The Sounding Board

Can PR be made too complicated?

Yes, it can. To me, PR is about communication – between client and agency, agency and the media/analyst community, and between a client and its buyers/prospects. It’s about conversations, and through these conversations, all parties – agency, client, analyst firm, media outlet – are able to achieve their goals.

More often than I’d like to admit, over the course of the last eight years or so, I have seen momentum come to a halt in client engagements. Clients are disappointed, teams are frustrated and media relationships are damaged. Why? Because what we need to achieve and how we need to achieve it has been made too complicated.

Here is my formula for success: information (and lots of it!), an open channel of communication (the freedom for an agency to ask its client anything) and the client’s commitment to follow through with media opportunities they are given (media relationships need to be handled with care for ongoing trust and rapport).

This combination of simple factors – and series of conversations – leads to one largely vigorous, dynamic and energetic roster of media coverage! Ideally, this coverage becomes market “buzz” and in turn generates new business leads, increased brand awareness and additional exposure opportunities (speaking, networking, awards, more articles, etc.).

This end result is what all parties want to see. The media receives compelling information for their readers (listeners or viewers). Clients interest the media with their news and reach key audiences (e.g. prospects). PR folks see the fruits of their labor through media placements and create positive market buzz.

Let’s all remember this – we’re all working towards the same goal: to receive and communicate compelling information for an interesting, persuasive message – for the purpose of moving an audience.

Simple enough, right?

I'll call it the 45 day challenge. I challenge you to focus on meeting these three goals in your PR program, and after 6 weeks, I have a good hunch that all parties will feel your program is on the road to victory.

In the spirit of simplicity,
Danica Low

Now That’s Confidence

Today’s economy seems to have everyone running scared, and entrepreneurs are no exception. According to Entrepreneurs' Organization’s (EO) 2009 Global Economic Forecast Survey funding and healthcare are very high on the concern list for 2009. Also, Entrepreneurs are worried about the effect the presidential election will have on their businesses.

All of these concerns plus the disheartening economic news we’ve been hearing everyday would lead you to believe that business owners are boarding up their doors but this is just not so...

EO’s survey shows that the confidence of entrepreneurs is strong even when times are tough. Seventy percent of respondents are highly confident/confident about surviving the recession and almost half predict an increase in revenue in 2009.

Also, more than 80 percent of entrepreneurs asked believe they will play a significant role in economic recovery... My fingers are crossed!

--Ali

The Lost Art of the Authored Article

Guest columns. Authored articles. Bylines.

What should be an effective way for a client to appear as a thought leader and to provide valuable insight on emerging technology or industry challenges can far too easily turn into promotional schlock. As public relations professionals, it’s up to us to make sure that client bylines stay focused on the leadership aspect, not on company products and services.

Whether helping with content creation, deadlines or just bridging the relationship between editors and clients, there are some simple best practices to follow to ensure that client pieces are actually articles and not brochures.

1. Know the publication – As the PR pro, you know what publications and media outlets accept authored articles and which don’t. If you’re unsure, ask. Managing editors or editorial assistants will usually clarify any questions that you might have about their publication, and will clearly point out their stance on bylines.
   
   
2. Use abstracts – Don’t waste client time or retainer by drafting an article that may never see daylight. Start with a 250 to 350-word abstract outlining the proposed focus, approach and structure, and make sure to add in a few sentences on the author’s background explaining why they are qualified. Try to keep the jargon down too.
   
   
3. Keep it (product) neutral – It’s a rare occurrence that an editor will be interested in abstracts, let alone full articles, that pitch a specific service or product. Make a point, but not at the expense of brand neutrality.
   
   
4. Set deadlines – Content development is a lengthy process, especially if clients are heavily involved in the creation. Set deadlines, even artificial ones, and stick to them. Don’t go back to the editor for an extension more than once, barring emergencies.
   
   
5. Expect edits – The article author, whether a CTO, CEO or other executive, is just another writer to the editor. Always expect edits and be prepared to rewrite sections of the article if necessary.
   

The “best” best practice, however, is good content – something fresh, unique and interesting that a publication hasn’t seen before. Rehashing old themes, lacking supporting data or just a lame concept cannot be saved by punctuality or a personal relationship with an editor. In the end, contributed content is just that – content.

Additional Resources:
Entrepreneur.com’s Writing Bylined Articles
Communiqué PR’s Tips for Writing a Bylined Article

-John Terrill

Women Changing the Face of Technology

Women in Technology (WIT) opened its nominations for the 10th Annual Leadership awards. The awards program recognizes women who embody the WIT tagline of “Connect. Lead. Succeed.” in their professional lives. Categories span the various technology markets to include Corporate, Government, Entrepreneur, and Rising Star (for women new to the workforce). WIT honors its own with the WIT Champion award.

Nominees need not be members of WIT to be considered or win. The previous winners’ list reads like a who’s who of the DC tech Community and even includes our own Elizabeth Shea and Lisa Throckmorton.

Finalists will be honored at a banquet on May 21 where the winners will be announced. This is a “can’t miss” event both for the networking and for the inspiring stories of success. Start thinking of a woman you’d like to see honored and get your nomination in by March 13.

The Wheels on the Bus Go ‘Round and ‘Round

Grassroots and Green!

Our friend Bob London had the idea to shuttle "friends and family" down to the event, extend the fun and be “green” while we were at it. We had a week to pull it together (that's right - 7 days!). It came together with the same community-oriented passion that Twin Tech is all about: before you knew it, Reston Limousine gave us a great discount and provided great raffle prizes, Shashi Bellamkonda (social media swami from Network Solutions) showed up with his high-end camera and took great photos, folks showed up with beer, wine, food and fun, and as the bus departed at the end of the night, all we heard was “I don’t want to leave yet!”

It warms my heart to see the accountability in folks to pull something together so quickly, and to not sweat the small stuff. No nametags, no “elevator speeches” to the rest of the bus - just good, grassroots fun. And no pretense of publicity; that happened naturally. The cost? Minimal. Let’s just say it was less than what we might spend attending an awards dinner.

Las Vegas’ Luck: CES 2009

For all the negative buzz about this year’s Consumer Electronics Show – mostly in terms of down attendance and down spending on consumer electronics purchases – from first-hand experience, I can report that it was a bustling event with positive feedback, energy and enthusiasm and cutting-edge technologies. Last week, I joined our partner and client Cernium in Las Vegas to debut its consumer-facing mobile video intelligence product, Archerfish. An innovations award winner in the integrated home systems category, Archerfish was heralded by a flurry of press conversations during CES Unveiled on Tuesday night, then spent the four days during the 2009 show passing out “Phish Food” to prospects, partners and press in exchange for time spent on a product demo. The product reaction was great and floor traffic busy. Interestingly, Twitter was this year’s communications method of choice, outranking phone, email or text messaging. Using Twitter kept everyone up to speed on meeting times, places and timely developments.

As a side note, as long as I was in Vegas, I had to try my luck at the casino at least once. I sat down at one slot machine at the Wynn, inserted $20 bucks and walked away one hundred dollars richer just five minutes later. Luck or strategy? Either way, Cernium and I are both pleased with the last week’s events at CES 2009.

-Julie Buckley
(Photo by Douglas Cole)