It’s got a lot of reviews of electronics stocked at the nation’s largest retailer. But Wal-Mart’s unedited blog from some of its buyers also contains information about cats, religion and Ayn Rand.
Ask companies whether they have policies about blogging by their employees, and many will say they have a policy against it, especially if the blogs are somehow related to the company.
But Wal-Mart has done a complete 180 on blogging for some of its employees. At checkoutblog.com, its purchasing agents are encouraged to write their unedited opinions about the products the chain carries.
When the retailer started some blogs a couple of years ago, they were corporate affairs that critics dismissed as thinly veiled extensions of Wal-Mart’s P.R. department. Wal-Mart shut those blogs down.
This time, it decided the blogs needed to be authentic – thus no editing by corporate.
The downside of that, according to a New York Times article, is the non-work material that sometimes creeps in. Examples: One blogger writes about his favorite bible quote; one says Ayn Rand is one of his favorite authors; another writes about her cat.
The blog was launched quietly, so it’s getting only about 1,000 hits per day.
But, it did make big news once so far since it was launched in the fall. Remember when it was disclosed that Wal-Mart would stop stocking DVDs and players using the HD DVD system? That was first reported on checkoutblog and was considered the death knell for HD DVD.
So, prompted by the Times article, HRBlunders decided to see what checkoutblog had to offer.
When we visited, the top item was about a toy expo. Pretty cool, and we have to agree with the blogger that the original Tickle-Me-Elmo was a bit creepy. It proclaims new dino-toy D-Rex “a boy’s best friend and little sister’s worst enemy.”
So it does appear honest, and the bloggers have found voices, of sorts.
But what HRBlunders is really, feverishly anticipating is more info about that employee’s cat.
