• by Wendy Davis  @wendyndavis, July 12, 2005

CHICAGO -- This February, Jennifer Rice posted an entry on her Web log "What's Your Brand Mantra?" outlining her frustrations with her cable company, Comcast. "This is how bad it is: It's taken me three weeks to disconnect my service," wrote Rice, founder of Mantra Brand Consulting.

In her post, Rice went on to outline the numerous Comcast phone calls and contractor visits she had endured, before concluding: "It just feels so good knowing that with a single diatribe, I can inform potentially thousands of potential Comcast customers that they'd be better off finding an alternative for their cable TV service." In fact, her reach exceeded her expectations. WebProNews picked up Rice's post -- leading it to circulate throughout the Web.

Speaking at Ad:Tech in Chicago on Monday, Rice used the anecdote to show how one disgruntled customer -- herself -- could wreak havoc on a company via the Web. "If you have a negative experience, you're going to tell hundreds of thousands of people," she said.

But, Rice added, consumers' huge degree of control online also can be a plus for marketers, as some companies have found ways to use satisfied customers as resources online on a variety of levels. For instance, companies such as Apple have created online help forums where consumers ask and answer each other's questions, while toy manufacturer Lego has created a Web site, legofactory.com, where aficionados can submit their own proposed designs.

And companies also are taking advantage of the advertising opportunities presented by media consumers create. Rice herself has links to Amazon for marketing books on her blog. "It's taking your customer base and allowing them to sell your product for you," she said, adding that she's happy to advertise on her blog as long as she's rewarded.

Rice suggested that companies try to intervene when they see negative online feedback -- not by attempting to shut down the site, but by starting a conversation with the critics. "How powerful would it be if a representative from [the company] showed up on this site and said, 'Hey guys, I understand you're having some problems with [us]. How can I help?'"

And, while some companies may fear that encouraging consumers to talk about them will erode their brands, Rice said that the Internet has already divested these companies of control--even if they don't yet realize it. After Rice posted her thoughts about Comcast, the cable giant invited her to meet with company representatives in person. One of the discoveries Rice made was that some of the vice presidents she met with had never before heard of blogs.

Speaking earlier in the day, Jeff Bell, vice president of Chrysler and Jeep, expressed some similar thoughts. Consumers and corporations both say they want control, Bell said, but in the end, he predicted, the consumers will wind up in the driver's seat. "We are slowly coming to the realization that we must give up control," Bell said. "Our obsession with control must end. And it's ok."