh on apoplectic! Understandable when he’s doing such a good job of filling the default worldwide position of Mr Nokia Blogger.

It appears that, quite simply, Nokia have arsed up the 3GSM site —

Well actually, let’s be fair… they’re simply still operating on a 1.0 marketing model. Consider this text by Stefan:

Link: Ring Nokia: Tommi wants the people behind Nokia’s 3GSM site to be fired: Privacy Issues

Notice how the entire thing is made in flash, there isn’t a blog, there isn’t RSS, and the information hasn’t changed for almost 2 weeks?

Now consider this further comment from Stefan regarding the fact that the Nokia From The Floor blog hasn’t been updated since November:

What happened from November until now?

Internet company? I smell bullshit.

Stefan’s expectations aren’t being managed. In fact, it’s his problem, not Nokia’s problem. At least in the short term. He, like me and a heck of a lot of other people, exists in the 21st Century, where communication is continuous. We expect it to be so. When it’s not, there’s a disconnect. But that’s not seen as an issue.

Nokia are still, very much in 1.0 land. They do a blog for Nokia World, then stop it. Because it’s Christmas, I imagine? Because ‘that’s it until 3GSM’. And everyone in the marketing department wants to get on with their other work and/or put up Christmas decorations? Then, you know, relax a bit in January and look at budgets or whatnot. Then get stressed a bit and work hard to throw up a sexy 3GSM site for late January/early Feb. But then don’t do anything on it until 3GSM actually happens, because, obviously, that’s when Nokia is ‘ON’, when the marketing department is ‘ON’. Right now, they’re ‘dark’, I imagine, busy preparing for the onslaught next week in Barcelona.

Not changing the 3GSM site might look a bit stupid from Stefan’s point of view, but it’s perfectly fine viewed with an ‘old Europe’ mentality. There’s other stuff going on in the marketing/PR dept. They’re busy printing fact sheets, fixing stands and collating brochures and so on. You don’t get the news, you see, until Monday. Until the show starts. That’s how it works. Control. Manage the message. Stick to the plan. Blah blah blah.

It’s old.

But, still, it points to the fact that, as good as Nokia’s other outreach programmes have been (and continue to be), when you’re managing a mammoth brand, you need an integrated and worldwide managed blog relations strategy. I think of Nokia as one company. I think super things when I’m considering womworld, or the interaction leading up to and during Nokia World. But I expect the same with 3GSM. I would have expected a blog — or a continuously updated site leading up to the 3GSM show and then hugely busy during it.

But, you know, it’s probably the domain of a different team, maybe a different division.

And that’s not to mention the data leak. Just a technical issue though. I think it would be nice for Nokia to be doing more comprehensive blogging as per Stefan’s clear wish, but I also — hmm, well, I recognise that most companies just aren’t built that way yet.

Incidentally, Nokia might like to talk with Hill and Knowlton who’re doing a stonking job managing the blog relations for LG. Talk to Gaylene via the Shine.

That, or, outsource the whole thing to a service level guarantee with Hetty at Interactive Energy (one of my companies). 😀