Public Relations Princess

Midwest PR Professionals Bring Value, Not Pretention

I worked for three Midwest agencies over a period of ten years. There was always THAT client. The one who thought that their business deserved to be handled by only the best. By "the best," they meant an overpriced, management-heavy organization where the average hourly rate is north of $250 per hour. To add insult to injury, sometimes our OWN agency would call in the "big guys." Talk about selling yourself short, and transmitting the message to the client that you really can't handle the business.

Here are some scenarios under which big agencies have been brought in to save the day. Any of these sound familiar?

1. There is a perception by the client that Midwest agencies have no national media connections: The reality: There are many reputable agencies in medium and small markets. I worked on a multi-agency team for a large cell phone provider and our number-one PR performer year after year was a boutique Omaha agency. This team routinely kicked larger agencies to the curb in number of stories placed. Their secret? Good old shoe leather. They just picked up the phone and started dialing.


2. The pressure to "get some big hits" is coming from higher pay grades. The board is upset that the CEO's latest speech to the noon Rotary did not get covered by the local business reporter, so they want to push it up the ladder and get the Wall Street Journal to take a look at it. (!!!) This is a losing battle. Let the big New York agency give it a try. It's Mission Impossible. But remember, you might possibly still be blamed. (Tip: NEVER recommend the big fancy agency. Let them pick their own fat cat.)
   
   
3. Mistaken perception by the client that their stories are newsworthy: This is the number one existential problem between PR people and their clients. The client thinks his initiative is newsworthy and in an ego-driven frenzy, are desperately seeking attention. They think that it's YOUR (the small to mid-sized Midwestern agency) fault. It's hard to tell clients they don't have a story or need to work on their story. But it's your job. The smaller agency will bill you a lot less to tell the client the truth.


4. The "you get what you pay for" syndrome: Speaking of money, it is not unusual for agencies on the coasts, especially old-school Madison Ave types, to charge up to five times more for the same work you could get a in a smaller Midwest market like Des Moines, Minneapolis or Kansas City. The only time this may be advisable is when you're planning a high-profile event in New York City, LA or another city you're not familiar with.
   
   
5. Beware the Shark! Large agencies live and die by their client roster. In good years, they can afford to say no to business that medium-sized would kill for. In bad years, large agency wins are few and far between, so they may come after smaller fish.


6. Unceremoniously dumped! Large agencies think absolutely nothing of dumping a client when they can go after a bigger, more prestigious one. Worse yet, they may pass your business down the food chain until an intern is running the entire account. Wouldn't you rather have the business being competently run by a seasoned account manager, and closer to home?

Working with an agency that's closer to home, and run by people who may understand your business better. Sounds like a good strategy to me. Sometimes, you need the big guns, but for most PR assignments, the home team works just fine.

PR Spam Blogger Relations Case Study: The Truth Be Told, You Should be Outraged

Lately, I've received some really off-target spam "news" releases from PR types. Last year, my friend Todd Defren and I commiserated about the sad state of PR spam last year, when he told me about a press release he was pitched, all about oatmeal. Todd writes about PR, social media, and agency life. Not consumer products. By the way, Todd is a true thought leader and visionary, the "social media news release" was his brainchild.

Another leader in calling out bad pitches is the "Bad Pitch Blog." They're taking on the silly media relations frenzy that surrounds SXSW each year. It's worth a follow. Here is their social media relations quiz.

Today, I received a completely off-target news release, one of those "Yeah! We're the agency of record for our new client!" garbage news releases. In my opinion, it's great to be "thrilled" to have a new client, but keep this stuff to the Advertising and PR trade pubs. Or better yet, just post it on your agency's website. In this case, the agency was "The Truth Be Told" (offices in New York and LA!)

PR spam is a serious threat to the credibility to all PR people, and it's getting really bad. I'm always encouraging my friends in the media to take action and push back. So, I decided to respond. Here is the exchange that ensued.

First, the breathy first paragraph of the "News" Release. The pitch was exactly three words long.

For your consideration:(!!!!) <----- (That's it, in case you missed it!)

TRUTH BE TOLD TO REPRESENT CANADA G00SE

New York, NY (March 9, 2011) – Canada Goose, Inc.,the Canadian company, who for over 50 years has been committed to producing the best extreme weather outerwear in the world; proudly made in Canada, announced today that Truth Be Told, Inc., a public relations and marketing firm with offices in New York and Los Angeles, was selected as the agency of record for this iconic brand.  “We’re thrilled to have Truth Be Told on board. The last five years have been a time of remarkable growth for our company in United States,” said Kevin Spreekmeester, VP Global Marketing.  “We believe that TBT has a unique combination of New York savvy and Los Angeles savoir faire to provide the perfect public relations marketing support we need to maintain the upward momentum.”

ME: "Why on earth would you send me this release? You obviously have no idea what you are doing."
Amanda S. from Truth Be Told: "Then it would behoove you to change your details on the media search engines."
Me: "I write about public relations. You've obviously never read my blog. My search details don't include anything about wanting to read random press releases that I would not write about in A MILLION YEARS."
Amanda: "By the way, I hope the advice you give clients includes building relationships, because clearly you're terrific at that."
Me: "I didn't ask you for anything. You are the one who sent me a cookie cutter "For Your Consideration" agency of record spam email. Clearly, I could give a crap less, and your sass is not helping your case, that of your client, or your company's reputation. You do know I'm a blogger, right?"
Amanda: (note the change in tone): I have never engaged in such a correspondence with a media person, nor do I intend to.  I was simply surprised by your reaction and perhaps reacted too quickly. We work with several outlets that focus on media moves and somehow your name ended up on this short list. Apologies if it clogged your inbox. There is no reason to endanger my business or the reputation of our client, that spends a lot of time and resources on protecting the environment and endangered species.

Best,

Amanda

The best part of her entire pitch was buried in her hasty apology! If she had done a little research on Twitter, she would have discovered that I sometimes tweet about water quality and the environment. If she would have done her due diligence and perhaps noted SOMETHING about my blog or even given one hint that she had followed me on Twitter, it would have been a different story. No, I would have never written about Canada Goose, but at least it would have made me think that she truly researched her pitch.

This is a perfect example of "spray and pray," or "throw Jello at the wall to see how much will stick" PR. I don't know anything about Canada Goose, but they certainly deserve better service than this.

Have you ever done the "Spray and pray?" Can you share how you found out it's not the best way to pitch? I'd love to hear your stories. There, I feel better now. Thanks for reading.

P.S. The Truth Be Told PR: Please don't fire Amanda. I promise she has learned her lesson and will remember it for the rest of her career. But you have some serious training to do. Here are some tips from Journalistics on how to allow reporters and bloggers to opt out of your media lists.

 

Jess Held and Josh Fleming My Guests Today on PRP

Jess Held, Executive VP of Client Service at Lessing Flynn is my guest today on Public Relations Princess. Held was previously the Marketing Communications Manager at Vermeer Corporation in Pella, Iowa. A graduate from Central College, she also founded Studio 104, a design and advertising firm located in Pella.

Held brings an extensive marketing background to the firm – including experience in advertising, public/media relations, event planning, strategic marketing planning and product launch marketing. In her role at Lessing-Flynn, Held develops and implements branding, marketing and public relations strategies for Lessing-Flynn clients.

She's bringing Josh Fleming along. Josh is the Digital Manager at LF and a good pal of mine. Always a great source of comic relief, Josh is in charge of managing digital strategy and execution and is also the driving force behind LF's social media offerings. Lessing Flynn has a corporate blog that rates the best and worst of advertising campaigns in Iowa and beyond, and is an acute observer of the world of social media. Word!

Tune in to MacsWorldLive.com at 4 p.m. If you have any questions for Jess or Josh, just tweet me @clairecelsi.

White Papers: A Value-Add for Your Client

Writing a white paper is a great way to add value to your client relationship. When you've done a great job on a research project and have a great story to tell, there is no better tool to generate credibility for your point of view.

If you've spent the last month of your life immersing yourself in your client's business, you know what you're talking about. So compile a summary of what you've learned in the form of a white paper and present it to your client. Trust me, they'll be impressed.

Here are some tips from Stelzner Consulting on how to write a great white paper:

1. Know your audience: A good white paper will quickly identify a problem or concern faced by your reader. If you don't grab their attention right away, they will not spend the time to read it.
2. Decide on an approach: Simply put, you can focus on your own needs or those of your reader. Obviously, the second approach will get you farther than the first, and you will instantly establish credibility with your readers.
3. Add substance: A white paper must contain persuasive information. Some examples of substance include a historical overview and examples of similar problems and resolutions that have taken place in the past.
4. Add credibility: Write objectively as possible (this is no place to brag) and try to quote reputable third-party sources when making claims that involve numbers of any kind.
5. Keep it short: Try to keep the finished document at 12 pages or less. If it's any longer, consider breaking up your topic into separate white papers.
6. Use images, charts and illustrations: Don't use clip art, but stock photos are ok.
7. Break content into small, digestible chunks: Using bullets, subheads and white space can help you accomplish this goal.
8. Add sidebars and callouts: These visual tools add interest and summarize content without adding too much text.
9. Come back to your paper later: Don't write and publish all in the same stretch. Give your mind and your eyes a 12-24 hour break. Gaping holes in copy and flow will be more apparent after a rest.
10. Have an editor review your work: A grammatical error will ruin your reputation with your reader. A good editor can also suggest slight changes to make your words more powerful.