There’s a new corporate website out there that is getting some decent traffic with a blogroll that includes treehugger, thedailygreen, grist, worldchanging and ecogeek. Who is this masked green avenger?

Wal-Mart.

August 16, 2007 Wal-Marts blog “Check Out” had its very first post. It was a four sentence post asking the blogosphere if they had heard about the 300 page iPhone bill Pittsburgh-area, Justine Ezarik, received. Remember that?

Anyways, the blog describes itself thusly –

“Welcome to ‘Check Out’.

Ever been to the Consumer Electronics Show? A clean technology forum? Ever gotten to preview the newest games, gadgets and phones before they were out?

We have, and it was for work.

This is a blog, simply, about a team of experts at Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club who have really cool jobs working with gadgets, games, sustainability and more. Even better, these jobs are centered around helping people save money and live better.

We’re excited.

Finally, in terms of blogging, we like the advice Robert Scoble gave back in 2003 when he wrote his version of a “Corporate Weblog Manifesto.”

Check it out. There’s lots to come.

Thanks for visiting.”

Umm. Okay. Well, there’s no denying it now – yep, it’s a corporate blog. The blog has 5 main categories – Gadgets, Gaming, Lawn & Garden, Movies and Sustainability. Seems like a strange collage of product categories (and oh, yeah, the green movement) but I guess from a retailers perspective, somehow this mix belongs together. Although, I guess Gaming and Sustainability have always walked hand in hand.

A guy by the name of Rand Waddoups is the author for the sustainability section. He seems to be on the once a month blogging schedule and is bent on getting feedback. Nothing really news breaking and thankfully (knock on wood) nothing yet to the tone of “Buy Now, before it is too late!”

The whole site seems like a sincere reach out to the consumer. I still don’t think that I get the objective of the whole thing - the “About Us” was pretty vague. But if nothing else the retailer is engaging in conversation and as far as I can tell no other retailer is doing anything like it. Particularly in the area of sustainability. Sure, there is more that Wal-Mart could do, even other retailers – even other ones that spend a lot of time talking green – but this, along with the other myriad of steps Wal-Mart has taken, – is at least something and it’s in the right direction. Getting rid of the bouncing smiley face TV ads was also a step in the right direction. I think those ads inspired the invention of tivo. Now maybe plant some trees in those concrete slabs you call parking lots. Even better - use Italcementi .

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