How to corral that free-wheeling user-generated content

Prevailing wisdom says you can’t control the message anymore.  User-generated content has a life of it’s own and any attempt to make it into a marketing or PR vehicle will backfire.

And have we not seen some spectaular examples of doing it wrong?

Pontiac’s social media site created in tandem with Yahoo is a much smarter approach. Their new community hub on Yahoo is designed to tap into the "street-level" energy of fans from all its active and retired brands by uniting and introducing the hundreds of offline and online groups already in existence. No overt marketing will be present – the idea is for it to be found and spread organically. .

Now there’s a thought – gather up all the consumer generated buzz already going on and offer it a home. Make it possible for all your evangelists to interact and find each other. Give them more social media tools so it’s easier for them to  create and share content .

Underground allows users to share photos and videos of cars using Flickr and Yahoo Video. A Yahoo Answers zone enables knowledge sharing. An aggregated list of Pontiac clubs in the physical world and on Yahoo Groups allows users to connect offline and online. An opinion poll, Pontiac-hosted blog "Inside Track" and the "Pontiac Informer," an aggregation tool for blogs and news, round out the offering.

Now that’s smart marketing and PR in the Web 2.0 world.