MARKETERS AT AD:TECH Tuesday indicated a deep ambivalence towards blogs, saying that their companies urgently want a blog presence but, at the same time, fear the consequences of letting consumers freely express their opinions. Steve Pinetti, senior vice president of marketing at Kimpton Hotels, expressed a sentiment seemingly shared by many when he told the audience that, “the blog, as a form of word of mouth marketing, is something we’re very, very focused on, and we’re doing our homework right now.”

Yet, he added, with 60 percent of the hotels’ business coming from word of mouth referrals, unflattering comments can be devastating. When consumers start bad-mouthing his hotels on the Web, he doesn’t respond well. “I have a heart attack.”

If you’re also worried about the impact of negative blog comments on your business, you should hear what other marketers have to say in this OnlineMediaDaily article, Marketers Intrigued By Blogs, Fear Their Power.

The consensus? While those negative comments may give you grief, it’s best to leave it all up - positive and negative - lest your customers think you’re trying to spin them.

And as for the agita? Catherine Muriel, chief marketing officer of E-Loan, urges you to shake it off:

“If you have a heart attack every time someone writes something that’s not nice about you, you’re going to be … spending a lot of time at the cardiologist,” she said.