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Archive for the ‘Public Relations’ Category

Yahoo’s Hack Day generates publicity. Bad publicity

Thursday, October 29th, 2009

As you may or may not have heard, Yahoo’s “Hack Day” in Taiwan made headlines, but not for any innovative code. The event was supposed to be about developers designing Web apps in 24 hours, but it was the sideshow that caught the Web’s attention.

As an apparent “gift” to the developers, Yahoo hired lap dancers as entertainment. Certainly a large part of these events is to garner publicity, but the caveat that Yahoo seems to have overlooked is that said publicity should be positive!

Performing a Yahoo news search for “Yahoo Hack Day” almost exclusively returns articles penned by irate authors. The only exceptions were written before the actual event, or mentioned Hack Day as a side note. Chris Yeh, head of the Yahoo Developer Network, has issued an apology through the YDN blog, simply titled, “Sorry,” which acknowledges wrong-doing but offers little to better the situation. The first comment counters, “this is tradition as opposed to an aberration,” noting that Yahoo hired similar girls for last year’s Hack Day as well.

In Kara Swisher’s scathing analysis, she writes, “it is not clear why all the thumpa-thumpa music and dancing gals did not engender complaints last year.” This leads me to question how large a role did the groundswell play in making this a newsworthy story?

My takeaway? In today’s world, regardless of your immediate audience, you must always be aware that your actions are likely (definitely in Yahoo’s case) to be seen by global audiences. As a global company, Yahoo needed to recognize this, and act more appropriately. Let’s see what entertainment developers are welcomed with next year.

Tags: Crisis communication, Issues management, PR, Public Relations
Posted in Issues Management, Marketing, Public Relations | Comments

How NOT to part with your employer

Thursday, October 29th, 2009

Quitting jobs in a dramatic over-the-top fashion is something many people fantasize about at one time or another. Most people realize the transient pleasure this may give them will more likely lead to more lasting problems.

One disgruntled Starcom employee however, apparently decided that speaking his mind was worth it, regardless of the consequences. While you will almost certainly sympathize with at least some of his note, perhaps most of it even, the point is that if you will ever be seeking employment again, it’s probably best not to burn those bridges.

Funny? Sure. Treating your career like a joke? You decide.

Tags: Intern Diaries
Posted in Internet Marketing, Professional Development, Public Relations, Talk | Comments

No news can be good news

Monday, October 26th, 2009

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Sometimes news is only news to a small group of people. In these situations, it can be difficult to get media to cover a story, even if it’s cool and newsworthy. That’s where crafty PR people come in. We’re trained to not just think outside of the box, but around it, on top of it, behind it and next to it. We leave no box unturned when it comes to getting our clients ink.

We handle publicity for Landfall, a private golfing community in Wilmington. Since a lot of their activities are for residents, members of the Country Club of Landfall, and guests only, it takes some creative thinking to get the media interested. On October 15, Landfall unveiled a new garden labyrinth and bronze sculpture in the memorial garden at Kenan Chapel. The Chapel and gardens are only open to the public during specific special events, so the majority of the news watchers or readers won’t have access to it, thereby limiting the chances of getting media attention.

Instead of simply pitching the dedication ceremony to local media and hoping for a slow news day, we researched the origin of labyrinths and the growing trend of building these maze-like paths in churches and at hospitals. Then we developed a pitch that positioned labyrinths – like the new one at Kenan Chapel at Landfall, as well as two others in town – as places for emotional, spiritual and physical healing. This out-of-the-box approach garnered coverage in the Star News and the upcoming issue of Focus on The Coast and on WWAY’s 5:30 newscast the day of the dedication.

Tags: Country Club of Landfall, Creative PR, Labyrinths, Landfall
Posted in Public Relations | Comments

Pink Chicks on Parade at The Forum Shops!

Monday, October 5th, 2009

pinkribbon A host of 5’ tall Pink Chicks and a number of local celebrities, including Mayor Bill Saffo and WECT-TV Anchor Frances Weller, will strut their stuff in front of The Forum Shops on Tuesday, October 6 to kick off the first annual Pink Chick Parade to raise funds and awareness for the Pink Ribbon Project. The Pink Chicks are 5’ tall pink cutouts that will parade in front of The Forum Shops in Military Cutoff Road throughout October, which is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The Pink Chicks can be purchased at any of The Forum Shops for $125 each — the cost of a mammogram administered by Pink Ribbon Project. Participants are encouraged to “Buy a Chick, Save a Life” to help Pink Ribbon administer more mammograms to uninsured women. The chicks can also be signed and customized in honor of or as a memorial to a loved one.

In addition to launching the Pink Chick Parade, David Swain and The Forum Shops are donating $10,000 to the Pink Ribbon Project. Since its inception in 1998, the Pink Ribbon Project, an initiative of the New Hanover Regional Medical Center Foundation, has raised more than $1 million to provide “Comfort Bags” to area women undergoing treatment and to administer mammograms to uninsured women through New Hanover Regional Medical Center’s Coastal Care Van.

Tags: Pink Chick Parade, Pink Ribbon Project
Posted in Public Relations | Comments

The Lost Art of Handwritten Notes

Thursday, August 6th, 2009

Think back to a time before emails, text messages and Twitter posts. I used to pick up a pen and stationery to express a sentiment or share news with family, friends and business associates. Now, in my never-ending quest to save time, a quick email or posting does the job. I remember when I first moved away from home, I exchanged handwritten letters with family members and friends for years, before a cell phone, email and now Facebook gradually took their place.

Imagine my delight when I recently checked the mailbox and found a handwritten note from one of my cousins, including a recent photo of her daughter. What a nice feeling to know that someone was thinking of me, and actually took the time to put it into words on some very cute stationery! She’ll be receiving my response in short order.

This kind of personal touch is also effective in the business world. It’s always a nice surprise to receive a handwritten thank you note at work, instead of an everyday email message. Below are five reasons to send a handwritten note at work:

1. Follow-up with a new client
2. Thanks a vendor for a job well done
3. Congratulate a colleague on a promotion or success
4. Acknowledge that you’ve read about someone in the news (attach a clipping)
5. Thank a coworker for their extra effort

I’ve set a personal goal at work to write a handwritten note at least once each week. Let’s bring back this lost art.

Tags: business writing, Handwritten notes, thank you notes
Posted in Public Relations | Comments

All copywriting should be from an SEO standpoint

Wednesday, July 22nd, 2009

While I am certainly no copywriting master like Debbie or Susan here, I do wield my force in search engine optimization and other online strategies. What I have been noticing, however, is probably what most of you in the copywriting or public relations industry are noticing (and where the money is going): SEO is a “new” copywriting tool.

All copy on the web should be written from an SEO standpoint.This means writing from the basis of keywords that will optimize your online exposure and narrow the focus of your message, making your work that much more effective.

A marriage between SEO and copywriting means more sales. If search engine optimization is the act of getting your information found by your customers based on the keywords your customers are already searching for, then using the very same words your customers found the content with to begin with should improve sales due to your copy resonating with the consumer. This, no doubt, provides the best use of the content, or copy, being created.

Use SEO methods in your copywriting to improve your content.

You improve sales by using words that resonate with the customer - it’s what they searched for, after all.
You’re writing copy that not only sells, but gets found by your target audience.
Your copy is benefiting your website as a whole due to its search engine optimization components.

If you’re looking to do copywriting or press release writing, an understanding of search engine optimization is becoming more and more critical to the point where it’s beginning to be listed in job requirements. This makes perfect sense, since copy and content should have been created this way to begin with. And with the majority of content going digital, even the copy you’re writing for traditional outlets are finding their way to the internet.

Tags: Copywriting, press release optimization, search engine optimization for pr, SEO, seo press release, seo wilmington nc, Talk
Posted in Internet Marketing, Public Relations | Comments

Ten memorable event locales

Wednesday, June 24th, 2009

One of the best ways to increase interest in and attendance of an event is to choose an event venue out of the ordinary. Choosing a new and interesting venue can make a significant impact on an annual event that over the years has become somewhat monotonous. So scrap the traditional hotel ballroom and consider the following options:

• Aquarium
• Planetarium
• Sports stadium
• Boat, yacht or ferry
• Art gallery
• Museum
• Historic home or mansion
• Barn
• Botanical Gardens
• Theatre

These non-traditional venues provide many rich visual elements that could save you money on décor or can be tied to your theme. Not only can you carry out the purpose of your event, but you will also give your guests a unique experience that they will remember and reflect back on for years to come.

Photo by: theeventproducer

Tags: Event Planning, Events
Posted in Public Relations | Comments

Journalism is Changing

Tuesday, June 9th, 2009

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I went to Journalism school many years ago. But I didn’t pursue a career in journalism. I chose public relations instead. PR allows me to combine my interests in business and communications. And I’ve always enjoyed working with the media.

But journalism is changing. Daily papers are failing. Audiences are shrinking. As the industry struggles to accommodate changes in technology and readership, the norms for reporting seem to be changing too. Bias is creeping into reporting. And in too many instances, it’s jumped right in, taking a front row seat in the news department instead of being relegated to the opinion pages.

Inflammatory adjectives now appear in reporting on a regular basis. And information that would completely change the tone and nature of an article are too often omitted. A sin of omission is still a sin, isn’t it?

Drama and controversy sells newspapers and viewership. The media is a business and it’s struggling. I can’t say with any certainty that this shift in journalistic standards and practices is a direct effort to retain earnings, but it gives one pause.

I love working with the media. It’s why I chose to work in PR. But I long for the days when journalistic standards were as stringent as they were in my days at Howell Hall in Chapel Hill.

Tags: Journalism, PR, trends
Posted in Public Relations | Comments

Write or Wrong?

Tuesday, May 19th, 2009

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With college graduation recently behind us, we’ve been getting our share of cover letters and resumes from new grads looking for a job. And yes, once again I am unfortunately reminded that universities are granting diplomas to young men and women who can barely string a sentence together. What’s truly amazing is that most of these students have degrees in communications, marketing (and sometimes journalism). I think that too many of our high schools and universities have done these young people a grave disservice by not teaching them how to write. And by not being honest with them about how important writing skills are to a career in communications.

One of the questions that I always ask an interview candidate (young and old alike) is how they rate their writing skills. Then I ask them if they like to write. You would be amazed at how many people looking for a job at a communications agency are nonchalant about telling me that their writing skills are weak, and oh yeah, by the way, I don’t really enjoy it much either.

If you can’t write well, you can’t work at Talk. Period. No exceptions. We give prospective employees an on-site, timed writing test, spelling test and grammar test. Lots of candidates fail. But we give these tests to identify candidates who will succeed at Talk. A poor writer doesn’t belong in marketing communications. There is no amount of smart graphics or Internet wizardry that is going to hide poor writing. Everyone, from graphic designer to office manager, should be adept at drafting a cogent, well organized memo, budget and business proposal. And the account managers and copywriters should be writing prose that makes people laugh, cry or sing on a regular basis.

Agencies often differ by specialty: website design, graphic design, advertising or PR. But regardless of their focus, all agencies write marketing messages for their clients. Great writing (and by extension, great messaging) is the foundation of a successful marketing campaign. And it’s the foundation on which Talk is built.

Tags: agencies, Writing
Posted in Professional Development, Public Relations, Talk | Comments

Top five survival tactics for media outlets

Monday, May 18th, 2009

Everyday the headlines about news outlets seem drearier and drearier. Yes, this economy is rough, but many newspapers, magazines and broadcast stations have and will continue to be phased out, not because of the economic climate but because of their refusal to conform to new media standards. So in a time when all the big wigs are rethinking their strategies, here are my top five survival tactics that I think will be critical to the reinvention of the news media.

1. Go to where the audiences are: Sorry Wall Street Journal, but you missed the point when trying to advise your reporters on how to engage in social media. We will advise our clients to consider how they want their staff to participate in social media, but the WSJ policies inhibit instead of encourage participation. Coming from the negative perspective of “what’s the worst that can happen online,” WSJ leadership is missing out on an incredible opportunity that other outlets, like the New York Times Co., are taking advantage of.

2. Involve news consumers in news reporting: This week, Newsweek joined the likes of CNN and integrated its news reporting on Facebook in a major way this year. The magazine aired a live interview with Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner through its Facebook page on Monday. Fans had the opportunity to submit questions and comments through Facebook, playing a primary role in the Newsweek interview. In a similar setup just this month, Arianna Huffington interviewed billionaire Sir Richard Branson on the maiden flight of his Virgin America for Digg.com. Huffington chose the most popular of the more than 1,500 reader questions submitted on the Digg Dialogg page. This not only made for a more interesting and unconventional interview (even for the outrageous Branson) but visitors on Digg had an actual stake in the interview, making its outcome more compelling to them.

3. Create a niche product: I’m always bragging about our local paper in Wilmington, N.C. Not only do they belong to the great New York Times Co., but they are so out in front of adapting to the changing media landscape, that I wonder if they’re not even ahead of their parent. The Star-News has created the new website MyReporter.com, where if you have a question about “life in coastal North Carolina,” you can ask it and have the local paper’s team of reporters find the answer for you. It’s a natural fit, right? Reporters spend all day researching and know how to find answers in ways the general public don’t. While the jury’s still out on the site’s moneymaking potential, it looks promising. “Site Sponsors” can also answer reader question that relate to their line of business, offering a unique opportunity for online exposure.

4. Become less reliant on ad sales: If there was ever a time we ever needed a new strategy for traditional ad sales, that time is now. Decreasing ad sales may responsible for the biggest hit media outlets have taken over the past year. Signs don’t point to a swift or simple resolution. But let’s think outside the box. There’s a reason Entertainment Weekly’s website content has grown richer and its page numbers have dwindled. Offer advertisers opportunities to grow, interact and engage with readers and viewers and that is a sound start.

5. Open up: This seems to be a major problem for TV networks and movie studios alike. Naturally, no one in their right mind thinks it’s OK for an unfinished $200 million super hero movie to leak on the Internet. However, if there is a funny clip or sketch on a cable or network program, the aggregation of that on the Internet will help you in the end, not hurt you. NBC and Fox got smart and along with other networks, signed agreements with Hulu.com so they can get some monetary value from their viral videos.

Photo by: j2taranto

Tags: Digg, Facebook, Hulu, Marketing in a Recession, NBC, New York Times, Star News, Wall Street Journal
Posted in Public Relations | Comments