Many thanks to Doug Stewart, a guy dedicated to helping small businesses dominate their space on the web, for asking me to talk with him for a few minutes about effectively using social media and PR together to market businesses. If you’ve never heard me speak, here’s your chance If you have and you’re game for more… bless you, firstly, and secondly, enjoy the interview!

Have a topic you want to see me cover here? I’ve been toying with the idea of breaking my no-video style… what would you most like to see/hear for the first vid post on this blog?

In the long ago days – say 25 years ago – news was a daily affair and it was consumed in tightly controlled, pre-packaged formats. People read their newspapers and watched the local and national nightly news. The truly committed also read a newsweekly or two and maybe even *gasp* the WSJ or NYT. What wasn’t reported in the newspaper on Thursday or on the nightly news that night just wasn’t news until Friday.

Everyone received the same news influx for almost no cost. TV news was over the air and free to anyone with an antenna and a TV set. Local papers averaged $0.25 to $0.50 per day off the shelf and less than $8.00/month on a subscription. Those crazy people who subscribed to Time or the WSJ, well, they were paying some bucks, but they were definitely not the majority of the news-consuming public. People didn’t pay to be informed. And “being informed” simply meant you’d been exposed to the same news stories that the rest of the people around you had consumed through the limited means possible. A news baseline existed for most of the population. So essentially, most people weren’t willing to pay to just ante into the knowledge game.

Nothing has changed, even though everything is different.

Think about that… cable news, the internet, blogging, citizen journalism, Twitter, real time news feeds: the methodology of delivery is different and the resources (time, talent, money) dedicated to gathering news are much expanded; but my local news is still available over the air for free and my local newspaper still costs a negligible amount. I may pay for access to the ‘net, but my news sources on it, Twitter, blogs, Google Reader… are all free. And I could go to the library or other public access point and get informed.

What have people always paid for? To be entertained. And I don’t mean any stupid hybridization like “infotainment” or “edutainment”. In a developed society, people EXPECT to be informed. It’s perceived as a right of the people and the mission of news gathering… like a higher purpose akin to medical care. Why would anyone pay for something they feel is a right? They won’t. With a few rare exceptions, this is why news subscription sites don’t work. Unless the news is specialized enough to be valuable as knowledge currency (insider information status as opposed to generally being informed), it’s not perceived as being worth paying for.

What I wonder is why magazines, who are already in the specialized information curation business, just in an expensive to produce and maintain print format, don’t continue their primary mission (entertainment) and CHARGE for the curation of their own and other’s quality, niche-specific information online. And why newspapers, who are in the public information business, in the same expensive to produce and maintain print format, keep trying to charge me to be generally informed online. If information curation is the next big thing on the internet, the people who’ve been doing it well for decades (think showbiz mags, home decor mags, cooking, parenting, yachting, golf… whatever) should be leading the way.

What do you think? Can magazine companies become curators and charge for content? Would you pay for quality niche-related content? Has that ship sailed… ?

photo credit: Flikr user Bruna Ferrara

Green Rooms are usually not green...

Many times the elation of winning a TV interview spot is followed closely by the panic of having to do live TV. And I do mean panic. I’ve had clients who’ve hyperventilated, bailed at the last minute and frozen on camera. Luckily, they weren’t my clients when those things happened… and that’s because a bit of preparation goes a long, long way to solving the pre-TV panic attack.

Here’s a few basic rules and tips to keep your TV appearance a positive thing for you and your business or cause:

Do Your Homework

Watch an episode or two (or three!) of the show or segment you’ll be appearing on. Pay attention to what the set looks like, how the hosts interact with guests and each other, and any certain “shticks” common to the show. Memorize the hosts’ names.

Set Goals

Be clear in your mind what you want to accomplish during your appearance. Is it to be perceived as an expert? Is it to promote your location, services, products or event? My most recent appearance was to be part of a live giveaway of Father’s Day items from a shopping center (Smith Farm Marketplace in Owasso) who is a client of ours. The segment was going to be about 90 sec., and I wouldn’t be talking for  even half of that. I knew I wanted to mention several of the contributing merchants by name, mention the name of the shopping center & it’s location (Owasso) and remind people that they had two shopping days left and could find everything they needed for the Dad on their list at Smith Farm. Quite a bit to work in over a short amount of time, unscripted and in response to hosts’ questions. Knowing clearly what I wanted to communicate helped me not waste any words or time, and we got the job done.

Practice Up

While it generally isn’t best to script and memorize your words because you typically won’t sound natural and relaxed, you SHOULD say key phrases out loud and listen for troublesome words, sounds or blends so you can reword. If the topic is emotional or potentially volatile, practice answering questions on topic calmly and clearly. Have someone help you by asking you pointed questions and taping your answers so you can see your own reactions.

Dress Appropriately

Use the anchors as your guide… go for brighter colored solids, paired with darks, blacks or neutrals. Avoid fire engine red and stark white and avoid narrow stripes or diagonals. If you do a print or a pattern of any sort, it should be non-distracting to the eye. Anchors wear simple shapes and colors so the visual focus is on their face or on the video they’re showing. Keep jewelry, hair accessories or other add-ons simple, too.

Be A Good Guest

Arrive on time and check in with the producer as soon as you do so. Usually the receptionist or person greeting you will direct you to the “green room” or waiting area for guests and will let the producer or assistant know you’ve arrived. Ask if there is anything you need to know, what time you’re scheduled to appear, when to exit the green room and where to go when you do so. Make sure your teeth are good to go (no everything bagel lodged anywhere it shouldn’t be… !) and take a few deep breaths.

Relax

Report to the set when you’re instructed to do so, listen for camera instructions, cues or prompts and/or the “launch question” for your segment and any other last minute words of wisdom from the producers, hosts or crew. Then relax… it’s a conversation, you’re prepped and ready, you look great on camera, and you’re a model guest. You’ll knock it out and then you’ll get asked back… feel free to repeat the above steps as often as necessary on your way to expert TV personality

If you have tips or hard-won wisdom for doing TV well, please share them in the comments!

Lately, I’ve noticed a disturbing trend…. people who think because they blog, because they’ve written family newsletters or company e-mails to subscription lists, they are “in PR.” Why is this disturbing? In the real world, good PR is hard work. It takes technical skill, marketing insight, network juice and a savvy business sense to perform consistently in the field. The problem is that so many PR customers out there think the performance achieved by the people serving them “in PR” is acceptable.

Where is the disconnect? I’ve seen scads of “learn as I go” approaches to PR utilizing social media channels, in particular. Against all odds, I hope it stops. Badly or mindlessly promoting a client to a scattered, disinterested audience via spraying social media sites with links gives the industry, the client and the so-called practitioner all a bad name. People new to public relations need to take the time to read, learn, study the ethics, guidelines and rules of PR before making very public mistakes.

Mistakes happen… we all make them… but the stakes are very high these days for people entering the public relations field. Publicly sharing your learning process isn’t good for your clients or your career. Public relations and Twitter, etc., are a beautiful marriage of story and channel distribution when used thoughtfully.

I’ve been working on this story for the past week. It’s a great story, really… and I tweeted and FB’d the link to the story to my followers, since many of them are either in the biz or are local and might therefore enjoy the story regardless. I’ve been way busier though, on the phone, sending personal e-mails, personal DMs, etc., to those media contacts I thought would be most likely to love the story. That’s PR in the real world. No short cuts, no quick-and-dirty-career-switch, no waking up one day and deciding to “be in PR.”

And I’m done now. Am I overreacting?

A few weeks back, I posted then original PR People, Tips & Resources post. Several of you submitted additional people, espectially, whom you thought should be included. I’ve vetted, added and here, for your enjoyment, is a new and improved list of PR goodness.

Again, please use the comments to let me know if you have a submission for the list. I will periodically update… though it’s approaching the size where a formal list of some sort might make more sense.

PR tips and PR People

Twitter hashtag #PRtips and one of the main contributors, @CyndyHoenig

@Kristen_Okla (Kristen Turley, Oklahoma practioner and PRSA leader)

@techpr (Marivic Valencia)

@dustinpyeatt (Dustin Pyeatt)

@rcrissinger (Rob Crissinger)

@wiredprworks (Barbara Rozgonyi)

PRSA on Twitter

PRSA web site

@SternalPR (John Sternal)

@HowellMarketing (Amy D. Howell)

@AnneDGallaher (Anne D. Gallagher)

@SueYoungMedia and her website (Sue Young)

@Barb_G (Barbara Gibson)

@PRMoxie (Mary Lower)

@MarisaCorser (Marisa Corser)

@worob and his blog (especially great for students, young PR pros and those transitioning in) (Andrew Worob)

@ShannonPaul and her website (Shannon Paul)

@ConversationAge (Valeria Maltoni) and her site

PR wonderfulness

PR Sarah Evans web site

The Fight Against Destructive Spin

PR Squared site (and also @TDefren on Twitter)

Ragan Communications (and also @MarkRaganCEO on Twitter)

Brian Solis web site

The 360 Days in a PR Life blog

PR Breakfast Club blog

Arik Hanson’s site, Communication Conversations

For how not to do PR

The Bad Pitch Blog (not always work suitable, but always targeted and often really funny)

And that’s a very good thing. Unfortunately, it means that I haven’t had much time this week to write. I have a post titled, “What I’m Doing Differently and Why,” half-written and definitely not ready to share. One of the things it talks about is making sure the activities that build my business and build community don’t take a backseat to the “urgent” things that often take over chunks of time on any given day. As you can see, that’s one I’m continuing to work on… !

In the meantime, I am going to share this post with you: Crisis Communication: When You Can’t Escape. It’s one bit of public writing I did get accomplished this week, and I hope you’ll take a moment, read it, and let me know what you think. It’s not only for PR people… if you’re in business for yourself or working for a company in any kind of public-facing role, it’s applicable.

Oh… if you have ideas, tips, or commiseration you want to share on the whole, “What I’m Doing Differently and Why” post idea, please tell me. I’m hoping we can all help each other do better.

Happy Friday!

I spent some time this week editing my feed reader and was reminded again about how much good information exists out there on the interwebs. Also a lot of bad, really bad, information… and I want to make sure to share the good stuff with you guys.

I compiled a beginning list on the Journal Record’s PR blog (yes, I write that one, too) and am asking that you add your thoughts to the list. We’ll all be better together, and I am definitely about connecting people and ideas. I hope you find some (new to you) nuggets of PR goodness and that you’ll share your favorites with us.

Please feel free to either comment/share here or over on the Record’s site, as you wish I’ll gather submissions from both sites and prepare a more in-depth list of resources and people based on everyone’s shared links.

PR tips and PR People:

Twitter hashtag #PRtips and one of the main contributors, @CyndyHoenig

@Kristen_Okla (Kristen Turley)

@techpr (Marivic Valencia)

@dustinpyeatt (Dustin Pyeatt)

@rcrissinger (Rob Crissinger)

@wiredprworks (Barbara Rozgonyi)

PRSA on Twitter

PRSA web site

@SternalPR (John Sternal)

PR wonderfulness

PR Sarah Evans web site

The Fight Against Destructive Spin

PR Squared site (and also @TDefren on Twitter)

Ragan Communications (and also @MarkRaganCEO on Twitter)

Brian Solis web site

The 360 Days in a PR Life blog

PR Breakfast Club blog

For how not to do PR:

The Bad Pitch Blog (not always work suitable)

(NOTE: this is by no means a comprehensive list… I follow and interact with LOTS of great PR-types, especially on Twitter. For more, try this Twitter list.) Remember… better together. Leave your favorite resources/tweeps/sites in the comments

My brother is a 29-yr-old police officer in a mid-sized town in Kansas. He is also pretty close to squeaky-clean. Knowing those facts makes the following story even more funny. Trust me.

So…. my brother is in Nashville for an FOP convention (for the uninitiated, that’s the Fraternal Order of Police). While wandering around the sights after the convention wraps, the sole of his boot starts to separate. He, being the McGyver type and also a serious cheapskate, decides to use superglue to reattach the sole. He makes the repair, and satisfied with the results, winds up the trip, packs and heads to the airport.

As he goes through the security checkpoint and goes to pick up his belongings from the xray conveyor belt, he notices his boots are sitting atop the xray box and TSA agents are approaching him. They let him know that they’ve discovered a discrepancy with his shoes… can he explain?

He tells them the story of the separated sole and the resulting repair. They “uh-huh” him, ask for his ticket, photo ID, when his plane is supposed to be taking off and where his flying companion is (“Did someone just drop you off here, sir? Didn’t you arrive with anyone else?”) My brother points out his patiently waiting (and quietly laughing) buddy. More TSA agents arrive and escort my brother and his suspicious shoes to a little room for further questioning.

He tells the separated sole story another 3 times to various agents. He tells them why he’s in town… they “Uh-huh” him again and huddle in the corner of the room, discussing the suspicious boot. An agent explains that they’ve seen a round metal disc inside the sole of the glued boot and this is the problem. My brother, being the resourceful guy he is, volunteers to cut open the boot to retrieve/examine whatever the thing is… saying, “If I dropped a quarter in there, I want it back, of course!” The agents don’t see the humor and tell him they cannot cut it open to look (what if it blows up?) and they can’t ask him to cut it open, either.

Being a police officer, he understands that for what it is… we can’t ask you to do it, but you can do it yourself if you want. So, given that they are in a TSA area, no one has a knife. My brother takes a key and saws at the glue. After a while, an agent procures a knife, cuts a hole in the sole, examines the metal plate inside the boot, and returns the boot to my single-shoed brother.

He made his flight and is determined to repair the boot. But not with superglue and not right before a flight.

The moral of the story? No matter how sensible, logical, well-meaning or well-thought out your actions may be, in the wrong context, they’ll make a TSA agent cut open your shoe.

Always consider the context.

I don’t write as much about Public Relations on this blog because I write A LOT about Public Relations over on the Journal Record’s PR blog.

This week’s PR post is about Waste Mangement COO Larry O’Donnell’s trip to the trenches to experience what his employees actually do during their work day and the chronicling of that experience on the new TV show “Undercover Boss.”

This week’s episode, airing Sunday, features a Hooter’s exec doing the same thing. So… first garbage and portable toilets and second hot wings and hot chicks.

Aside from the potential PR benefits and pitfalls, which I talk about in the Journal Record post, consider for a moment the PR possibilities for the show itself by starting with something everyone thinks is awful (cleaning toilets) and following it with something highly controversial (hot pants or hot wings… why do you go?).

Undercover Boss is pulling out all the stops to launch successfully and letting the buzz in the leadership, management, business, environmental, feminist, manly men and reality TV camps and in social media drive the ratings.  What do you think? Too much calculatedness on the part of the show? Do you “trust” that the experience matters to the companies?

Go for WHY: http://www.flickr.com/photos/oberazzi/318947873/

List posts have their place, and I know they are good for traffic. I’ve written them, too. But our super-connected world and the constant flow of information seems to be driving us to oversimplify complex subjects and interactions. By creating lists. Lots of lists. In some cases, lists of lists.
I’m not against all lists… I believe in a to-do list, a grocery list and have tweeted & retweeted helpful design tip, font and how-to lists. But not all things can (or should) be reduced to a bulleted list.

If it’s a complex subject, treat it with the depth it deserves. A marketing communications plan, encompassing goals, objectives, strategies, tactics and metrics should be more than a list of items. A public relations plan should be more than a list of ideas or publications and an editorial calendar. When we start to work with a new client we ask a lot of questions about their business… not just about what they sell and who they sell it to, but about things like:

Where does your money come from? Revenue? Profit streams and margins?

What is the recent history of the market segment you inhabit? Near future changes or evolutions you expect? Long-term future or potential?

Adjacent markets? Competitive markets?

What factors in the market and within your company’s revenue map do you control or influence?

We augment with our own research and then we tackle goals and objectives, clearly grounded in the business case for what we’re doing. The marketing communications plan addresses how the goals and objectives fit the larger picture of the business and where it wants or needs to go. When you start with a good WHY, all the WHATs and HOWs become much easier to define and later on to sell to the people who have to sign the checks to see them implemented.