Ryan Farley talks about the value of blogging, both from a client's perspective and from a company's perspective. I've said the same thing before - who would you rather work with? A company you know nothing about, other than their prepared statement on their website, or a company where you can read information directly from the people working on your project?

Anyway, the main reason his post caught my attention is because he touches on a question I had when Sagestone started it's blog. What was the reason for having a blog, and what was allowed and what wasn't? Sagestone has no formal blogging policy. Reading this article, it dawned on me why one isn't necessary. How do you minimize the risks of blogging? Admit it - there are risks. Someone could post a client list or a CEO's phone number. Without a policy, what prevents someone from doing that? Ryan lays out how companies can mitigate that risk. He lists three things, but in essense, they all boil down to one:

Hire knowledgeable employees.

It really is that simple. If you have smart people working for you, they will protect you from the risks of blogging. They will provide helpful information for the community, and that will only help you win business, not lose it. No blogger is posting complete solutions to problems - they only demonstrate they have the knowledge to solve problems! And if they don't demonstrate that knowledge, then go back to the above rule - hire people who do demonstrate that!