Old and New Friends

It's the age of social media. Many companies, with this in mind, drop traditional pr tactics for the latest thing.

My mother would sing this song to me every time I came home from school and said I made a new friend. I'd be so involved with the new friend, I acted as if my old bestie never existed. "Make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other is gold!"



Yes, very Long Island suburban cheesy, but very true! Don't forget your old friends. Our buddies like CNN, New York Times and the Wall Street Journal still hold major weight. The best way to get to your old friends, is through traditional pr.

"Ideas are the Beginning Points of All Fortunes" - Napoleon Hill

Before I get too crazy, as I often can, I wrote what I thought crowd sourcing meant.  Because the more I read, the more I turn into a coconut.  Let me keep it simple.  The first thing that came to mind was :

Crowds = reminds me of people

Sourcing  = reminds me of India and cheap labor aka a third party

 

I think it’s safe to say crowd sourcing is getting people’s ideas and using them to increase business. 

What comes to mind next? YELP.  I think it’s because I just left a review for a friend’s dance studio.  

We’ve all used Yelp.  I trust them, especially if a user has a profile picture and more than one posting.  Jump the trust factor up a notch if their photo looks like we could be friends.    

I might have thoughts to add in the next few days, but before I over complicate things, I’m keeping it simple. 

All About Readling Between The Lines

     It’s an important media relations skill that you don’t learn in any public relations course. We wish we could do it as easily as Superman. But we mortals have to earn this ability the hard way, through experience.  
   It is known as “reading between the lines.”  The phrase means detecting the true hidden meaning behind someone’s words or actions. The famed Man of Steel is gifted with X-ray vision. He can spot a hidden object with “X marks the spot” accuracy. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could divine our PR clients’ true intentions with such ease?

  In media relations, you’ll meet plenty of people who are cloaking an uncomfortable fact or an ulterior motive. My decade of experience as a newspaper journalist has borne out this observation. One example is an early 2000’s citizens’ meeting in Little Falls, NJ; one of my three coverage towns. This happened during my early reporting years.

  The district headquarters staff of Rep. Bill Pascrell, who represents Little Falls, called a hearing at the Little Falls Civic Center. He planned an evening open mike session for residents affected by the flood-prone Peckman River.

   At that time, the United States Army Corps of Engineers was doing preliminary studies on the flooding problem. The initiative was funded by grants that Pascrell had secured.

  Come showtime, at least 100 people attended, including local activists and council people. However, Pascrell was surprisingly absent. His aides wound up moderating the forum. They claimed the congressman was, “in committee” in Washington on important legislative business.

  I bought that story until an insider enlightened me on what had transpired. The tipster was Joe Scaperotta, an aide to then NJ Senator Norm Robertson.  Scaperotta attended the same meeting I did. He saw right through the “congressman in committee” excuse. He told me the truth a couple days later.

  According to Scaperotta, the congressman, politically speaking, could ill-afford to attend the hearing. There were no new developments on the Army Corps’ flood problem study. Therefore, Pascrell would lose face appearing before an audience with no news. That would weaken the congressman’s image as a results getting leader.

  According to the Scaperotta, Pascrell was upset with his district staff for calling the citizens’ conference.  I vividly remember Scapperotta’s words about the congressman’s no-show act.

 “He was in committee like you were in Paris.”         

   In hindsight, Scaperotta was the perfect person to pierce the smokescreen. As a senatorial aide, he knew the tricks politicians use to look good. I really began to understand that experience is second to none for reading between the lines. Part of the lesson is, as time goes on, you pick up pointers from knowledgeable people. That makes sense, because no one knows everything about everything.  

 As the years went on, I became more adept at reading between the lines. As my catalogue of journalistic encounters grew, so did my reference book for spotting similar situations. I also developed a more probing mindset; asking more questions and taking more dished out explanations with a grain of salt.

   Eventually, I became skillful at seeing the story behind the story. I realized that ability comes with performing your career, and growing wiser throughout time. I saw there is no shortcut to acquiring this.

  No college course or instructor can give you this skill. No class or teacher can cover all the circumstances encountered throughout years of being on the job. You have to be there yourself.   There’s no better education than dealing with various situations yourself, even if it means sometimes playing the fool.

   And don’t be ashamed if that happens.  Chalk it up to living and learning. Enlarging your encyclopedia of experience sharpens your eyesight for reading between the lines. You’ll become better at it.  Increasingly, you’ll discern the real matter at hand and confront it instead of being blindsided by it.  

   In the PR world, reading between the lines of your client’s intentions can make the difference between success and failure.  How can you really craft an effective strategic communications campaign if the client isn’t honesty communicating? How can you be someone’s PR right hand person when the right hand doesn’t know what the left is doing?

  We all wish we could read between the lines as readily as Superman uses X-ray vision. Yet, it is much better that we earn that skill ourselves. In the real world, we have to apply that capability ourselves. There is no Superman around to do it for us. And who wants to go through life with a Kryptonite like vulnerability to other people’s shenanigans?

       

Blog redesign version 1.0

 

FOR IMMEDIATE REVIEW BY CO-CROWDSOURCERS

 

Contacts: PRF&P students, Eric Chandler

 

How many students does it take to redesign a blog?

 

MIDDLESEX COUNTY, NEW JERSEY October 27, 2011 – PRFandP’s crowd sourcing assignment is now available for review. As part of a forward thinking experiment. Eric Chandler has nudged the gray matter of his students in a collaborative frenzy.

 

“Once more unto the breach dear friends...” again we find ourselves victims..errr..participants of progressive thinking. Each of us will have a turn as administrator of this blog in the creation of a new design. What we want or expect from this design should be foremost in our minds. Do we want it to have a social impact? Is it to be a model of digital instruction for professors with loud cats and lack of sleep? Who will be our audience? Yadda, yadda. You got wind of it already. Lets begin.

 

Take a look at our little  PRFandP blog. You’ll see I changed a few items, notably color, but I wanted to do more. I implemented a dynamic template which left out the tabs for signing in and such. I didn’t like it. I couldn’t change the layout much and any pictures uploaded distracted from the visual design. I converted the blog back to a simple design. Take a look and take note of the following design elements:

 

• relationships and connections of key points as you scroll across the page
• good use of white space
• line spacing and kerning (spacing of letters)- is it too tight or loose
• chunking of paragraphs and their alignment- does it flow naturally
• color-for contrast or to be complementary to each other

 

In addition, I found a few rules that we can apply to this redesign, courtesy of Josh Catone @ http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/crowdsourcing_million_heads.php 

 

Crowds should operate within constraints. To harness the collective intelligence of crowds, there need to be rules in place to maintain order.

Not everything can be democratic. Sometimes a decision needs to be made, and having a core team (or single person) make the ultimate decision can provide the guidance necessary to get things done and prevent crazy ideas and groupthink from wreaking havoc on your product.

Crowds must retain their individuality. Encourage your group to disagree, and try not to let any members of the group disproportionately influence the rest.

Crowds are better at vetting content than creating it. It is important to note that in most of the above projects, the group merely votes on the final product; they do not actually create it (even at Cambrian House, where the group collaborates to create the product, individuals are still creating each piece on their own and the group votes on whose implementation of an idea is best).

 

These are just suggestions folks. I am certain Eric will gently guide us in this endeavor. Have fun everyone.

Crowdsourcing & Solidarity...

A cool illustration I came across a few weeks ago.. maybe not the direct intent of Crowdsourcing - but definitely a great by-product right? :)

The Real is on the Rise

No spin, honesty, trust, transparency.  I see this cropping up everywhere from the New PR definitions we are learning about; to the protestor’s themes in the Occupy Wall Street Movement.. and special thanks to the musician Drake for the title of my blog entry. He too is reflecting through lyrics that we all seem keen to operate from a place of authenticity.

Is this the ushering of a new age in society? People before profits, truth over spin and a genuine concern for the best interest of others?  I think so yes. And the crystal clear content of digital media is churning this evolution at lightning speed. 

It seems we have no choice but to keep it real. 

My mind is expanding daily with the content we are being exposed to in this course. At this point it’s got me questioning what I stand for: my own personal brand, my values and what I can bring to the table to endorse this philosophy, as a corporate communicator.   And does our own sense of morality dictate the clients we work for, or companies we represent? 

I’m a passionate person when it comes to values. To whole-heartily believe in the intrinsic identity of the company I represent is important. Developing media relationships armed with a geniune belief in the good of the company just seems so natural to me (with added boundaries to all that transparency-talk of course).

I do hope that rose-tinted view of mine isn't too scrambled by the obvious need to make ends meat (cha-ching) 

The Email Pitch

This is NOT the response you want from the media when you send an email pitch!

Just like press releases, ask ten PR pros about the best method for writing an excellent email pitch, and you're going to get ten different responses.

I don't think there's one perfect method. (Establishing some sort of relationship is your first priority, though.) You need to develop your own style before you go in for the kill.

Promise me you'll keep it clear and personable, and free of canned, corporate-speak.

I was going to include this information in the Week Four Lesson Module, but I think the topic deserves an open forum conversation. Even if you've never done media relations, this is where your gut instinct comes into play. Put yourself in the media person's shoes. Do you want to be bombarded with garbage?

Here are a couple of articles to jump-start the conversation:

How To Write the Perfect Email Pitch.

Example of a Great PR Pitch
(from ChrisBrogan.com, another name to remember in the New PR context)


And as up-and-coming PR pros, get familiar with the Bad Pitch Blog.  And make sure that your name or one of your press releases ever appears here!

What does your gut say?

Newsworthy? Not so worthy…smh

STOP THE PRESSES! This just in…

It's actual puppy love for Selena Gomez and Justin Bieber!
According to People, the superstar teen couple adopted a puppy, a husky mix named Baylor, over the weekend.

Also…

Jennifer Lopez cries at concert
Swept away by emotion, the singer breaks down at her own concert performing 'One Love' at the Mohegan Sun casino in Montville, Conn.

And lest we forget…

Lindsay Lohan posing for Playboy: Is her career officially over now?

In the words of Michelle Tanner: Puh-lease! Since when did “celebrity news” actually qualify as news? No offense, but I could care less what the Biebs is buying or with whom. Sorry folks, but I do not (and I will never) have the Bieber Fever. However I do love Jenny from the Block, but she’s been around the block more times than I care to know. Who cares about her crying over yet another failed relationship? And Lindsay-SIGH-will someone please lock her up already!

I understand. Everyone loves to read a good human interest story, especially when it involves a celebrity. This allows the reader (or viewer) to develop a connection to a prominent individual. The stories seem to humanize the lives of the rich and famous. Such stories let the public know that aside from their billion dollar paychecks, million dollar mansions, fancy rides and pricey clothes they too have problems just like us. Ahh, how reassuring.

It bothers me when celebrity news seems to overshadow what I consider real news. You remember real news, right? Real news is the stuff usually covering local, national and world issues typically airing between 4:00am-10:00am or 4:00pm-11:30pm? Yes, the stuff before Desperate Housewives of Atlanta and after Dancing with the Stars.

It also bothers me when overrated “celebrities” are ridiculously paid for their star power while those who work hard and have developed a credible name are dismissed or swept neatly under a rug.



Ultimately, we can only blame ourselves. We would rather buy the latest edition of People or US Weekly than Time Magazine or the NY Times. We have no idea who is running for office or what their political views may be, but we know who George Clooney is dating this week or what gym Jennifer Aniston belongs to. Is this what our society has become?

What’s next for news? I don’t know about you, but I hope it does not involve the Kardashian klan covering the debt crisis in Europe.

Assignment Four

Amazon isn't having such a great news day. Or is it?  It all depends upon which news outlet you read. Some lead with "Profits Down!" Others go with "Earnings Up!"  (Those with the positive angle may have better PR/journo relationships, huh?)

Regardless, the media attention makes stockholders nervous, especially when all eyes are on the tablet market, and holiday shopping season is just around the corner.

Apple's iPad vs. Amazon's Kindle Fire. I predict lots of corporate conflict on the PR playing field.


Here's Assignment Four.

You're in Amazon's Corporate Communications department. Your role is to develop a media relations program that downplays the financial news and focuses attention on your core objective:  generating awareness for and promoting sales of the Kindle Fire.

•  Create and briefly explain a newsworthy story angle. There's lots of fodder here, so you use a combination of research, creativity and strategy to develop a tight, focused story angle. Consider all possible audiences who are tied to the Kindle Fire (e.g., consumers, retailers, manufacturers, etc.) 

• Write the press release

• Draft a brief email pitch targeted to a specific, appropriate media outlet (you do not need to specify the reporter/editor/blogger)

• Based upon your media relations strategy, explain why this media outlet is the most appropriate target for the story

Crowdsourcing

(This is not the Assignment Four post)


Between now and the end of the term, we're going to experiment with a more forward-thinking communications program: crowdsourcing.  The animated video will introduce the concept.

Our crowdsourcing task:  Design PRFandP (the blog). 

My kick-off blog post said that I wouldn't dictate the design because I'm both a contributor and a participant -- just like the rest of you. The objective is to create a PRFandP design that reflects each person's contributions. We, as a group, will shape a design that reflects our unique (real definition) class dynamic.

Some love the crowdsourcing concept, and others hate it. I'm not sure how it will play out, though I'm eager to test it out as a New PR activity. We can decide for ourselves.


The concept is a little "squishy," but let's give it a shot. This is what we're going to do:

• Each week, I'll grant one person "Administration" rights. That means you'll have the ability to access PRFandP's design dashboard. Sonia is this week's Crowdsourcer.

• Design applies to anything on PRFandP -- other than the posts and the content. Content is off limits. What we enter into the content fields will always remain, regardless of the design.
  
  Design applies to background, logo treatment, color, text style/size, blog layout and any other blog design-related features. Feel free to incorporate anywhere from 1 - 4 design edits when you are the designated Crowdsourcer.

Between now and the end of the term, PRFandP will take on an entirely new look and feel, based upon our contributions. We have no idea how it will turn out, but each of us will add to the former Crowdsourcer's additions to create a design that is the sum of all of our parts.

If you're still a little confused (and that's OK), Jeff Howe -- the guy behind the crowdsourcing concept -- will explain further:

The Tiger Woods Fiasco

I was thinking about the entertainment industry and celebrity PR - then Tiger Woods popped into my head.

Tiger Woods maintained a close-to perfect reputation before the cheating allegations surfaced. Previous to that, I only associated Tiger with being the biggest name in Golf. As soon as he became the focus of every gossip magazine, blog and entertainment news story, Tiger Woods' reputation took a very fast turn for the worse. With the help of his pr team, Tiger issued an apology but failed to take questions from the media. I find that to be a pr failure. Do you agree?

Celebrities get into PR trouble constantly. Some make a career saving come back, while others have destroyed theirs. Since the 2009 (I believe that's the correct year!) media frenzy began, do you think he saved his reputation and career? PR success or failure?