Public Relations Princess

Public Relations vs. Damage Control

The Iowa Board of Regents recently posted an RFP on its Web site, and is seeking public relations counsel. I could ridicule the Board of Regents like the local media did. But instead, I applaud them because the first step in getting the expert public relations help you need is recognizing that you are not an expert in that field.

As a taxpayer in the state of Iowa, I would much rather have the Board of Regents concentrate on providing my daughters with the best possible chance of attending college. I'd rather that they'd not spend all of their time writing talking points. That is why there are PR professionals. Hire them and let them do what they do best.

That being said, the RFP on its Web site provided no budget parameters and had a state holiday (Memorial Day) as the deadline. Instead of admitting they were looking at a calendar from a different year when deciding the due date, they're actually opening their office for an hour on Memorial Day to accept RFPs. Not exactly the best way to start a great relationship.

I can't wait to see who they hire. I don't envy them starting with such a big hole to dig out of.

Who Needs Media Training and Why?

This post is the second in a series about media training, who needs it, what it is and why all media spokespersons should have formal media training.

Are you a spokesperson for your company? Most people would say no. They're either not in the executive suite or they are not in the decision-making loop.

However, most managers in a particular company have expertise in a certain area which could potentially make them a spokesperson in a given situation. Let's say you're a network engineer at a cellular phone company. You're probably not the day-to-day spokesperson, but if the entire network goes down due to a catastrophic accident or terrorist attack, guess who the media will want to talk to? Someone who knows about the inner workings of the network.

Here's a list of potential spokespersons you should consider for media training:

The CEO, CFO and COO of your company
The Public Information Officer
The Human Resources Officer
Department Heads
Anyone with a specialty (your Web master)

We've identified the "who," now let's cover the "why." The best reason to have your people media trained is because a crisis situation rarely announces itself ahead of time. Members of the media have a tendency to show up unannounced. You have to have your plan in place well ahead of time.

The next installment in this series on media training will address the development of key messages, which is the cornerstone of preparation for any media training session.

PR Professionals as Blog Ghostwriters

As you work with clients on the subject of building social media communities, the question of whether blogs can be ghostwritten will come up.

Most bloggers will instintively say..."Don't do it." But I have another perspective. It can be done, but here are the applicable rules:

1. You must have an actual face and "voice" of your blog who is a real person.
2. That real person has actual collaboration with the people who are writing the blog posts.
3. The real person read the comments on the blog and responds to them personally.
4. Honesty is the best policy. Be honest with your readers.

It's never the ideal situation to have a copywriter writing your blog. But it's better than having no conversation at all.

Agencies Need to Embrace Social Media...ASAP

There is a great article in PR Week about how quickly agencies in general and PR practitioners in particular are embracing social media. The idea is that agency personnel should be familiarizing themselves with mediums like blogging and podcasting so when clients come calling, you'll have some expertise on the subject.

I recommend that all PR practitioners start a blog and just practice with adding things to it. When I started blogging, I didn't do anything but write about myself, my dog, my family and just everyday experiences. You may not get much traffic or comments, but just try it. Typepad, Blogger and WordPress are all places to get started with that. Ask a more experienced blogger for some help if you need it. Devote at least a half an hour every other day to writing on your blog.

If you're the Head Cheese at an agency, get your people trained. There are lots of ways to do that. Hire an expert and do some lunch-and-learns, send a few of your early adopters to a conference or two, or have your more experienced employees teach the less experienced ones.

Pretty soon, your clients will be asking if they should start a blog. You need to be able to determine if that's a good strategy for them, and then guide them along the path.

So get moving, get an education, and get building a social community.

What's Your Big Dream?

How do you identify your big dreams? By writing them on the wall, of course! Mitch Matthews, the inventor of "Do You Q?" hosted Des Moines' first ever Big Dream gathering in Des Moines Tuesday night. I almost went, but I am too busy following my dreams! (ok, that sounds a little silly)

People literally walked into a big room, wrote their dreams on a wall, and watched other people as they did the same. By putting the dreams out there, you make them more real, and you also invite others to take part in making the dream happen. I think that's a pretty powerful concept.

So, what would you have written on the wall? I want to be a social media expert and start speaking publicly on the subject. There. I said it. That's my dream. I am already starting to make it happen, but it will take people who believe in me to make it a reality.

Life is all about taking risks!

Aha! Magazines DO Favor Advertisers!

My colleagues and I in the PR field have noticed a phenomena over the last few years. It's called the "play for pay" syndrome. I will not call out any of its dirty players in this blog post, except PC World's colossal Apple blunder, which is already front page news.

Here is how "play for pay" works. If I have a client who is paying me to do media relations for them, I might call up a magazine editor and pitch them a story for my client. For sake of this example, let's say the magazine is "Purple Widgets Today," and my client is coming out with a new purple widget kit that is better and different from its competitors. My job is to introduce the people at Purple Widgets Today to my client and to tell them about the purple widget kit.

The editor at Purple Widget Today listens patiently to my pitch, sometimes subtly (and sometimes not so subtly) inquires as to whether my client advertises in his publication. If I say "no" then suddenly the publication becomes much less interested in what I have to say.

Here is the kicker...sometimes the editor actually has the nerve to give my contact information to the advertising sales department and they call me IMMEDIATELY. Sometimes within the hour. Most often they will pitch me an ad, and more often than not, they will mention editorial space as a carrot to get me to buy the ad.

This phenomena is a direct result of declining ad sales. Period. I think its reprehensible behavior and unfair to smaller companies with a great story to tell and a small ad budget. Everyone knows that PR works, but it is getting harder to compete with the big boys.

If you are an editor and have dealt with the type of situation before, I would love to entertain your comments.

Why Should You Be Media Trained?

Here's the scenario. You're the owner of a wholesale fruit and vegetable business. Things are humming along just fine when: (Pick your favorite crisis)

1. One of your employees, who turns out to be undocumented, gets into one of your company trucks and drives through a barricade at a farmers market while making a delivery.

2. The green onions you delivered to the local Taco Johns cause more than 100 people to become violently ill with e coli poisoning.

3. While trimming some lettuce, an employee loses a finger that ends up in a grocery store salad bar.

Would you be ready to represent your company in interviews with the media? Do you know the techniques you can use to answer a reporter's question and still convey your company's key messages?

If the answer to either of those questions is no, then you should get professional media training. An objective third party expert can coach you and your executive team on how to get the best possible result from a potentially contentious media interview.

This is my first post in a series on media training. In the next couple of weeks, I will cover these topics:

• Who needs media training and why?
• Developing key messages
• The training process and how it works
• Practice makes perfect

You may think that you will never be in a situation where you will be the key spokesperson in a media interview. Here's a funny interview my colleague Jane uses in her media training sessions. This poor man was at the TV station to interview for a janitorial position. They asked him if he was here for "the interview," to which he said yes, so they miked him up and put him on the set. The hilarious results speak for themselves.

Chicagoland Blogging Conference

Kammie Kobyleski from St. Louis and Easton Ellsworth from Mesa, Arizona are just two of the fascinating bloggers I've met this weekend at the first ever SOB Blogging Conference in Chicago. More than 100 of us have gathered to discuss the medium of blogging, ranging from how to use social media to build your business, to how blogging can be a transformational experience. So far I've learned that there are as many topics to blog about as there are bloggers, and each has a different reason for putting themselves out there in the world.

My reason for being here is to connect with people. It's so cool to meet people whose blogs I've been reading for months and even years. They are just as engaging and fun in person as they are online.

Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings. I'm sure it will be a hoot!