Author Archive
As the blogs turn…
For those that don’t know, a storm has been brewing all week in the world of Public Relations. Earlier this week, Chris Anderson, Editor-In-Chief of Wired Magazine and author of "The Long Tail" had a rather interesting post go up on his blog. It seems that Mr. Anderson is a bit peeved at the amount of pitches he receives that are completely unresearched and pretty much spammed at him. He even went so far as to publish the e-mail addresses of the individuals who sent him these poorly organized pitches. Take a look for yourself.
Needless to say, bloggers everywhere have been sounding off on Mr. Anderson’s actions. (Thanks to Brian Solis at PR 2.0 for the list of other blogs keeping an eye on the developments.) As you can expect, some agree with what he did, some are imploring him to take it down and others are just sharing an outside perspective on it.
I’m sure you’re expecting our take on the situation. Well, as an office,our take is this: We aren’t on the list and that’s a good indication that we are doing our jobs the right way.
But let’s step back and take a look at the bigger picture here. This story didn’t make the cover of USA Today. It’s not on MSNBC. But it IS important to everyone involved. This is a perfect example of the rapid growth and unbelievable importance of bloggers and the blogging community.
For the casual reader, this might not seem like much, but for those in our industry, this is one of the worst things that could ever happen to a publicity agent or firm. Chris Anderson set out to make a statement, and he did. Those on the list run the chance of being blacklisted for doing a "poor" job. It’s a potential black eye for the firms they work for as well. And we aren’t talking about small firms here. Some of the bigger names in the game (SparkPR, Morris King, Edelman, etc.) have found their way into the path of Chris Anderson’s wrath.
In the end, what does it all mean? Who knows yet. Who knows if jobs will be lost or if training programs will be changed. What IS known is that now, more than ever, the importance of the blog is front and center. I’m sure some people on that list might not even know about it yet. But guess what? The people you’re trying to communicate and work with do. And you better believe that their perception of you is going to change.
As technology manager here, I am trying to share a lesson or two with the office about all of this. The obvious is that we are doing a great job by being thorough with our pitches, but that we need to always hold ourselves to that high standard. The second is don’t doubt the influence and power of blogs and bloggers. We, too, are only one wrong e-mail or slip-up away from finding our names on a list like that.
And for those outside of the PR world: Maybe it’s time you start taking an interest in who blogs about what you do. You might learn something pretty valuable one day.
Sucked in by YouTube…
So everyone in the office has been busy brainstorming new ways to get even more publicity for our clients. And of course, YouTube came up.
"Why not have a page where we can post our clients videos?"
"Wouldn’t it be neat to see them on YouTube?"
You get the idea.
So off I went, into the realm of the Tube that is YOU, emerging after a few days with this. That’s right, PR/PR now has a YouTube page with videos all about us and our clients. It’s actually really neat. Now you can listen to our clients and hear their message straight from the source.
Pretty awesome.
Here are a couple of sample clips of Joe Takash and Dr. Maurice Ramirez to get you started.
Now run along and check out the other videos on our page!
Now this is customer service…
I was surfing the net today and happened to stumble across this page.
Kudos to the Houston Chronicle for coming up with this. Whether you are a sports fan or not, it’s not hard to appreciate the Chronicle looking out for Texans fans everywhere. Gives new meaning to "customer service" wouldn’t you say?
The Middle Management Crisis
Saw a great piece today in the Money section of USA Today by Stephanie Armour on the plight of companies trying to fill middle management roles. Well, it was great for two reasons: 1. Stephanie is such a thorough journalist, and it really shows in the quality of her work. 2. Our very own Dan Coughlin was quoted in it.
This is a trend that we have been noticing alot recently. It really appears that the appeal of becoming a middle manager has worn off. But when you think about it, it really makes sense. Corporate exec’s feel like they are the ones running the show on a daily basis. The top sales reps who are up for promotion to management don’t want to leave a position where they are lavished with praise and accolades. Why would anyone want to literally get stuck in the "middle"?
But it’s guys like Dan Coughlin who are offering ideas and solutions to change the face of middle management for the better and earn these workers the respect and gratitude they deserve.
Want more from Dan?
Check out his new book, "Accelerate: 20 Practical Lessons to Boost Business Momentum" or take a look at his Daily Acceleration Blog
Coming back online…
Ok, so it’s been awhile since our last post. That doesn’t mean we aren’t staying busy here, though.
Along with our usual day-to-day tasks of getting publicity for our clients, PR/PR has been taking some time to create some publicity for ourselves. We recently signed on to handle publicity for the new movie "The Opus," which is a follow-up to the runaway hit "The Secret." We are in the planning stages of a 90 second commercial that will show before the actual movie and are trying to get the thing planned, drawn, scripted and filmed by the end of the month. As soon as it’s completed, I will post it here for everyone to enjoy.
As our move across the blogosphere continues, I wanted to take a second to thank a couple of people for their continued support of PR/PR and our E-Media adventures. Travis Wright at the Positive Blog Network and Michael McKinney from LeadershipNow.com have both been kind enough to take an interest in what we are doing here and we are so very thankful to have them on board. You can take a look at their blogs and sites underneath the "Friends of PR/PR" heading. They both have great material, and I hope they benefit from us as much as we are going to benefit from them.
On to the clients…
Technology forecaster Dan Burrus was featured in a two part series by Cord Cooper in Investor’s Business Daily last week. The pieces ran on Monday, July 30th and Tuesday, July 31st and really showed how diverse and gifted Dan is. You can read more from Dan by checking out his blog, which is listed in our "Friends" section.
Also getting some big ink was Don Schmincke, who was quoted in Eilene Zimmerman’s "Career Couch" column in yesterday’s New York Times. Take a look at the piece on "The Importance of Unburned Bridges" here.
Ok, that’s enough for now. Check back soon because we are back to frequent updates…I promise.
NSA 2007: Wednesday, July 11th
After a great evening, Wednesday was packed to the max with activities.
The morning keynote was from Dan Burrus on technology and implementing your plan. It was a real pleasure to finally get to hear Dan speak, as he is a client of PR/PR. His ideas are absolutely amazing, and his content and delivery made his speech that much more interesting and exciting. Plus, he brought out the coolest robot ever. He made it do pushups, cartwheels and even some yoga stances. Truly amazing.
After another busy run at the booth, we got to meet with afternoon keynoter Ross Shafer for about 20 minutes and pick his brain an a variety of different topics. Ross was presenting on how to put together a great stage performance, and his great insight and incredible sense of humor made him a real pleasure to speak with. Ross is such a great speaker and an even nicer guy, and we are so happy to have both him and Dan Burrus as clients here at PR/PR.
Here is myself, Ross, Pam and Rick before Ross’ presentation.
After another stop at the booth and a quick change of attire, we all sat down for a lovely dinner at the NSA Foundation dinner and auction. PR/PR auctioned off a publicity package and the proceeds of the auction go to benefit the foundation, which is truly a great cause and source of hope for those in need.
I should also mention that we were able to meet and talk with some of the most influential speakers in the world. We had the great pleasure of spending time with Mark Victor Hansen, Jack Canfield and Dr. Sue Morter. They are all great folks, and we enjoyed our time with them.
Wednesday was our last full day at the convention, before we headed back to the office. NSA 2007 was a wonderful time, and we look forward to seeing everyone at NSA 2008 in New York City!
NSA 2007: Tuesday, July 10th
We started the morning with a keynote from Dr. Sue Morter on utilizing the mind and body for quantum impact. Her energy is amazing and made for an inspiring and educational performance.
Another great turnout at the booth during the day.
The afternoon lunch session and keynote featured Randy Gage, about the mindsets of prosperity. A powerful speaker with controverisial ideas, Randy caused quite a stir with his presentation on understanding how each of us (as well as outside forces) is being held back from prosperity.
That night, Russell and I had the pleasure of attending the Cigar PEG party aboard the USS Midway. For those that don’t know, Cigar PEG is an outside group that raises funds for NSA and the NSA Foundation (for more information and to see pictures from this year’s party, visit www.cigarpeg.com.) We were treated to drinks, dinner, wonderful company and, of course, some stogies (Russell selected a lovely Macanudo Baron de Rothchilde Maduro and I enjoyed my Romeo y Julieta Churchill.) Enjoying a cigar is always an experience, but nothing compares to enjoying a cigar on the flight deck of a US Aircraft Carrier. Even more exciting was that the entire ship was opened for us to look through. It was a fantastic evening, and I can guarantee I will be attending the 2008 party as well.
Note: Don’t take the bike cabs in San Diego…five blocks, two people = $30. Wow.
Sort of live from NSA 2007: Monday, July 9th
On Friday I blogged about the technical issues that we had trying to update our blog in San Diego at the National Speakers Association Convention. I promised that I would post all of our daily blogs on here once things got settled down at the office. So here are the insights, ideas and random happenings that caught our eye in San Diego. Enjoy.
Monday, July 9th
We had a great turnout at our booth, with all different speakers offering us insight into what they do and how they create change and motivation in the world. NSA is truly a diverse group of individuals who speak on an even more diverse set of topics.
The night’s keynote was from Simon T. Bailey on realizing the potential that each of us carries and how that potential sets us apart from everyone else. Interesting topic presented by a truly eloquent speaker.
A wonderful buffet on the 4th floor pool deck of the Manchester Grand Hyatt closed out our evening.
Technology is our friend…most of the time
So I know we promised live updates from the National Speakers Association Convention. For those that looked at the blog this week, one thing seemed to be missing…the updates.
Between the hectic pace of the show and the sporadic wireless coverage, all of our attempts to update failed. However, we have archived the entries that we made while in San Diego, and I will be posting those throughout the day, so check back often. Thanks for understanding.
