I got an e-newsletter recently from a company announcing that they had ‘entered the blogosphere.’ I thought this comment was odd because it was as if they started a blog just for the sake of starting a blog. This ‘on the bandwagon’ sentiment is common and likely in response to all of the hype surrounding social media and blogs.

You probably know that in general I believe that yes, companies should have a blog, and I’m usually happy when any life science or biotechnology company starts one, even if the initial intentions are misguided or vague. One of the catch-22′s of social media is that you don’t often understand a medium until you experience it, something we discussed in our Social Media for Scientists presentation to the SDBN. I do think that the above mentioned company will ‘get it’ over time. They’ll begin seeing a much faster-paced and informative dialog with their customers which will ultimately result in improvement of their products and the attraction of new customers.

However, because of the ‘chicken and egg’ phenomenon of social media, an overall change in perspective will take some time. It will probably be similar to the collective realization by companies that took place 12-15 years ago that they needed to have a web presence. Sometimes, as well, a company doesn’t ‘get it’ until they see an example, or see that their competitor is doing it. How do we ‘jump start’ this process? It begins by realizing that the answer isn’t simply to ‘have a blog’ but to understand greater driver that customers expect to be engaged with now and not broadcasted to. All around, we see examples of companies or even media outlets that are unresponsive, and failing as a result. Examples of those companies who ‘get it right’ do help, but unfortunately there are few in life sciences or biotechnology.

We’ve compiled a list of biotechnology companies with blogs below, and because the number from all sectors is so small, we’ve put them together, as disparate as they may appear. Let us know if we’ve missed any, and we’d love to see this list grow! There are so many valuable ways that a blog or social media can be used, and we are lucky that in biotechnology, there is a wealth of information for us to share. ‘Whether ’tis nobler in the blog to suffer the slings and arrows of social media, or to take arms against the status quo…’ You get the picture.

We also suggest that you look at successful social media examples and blogs in other industries. Also, as the title suggests, consider that blogging may not be the solution for every company. A newsletter, forum, or even starting by making your website more dynamic (web 2.0) may be the right next step. Indeed, companies such as Stemgent have a wiki and a forum, giving them an ‘honorable mention’ in this post.

Need help? Contact Comprendia, we specialize in social media strategies designed to help you engage your customers and grow. We’ll make sure you ‘get it’ from the start by setting up a ‘social media charter’ which will guide and integrate your efforts. We’ll also be covering issues on blogging and social media in our Biotechnology Marketing 101 series, sign up for updates!

Life Science, Biotech & Pharma Companies with Blogs

Special thanks to the friendfeed Life Scientists room for helping me compile this list.

When I was in grade school, my Dad became very irritated with the administration at my school because of the letters they would send when I’d get a good report card. In those days (dating myself) letters were typed with typewriters, and to save time, they’d photocopy (Xerox in those days) what was called a ‘form letter,’ with a blank for the student’s name. Then, they’d only have to type in each students’ name rather than re-typing the whole letter. These letters must have been easy to spot, and my Dad felt strongly that if the school was going to truly praise the children, they should hand type each letter. Now, I was oblivious to all of this and likely did not notice that the letters were not as ‘special’ as they could be, but I think it proves a point that I’m experiencing again in the age of new media.

If you’ve been reading Seth Godin, you know that he has long sung the praises of so-called ‘permission marketing,’ where you use tools such as e-newsletters to develop a relationship with customers whereby they sign up to hear from you. Godin points out that the tenets of ‘old school’ marketing, such as broadcasting a message using a printed Ad, no longer work well for today’s customers, who have so many choices for research updates and news. I agree wholeheartedly with Seth, but have seen the dangers of relying too heavily on the myriad tools which facilitate these types of interactions.

For Twitter, there are many tools which allow you to send a direct message to someone automatically when you have news or when they first begin following you. Depending on your settings, you’ll get an email and/or a notification on your phone. The problem? It is difficult to determine whether the ‘DM’s', as they are called, are automatic or a true personal interaction. The result? When I receive what I think is an automatically generated DM, I feel as though it is highly disingenuous and dislike it–I even consider ‘un-following’ the person. I found that others on Twitter have had similar reactions.

What can you learn from this when using permission marketing? Be 100% clear about the nature of the communication when sending messages to customers. Newsletters are an acceptable way to mail a large group of your customers, but if you send a message to a group using CRM software, etc., make it clear by saying something like ‘we’re emailing you because you fit this category’, etc. Beware of including the customers’ first name when sending e-mail blasts, even if they have opted in for the message (I know one company that switched first and last names of customers in an email blast, causing much distress).

In summary, make personal and automatically generated communications with your customers distinct, and you will prevent misunderstandings and form more meaningful relationships with them. I don’t think any of your customers’ parents will contact you, but they may decide to withhold the ‘permission’ they granted you to contact them, and more importantly, have a negative association with your company. If you want help building relationships with customers which will lead to long term growth of your company, contact us.

San Diego TiE (The IndUS Entrepreneurs) Keynote Presentation/Dinner: How Biotechnology Can Fix the Climate Problem, 6:00-9:00 p.m. August 19th, La Jolla Woman’s Club