Telefónica O2 Ireland has launched a business blog to encourage small and medium sized businesses to talk to each other. The ‘O2 ideas room’ (www.o2.ie/ideasroom) offers advice, from marketing and sales to HR and finance with blogs from the likes of Alan Cox, Core Media Group and Una Herlihy, marketing consultant.
Jonnie Cahill of O2 said the aim of the blog is to create an online community where businesses can get free information of value to their organisation but also contribute to the blog themselves, either through online discussions or by posting an article.
Research by O2 last year found that just six per cent of Irish SMEs had a business blog. But a recent report by Deloitte LLP showed that 94 per cent of enterprises plan to maintain or increase investment in social media and online communities, while only six per cent will decrease investment.
The Deloitte study suggests that top business objectives and benefits of online communities include increased word-of-mouth, customer loyalty, brand awareness and idea generation.
