Will Google Sidewiki keep organisations' PR more honest?

At a socio-personal level, I’ve encountered a few issues with organisations making claims on the web that are false or invalid – like Lasseters desert Hotel in Alice Springs; but Google’s Sidewiki promises to help web users to instantly check the veracity and validity of any claims made on a website. I recently chose to stay at Lasseters Hotel Casino in Alice Springs, ‘cos their website (and several other travel-related sites) said they offered free golf green fees at the local course. On sign-in, I asked for the offer and was flatly told the promo ran out 6months previous. Disappointed, I emailed them asking for compensation as the free fees promoted influenced my hotel selection; the manager Craig Jervis nicely refused saying they’d now amend the erroneous claims. As the above link shows, they’ve only partially done it – sneaky stuff from Lasseters or what? As recently visited by colleague Julian Lee at the SMH, Google’s Sidewiki bookmarklet is a browser sidebar, kinda stored as a coded bookmark. When you click the bookmark, it opens a new window where you can write a new Sidewiki entry or see entries that others have written alongside any web page you’re viewing. Maybe I should Sidewiki all those sites mentioning Lasseters free green fee offer? Sidewiki (I’d dub it “Snidewiki” if the comments made are deliberately injurious) is yet another new frontier for PRs looking to manage organisational reputation; should help keep companies (including my pals @ Lasseters) more attentive and honest about false or misleading advertising (even within digital editorial spaces).

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