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PR and Reputation Management for the Future – Clear Vision, Moving Horizon

Friday, December 18th, 2009

The Moving PR Horizon

The Moving PR Horizon

Posted by Tom Gable

As reported here previously, a PRSA Counselors Academy survey identified the key issues facing the PR agencies and internal staffs in the ongoing transition of the PR professional from vendor to trusted counselor. The top line action items: demonstrating return on investment (ROI), providing authentic counsel, embracing social media, improving technology and finding new ways of measurement.

My segment during a panel discussion of the findings at the PRSA International provided ideas on enhancing client service. As covered earlier, Gable PR and many others recommend getting off to a fast start by using internal and external audits. They are a cost-effective and quick means of gathering the intelligence required to create strategic long-term programs.

With research in place, agencies and internal PR staffs can start planning to build future image from a strong foundation and based on a bright, strategic vision. As an analogy, think about creating a beautiful new high-rise office building, cathedral, synagogue, museum, football stadium or other major architectural undertaking. What do you want the finished product to look like – the final rendering? Then, what are the essential elements needed to bring the vision to life?

Steel-Solid Facts, No Hype

In PR, branding and positioning, the foundation must be legitimate, ethical, credible, authentic and steel-solid with facts. From there, image builds on three to four core values. Then, every piece of communications provides additional support for each core value, building a row at a time to create a future award-wining edifice. Add a row or two of hype? And the walls will come crumbling down.

How to organize the PR efforts necessary to create new images and reputations? We call it Horizon Management, a concept that assumes you can plan for and achieve the desired results. Then, once the desired position is reached, positive communications must continue to perpetuity. Markets change. Competitors come and go. New communications tools are created and channels opened. So aim for the horizon – and keep moving the horizon!

The pro-active PR professional routinely looks a year or more ahead for new opportunities and provides the leadership that keeps relationships and results growing over time. Go beyond the ordinary and expected. Fresh ideas keep clients and bosses engaged and enthusiastic. The approach also builds trust and respect. Even if there is disagreement, clients know the professional is focused on their future success, not personal agendas. As a result, the PR professional is transformed from vendor or staff person to trusted counselor and strategic partner, building relationships that endure and prosper.

Horizon Management

Here are a couple of quick tips for launching horizon management.

Conduct an Environmental and Situation Analysis

  • Annual plans, milestones, events, conferences, quarterly reports, audit info, other “knowns”

Get Creative with the “Flip Side”

  • What exists? What doesn’t?
  • Where are the holes?
  • What new ideas can we bring to the table?

Take Your Plan Over the Horizon

  • Propose bigger ideas, new programs, and added value
  • Have short-term action items for daily engagement
  • Set a vision for the future (changing image, behavior)
  • Brainstorm regularly, provide continuous creativity
  • Update monthly and keep moving the horizon
  • Manage for results, not time
  • Understand client rhythms, synchronize
  • Set new standards for responsiveness

Monthly Litmus Test on Program Success

Examine recent client experiences, relationships, evolution, momentum, stagnation and any confusion or misdirection:

  • What worked?
  • What didn’t?
  • What (or who) changed?
  • What was missing?
  • What steps do we need to take to generate clearly superior results?

Detailed Check List for Client Success

  • Understand the client business, plans, and goals
  • Match expertise to client needs
  • Do your homework
  • Set realistic expectations
  • Build a team – internally and with the client
  • Develop long-range plans, critical steps
  • Establish procedures, protocols for planning, ongoing creative, approvals, measurement
  • Be strategic and authentic
  • Use appropriate tools and tactics
  • Communicate consistently and creatively!
  • Keep moving the horizon
  • And celebrate as you build relationships that endure to perpetuity

Obviously, these are bullet points that require a lot more thought for each and could be turned into a chapter in a book (They are! The Fifth Edition of the PR Client Service Manual is advancing toward release in Spring 2010). For a free PDF of the Fourth Edition, circa 2001, email me at tom@gablepr.com.

Posted by Tom Gable

As reported here previously, a PRSA Counselors Academy survey identified the key issues facing the PR agencies and internal staffs in the ongoing transition of the PR professional from vendor to trusted counselor. The top line action items: demonstrating return on investment (ROI), providing authentic counsel, embracing social media, improving technology and finding new ways of measurement.

My segment during a panel discussion of the findings at the PRSA International provided ideas on enhancing client service.  As covered earlier, Gable PR and many others recommend getting off to a fast start by using internal and external audits.  They are a cost-effective and quick means of gathering the intelligence required to create strategic long-term programs.

With research in place, agencies and internal PR staffs can start planning to build future image from a strong foundation and based on a bright, strategic vision. As an analogy, think about creating a beautiful new high-rise office building, cathedral, synagogue, museum, football stadium or other major architectural undertaking.  What do you want the finished product to look like – the final rendering? Then, what are the essential elements needed to bring the vision to life?

Steel-Solid Facts, No Hype

In PR, branding and positioning, the foundation must be legitimate, ethical, credible, authentic and steel-solid with facts.  From there, image builds on three to four core values. Then, every piece of communications provides additional support for each core value, building a row at a time to create a future award-wining edifice. Add a row or two of hype? And the walls will come crumbling down.

How to organize the PR efforts necessary to create new images and reputations?  We call it Horizon Management, a concept that assumes you can plan for and achieve the desired results.  Then, once the desired position is reached, positive communications must continue to perpetuity.  Markets change. Competitors come and go. New communications tools are created and channels opened.  So aim for the horizon – and keep moving the horizon!

The pro-active PR professional routinely looks a year or more ahead for new opportunities and provides the leadership that keeps relationships and results growing over time. Go beyond the ordinary and expected. Fresh ideas keep clients and bosses engaged and enthusiastic. The approach also builds trust and respect. Even if there is disagreement, clients know the professional is focused on their future success, not personal agendas.  As a result, the PR professional is transformed from vendor or staff person to trusted counselor and strategic partner, building relationships that endure and prosper.

Horizon Management

Here are a couple of quick tips for launching horizon management.

Conduct an Environmental and Situation Analysis

Annual plans, milestones, events, conferences, quarterly reports, audit info, other “knowns”

Get Creative with the “Flip Side”

What exists? What doesn’t?

Where are the holes?

What new ideas can we bring to the table?

Take Your Plan Over the Horizon

Propose bigger ideas, new programs, and added value

Have short-term action items for daily engagement

Set a vision for the future (changing image, behavior)

Brainstorm regularly, provide continuous creativity

Update monthly and keep moving the horizon

Manage for results, not time

Understand client rhythms, synchronize

Set new standards for responsiveness

Monthly Litmus Test on Program Success

Examine recent client experiences, relationships, evolution, momentum, stagnation, confusion

What worked?

What didn’t?

What (or who) changed?

What was missing?

What steps do we need to take to generate clearly superior results?

Detailed Check List for Client Success

Understand the client business, plans, and goals

Match expertise to client needs

Do your homework

Set realistic expectations

Build a team – internally and with the client

Develop long-range plans, critical steps

Establish procedures, protocols for planning, ongoing creative, approvals, measurement

Be strategic and authentic

Use appropriate tools and tactics

Communicate consistently and creatively!

Keep moving the horizon

And celebrate as you build relationships that endure to perpetuity.

Obviously, these are bullet points that require a lot more thought for each and could be turned into a chapter in a book (They are!  The Fifth Edition of the PR Client Service Manual is advancing toward release in Spring 2010).  For a free PDF of the Fourth Edition, circa 2001, email me at tom@gablepr.com.

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Posted in Authentic PR, Brilliant Counsel, Client Service Results, Clutter Busting, Horizon Management, In the Beginning | No Comments »

Making the Online Video Boom Work for PR, Branding

Thursday, October 15th, 2009

Getting Visual

Getting Visual

Posted by Krista Rogers

You can run but you can’t hide. The online video boom is here and it is not going to go away. And it is a great thing. Online video presents an incredible platform for public relations practitioners to help their clients or organizations improve communication and tell stories in new and imaginative ways. But the question is, “How?”

Earlier this month I participated in the PRSA teleseminar: Tapping into the Online Video Boom hosted by Mike McDougall, APR Vice President of Corporate Communications & Public Affairs at Bausch & Lomb that answered the questions so many companies are wrestling with.

Mike said online video should be an essential part of any corporate communicator’s toolkit. He really put the value of online video into perspective. It is no longer limited to channels such as YouTube or traditional broadcast media. It is becoming a cheap and effective tool that can be integrated into all of your communication tactics.

To quantify just how much impact online video has on internet users in the United States, here are some numbers from the results from a January 2009 Comscore report:

  • Over 147 million U.S. Internet users viewed an average of 101 videos each in January (more than three a day!).
  • 76.8 percent of the total U.S. Internet audience viewed online video.
  • The average online video viewer watched 356 minutes of video in January, (approximately 6 hours), up 15 percent versus December.
  • 100.9 million viewers watched 6.3 billion videos on YouTube.com (62.6 videos per viewer).
  • 54.1 million viewers watched 473 million videos on MySpace.com (8.7 videos per viewer).
  • The duration of the average online video was 3.5 minutes, up from 3.2 minutes per video in December.

Mike was kind enough to share his ideas for using online video to show off an organization’s attributes, all within a strategic plan. Here are his top tips with a little Gable PR insights as well.

ELEVEN ONLINE VIDEO TIPS

  1. Let your spokespeople speak! Be casual and non-slick.
  2. Show your lighter side. Be careful though, there is a caveat; don’t make it too light. Make sure the video is appropriate to the company’s personality and culture.
  3. Show what is special. What could you use to increase internal morale or external interest? Talk about how many patents you have? Secret ingredients in your hotel’s recipes? Brilliant engineering in your medical device? Special relics in your museum? You can even interview someone who has been with the company for many years and share that with the world!
  4. Become an expert. Share your knowledge! (Check out Gable PR’s Guru ™ Program)
  5. Dust off the archives. People like to reminisce and witness a company’s evolution and vitality.
  6. Tap the unexpected. Are people using your product in a different or creative way? Build on that!
  7. Make the complex simple. Let video explain the complex.
  8. Supplement a news release with a video clip or link to a YouTube video to further explain your points and add personality to the organization.
  9. Turn your blog into a vlog (video log). Share your opinions, ideas, etc. through a vlog instead of a blog to better engage viewers and enhance your point.
  10. Celebrate global efforts if they exist. Use personalities and experiences from other countries. Highlight it and show it off.
  11. Highlight success. Milestones are a cause for celebration and an opportunity to say, “Hey! Look at us!”

One of the greatest aspects of the online video boom is the bang you can get for your buck. Grab an HD Still Camera for $130 that will have video and be up and vlogging in no time. Need an event documented at your European headquarters in Germany? Don’t send over a whole crew. FedEx a $130 camera and have the footage uploaded in an hour (or have them buy it there if the price is right).

YouTube experts blogged about three factors that contributed to driving an overall growth of 1700 percent in uploads in the last six months: new video-enabled phones on the market, improvement of the upload flow and a new, streamlined process to share videos on social networks. The new technology creates accessibility that allows for endless opportunities for anyone to jump on board and use online video to their advantage. And it’s a must-have addition to almost every PR communications tool kit.

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Posted in Brilliant Counsel, Client Service Results, Clutter Busting, Social Media | 1 Comment »

Newspaper Web Sites: More News, Faster; PR Opportunities Abound

Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009

LA Times Home Page

LA Times Home Page

Posted by Tom Gable

BIOCOM hosted a panel discussion today on “Social Media 2.0,” with Terri Somers, BIOCOM director of communications and former Union-Tribune life sciences reporter as moderator. The panelists: Mauricio Minotta, Director of Communications, The Salk Institute; Peter Pitts, partner and director, Global Health, New York, Porter Novelli; and Shari Roan, life science reporter for the Los Angeles Times.

The most compelling insights for the PR profession came from Roan. In a few minutes, she provided an incredibly succinct description of where newspapers are going in evolving from old to new models and incorporating social media to drive change:

  • The Web site is now their main product, not the print edition.
  • Most readers come from the Web.
  • As a result, the L.A. Times now reaches broader, more diverse audiences.
  • The Web site has 10 to 15 times more content than the print edition, which has its obvious production and distribution limitations.
  • They have more than 100 blogs, so can cover issues and ideas that wouldn’t typically get into the newspaper because of the size of the news hole.
  • With blogs, there are more opportunities to tell your stories and also stimulate comments, which help gauge public interest.
  • The blogs provide short snippets of news and are not fully reported out. They try to be fast in getting out the news and then provide links to stories or sources with more detail.
  • The beat reporters, such as those in sports, use Twitter to provide up-to-the-minute coverage. This has been valuable in covering breaking news, such as the recent fires near Los Angeles.
  • Twitter is used to Tweet on headlines and link back to the Web page.
  • Social media has made journalism more of a two-way street; they can engage with readers.
  • With an unlimited news hole on the Web, there is a greater need for visuals, including video.

Thanks to Roan for these important insights, including the latter. PR professionals, many of whom came out of print journalism (including yours truly), tend to think in terms of the printed word. Creating a visual communications strategy with Web sites, Facebook, You Tube, Flick, Twitter and all other tools and tactics can provide new power to any program, particularly those with difficult stories to tell in print but that can be covered in a three-minute video.

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Posted in Authentic PR, Brilliant Counsel, Client Service Results, Clutter Busting, Hype Free PR, Leverage, Social Media | No Comments »

Great coverage, fatal PR? The Algae-Fueled Hypemobile Rolls On

Tuesday, September 15th, 2009

Tricked out Hypemobile

Tricked out Hypemobile

Posted by Tom Gable

Gable PR works with several renewable energy clients, participate in clean tech and other organizations and our teams are always watching for good news on advances in technology that can help wean our world from its addiction to foreign oil.

Last week, our news trackers picked up the announcement of what appeared to be a great concept – a cross-country tour to promote the use of algae as a source for fuel to power automobiles. This could create what some PR professionals refer to as “rolling thunder,” where you launch something and watch the results roll across the country making big noise at every stop, with awareness and reputation building accordingly.

Unfortunately, this particular trip may be producing an ill-wind along the way (some cynics might use more descriptive and colorful terms). To start you on the journey, here are the first two paragraphs of the news release announcing the tour from the Sapphire Energy Web site:

“Veggie Van Organization and the FUEL Movie to Unveil the Algaeus”

Los Angeles, CA (August 27, 2009) – Green Fuel is real fuel as the Algaeus, the world’s first plug-in hybrid vehicle to cross the country on fuel containing a blend of algae-based renewable gasoline, hits the road to celebrate the launch of the award-winning film FUEL. Sponsored by the Veggie Van Organization, the eco-aggressive, 10-day cross country tour features a caravan of high technology ‘green’ vehicles, led by the groundbreaking Algaeus, which is fueled by Sapphire Energy. The tour kicks off on September 8 in San Francisco and culminates in New York City on September 18 to celebrate the nationwide premiere of FUEL, the movie that inspires green energy solutions such as those demonstrated on the tour.

Sundance Film Festival Winning Director of “FUEL” and Founder/Co-Director of Veggie Van Organization, Josh Tickell, says of the big news, “What better way to show that the energy solutions we have been waiting for are here than driving the world’s first algae fuel powered, 150 mile per gallon, plug-in-electric hybrid vehicle across America to celebrate the opening of a movie about a new green economy.”

What better way, indeed, until one starts probing into the facts of the case and the details of the car, a converted plug-in Prius; the deal is 95 percent hype and 5 percent reality.

The hype: using just 25 gallons of fuel to cross the country in the hybrid electric vehicle with just 5 percent of that algae-based fuel, or 1.25 gallons. The trek started with the unveiling of the car in San Francisco on September 8. For the 1.25 gallons, Tickell and his FUEL promotion team and Sapphire Energy achieved incredible media mileage, garnering attention from environmental bloggers, television and print media. Then, critical comments started popping up on multiple renewable energy Web sites and blogs. Here are a few highlights:

  • Well it’s not getting across the country by algae; it’s getting 5% of the way across the country by algae.
  • I suppose a publicity stunt is what is needed, but there are a lot of deceptive words in the press release…Because of the ethanol mandate, it could have more corn ethanol than algae fuel, yet it’s touted as being powered by algae…Why not call it the Cornius?
  • The car could probably succeed on 5 percent Mazola oil or recycled cooking oil from the McDonald’s deep fryers along the way. Does this really prove anything scientifically? It’s just a promotion from the Fuel movie and the media are going along for the ride.
  • So, a plug in hybrid, that utilizes a 5% algae gasoline mix will go coast-to-coast on only 25 gallons of fuel! So, what that means is that this vehicle and this publicity stunt, will be running mostly off of plug in power and good old fashioned gasoline. What that means kids, is that, the primary fuel being used for this little escapade is gasoline! 23.75 gallons of it, to be exact. The secondary fuel will be coal! Coal fired power plants will generate electricity which this vehicle will steal from hotels across the nation.
  • 0.5 gallons of algae fuel per tankful. At that rate, you could put that much water and an emulsifier in the tank and claim that the car runs on water!
  • The economy comes from the fact that it is a P-HEV, not from the fact it runs on algae ethanol…The overwhelming majority of the energy for this trip comes from oil based gasoline and electricity from a high carbon grid. Still fuel efficient, no contest there, but (it is) no more efficient or exciting as any other P-HEV on the road, except for the paint job. GREENWASHING!!!
  • If they’re going to use just 5% algae in the fuel, fine — but then they shouldn’t claim that the car is “powered by green crude” and paint a big “powered by ALGAE” sign on the side.
  • We need real green tech, not phony marketing ploys. This stunt could do more to discredit green technology than promote it. Some people will look at this, find out the truth, and conclude that biofuels are a hoax. Sad, because biofuels are actually a good idea that just hasn’t quite arrived yet.
  • I like the comment about substituting the algae fuel for the same amount of water and you call the car the Aqua-us!
  • How stupid do these PR brats think the public is? This…is all about drumming money out of gullible investors along the way, not about saving energy or the planet.
  • Seems to me that the Josh Tickell polluting the green movement are the reason that any viable “green fuel solution” is still well beyond the horizon…It would be real interesting to hear T. Boone Pickens’ take on this cross-country charade.

For further details, check the sponsoring Veggie Van organization Web site, which almost looks like a put-on. Its mission is “to facilitate the transition from fossil fuel use toward a new green economy by educating people about sustainable energy and providing them with appropriate pathways for integrating sustainable energy into homes, schools, communities, cities, states and ultimately nations.” The main vehicle for doing this (other than the colorful and media-friendly vehicles in its fleet) will be “to create a green curriculum that is nationally accredited for K-12 and to make available, free of charge, a 35 minute educational version of ‘FUEL’ to every school in the United States.”

The bottom line: generating more promotion for the movie and not much action in supporting the somewhat fuzzy mission statement. It will be interesting to see how the media react when the Hypemobile arrives in New York City on Sept. 18 for the theatrical launch and press event.

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Posted in Authentic PR, Client Service Results, Clutter Busting, Hypemeister Honor Roll, Social Media | 3 Comments »

Bulldog Reporter Panel: Tips on Writing for the Web, New Media

Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

Posted by Tom Gable

I participated in a lively Bulldog Reporter audio conference on “Advanced PR Writing for the Web: New Media Wordsmiths Reveal Copywriting Secrets to Grow.”

The 90-minute session was packed with good advice and enhanced with Tweets from participants and the audience (search for the hashtag #webwrite). Moderated by Jon Greer, it featured: Don Bates, Instructor and Founding Director, Master’s Degree Program in Strategic Public Relations, The George Washington University Graduate School of Political Management, @batesdon1; Debbie Weil, Corporate & CEO Blogging Consultant; Author, “The Corporate Blogging Book,” @debbieweil; Sarah Skerik, Vice President, Distribution Services, PR Newswire, @SarahSkerik; Ken O’Quinn, Corporate Writing Coach, Writing With Clarity, @influencewrite; Nettie Hartsock, Principal, The Hartsock Agency, @nettiehartsock; and Tom Gable, CEO, Gable PR, author of “The PR Client Service Manual,” @tomgable.

Common threads from the participants on how to break through in writing for the new media could have come from senior editors at the world’s leading publications: be relevant, useful, insightful, interesting, focused, topical and jargon-free.

Debbie Weil stressed good story-telling – bringing characters and company stories to life – and planning for future posting. Create an editorial calendar for major themes and stories, which can be enhanced with breaking topical news. Ken O’Quinn said to start with brilliant headlines. Think like a copy editor or the editor in charge of writing the table of contents for a magazine. Can you be interesting in a dozen words?

For short items, Don Bates said to be “snackable” – where readers can take short bites and be pleased.

Sarah Skerik provided insights into search engine optimization and using key words in releases that would tie into common search terms being used by media or anyone interested in the space.

Nettie Hartsock counseled against getting too carried away with search terms so the headers and copy turned into gobbledygook. There is also the downside of technical people getting too caught up in the process, which results in what critics call “typing not writing.”

For outside reading assignments, the group mentioned several classics: Cluetrain Manifesto; Body of Truth; Accidental Genius and Psychology of Persuasion.

In addition to the big ideas, yours truly went over the Gable PR seven-point litmus test as a starting point for issuing real news stories with topical, relevant information and evocative and provocative quotes. This was adapted from an earlier PR University teleseminar and workshops at various PRSA and Counselors Academy conferences.

1. Is it really newsworthy to anyone other than the company and, perhaps, the CEO’s family and a few friends?

2. How big is the impact: company, community, region, market niche or category, industry, technology or science breakthrough, nation, hemisphere, humanity?

3. Has the same or similar story already been told (quick database research will answer the question)?

4. Can the premise be supported by valid data, third party sources, real case histories and ongoing proof of principle?

5. Does the company have credible “gurus,” or spokesmen and women who can bring the story to life and become valuable and trusted resources for the media?

6. Can the company be further differentiated by its people, technology, culture and personality? Or if you lined up all the companies in the space would they all look and sound alike?

7. Can the story be summarized in a compelling headline, Tweet or one or two-sentence sound bite or elevator pitch? If posted through social media, will it generate interest and action (Re-tweeting, links, etc.)?

This quick test can help create a smart, compelling and interesting story or posting that breaks through the clutter, communicates to key audiences and supports the long-term image and reputation of your client or organization.

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Posted in Authentic PR, Brilliant Counsel, Client Service Results, Clutter Busting, Hype Free PR, Social Media | 2 Comments »

Using Twitter for PR Research, Guerrilla Marketing, Crisis PR

Wednesday, July 29th, 2009

Posted by Tom Gable

While many people view Twitter as a frivolous tool for inane rambling about one’s largely uninteresting personal experiences to unknown followers who don’t really care, it can be a powerful and valuable research tool for PR. With a little work, Twitter can become a news junkie’s delivery and intelligence-gathering service to:

  • Keep on top of breaking news in various industries and topics of interest
  • Identify gurus in the space; sources of good information
  • Track a client’s competitors
  • Keep up on activities in your town
  • Watch trends build before your very eyes
  • Find fun resources

We were searching for new experts and sources in different fields of interest for Gable PR and its clients, including clean tech, renewable energy, certain areas of biotech and the life sciences and crisis PR, among others. We had set up Google, Yahoo, The New York Times, Washington Post and other news trackers and blog alerts. We also use Lexis/Nexis on focused searches. To ramp up the flow a notch and try to track the immediate flow of information available on Twitter, we checked posts by various social media gurus (@briansolis, @chrisbrogan, @problogger, @tdefren, etc.) on search applications and began testing Tweetbeep.com to search for Tweets on any given topic.

As seen in the screen shot below, I receive regular email alerts to Tweets on the topics of my choice, in this case algae. I can scan quickly for items of interest. If I find a gem, I click through to the original Tweet to check the person’s previous Tweets and credentials. This has helped our firm find experts in many fields – the pro-active Tweeters spreading knowledge and helping others learn. Most include links to other sources. Those on top of their game are inevitably fast at pointing to breaking news and important trend stories, academic papers, government studies and company releases.

Tweetbeep Alert

TweetBeep Alert Via Email

For PR, we use the Twitter research capability to track trends in any given industry and find articles of interest to Gable PR clients and some of the non-profit organizations we support that are trying to grow new industries in our region. You can see buzz building on hot topics in real time. Those at the top of the Twitter totem pole in any industry are inevitably the first to Tweet on breaking news. Then, re-tweets soar, soon to be followed by blog posts and links from technical, academic and organizational Web sites to the original sources. We have been alerted to stories on new technologies from Australia, New Zealand, England and India, among others. The Twitterverse almost bursts with excitement in any given field as news spreads and more people respond.

Beyond the News

Beyond news, Twitter tracking can provide alerts to changing laws and new opportunities. We are working with some startup companies in algae biofuels, renewable energy and trash-to-energy. Keen observers we follow from Washington found new guidelines from the Department of Energy and other government agencies on how to apply for grants related to the stimulus packages. We quickly forwarded the information to our clients, who in turn filed for grants to advance their technology.

The Twitter tracking does create volume control problems. At the bottom of the Twitter food chain: the hangers-on who spend their lives just retweeting and never offer anything of original value. They can be days and even weeks behind the flow, which makes it easier to determine the riffraff not to follow.

For managing the flow in following different industries or categories of interest, use another application such as Tweetdeck (screen shot below) or Seesmic. With Tweetdeck, you can set up Groups and arrange your followers accordingly. I have different industry niches, plus Wine, San Diego, News, PR, Directs, Replies and Favorites. As shown in the screen shot below, Tweetdeck pulls the incoming Tweets into the designated columns for easy scanning.

Speed in Crisis PR

Twitter can be helpful in crisis PR — the canary in the mine shaft. Agencies and clients can track emerging stories, analyze the flow of comments and join the conversation in real time while advancing the other components of a crisis plan. We also like it for competitive research, which can sometimes trigger guerrilla marketing. We once found news from a client’s competitor that made certain claims about technical superiority of its product, which seemed vastly over-stated. We alerted our client, who concurred. So we called key media to suggest they might consider checking with different companies in the industry to get a true picture of the technology. Long story short: our client and other companies were included favorably in most coverage and fared far better than the Hypemeister, who lost media credibility.

Helping the Community

That’s on the incoming side of the news deluge equation. On the flip side, think about how to return the favor and become a positive force in the Twitter community. Share information you’ve found through your own news tracking, Blog readers, news aggregators and other services. Become a smart editor and provide your followers with information and ideas they will value, plus a surprise or two (links to parodies in the Onion, bizarre lists, evocative quotes and funny videos, such as “United Broke by Guitar”).

While others are Tweeting about their lunch or observations about the weather or their state of mind, you will be helping make the world a more connected and better communicated place.

Tweetdeck Columns

Tweetdeck Columns

One more screen shot try

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Posted in Authentic PR, Brilliant Counsel, Client Service Results, Clutter Busting, Crisis PR, Hype Free PR, Leverage, Social Media | No Comments »

Companies and PR Firms: Thrilled, Excited With Just About Everything

Monday, July 6th, 2009

Posted by Tom Gable

As covered here recently, we are fortunate to live in a country filled with leading providers of just about anything. We should never have to settle for anything from the trailing provider category (Although we know of some CEOs who could actually agree to be positioned as a leading provider in the bottom 10 percent of the market).

Adding to the folly: many were “very excited” or “thrilled” to be making their announcements of anything from hiring a new sales manager for the adult diaper category, to bulking up a law firm’s litigation practice to reaching the half-way mark in recruiting candidates for a clinical trial (“We are thrilled to have reached the halfway point for enrollment in our XYZ trial…”). Imagine how thrilled they will be when they complete enrollment, conduct the trials and report results.

One dictionary defined thrilled as: feeling intense pleasurable excitement. And excited: being in a state of excitement; emotionally aroused; stirred. We are thrilled to report that use of these phrases fits into a category defined by the media as LAQs (or Lame Ass Quotes), which are usually found in the second or third paragraph of LARs (Lame Ass Releases), a growing category.

Gable PR research into news releases issued through PR Newswire and Business Wire in the past quarter turned up from 200 to 300 thrilled or excited companies a month from each service. The most common crime against clear communications: announcing a new hire. The CEO is always ecstatic because he or she has found someone that actually fit the job description (“So I am excited that Trisha (name changed) is joining our team and will lead Customer Operations. She brings a tremendous amount of telecommunications experience, a proven history of success and her energy and leadership will be invaluable.”).

A bank in California was very excited to be reporting its first profitable month after 26 months of operation. Imagine the thrills if they have a profitable quarter or, shudder, a full year in the black. Neighbors will probably call in the riot police and vice squad to quell the celebration.

CEOs, senior managers and deal makers with lazy PR people as unindicted coconspirators must lead largely dull lives when they become excited and thrilled about:

  • Adding a new vice president of sales in bathroom products.
  • Forging a strategic alliance in selling annuities.
  • Introducing a new software package that provides endless seamless solutions (this is another category to be covered later).
  • A new research collaboration to reduce toxicity in new drug compounds (picture the PhDs and M.D.s in their lab coats giving each other chest bumps and high-fives to celebrate the agreement).
  • Finishing shooting a TV commercial on psoriasis relief (…”we captured excellent footage and are very excited to move forward into post production.”). Look for a rash of press conferences to celebrate actual airing of the commercial.
  • Hiring a new vice president whose appointment “will enable us to build on our current successes and advance our position as a leading edge provider of solutions to the DEF market.”
  • Joining a company to do the job outlined by the recruiter (“I am very excited to be joining the team at MNO to help develop our new service offering that will enable companies and organizations with large market distribution networks to provide their customers with our PQR services.”
  • Launching a new Web site for an Indian casino, designed with “guests in mind” (one would hope). “We are very excited about our new eye-catching website… designed to provide an exciting, up-to-date gallery of all of our entertainment options and is dedicated to keeping our guests informed of every aspect of our fun-filled products” (Can we assume that previously the guests were largely uninformed?).
  • Rebranding a company (“We are very excited to give the company a new name. NAME is a culmination of the deep enthusiasm, energy and experience that we have for our industry, our clients and our community”).

The list could go on ad infinitum (or ad nauseum as the case may be). In future editions, we plan on arousing some senses by including the company and agency names of the leading providers of PR thrills and excitement. Stay tuned.

 

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Posted in Authentic PR, Brilliant Counsel, Client Service Results, Clutter Busting, Hype Free PR, LAQs, jargon | 3 Comments »

Denny’s Grand-Slam Campaign: PR and On-Line Promotion Drive Buzz

Wednesday, July 1st, 2009

dennysPosted by Liz Dill

Facing increased late-night competition from McDonald’s, Taco Bell and other fast-food restaurants, plus declining sales during the period of 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., Denny’s is trying appeal to college-aged night owls by generating buzz around its “Allnighter” program. According to an article in The Wall Street Journal, the restaurant chain initiated a targeted campaign which includes hosting post-show parties for rock bands and introducing menu items created by bands such as Good Charlotte and Rascal Flatts which are included on a “rockstar” menu for night patrons.

Denny’s also adopts up-and-coming musician and provides them with $1,000 in gift cards so they can eat while on tour. Katy Perry was a Denny’s adoptee before her song “I Kissed a Girl” hit the air waves.

So far the late-night traffic has increased 5% as a result of the relatively new campaign.The campaign is intriguing from a PR perspective as it gives the family dinning chain a certain “cool factor” by creating a synergy between rock stars, night-owls and late-night food – a time when families are sleeping soundly. The chain has been effectively reaching its target 20-something crowd mainly through social media outlets such as Twitter, MySpace and YouTube instead of advertising. Denny’s is also cleverly holding RSVP after party events for the Warped Tour. Having to RSVP to eat at Denny’s is certain to create additional buzz and drive future PR when rockers are spotted detuning at Denny’s after a big night on stage!

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Posted in Client Service Results, Clutter Busting, Leverage, Social Media | No Comments »

Got ROI? Or how much for 5,000 bags of dead bugs?

Monday, June 29th, 2009

sadgrashopperjurvetsonPosted by Erin Koch

A few weeks ago, we received an unusual package here at Gable PR World Headquarters: a sealed plastic package filled with chocolate covered grasshoppers. Of the many things we receive in the mail and via delivery each week, this really jumped out. The payoff?

This past week, The Wall Street Journal venture capital blog explained the (highly successful) stunt: a company called GotVMail was rebranding itself as Grasshopper Inc., and trying to reach entrepreneurs (many of whom were recently out of work) with their call-forwarding and phone answering services. The packaging that came along with the chocolate covered locusts included a link to a Web site and a video on YouTube.

But here’s what really made our antennae stand on end: as reported by the WSJ blog, the cost of the bags of bugs (mailed to 5,000 influencers) was $67,353! The return on the investment: 150,000 views of the video, nearly 1,000,000 people reached via Twitter, and even requests to show the video at conferences. More importantly, the phones and in-boxes at Grasshopper Inc. are buzzing (or humming as the case may be).

This is an excellent example of the exponential power of a creative idea, leveraged with good PR (Gable PR had fun in leveraging ideas for two very different clients — Proflowers and Digital Microwave; consumer or B2B, creativity works). $67,000 spent on advertising would have amounted to little more than a shrug. Yet the same amount invested in a creative PR idea yielded fantastic results and media and blog coverage that spread across the land … like a plague of locusts.

Photo by Jurvetson

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Posted in Client Service Results, Clutter Busting, Leverage, The Light Side | No Comments »

A Nation of Leading Providers and Solutions — PR Releases Full of It

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009

Posted by Tom Gable

PR critics and luminaries regular report on best practices, smart case histories and trends to follow for better results, such as improved use of social media. There is also the dark side.

As reported earlier, David Meerman Scott analyzed 711,123 press releases distributed during 2008 by North American companies. He filtered for 325 gobbledygook phrases and issued a report. The top 10: innovate, pleased to, unique, focused on, leading provider, commitment, partnership, new and improved, leverage, and 120 percent. Inc. Magazine followed with its own list of bad buzz words.

In tracking jargon usage since the 1990s, I found the most-used but lowest-value terms over time have been leading providers and solutions. The former faded for a short time following the Internet bust but is now making a major comeback. So we set up news alerts on the term and searched daily on Business Wire and PR Newswire for 30 days. We found from 50 to 150 leading providers emerging daily from every industry, niche and specialty, with 5,017 occurrences on PR Newswire alone.

Most offered no validation on their claims; they were clearly undifferentiated. A few did provide market share and revenue data for support. The throwaway claims were also tied to providing seamless, end-to-end solutions for the next generation. Here are a few samples from the research. And if anyone, other than the entity that issues the release, can provide the name of just one of these leaders, please post a comment and you will be entered into a drawing for a bottle of 1989 Clerc Milon, an excellent vintage from a fine Bordeaux chateau.

Big claims and glaring generalities (all preceded by “leading provider of”):

…end-to-end web hosting services…
…managed business solutions and system integration services…
…wireless broadband solutions…
…affordable easy-to-use enterprise-class systems management software as a service…
…consulting, technology, and business process outsourcing services…
…next-generation networking solutions, today announced that it is experiencing widespread acceptance in …
…end-to-end strategic human resources, payroll, and talent management solutions…

Some haven’t got there yet, but are optimistic:

…ideally positioned to become the leading provider of innovative solutions for the treatment of bifurcation vascular disease…

A popular approach is narrowing the realm to claim leadership in smaller segments:

…research and measurement services exclusively for the exhibition and event industry…
…high-quality lenticular large format and custom-printed plastics…
…advanced editing systems for the corporate, broadcast, postproduction, and new media industries…
…mounting solutions for the residential, commercial, CI, security, and pro audio/video markets…
…EPON (Ethernet Passive Optical Network) chips for the deployment of triple-play services in FTTx broadband access networks…
…integrated CAD/CAM solutions for mold, tool and die makers as well as manufacturers of discrete parts, today announced that …
…hip-hop ring tones and mobile content…
…market-proven products and technologies for unified visual communications over IP, 3G and IMS networks…
…onboard retail technology and solutions to the passenger travel industry…

The creative challenge is the break through the clutter with positioning that can be clearly validated over time with what engineers and scientists call proof of principle. In lay terms: walk the talk.

Absent that, there is an answer to all your needs for seamless solutions to any creative, positioning, differentiation, public relations, marketing communications, reputation or crisis communications issues. Contact Gable PR, the world’s leading provider of PR services headed by a left-handed former journalist of Chickasaw Indian extraction with offices in the 92108 zip code and 619 area code.

 

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Posted in Authentic PR, Brilliant Counsel, Client Service Results, Clutter Busting, Hype Free PR, jargon | 1 Comment »

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