The first thing just about anybody does once they learn about Technorati is search for their company or clients. In most cases some results will come up. For the PR folks just learning about this new world, the next questions is, "what do we do now?"

In my presentations I discuss how one can attempt to estimate the influence a blog might have. Technorati provides the number of links it has tracked and other services like PubSub's LinkCounts will help, but this does not tell the whole picture.

Just because a blog has no inbound links or looks silly and personal does not mean it's not important. In some cases these 'non-influential' blog posts have legitimate customer service issues. Don't you want to know why a person had a bad experience with your company/client?

Also, just becuase nobody is reading Joe's blog doesn't mean that Joe isn't talking to anybody in the real world.

Yes, many might be rants, but in some cases the problems could have been avoided, often with better internal communications. Why did the cashier, waiter or junior account rep not know that you provided that service. Spend a monent and read the post to see your organization through another set of eyes.

Here is a quick example that I recently had.

Last weekend we were trying to select a place to eat in the Buckhead area. I wanted to watch the start of the US Grand Prix, so a sports bar would be a good choice. I went into the ESPNZone and checked to see if any of their TVs had the USGP on. None did. Then I realized that the USGP was being broadcast on Speed, which is a FOX network. I asked the hostess if they could put Speed, a FOX network, on one of the TVs. She said no they couldn't. So I left, no lunch business for them.

We ended up eating at the Cheesecake Factory right next door. After lunch we took our son over to the game room of ESPNzone. In the 'control room' one of the staff had the USGP on a small monitor. I started to watch and commented to him about the problem I had with the hostess downstairs. He said they had no problem putting the race on and wanted to know where I was sitting so he could do it. He told me the hostess was wrong.

I can undestand why ESPNZone would not want to broadcast events on other networks, but then you think about Sunday football? Does the ESPNzone not show any games on FOX or CBS? I doubt it.

ESPNzone lost my lunch business becuase the hostess was not aware of their policies. How often is that happening?