3 Questions to Ask – and Answer – When Launching a Twitter Chat

As founder of the #measurePR Twitter chat, I was invited to, and participated in, #chatmixer last night (party image, David Domingo, Creative Commons).

The idea was to bring together folks who routinely participate in specific chats, in an online/Twitter “mixer,” in an effort to widen their Twitter circles (would that be Twircles?) – hence the choice of #chatmixer as a hashtag. Truth be told, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, though Justin Goldsborough, Heather Whaling and Valerie Simon were meticulous in their planning.

Turns out, I enjoyed myself thoroughly. It had a great party feel to it, and the last time I can remember the feeling of Twitter being such a party solely due to an effort like this (i.e. not related to an offline event) was the “kindness party” last year. I don’t even remember who organized that, except that Kim Wells brought it to my attention, and I had a whale of a time.

A chat is born

Anyhoo… during the course of #chatmixer, a new chat was born: #cookchat. (I cannot wait for that one.) And a few different people mentioned they were interested in starting chats as well.

This can be a very smart thing to do, especially from a marketing point of view.

But as with all bright ideas, you should play devil’s advocate and batter the heck out of your bright idea before you launch it. Better you find the holes in it & mend them before anyone else does, right?

First, read these excellent posts on participating in (by Jeff Hurt) and running (by David Spinks) a Twitterchat.

Now, just as when designing a PR strategy, here are three questions to ask – and answer – when launching a Twitter chat.

1. What gap will this chat help to fill?

If you look at What the Hashtag?! (now part of What the Trend™), you’ll see it’s currently tracking 9,900 hashtags. While not all of those are chats, that gives you a sense of just how many hashtags are out there.

Image: skipnclick’s Flickrstream, Creative Commons

The primary reasons people participate in chats are, first, to learn something and second, to extend their networks. So if your chat is to be successful, it must fulfill these two desires.

If you look at this handy-dandy spreadsheet that Robert Swanwick created to track regular chats on Twitter, you’ll see a few chats that are fairly similar, as well as those that are quite unique.

There’s certainly nothing wrong in several people having the same conversation, albeit with different hashtags – it happens all the time. But if you want to give your chat a shot at succeeding (more on what this means in a bit), try to make it unique.

This is what Sarah Evans did with #journchat, what Kellye Crane did with #soloPR and, I’d like to think, what I’m doing with #measurePR.

What do the people you want to reach want to talk about? If you can answer that question – particularly with an answer that no one else has come up with yet – you’re off to a good start.

2. What will make this chat attract its target audience?

The quality of a chat – which is what will determine the perception of the chat and hence its profile – is dependent on who participates. You can design a great chat, but if you don’t have engaged, thoughtful and thought-provoking participants, it might end up being a one-hit wonder.

How do you bring the right people to the table?

Figure out what time of day and how often you’re going to hold the chat (this is particularly important if yours is not the only chat of its kind around)… and sustain it. Don’t set yourself up for failure; if your other commitments preclude a weekly chat, make it bi-weekly (or monthly, if you dare).

Whatever you decide, be consistent, since that is what will build your audience and community.

What you’re essentially asking people to do, as you build your chat community, is give up something else – work, family time, a movie, pizza – to devote their attention to your chat. Over and over and over again.

So make it easy and desirable for them to attend – that will go a long way in making it worth their while.

3. How will this chat become recognizable and identifiable?

Let’s face it, we in the social media sphere have the attention span of gnats. And I say that with no disrespect to gnats (image, Kaptain Kobold’s Flickrstream, Creative Commons).

Like anything else in the branding space, repetition rules. So once you’ve figured out the name and aim of your chat, brand it well.

I’d go so far as to say, message the heck out of it.

Choose a smart, easy-to-remember hashtag that’s as short as possible; you want to make the most of those 140 characters of Twitter-estate. Register it on WTHashtag and add it to your bio.

Brand your chat frequently, but consistently. Because if you don’t, someone else might, and that will leave you considerably unhappy.

Which brings me to success – what does a successful Twitter chat look like?

It could be the dominant player in its niche with thousands of participants; it could be an extremely engaged conversation that leads to genuine discovery for a small but passionate group.

It could be the place where thought leaders in your field congregate; it could be people pitching you to be “on your show”; or it could be the generic use of your hashtag in conversations with a related theme.

Whatever the measure of success, you’re going to have to define it based on why you set out to build it… and if you really want to be successful, define this at the outset. I haven’t yet come across a Twitter chat that’s being sustained purely for fun, even if it was launched impulsively; if it builds, there’s a great deal of time and effort being put into it.

So figure out what you want to do with the chat, as well as what you want the chat to do for you (and it’s ok to want the chat to do something for you, that’s what business is about).

When you begin at the end, there’s a much greater likelihood you’ll get there.

What do you think, am I off the mark or on the money? If you’ve implemented successful tactics in launching and maintaining Twitter chats, please share them in the comments section below. All 9,900 hashtags (and growing) and I will thank you.

This Is What 40 Looks Like

There’s a terrific post over at Women Grow Business today on “the incredible disappearing woman” by Liz Scherer, one of WGB’s regular contributors. As editor of WGB, you could accuse me of being biased, and I suppose that would be understandable… though not, IMHO, accurate, but that’s neither here nor there.

When I read through Liz’ post, these words of Gloria Steinem when told she didn’t look 40, as relayed by Mollie Katzen, struck a particular chord with me:

“This is what 40 looks like.”

What an incredibly empowering phrase.

I celebrated my 40th birthday this year with as much pandemonium as I could muster. My community was incredibly generous, helping me raise money for a cause particularly dear to my heart. And then I had an absolutely amazing time in London, UK, as part of my belated “birthday blowout.”

Complete strangers have been exceedingly kind to me, such as the British Airways employee who, as part of the rigorous screening on our way back to the US after my delayed b’day celebration in London, cocked her head at me and said, “… are you trying to make ME feel old?” (when I told her the reason for our trip).

Still, as a woman who’s no longer on the “right side” of 30, I can’t help but wonder sometimes…

… am I over the oft-referenced hill?

Was my grand proclamation of my age this year a set up for encountering ageism in the workplace when I don’t hold all the cards I think I do now?

Truth be told, I don’t know. Perhaps these words will come back to bite me some day. But this I do know, 99% of the women I encounter really do grow better as they age.

Perhaps it’s a question of “growing into my skin,” as I told a former boss of mine 10 years ago, when she asked how I was adjusting to life in the US after moving from India.

But if I could turn back the clock, I would, right?

No. I wouldn’t. Whatever I’ve been through, whatever I’ve done, have made me who I am today, and have put me in exactly the right place at the exactly the right time.

You can call that new-agey, if you like, but that is really how I feel.

I’ll say it loud and I’ll say it proud. This is what 40 looks like.

In Perpetual Motion: Reflections On a 2.0 Vacation

That’s me coming out of a London phone booth on Heddon Street last week. If any David Bowie fans are reading this, they’re nodding their heads; and if the rest of you are scratching your noggins wondering what I’m going on about, here’s why Heddon Street is legendary to Ziggy Stardust fans, of whom my husband is king (and therefore, by association, am I queen).

In perpetual motion

You’re also probably wondering why I chose a photo that’s a bit fuzzy to illustrate this post. I did so because it captures me in motion, and that’s what our vacation (which was wonderful) felt like.

We were in perpetual motion, as we took in the Globe, Abbey Road, Lord’s, Abbaworld (awesome!), some great restaurants and the whole point of going to London in some very crappy weather – to see Elvis Presley in Concert as my “milestone birthday” celebration. (After all, when you’re in one of the world’s most vibrant cities for five days, you want to do as much as you can.)

It’s also how I think of life today. Ever since getting back to the U.S., I’ve slowly been getting back to my “real” life, which was blissfully suspended for a week. And real life in the 21st century moves very, very fast. The kind of thing we say we want to get away from… which is why we go on vacation, right?

Kinda sorta. While we were traveling, I did keep my Blackberry close at hand, but I didn’t send too many emails from it (at least, I’d like to think I didn’t, though my colleagues at IABC/DC Metro are probably snorting right now).

So while the vacation was meant to be a getaway, I didn’t really “get away” as much as I could have… but was that a bad thing?

The 2.0 vacation

Because of my BB, for example, we were able to minimize how much paper (directions, addresses, etc.) that we carried with us while we were traipsing across the city. A green vacation… after a fashion!

And I was able to stay in touch with my Twitter peeps thanks to Ubertwitter. One of them, Howard Riefs, introduced me to the fabulous Tom Aikens, who very kindly made a reservation for me at Tom’s Kitchen (which you really have to go to when you’re next in London). The best eggs benedict I’ve eaten in a while, not to mention the best loo sign ever. Check it out:

They also told me how much postage I’d need to mail in some bill payments that I’d forgotten to drop off in the mad rush before we left. Staying connected helped me find one of London’s three remaining post offices (or so someone said) and take that load off my mind.

Because we had mobile connectivity, we were able to find some really dinky record stores – the kind that only take cash – that my husband’s been dreaming of going to.

And I was able to meet up with friends like Richard Bagnall and Ved Sen, and meet IRL tweeps such as Kristin Wadge, Russell Pearson, Bryce Keane and Sheema Siddiqui (the latter of whom organized a #shonalitweetup – love it!)

Whether we like it or not, hyper-connectivity is part and parcel of our lives, especially for those of us who live in the social media plane. Yes, that’s sometimes tiring, even irritating… but it can also be incredibly helpful.

So while it’ll take me a little time to get back into full 2.0 work mode, I’m grateful to the 2.0 world for adding dimension to a vacation that was a once-in-a-lifetime event for us.

You might call it a 2.0 vacation.

Moving from “Buzz” to “Business”: Social Commerce Camp DC Is Coming Up

Why bother with PR?

One of the things that yours truly focuses on in her, er my, “day job” is the business use of public relations – or, in other words, why bother with “PR” if it’s not going to impact business indicators? Far too often, I see and hear people assuming the raison d’être of “PR” is to “create buzz.”

I won’t belabor the point here but in a nutshell, it’s not. Effective PR is designed – and implemented – with a view to helping an organization achieve its business objectives. In other words, it really is about managing the relationships between an organization and its “publics,” and thus impacting the bottom line.

Which is why I’m excited to be a part of Social Commerce Camp DC this weekend (Saturday, Feb. 20); a free educational event that is geared towards small businesses and entrepreneurs who want to grow their businesses and are looking for the tools to get them started.

Now, it’s a half-day event so no, you won’t be writing an encyclopedia on small business after attending, but what you should definitely walk away with is an understanding of how to use “social” to jumpstart your business (or kick it into high gear). And yes, PR is a part of that, and that’s what I’ll be focusing on.

Here’s the agenda

• 8 – 9 am:  Continental breakfast , registration and networking
• 9 – 9:45 am: Social Media 101 for Small Business, with Shashi Bellamkonda , Social Media Swami, Network Solutions
• 10 – 10:45 am: Creating a Killer Social User Experience with your e-Commerce Site, with Steve Fisher, browncoatsmovie.com
• 10.45 – 11.15 am:  Check your Twitter account/ blogging time
• 11:15 am to 12 noon: PR Tips and Best Practices for Small Business – Shonali Burke (me!)

Major props to the sponsors: Mayer Brown, Network Solutions, Kikscore and  MyBusinessAssistant.com.

Will I see you there? Remember, it’s free, so come on out. You can register here.

Image: Daniel Broche, Creative Commons

Cross-posted from Women Grow Business, of which I am editor.

Help A PR Pro Out: The Michael Clendenin Edition

I know I’ve been talking (or having other folks talk) about job hunting, do’s and don’ts, etc., quite a bit lately. Honestly, I can’t help it; given this blog is all about “personal” musings on our business and our lives, it really is a reflection of what’s going on with, in, and around me.

Even though I’m not looking for a job myself, I’ve been helped countless times by both friends and strangers (who then become friends… what a wonderful world!) when I have been in the market – and the least I can do is pay it forward.

So when Arik Hanson and Valerie Simon asked me to be a part of a wonderful initiative: “Help a PR Pro Out” or #HAPPO for short, where several of us PR pros are going to do our bit to help our colleagues in the job market make excellent connections – and hopefully, find a great job – on February 19 – of course I said “yes.”

You’ve probably already heard the buzz online, but if you’re still getting up to speed, here’s the 4-1-1 on the HAPPO website itself.

Today’s #HAPPO Focus: Michael Clendenin

Specifically today, I want to tell you about a good friend and an excellent communicator, Michael Clendenin. Mike was most recently with Freddie Mac (yup) and is now in the job market. Having known and worked with him in a volunteer capacity at IABC/Washington (he’s on my current board of directors too) I can tell you that not only is he one of the most patient people around, he’s a really smart guy too; and whether it’s through sheer persistence or the luck of the Irish, invariably manages to pull the proverbial rabbit out of a hat when most needed.

Please – if you have, or know of, a senior-level communication position in the DC market, will you contact Michael? Or leave a comment below so that he can get in touch with you. And thank you in advance for your time and thoughts!

And now I’ll let Mike speak for himself. Please help this PR pro out!

Of Cabbages and Kings and Measuring PR

We kicked off our first Twitterchat on measuring public relations yesterday, with the “queen of measurement” herself, Katie Paine. From 12-1 pm EST, we had an incredibly lively and vibrant discussion that surprised even me, the organizer – and I should know not to be surprised by anything on Twitter by now!

You might wonder why I borrowed from “The Walrus and the Carpenter” in titling this post. The thing is, Mr. Carroll’s poem is so full of beautiful whimsy, I can’t help but think it reflects some of the chaos we are still dealing with when it comes to measuring PR.

I write and speak often on this but really… why are we still going round and round in circles about something like AVE (ad value equivalency) which is essentially a measure of output when we know what’s really important to the C-suite is focusing on outcomes? Fortuitously, I stumbled across Pritesh Patel’s post on the subject of AVE as I was pulling this recap together, so do give it a read.

If I have one mantra when it comes to measurement – that’s it. Outcomes outcomes outcomes. Repeat after me: OUTCOMES.

But this recap isn’t (just) about me. So in that vein, here’s Sean Williams’ recap, which also looks at the AVE debate (or paroxysm, as he calls it). Below are some of the highlights of the chat, and you can find the entire transcript here.

The four questions posed were:

• What are the most common mistakes in measuring PR?
• How does a newbie get started in “smart” measurement?
• How has the PR measurement landscape changed over the years, or has it?
• Can you recommend some educational resources?

Here are just a few of the gems, and not just from Katie:

And those are just a few. I do hope you’ll read the transcript and share your thoughts via a comment below, or on Twitter using the #measurepr hashtag.

Katie – thank you so much for kicking off the inaugural #measurepr chat; I hope you’ll be back often as the featured guest!

A quick note on how we’ll proceed: these chats will take place every two weeks for now; if we see a great urge to increase (or decrease the frequency), we’ll do so, but for now, if you’re interested in PR measurement, do mark your calendars for the next one (February 16) from 12-1 pm ET, and every other Tuesday following.

And remember – we want to get your questions answered – so if you have questions you’d like to have discussed at a future chat, please email them to me at sburke (a) shonaliburke (dot) com – or, of course, you can always tweet me.

Until the next time – keep chatting and keep measuring!

More resources:

• The Institute for Public Relations has great resources on measurement
• I created a Twitter list of folks I think are leaders in measurement, so you might want to check them out
• As our featured guest, I think it’s only right to point you to Katie’s website and blog
• A presentation I made at PRSA09 on measurement, which may particularly help those of you at non-profits/with low or no budget

Image: Quinn Dombrowski, Creative Commons

Five Ways to Land a Job in Social Media

This is a guest post from Chuck Hemann, someone I’ve enjoyed connecting with in the online world, and whom I very much hope to meet offline soon. Read on for great tips on landing a job using, and in, social media.

Social media jobs are popping up around every corner, and so are the people looking for those jobs. Unfortunately, the economic downturn took a heavy toll on the PR profession. Jobs aren’t as available for the experienced, or entry-level, professional. Because of the dearth of opportunities, many pros have taken to the Web in an effort to network and potentially land a new career.

If you’ve ever connected with me online or offline, you’ll know that I recently accepted a social media associate position with WCG, global media services company focused on the corporate and product marketing and communications needs of leading healthcare companies. I have enjoyed my current role as manager of research and online reputation for Dix & Eaton, but was hoping to land something more social media-focused.

If you currently have a job, or are recently unemployed and looking for something new, or even a recent college graduate who is trying to break into the workforce here are five tips that helped me land my job in social media.

1. Identify your niche

Social media may be new, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t a host of cottage industries within the space. Are you interested in measurement/monitoring? Are you interested in community management? Are you interested in SEO? For me, that space was in monitoring and measurement so I made sure I got to know the folks from Radian6, Katie Paine, Don Bartholomew, Ken Burbary and a host of others you can find through my Twitter lists.

Do not try to be all things to all people. The end result will be you’ve spread yourself too thin, and probably not become noticeable in any one category.

2. Identify the “influencers”

I usually hate the term “influencers” as there’s really no standardized method to determine who’s truly influential, but in this case it makes sense to determine the 10-15 people in your niche that you’d like to read, and interact with. A Google search for any of the topics I’ve mentioned above will certainly help in that process, but don’t be afraid to ask. Use LinkedIn forums or Twitter or your own blog to ask people who they find influential.

3. Take a position

One of the pieces of advice I give to entry-level pros, and even more experienced professionals, is take a position. Nobody likes the guy/gal who waffles (unless you’re Switzerland), so figure out what your position is on the hot topics within your niche and express them.

Is this potentially dangerous? Sure, but prospective employers are looking for the ability to articulate and defend an argument. My first opportunity to do that on a large scale came when Jason Falls allowed me to share the approach to social media listening that I helped cultivate here at D&E on his blog. Search for those same opportunities within your niche.

4. Engage those “influencers”

Social media, regardless of the particular tool, does not come with an engraved invitation.

You either take the time to get to know the folks who are influential or you don’t. I haven’t “met” a person yet who is unwilling to engage people who engage with them. Take the time to get to know the influencers in your space and then engage them where they live.

5. Take it offline

Your online interactions can only take you so far. At some point, you need to meet the influencers in your space in real life. Whether you meet them at a conference, a tweetup, or just strolling through their neck of the woods you’ll no doubt gain more value from the relationship after you’ve met them in person. I’ve had the opportunity to meet many social media folks over the last two years and wouldn’t trade those experiences for the world.

These are just five things that worked for me. If you’re interested in other takes on landing a job, I’d encourage you to check out the posts from Teresa Basich and Lisa Hoffmann, both of whom have recently started new jobs in social media.

If you’ve recently landed a job in social media what worked for you? Do share!

Chuck Hemann, a 2010 Society for New Communications Research Fellow, is currently the manager of research & online reputation for Dix & Eaton, a communications consultancy with specialized expertise in social media strategies and tools. On February 15, Chuck will begin a new role as social media associate for WCG, a global media services company focused on the corporate and product marketing and communications needs of leading healthcare companies.

Image: Laurie Nadeau, Creative Commons

Who’s Guilty of Tweet-itis?

Even for someone with a thin skin when it comes to micro-blogging and Twitter in particular, I thought this was laugh-out-loud hilarious.

Image: Mark Smiciklas, Creative Commons

Getting on Board with Women Grow Business

Thanks to my (wonderful) friends, this particular cat got out of the bag before I could untie the strings, so I’m going to make this short and sweet (though I’ve been dying to tell you for a while): I’m really excited to be taking over the reins at Women Grow Business, an amazing community hosted by Network Solutions to help women do exactly that: grow their business.

With content from leading women entrepreneurs on a variety of subjects, Women Grow Business has really made a name for itself in an extremely short span of time, thanks to a great many people, but particularly, I think, because of Shashi Bellamkonda and Jill Foster; it’s the latter whose able hands I’ll be taking over WGB from.

Because of their efforts in building a vibrant, thriving community, WGB has received so many accolades, it’s a little mind-boggling: one of Forbes’ 20 best marketing and social media blogs by women, to name just one, not to mention Jill herself being listed by Forbes as one of 30 women entrepreneurs to follow on Twitter (and whatever your opinion about Twitter lists, you have to admit that’s a pretty cool one to be on).

Fyi, Shonali Burke Consulting still lives

Quick aside: in case you were wondering whether I’m giving up my consulting business – no, I’m not. Shonali Burke Consulting is alive and kicking and open for business. Hey, that’s what Women Grow Business is all about, right?

Back to WGB

So, anyway. I’m pinching myself because I can’t quite believe I get to do this – but I need your help.

Women Grow Business will not remain, or grow from, the amazing community/community blog it already is if women entrepreneurs and business owners don’t join in.

So please, visit me over at WGB, send me ideas for guest posts, let me know how you’d like to be involved. Follow us on Twitter and stay tuned for more developments online as well as offline, that we’d love you to be a part of.

Thank you for the incredible warmth and happiness you’ve shown to me today, and I’m looking forward to growing this wonderful community with you!

Scones, Sparkle and Sharing at DC’s First Social Media Breakfast

I attended my first Social Media Club (DC) event yesterday – a “social media breakfast,” which was founded by Bryan Person (read more here) – and the inaugural event of its kind in DC.

Wow – what a great time. First of all, it was sold out (well, it was free, but if you wanted to share in the extremely tasty, hot breakfast, you had to shell out $10, which I think is a deal). Teaism’s cup was running over, if you’ll pardon the expression, of social media maniacs. And we’re a hungry bunch, in more ways than one, so we were eager listeners when Andi Narvaez, who was running the show, kicked things off.

Speakers Geoff Livingston, Shashi Bellamkonda and Alex Howard were fabulous, as was the organization by Andi and her cohort, Rachel Rule. I had a terrific time being a “head of table,” along with Mike Schaffer – and we were even at the same table, which was great. Among others, I got to meet James Walker, Lorna Webster (all the way from Fredericksburg, Va.), Ashley Settle and catch up with Kim Oser (we were all at the same table).

Though I’d meant to post this much earlier, in a way I’m glad I didn’t get a chance to do so, because I’ve found some terrific recaps of the event, such as in Shashi’s Examiner column and Alex Priest’s excellent writeup.

As you’ll read, the speakers all agreed on mobile being a top trend (and you can see how this is a theme in Geoff’s recent post over at Mashable on the Haitian earthquake implications for non-profit organizations).

Shashi made an excellent point (out of many) about integrating social media into your websites (“people aren’t going to come to your site to talk about your product/brand”), and Alex ripped through so many trends (including geo-location, niche networks, privacy – or the lack thereof – and real time) in his Prezi presentation, I felt like a benevolent hurricane had blown through the room. Fortunately, he’s allowed us to embed his excellent presentation, so have a look (tip, watch it in fullscreen mode, it’s much more fun).

Our table had an amazingly free-flowing discussion once the speakers wrapped; we covered everything from how businesses are using Foursquare, to governance of the Internet, to the successful integration of different applications. In fact, they pretty much had to throw us out (ask Mike, I’m not kidding). It was a great way to start a day (and week).

By the way, I’ve seen a few disappointed tweets from folks who didn’t know it was happening. Folks, if you subscribe to SMC-DC’s blog, and/or follow their tweets (#smcdc), and/or join their LinkedIn group, you’ll know when the next one is, won’t you?

The Real A-ha Moment

For me, the real “a-ha” moment was the engagement that we all shared, and the clear enjoyment we had in meeting each other, particularly when so many of us only knew each other from Twitter.

So in my opinion, while social media and online networking clearly has new and exciting heights to scale, I think we’re also going to see a resurgence of offline interaction in the days, months and years to come. Because all the trends the speakers spoke about had one thing in common, no matter how cool they were – they enable us to make better connections with each other.

The online world making us more human? Who’da thunk it.

If you were at #smbdc, what did you think? Did your table have other conversations you’d care to share? Do tell!

Image (cc) courtesy Shashi Bellamkonda, Social Media Swami, Network Solutions

Chicago Helps Haiti

There’s some pretty hectic social media-with-a-cause activity going on in Chicago today.

In case you hadn’t heard, the Chicago Red Cross has had a telethon going since 5 a.m., which will continue until 11 p.m., to raise funds for Haiti. They’ve been promoting it pretty aggressively via both MSM as well as social media, integrating various outposts, such as Twitter and YouTube very well. You can donate here, or check out their live blog here.

I love when non-profit organizations are smart about their use of media to further their mission.

But I love it even more when a single person does it.

If you’re plugged into the PR/SM bubble on Twitter (and I say that affectionately, because it’s a bubble I enjoy bouncing around in), you’ll know Kate Zimmer, whose zest for life and PR smarts shine through those 140 characters, regardless of which pickle she says she’s in at any given time.

Pretty much single-handedly, Kate has pulled together an amazingly collaborative event in Chicago, entitled “Wake of the Quake,” and which is aptly hashtagged in the social media sphere as #chihelpshaiti.

It kicked off January 18 and will run through the 24th; during this time, participating restaurants in the Chicago area will enable patrons to add a donation of $1 (or more) to their checks to support the Heartland Alliance (and yes, it’s a tried and tested charity, I know I’ve been making a lot of noise about that lately). And tonight, they’re also holding a fundraiser and after-party to keep the goodwill and, hopefully, dollars flowing.

Using social media to do this is no longer ingenious; but I do think it takes tremendous strength of spirit and staying power to be the primary driving force behind it, and pull off an event that is clearly well-organized – look at the number of restaurants participating! – and is bringing the community together for an extremely deserving cause.

I asked Kate to tell me why she did this, and this is what she said, via email:

I had the idea as I was watching the news and seeing the Twitter feed about #Haiti early Thursday morning, one week ago. I really felt that someone should do something to help raise money for a local charity that is contributing to the Haiti relief efforts in a big way and, with the influence that some of us have on Twitter, why not use that as the method to motivate people to gather together to organize, produce and promote a local event? Everything was done via social and electronic communications!  The Chicago Twitter #ChiHelpsHaiti team didn’t even talk on the phone until 9 hours after the initial tweets and DMs went out!

Kate’s efforts haven’t gone unnoticed by the media. The Chicago Tribune picked up on it last week, check out this great write-up in Chicago’s Philanthropy Examiner, and it’s listed not once but three times on ChicagoBusiness.com (which is powered by Crain’s).

I hope to catch up with Kate in the next couple of weeks to see if this drive was a success (and how she measures success), and what lessons we can learn as PR professionals from her (though I think a few are already self-evident).

For now, though, I just want to take my hat off to Kate. Ms. Zimmer, I’m proud to call you “friend.”

I’d love it if you joined me in trying to help Kate; there are so many ways to do it. You could leave a comment for Kate below, help her spread the word on Twitter or Facebook, blog about it or donate to the Alliance’s emergency fund for Haiti. If you’re in the Chicago area, showing up at tonight’s event or eating at one of the participating restaurants. We’d be so grateful.

http://www.chicagoredcross.org/general_calltoaction.asp?CTA=5&SN=249&OP=9170&SUOP=9171&IDCapitulo=VF223FBDFD

Haiti: Aftershocks of a Different Kind

You should read this terrific post that Geoff Livingston has written for Mashable on social media lessons from the Haitian earthquake. There’s a ton of food for thought there.

But I’m following the Wyclef Jean/Yéle Haiti story closely and today saw this report in Gawker.

While I’m not jumping to conclusions (I’ll leave that to the appropriate authorities), I do think there are enough valid questions to make me think that non-profits should be extremely concerned about the long-term impact on fundraising.

Which, let’s face it, determines whether they get to carry out their mission effectively or not.

Here’s how I responded to Geoff’s post:

Nice post, Geoff. I think the other really important lesson here is that while the immediacy that social media allows is breathtaking, it is equally, if not more, important to do your research before using these channels and committing to a path, because it could potentially have far-reaching consequences. I write this in context of the Wyclef Jean/Yéle Haiti “rumblings,” which are growing louder by the day (and as you know, did a brief post on this last week). Day by day more organizations are bringing Yéle Haiti on as a recipient of fundraisers, telethons, etc., yet there is justifiable speculation as to the workings of this organization.

Please understand I am not pointing a finger at Mr. Jean personally; I have no doubt he has the best of intentions. But the desire to do good and administering effective relief operations are completely different things. If it turns out that all is well with Yéle Haiti, no one will be more relieved than me. But if not, a very many people will feel let down, which might, in turn, affect fundraising initiatives for non-profits, particularly of smaller/upcoming organizations; and possibly even the way they use social media in the future.

What do you think? Am I over-thinking this? Nothing to worry about? Please share your thoughts, over at Geoff’s post, or below, or both.

Image: IFRC/Eric Quintero

The Scorsese School of PR

I’m delighted that today’s post is a guest feature by Narciso Tovar, who reminds us the silver screen has more than a few lessons for communicators.

Filmmakers come and go – some have the staying power to make a real career out of it, while most fizzle out after a few films.  As a lead player in cinema, until you’ve earned some street cred in the business, studios and executives look for any kind of upward trend in your work – even though you were well-received in your last feature, you could very well tank (hard) in your next flick.

This is why veterans always tell newcomers that you’re only as good as your last picture.

One filmmaker who has earned his stripes (and then some) is Martin Scorsese.  He has not only made a career out his cinematic ventures, Mr. Scorsese has made his name synonymous with brilliant movies.  And even though he’s got some interesting eccentricities like never really wanting to go to Central Park and is listed as one of 50 people barred from entering Tibet, Martin Scorsese can teach us a thing or two in PR.

Martin Scorsese is:

1. A consummate student – his knowledge of films is encyclopedic and his mastery of various techniques is remarkable…the guy served a tour of duty at NYU and taught the likes of Oliver Stone and Spike Lee.  Moreover, Mr. Scorsese’s love of films has led him to establish The Film Foundation to promote the preservation and appreciation of film history.

Regardless where you may be in your career, there is ALWAYS time to learn something new in PR.

Yes, you have to stick to the basic tenets of public relations…and, yes, you have to be a strong writer…but there will always be a new way to skin that communications cat – it’s our job to find out how we can leverage their power for our company / client(s) and be smart about using these tools…wisely.

2. A guy who doesn’t take himself too seriously – how many other film legends can you say would be even open to the idea of being a shark character in an animation film, poke fun at his own eyebrows or take some fun jabs on national TV about his fondness for film reels.

Be it from our clients, bosses, colleagues, whatever – working in PR can be a bit stressful.  There’s a lot to handle and it has to be done in a timely manner – now more than ever.  Who the heck has time to breathe…?…YOU DO.  This is not rocket science and it’s not like we’re working on a cure to end world hunger.

Yes, it’s important, and yes, there is a great deal of value that we bring to the table; but the work we do is not so imperative that you can’t take a break or get some perspective by having a laugh or two at your own expense.

3. Always trying new things in his work – from directing Michael Jackson’s Bad video, to a film like The Age of Innocence and then onto Casino takes a tremendous amount of stretching…not only from the dynamics of the actors he had to work with, but from a storytelling perspective as well.

Hold fast to the tried and true methods of communicating your ideas, both internally and externally; but explore these new social media devices that are well within your reach.  Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, CrowdCampaign – they are easy to use, manageable and effective in communicating your client’s /company’s message.

So go out there and be the ‘Good Fella’ in your PR team.  Keep refining your methods & approach… never get ‘too big for your britches’ and keep yourself in ‘sponge mode’ – there’s always more to do in the Scorsese School of PR.

With more than 14 years of public relations experience, Narciso Tovar is president and founder of Big Noise Communications, that runs on Method + Moxie. He lives in Dallas with his wife, Rhonda, and has a strong track record in media communications, both “old” and “new,” with organizations such as Vonage and the Wall Street Journal Online. One of the most energetic young voices in social media, you can easily connect with Narciso on Twitter.

Announcing #measurepr

I had a terrific time on Twitter today. Sean Williams organized a Twitterchat with Katie Paine and myself as a precursor to our respective visits to IABC/Cleveland, and we had a good old time chatting about measurement, PR, social media and the like.

You can read the entire transcript here, if you’re interested.

I sit in on quite a few chats every now and again and the one topic that always seems to come up is measurement. I figured a regular chat on measurement, especially as it pertains to public relations, might be worth setting up.

So I’ve created the #measurepr hashtag and hope that anyone who’s interested in discussing the ins and outs of PR measurement will join.

For now, we’re going to start with a bi-weekly chat, every other Tuesday from 12 – 1 pm ET. We’ll kick off the first one on February 2, and the esteemed queen of measurement, Katie Paine, will be our featured guest.

Do mark your calendars, and join me. If you have questions on PR measurement (which will encompass both “old” and “new” PR), drop me an email, leave a comment below, or tweet me. I’m looking forward to it!

Image: Creative Commons, Darren Hester’s Flickrstream

Go Social, Give Wisely

The way philanthropic organizations have been mobilizing social media in recent years to raise funds isn’t really “shiny new stuff” any more. Still, the recent waves of donations after the earthquake have been coming at lightning speed.

In light of that, I’ve been intrigued by The Smoking Gun’s scrutiny of Wyclef Jean’s charity, Yéle Haiti (also reported on in today’s Washington Post). Having run communications for the ASPCA during some critical events in the animal welfare arena, I know how generous people can be with their money when tragedy strikes, even when they don’t have a lot to give. I also know how important it is that that money reaches the right hands.

I honestly don’t know what the deal is with Mr. Jean’s charity and am not going to play a guessing game. If you’ve been following the story, you can view his video response on YouTube, which Mashable picked up pretty quickly (h/t Lindsay Allen for finding it for me). I do think he is to be commended for springing into action so quickly after the earthquake hit and being a very public face for the poorest nation in the Americas.

What I will say is that regardless of who you’re going to give your money to, you should do your research and give where you trust that your donation will be wisely used.

Charity Navigator is a good place to start, and usually my first stop when I’m researching a non-profit organization (you can read their take on Yéle Haiti and why they don’t currently rate it here).

GuideStar is another resource, and there are some terrific blogs and writing out there on philanthropy, such as Tactical Philanthropy, which Wendy Harman of the American Red Cross directed me to.

Also understand that while you might give your money immediately, it will take time to reach those who need it most – it’s not an instant process, as Wendy, who answered a few questions related to the organization’s efforts in Haiti for me, explains:

Q. A couple of days ago, the American Red Cross confirmed $5 million in donations from a texting campaign. However, today’s Wall Street Journal reports that “it could be weeks, if not months, before any of that money actually can be used… the money won’t be routed from most U.S. wireless carriers to relief efforts until cellphone users pay their phone bills.” Is the ARC making this delay clear to potential donors? Does this have any impact on your operations? And how successful are campaigns such as this, in your opinion, to more traditional fundraising methods such as telethons?

A. We can now announce the public has donated $12 million in $10 increments from texting “Haiti” to 90999. It will take more than 60 days for these exact donations to get to the American Red Cross. In the meantime, we know how much has been pledged and will use existing funds from our International Response Fund to distribute the donations immediately.

This text campaign has been a supplement to existing fundraising channels such as donating online, calling 1-800-REDCROSS, mailing, telethons, etc. The ease of text messaging and the automatic $10 donation has helped raise awareness for the need for funds because it’s also so easy to pass around via twitter, Facebook and other social networking sites.

Q. How is the American Red Cross using social media to help Haitians in their time of need?

A. We’re proud of the social media philosophy and program we’ve had in place for a couple of years – we empower social media tools and the community on the social web to fulfill our mission. Many times we provide critical information for people who are affected by disasters. In the case of the earthquake in Haiti, we’re concentrating more on providing information to everyone in the United States who wants to help, and keeping everyone updated on how this tremendous outpouring of support is impacting people in Haiti.

Q. Is it working?

A. I hope so!

Q. Some of us in the communication field feel we can’t “do anything” to help in times of crisis. Do you think that’s true? If not, and we can indeed help, what can we do?

A. The best thing you can do is keep this story in the news. All attention is here now and for sure there is a dire emergency happening right now but make no mistake: this will be a massive long-term recovery operation and we could use your help in continuing to keep the people of Haiti in the minds of the public.

***

I’ve been trying to help spread awareness of the Red Cross’ efforts as well as those of Hope for Haiti, which 12for12K is partnering with (HFH is rated by CharityNavigator, by the way), as have many of the people I know, online as well as offline. As Wendy says, that’s the one thing that we communicators know how to do, so let’s keep doing it. And to everyone who is – thank you.

Do you have tips to share on giving wisely to charities? Any other thoughts you’d like to share? I’d love to know.

Mirror, Mirror, On The Wall

With IABC/Washington’s first chapter meeting of 2010 coming up next week, I thought it would be interesting to see what our moderator, Daria Steigman, had to say of the communication changes over the past decade (h/t Geoff Livingston for giving me the idea from the final BlogPotomac). That’s what our meeting’s focusing on, or “looking back, looking ahead,” as its title goes.

I know Daria will have a lot more to say come next Thursday, but in the meantime, here’s a peek into her grey matter to get you thinking. And I hope we’ll see you next week – it’s not often that Shashi Bellamkonda (Network Solutions), Torod Neptune (Waggener Edstrom), John Taylor (Sprint Nextel) and Paul Sherman (Tech Wire Publications) gather under the same roof. Early bird registration ends Jan. 12, so hurry, hurry, hurry!

What, in your opinion, is the most dramatic change we’ve seen in the communication landscape since 2001?

I tend to think that Web 1.0 and the democratization of access to information changed the landscape in the 1990s. That said, the arrival of Web 2.0, and the ability for everyone (or anyone) to be a content creator, publisher, and sharer of information transformed the communications landscape in the first decade of the 21^st century. If you think about some of the key developments and the tools we take for granted, they weren’t around when the century started. If you did a timeline of some of the key platforms, you have 2003 (WordPress, MySpace, LinkedIn); 2004 (FaceBook, Flickr), 2005 (YouTube), 2006 (Twitter).

How has this impacted you as a communications practitioner?

It’s clearly had an impact on how we do our jobs, but it has had less impact for me on how I approach it. Perhaps because I came out of the public affairs arena, I’ve always thought about audiences in buckets. By this I mean that no organization has One Audience—but instead multiple stakeholders. And while you need message consistency across your audiences, you need different language and different approaches to reach different people.

While I’ve always thought of this as “duh,” I’ve been surprised in recent years that so much of the social media conversation has been around this very topic.

From a day-to-day perspective, the biggest changes may be the speed of information and the volume of business intelligence that we need to track. It’s also the enormity of the task.

It’s not like blog posts and videos are replacing old-school marketing, because not everyone’s using social tools or using them the same way. So our jobs are just getting bigger.

At the same time, I’ve been really pleased to see the conversation move away from siloed work stations (i.e., public affairs, public relations, media relations, marketing, customer service, and so forth) to how these must be integrated for an organization to be successful.

As a business owner, I have to add one more transformative element: the democratization of access to people. These same tools that allow us to share our stories also enable us to identify and engage with people across the globe.

Is there anything you miss about “the old days”?

Not really, because I think that this shift to a more level playing field vis-à-vis access and information is a social good. And while some rail that we’re all spending our time online, I actually believe that this technology is making us less isolated.

Our communities may no longer be bounded by geography, but they’re just as strong.

What’s next?

Data, data, data. Data-driven research has always been critical, but we’re just starting to harness the enormous amount of information that is all around us. Two other big trends are mobile (of course) and real time. Real time is going to be increasingly important, both in the data context and also for reputation management.

Daria Steigman, founder of Steigman Communications, has been helping companies and other organizations tell their story for over 20 years. She’s also the author of a bimonthly column and a blog that both focus on the business of running a business, entrepreneurship, communications, social media, strategic thinking, and Independent Thinking.

Mirror Image: Carol Green

The Queen Writes on Measuring Engagement

via kdpaine.blogs.com

I knew there was a reason I hadn’t written what seems to have become the obligatory first post of the New Year (because it invariably deals with resolutions, predictions, motivation, yadda yadda). That reason being I needed something really thoughtful to kick off 2010. And this post on measuring engagement aka relationships from – who else? – the queen of measurement, Katie Paine, is just that.

Thanks for starting off 2010 right, Katie.

Posted via web from simply shonali

Who The Heck Are These “Media Mavens”?

I came across this MediaPost article today on what to do when social media “attacks.”

Apparently the “media mavens” surveyed in the report mentioned came up with the following as “counter-strategies” when advertisers come across negative comments in social media:

As one might expect, there is no magic bullet for countering negative comments: the two most popular responses were directly engaging the commenter, a tactic used by 47% of social media advertisers surveyed, and improving the quality of products or services being advertised, according to 33% of respondents.

Aside from these commonsensical but labor-intensive propositions, what other short-term fixes can online advertisers employ in dealing with negative comments? One strategy is neutralizing the negative comment, either by encouraging other consumers to leave positive comments (24%) or attempting to get the content removed by the publisher or blogger (14%).

You know what? Social media might still be shiny and new to some (ok, a lot of) folk, but there’s nothing new about being smart about your communication. And if advertisers are serious about growing their customer bases, they shouldn’t be looking for “short-term fixes” any way.

Why not just do it the old-fashioned way – by putting out a good service or product to begin with? Want to 21st century it up? Use the new SM channels to listen, engage and respond.I mean, seriously. You can’t stumble upon anything referencing social media and not stumble upon those words.

Good grief, as Charlie Brown would say.

Image: Divine Harvester

Posted via web from simply shonali

Digital Divide Continues – eMarketer

via emarketer.com

This is pretty interesting – according to a study by the Internet Innovation Alliance, only 42% of African-American and Hispanic consumers use the Internet regularly.

What might change that? The article reads:

“It is very telling that of those respondents who do not have Internet access, 43 percent cited either not knowing how to use the Internet or not seeing the need for the Internet as the reason why they are not online,” said Internet Innovation Alliance co-chairman David Sutphen, in a statement.

“But interestingly, 44 percent of these same respondents said they would be more likely to subscribe to Internet services if they were provided free lessons on how to use the technology and 30 percent would be more likely to adopt if they had more information about how they could benefit from going online. It’s clear that digital literacy programs indeed are a crucial part of the formula for closing the digital divide.”

What a huge opportunity for someone – or several companies – to educate and cultivate a whole new customer base.

Verizon, AT&T et al… are you listening?

Read the entire article here.

Posted via web from simply shonali

You Can Call Yourself a Social Media Guru If…

I couldn’t help but giggle when I read B. L. Ochman’s recent post on self-proclaimed social media experts, gurus, ninjas, etc. on Twitter “multiplying like rabbits.” Based on her search of Twitter bios, they went from 4.4k to almost 16k in seven months.

Wow. Rabbits indeed!

And then I saw this cartoon from HubSpot today.

At the same time, I couldn’t help but recall Lisa Hoffmann’s post from earlier this year, when she posited that “if social media experts aren’t experts only the charlatans will be ‘experts.’” It sparked a great conversation on her blog, which you should read, if you haven’t as yet.

I do believe, however, that while expertise is earned, the title of expert is bestowed.

You Can Call Yourself a Social Media Guru If…

So, as far as I’m concerned, here are the top 10 things you’ll need to be able to do before calling yourself a social media guru. Counting down, now…

10. Make the sun rise in the West.

9. Along those lines, how about making the earth orbit the moon (thanks, Chip Griffin, for this one).

8. Speak Sanskrit backwards and forwards at the same time. (You’re calling yourself a guru, after all, gotta show some respek to the land from whence that term comes.)

7. Prove global warming.

6. Disprove global warming.

5. Leap tall buildings in a single bound.

4. Levitate on demand. Mine.

3. Get Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston back together again.

2. Make the Cubs win the World Series (direct your tomatoes to Colby Gergen for this gem, please).

And at #1 is:

1. Bring Elvis back from the dead. And no, the TCB concerts don’t count.

And When You Do…

… Please let me know so that I can sign up to worship at your altar?

Top image: Adrian Miles

Holiday Cards, PR and ROI

Heads up: I ramble quite a bit through this post, so if you’re hell-bent on reading it, you might want to settle in with a cup of hot cocoa. On the plus side, there are some pretty pictures involved. Having said that, read on!

It’s two days until Christmas Day (which we do celebrate). Though I still have a lot of festive “stuff” to do, I’m not feeling as manic as I was yesterday.

That’s because I finally got our Christmas holiday cards out yesterday. And they all arrived the same day; because I used Plaxo (of which I’m a premium member, and I have to thank John McCrea for responding almost immediately via Twitter to an issue I had yesterday, which was resolved in record time) to send out customized cards to our family and friends.

Remember When…

I can remember the time when December 22nd would have been unthinkable as an acceptable time frame for a holiday “mailing.” In fact, it wasn’t that long ago that we’d do the holiday card thing the traditional way: via snail mail.

It was certainly fun to design our cards and get them printed (we’d use Ofoto, which is now Kodak Gallery) to order our cards. Then write in each of them (which I think is a must-do if you’re going the traditional route, otherwise it’s like sending a bcc email to people) while trying to avoid carpal tunnel, embark on the inevitable trudge to the post office, buy a gazillion stamps, and get ‘em in the mail. And hope they’d actually arrive in time.

Since we don’t have kids but are “pet parents,”our cards would feature our pets; more specifically, one of our pets – the basset hound, Hank. It’s not that we don’t love our other dogs, but bassets just seem to be made to be cover dogs. Hank died very tragically last year, so 2007 was the last time we actually had a “real” holiday card:

We did adopt another basset, Lola, and I guess were ready to bring back the basset holiday card this year. However, also this year, life “stuff” happened, and it also seemed a good idea to curtail at least some non-essential spending (yes, it’s that whole economy thing).

So all our cards this year are e-cards (we’d started bringing an e-version of our cards into the mix a few years ago, but went 100% electronic this year).

To Mail or Not To Mail?

I was curious as to how my friends and Tweeps were approaching the holidays, so I sent out a Twtpoll asking whether they were doing holiday greetings the traditional way or not:Quite honestly, I expected most of them to say they were going online. But out of the 38 responses to the poll (not to mention a couple of responses on Facebook), the majority WERE going with traditional cards. Here are some of the responses and reasons:

Relationships Rule

You can read all the responses if you click through to the poll. I found it rather heartwarming that in this age of technology, when we have a tendency to bemoan anything that’s not at the speed of mouse, a great many people choose to stick with tradition.

Admittedly, this was not a scientific poll, but I did think it revealed a lot about the importance people attach to relationships and their thoughtfulness about what the recipients would prefer… as well as the fact that many of them made a conscious decision to incur the expense involved in sending traditional cards, which is no small potatoes if you have a large family and extensive business or social networks (I don’t know if that’s going to save the US Postal Service, but that’s another post… or several).

Taking this a step further, this is really good public relations on a micro level, if you think about it. Knowing your audience, how it likes to be communicated with, and then sending the communications that will appeal to them.

What About ROI?

I thought the comment about “ROI” was interesting. How do you measure the ROI of holiday greetings? By how many responses you get to your cards, or cards you receive in return? By how many of the recipients become clients, or brand evangelists? By how much pleasure you derive from them?

From my point of view, I don’t have a quantifiable objective to my holiday greetings – I know, that sounds like heresy coming from an avowed measurement fanatic! I want my friends and colleagues to know I hold the relationships I have with them in high esteem.

So my goal, when I send out greetings, is to do just that – maintain my relationship with treasured friends or business contacts, and move those relationships that are at the acquaintance level up a step or two. It’s one stage in the constant (hopefully mostly upward) spiral of relationships.

And that, in my opinion, is what public relations needs to do, and be. Because business is all – ALL – about relationships.

Which brings me to you.

Even though I might not actually “know” some of you reading this post right now, we do have the beginnings of a relationship by virtue of the fact that you’re reading this. So I hope you’ll enjoy our 2009 holiday greeting, featuring Lola, the Burke Basset during “Snowmageddon” 2009.

Thank you for stopping by, and I’m looking forward to getting to know you better in 2010. Happy holidays!

And before I forget: what do you think about holiday cards, relationships and ROI? I really do want to know what you think about that, so please do share your thoughts in the comments section.

The beautiful image of a vintage Christmas card at the beginning of my post is from karen horton’s Flickrstream.

Looking Back, Looking Ahead: IABC/Washington’s January Chapter Meeting

I know it must seem like IABC/Washington’s the only thing on my mind at present – I assure you it’s not. But I did want to let you know about what I think will be a terrific event as we usher in 2010. And given how crazy the holidays get, I wanted to get the word out earlier rather than later.

Our first chapter meeting next year will bring together some of the smartest people in the DC metro area to look at the changes (often dramatic) that our business has seen since the turn of the century (and you know I’m not just talking Twitter) and tell us what they think lies in store for us. Nobody has a crystal ball, but I’m pretty sure we’ll get some interesting insights from these folk.

To loosely quote from our invitation: “… what will 2010 bring? Can we expect any changes for communication professionals in the National Capital area.. what are the communication trends we’re likely to see … and how can we learn to harness technology to work even better for our organizations and clients?”

Here’s who you’ll meet and get to hear from:

Shashi Bellamkonda, director of social media and “social media swami” for Network Solutions; Torod Neptune, senior vice president/Global Public Affairs practice leader and GM of Waggener Edstrom’s DC office; John Taylor, senior manager of public affairs at Sprint Nextel; and Paul Sherman, co-founder and editor-in-chief of Tech Wire Publications.

I know – we don’t have a single woman on the panel, which is terrible – though we did try and we’ll have to do  better next time! But we were able to convince Daria Steigman, founder of Steigman Communications and a former chapter president to moderate, so ladies – Daria will represent.

Save the date (or register now): January 14, 2010, 5:30 – 8:30 pm, and we’ll be meeting at the Hamilton Crowne Plaza in downtown DC.

I anticipate great people, great networking and killer learning… and hope to see you there!

Image: Dan Queiroz

Lessons Learned From the Obama Campaign

Now that I’ve been back in D.C. for a few weeks after the PRSA 2009 International Conference, I finally find myself sitting down to reflect on a couple of the sessions I attended. This is mostly because I wanted to be able to do so thoughtfully, and not rush through my posts.

The first of these was “President Obama and the Citizens’ Campaign: Lessons Learned,” which was conducted by Mike Smith of Mike Smith Public Affairs. Leave it to a PRSA conference all the way across the country to be the place where Mike and I finally met “in real life (IRL),” even though we both live and work in the D.C. area. Ain’t that somethin’? (By way of disclosure, you should know that Mike’s firm was a sponsor of #shonalitweetup, which was a ton of fun that weekend.)

Since Mike graciously agreed to have his presentation, President Obama and the Citizen’s Campaign, reproduced here, I won’t bore you with a blow-by-blow description. I will tell you that his presentation was standing room only, at least until the latter half of his session. When it came time for the workshop part of his program, he broke us up into four groups to discuss an assigned topic, and report back to the entire room. There was a beeline for the door when he announced this; I kid you not. C’mon, PR peeps, where’s your sense of adventure?!

What was Interesting? Well. . .

• It was interesting learning about Mike’s experience as a citizen journalist during the Obama campaign. There were some great examples about building communities and letting them run (which is a concept that, in my opinion, nonprofits know how to do particularly well).
• Actresses, no matter how well trained they are on messaging, can sometimes let blatant honesty shine through. Mike gave the example of an interview he conducted with Anne Hathaway where she admitted she doesn’t know anything about Service Employees International Union (SEIU).
• One of the most interesting parts of the program was when we were put in breakout groups (I’ll get to that later).

What Public Relations Practitioners Should Take Away:

• It’s about you… but it’s not about you. Focus on brand champions — the bloggers/influencers with the biggest networks that can make an immense difference to your campaigns. Leverage how you network and you can create a movement.
• Understand the media cycle (yes, “MSM” is still important), and realize that when you want to reach a local audience, local news crews and pools — the media locals are consuming — are always going to get preference.
• The old model of messaging was “top down.” Not anymore. Now, to be successful, you have to engage your community.

Breakout Groups:
As I mentioned earlier, Mike divided us into four groups. Each group went into a huddle to discuss a topic, and then reported back to the larger group. In a nutshell, these topics were:

• How do you turn your agency around so that it’s more nimble? Your agency can be nimble at any size as long as you’re bringing all aspects from the company to the table and everyone is represented. Doing this will break down silos, which will make you and your agency more nimble and efficient.
• If you’re doing an interview for CNN, who are you? Remember that it’s not just about you, so find local news hooks and media angles.
• How do you respond to attacks (or public relations Jiu Jitsu)? There’s real potential to use social media in crisis situations. Start with an audit across your different audiences; because once you understand how they use social media, you can make a case to use it. Learn from others’ case studies, and build your “battle plan.” Remember to incorporate social media tactics into your overall crisis plan.
• To tweet or not to tweet? (This was the group I was a part of.) There was much discussion on if and/or when to use “surrogates. While I didn’t necessarily agree with some of the others on “using surrogates when necessary,” I do agree that you need to have transparency at all times. Don’t think that you need to have your CEO tweet if she or he isn’t comfortable with it; as long as there is representation from your organization and it’s transparent, that’s fine.

I think the key point Mike tried to drive home was this: we live in a world that’s changing very rapidly, and the 2008 election showed how the adoption and smart use of new technologies energized a completely new audience. Those of us who are still resisting the adoption of these technologies might find ourselves on par with the dinosaurs. On the other hand, much of what Obama’s campaign did was grounded in Saul Alinsky’s principles of community organizing and the populist movement. So perhaps it would be wise to revisit our history books once in a while.

Marry history with new communication tools, and while you might not be the next president of the United States, you’ll probably pull off a darned good PR campaign.

This post, with extremely minor edits (only in the first sentence), was cross-posted on the PRSA ComPRehension blog. Thank you, PRSA, for being so welcoming to me both as a speaker and blogger in San Diego last year. You rock.

Image: pierrelord

Sometimes Silence *Is* Golden

I just came across this story about a new groom tweeting and updating his Facebook status from the altar (h/t Marc Girolimetti).

Apparently the groom also felt the urge to tweet about his bride’s undergarments. And, it would seem, is slightly perturbed that the story was picked up by Mashable.

Um. Ya think?!

I guess we’ll have to wait and see whether Mr. Hanna gets a sudden surge in Twitter followers, which wouldn’t surprise me at all.

To each his (or her) own, for sure, and I sincerely hope it’s all sunshine and roses for the couple from here on out. But sometimes silence really is golden.

Image: nirbhao

Getting a Foot in the Door with GoodieRecruit

If you’re in the PR field, a Gen Y-er, a recruiter, based in the Washington, D.C., area, or “all of the above,” you’re well aware of Heather Huhman. Heather’s one of the most prolific tweeters and writers I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know, and she focuses on helping entry-level job seekers navigate the often- (and now, it seems, always) turbulent waters of getting their feet in the proverbial door.

In addition to her “day job,” keeping up her column and religiously sharing job leads, Heather recently launched Come Recommended, an “exclusive online community connecting the best internship and entry-level job candidates with the best employers.”

And if that weren’t enough to keep her busy, she’s now getting ready to add GoodieRecruit to the CR family of services, again focusing on entry-level recruiting. She calls it “next-generation recruiting for the next generation.”

I thought this was really interesting; one doesn’t typically think of hiring a recruitment firm for entry-level employees, so I asked her to tell me more about it.

What interested you about focusing on recruitment services for Gen Y-ers – what got you started?

I am passionate about helping students and recent college graduates pursue their dream careers – have been since I was in their shoes. Because of my experience as a hiring manager of interns and entry-level employees, I understand the needs of today’s employers and job seekers. I realize there is a need for change in the recruiting process as more and more baby boomers turn 60 every day and organizations seek more cost-effective hiring processes.

Have you ever been a recruiter yourself? What interests you about that field?

I have not been a “recruiter” by trade, but I’ve been in the position of hiring interns and entry-level professionals and very much consider myself a skilled college/campus recruiter.

Tell me a little about “experiential hiring.”

Employers always tell me they wish there was a way to “test out” entry-level candidates before hiring them – short of a three-month internship program, of course. Well, now there is – experiential hiring. This concept capitalizes on the notion that Gen Y learns best by jumping in with both feet and participating and serves as an extended interview of sorts. Think NBC’s The Apprentice.

How did the idea for GoodieRecruit come about?

The national unemployment rate has reached more than 10 percent, and the number is even higher among entry-level professionals. Because of this, there is a huge shift taking place in how organizations are going about attracting new candidates. Organizations are forced to work harder and smarter and not spend nearly as much money as they are used to. Many employers are reluctant to hire simply because they are not sure if the candidate is perfect for the job after only meeting with them for a very short period of time.

I saw a need to offer a cost-effective service for even the smallest organizations where employers and candidates could build a relationship. GoodieRecruit looks to create a recruiting service that is personalized so employers are sure they are hiring the right person.

You can read more about why I’m launching GoodieRecruit on our blog.

What’s the GoodieRecruit process?

For employers, the process looks like this:

1. If you are not already a Come Recommended member, we will work with you to complete your account.

2. A GoodieRecruit representative either comes to your office to observe the culture or surveys current employees electronically.

3. The GoodieRecruit representative meets, either in-person or over the phone, with whomever in your organization typically writes job descriptions to help them craft a description that will both appeal to Gen Y and clearly demonstrate what you are seeking in a candidate.

4. GoodieRecruit will work with you to identify a local nonprofit at which the “experience” can take place, based on both the specific position(s) you have open and preference for a particular nonprofit.

5. GoodieRecruit takes over the entire process from there—coordinating with the nonprofit, attracting candidates, evaluating candidates during the “experience” based on conversations with you and your team, narrowing down the selection for you to 2 to 3 top candidates, and providing you with a complete portfolio on each as to why you should hire them.

Will GoodieRecruit focus on specific industries?

Yes, GoodieRecruit currently focuses on identifying top entry-level talent in the following fields:

• Public relations/communications
• Public affairs/public policy/government relations
• Marketing
• Graphic design
• Development/fundraising
• Sales/customer service

Can you share five tips for new professionals to put their best foot forward when entering the job market?

1. Personalize your job search materials: Employers like to see that you have taken time to research their organization and have found ways to contribute if hired. This means describing how your past experience has prepared you for work with their organization in your cover letter and including accomplishments relevant to the job description in your résumé.

2. Dress professionally: Even if an interviewer says the interview will be casual, it is always a good practice to dress to impress. If the interview is business casual, you do not need to wear a suit, but slacks (or a skirt) and a nice shirt or blouse is appropriate and dress shoes are a must!

3. Come to interviews prepared: Show you have done your research. This is more than simply glancing at the organization’s Web site 10 minutes before walking into the interview. Research ways you can help the organization by thinking about how your past experiences fit into the job description and organization as a whole. Also, always come with thought-provoking questions.

4. Network online and off: It is crucial that Gen Y knows how to professionally use social networking sites and how to conduct themselves at networking events. These days, networking is one of the best ways to land interviews and be the first to know about upcoming opportunities.

5. Keep an online portfolio: This is less cumbersome to take to interviews and employers can peruse your work at their leisure. Also, online portfolios illustrate your technical abilities.

It’ll be fascinating to see how GoodieRecruit takes off as it integrates social media into the recruitment process; not to mention the obvious benefits to hiring organizations as well as non-profits who sign up to be the “lab” – what a great way to identify potential candidates for non-profit organizations as well. And candidates – remember those dress shoes!

Heather, thanks for taking the time to fill us in and please do keep us posted. By the way, Heather is also generously donating a GR package to the IABC/Washington holiday party raffle, where we’ll be supporting Bread for the City, so if you’re at an organization with entry-level hiring needs, you might want to come check us out, or contact Heather, or both!

What do you think of the GoodieRecruit premise and process? Do you have more questions for Heather? Do let us know by leaving a comment below.

Google on PR

Lee Odden gets complete credit for this post, title and all. I was catching up on my reading when I saw his post on what Google thinks of social media, SEO and advertising. You’ve got to read it, it’s great.

I couldn’t resist experimenting with what Google “thinks” of PR.

And then I tried “public relations.”

Oh well. At least some people are asking why what we do is important. Now we just need to get everyone to believe it.

Grab The Mylanta®

Because you’ll need it after reading this press release from Pepto-Bismol®.

This great photo – just in case my words aren’t enough to convey how I feel – is from ducamendes’ Flickrstream.

My Virgin Trip on Virgin America

As I write this, I’m about two hours away from San Francisco en route to San Diego for PRSA09. I’m on Virgin America’s Flight 67, which is my first time traveling with the airline.

I’m sold… mostly.

I’ve heard quite a bit about the Virgin experience (mostly on Twitter), but you really have to fly it to get it. The minute you step on the plane, you enter this nightclub-like ambience … or if not a nightclub, then at least you get the feeling you’re stepping into the “cool kids’” zone. Their lighting is pinkish-neon and it stays that way throughout the flight. So there’s quite a bit of the “ooh” factor there.

Seats are very comfortable, particularly the neck rests built into the seats, because you can angle them up to about 40°, so you’ll pretty much be able to find a position that’s comfortable for you. Their approach to the standard safety video is very cool (slightly irreverent cartoons), and I actually watched the whole thing. Granted, it’s my first time.

I love the way you can order your entertainment & food/beverages directly from the touch screen. Very convenient. And they give you a gazillion different things to do, from watch movies, to listen to music/videos, to chat from your seat with other passengers, play games (there’s a dandy little handset thing you use to navigate through the entertainment menu, complete with keyboard), or chat from your seat with other passengers, either directly or via an in-flight chat room.

Different colored headsets (at $2, I’m pretty sure they’re cheaper than on many other airlines, and they’re cute). Clearly it caters to an audience that needs to be entertained all the time, but heck, seems to work.

Clearly the in-flight wi-fi. It’s VERY cool.

But what I’m most impressed with is how refreshingly different the in-flight attendants are. They’re smart, funny, polite (which is not at all common these days), considerate and really seem to enjoy what they’re doing. There’s a little girl (20 mo.) sitting in one of the seats across from me. She’s been screaming up a storm intermittently (I was able to distract her with the laptop for a bit, but not long enough, apparently).

One of the attendants came by and, with the child’s mother’s permission, scooped her up in her arms and walked her up and down a bit. Later, when the eighth (or was it ninth? I can’t remember) screaming fit commenced, she gently tapped me on the shoulder and asked if I wanted headphones.

Yup. You can pick your jaws up from off the ground now. (By the way, Bianca, the little girl, is now sleeping quietly on the floor in front of her seat, I’m keeping an eye on her while mom goes to the loo.)

What’s not that great?

I was under the impression that the wi-fi was free, so it was a little off-putting to find out it’s not. On the other hand, it’s the first time I’ve had wi-fi access 35,000+ miles feet (sorry, I got up very early today) up in the sky, so I’m just going to shut up about it. (But I think I’ll get to try it free when I head back to DC on November 10th, thanks to their Google promotion.)

I’m sitting in the main cabin (read cheap seats) and as I walked by first-class (or business class, whichever it is) it didn’t strike me as particularly ooh la la. Your standard business class on a continental trip. So if I were you, I’d save up (or build your points) and try it on one of Virgin’s transatlantic or international flights. That’s where I think the really cool stuff is.

I’m also not particularly impressed with the airline’s Twitter representative(s), since I’ve tried a couple of times to engage with them and have received either no, or a very late, response. Are they as non-responsive in other social networks and outposts? No clue. But they’re far behind folks like Comcast’s Frank Eliason or Express’ CMO, in my opinion.

But I was impressed with their phone support yesterday. As an aside, the guy I spoke to told me after flying Virgin, I wouldn’t want to fly any other airline ever again, and that’s pretty much how I feel right now… mostly.

Why “mostly”?

I say “mostly” because while I love all the “cool stuff” that Virgin’s bringing us, I’m not a brand loyalist so much as a price-watcher. The main reason I’m flying Virgin for this excursion was a promotion they were offering, which made their price comparable to or better than Southwest (another airline I’ve been pleasantly surprised by recently) or United (I have the most points and comparatively least-painful experience on United). Yes, it gives me a kick to be tweeting and Skyping from mid-air, but not that much of a kick that I would follow them blindly if another decent airline were offering a great deal.

Good Customer Experience is the Best PR

I’ve written before about how important customer service is to the perception of a brand or organization. Good customer service can be the best PR. As far as that goes, I give Virgin a 9 out of 10. And all other things being equal (which pretty much means price for me), that is what will bring me back to Virgin; if my customer experience is way better with them than any other airline, you bet they’ll get my business again.

So far, it has been.

What have your virgin experiences (on Virgin, or any other airlines) been like? How important is the in-flight experience to your flight purchasing decisions? What do you think about the link between customer service and PR? Do let me know by leaving a comment below.

Photo: Marc_Smith

Tweetup… A Pocketful of Rainbows

I told you a couple of days ago about #shonalitweetup that’s being organized around PRSA2009. Now I’m really excited that we’ve added another layer to what I know is going to be a great evening and will, I hope, help an extremely worthy fund raising effort meet its goal.

We’ve partnered with 12for12K to help one of its charities, Musicians on Call. If you’re active in the social media world, you’re already familiar with 12for12K and Danny Brown, the brains and passion behind it. If you’re not, you can learn more here and here.

So, in a nutshell, if we all give a little, we’ll be able to help some extremely worthy causes. $12K per charity sounds like an awful lot, but not if we all chip in $10, $20, whatever we can (and companies, you should be giving more!). Little drops of water, little grains of sand, etc.

All the charities that have been selected for 12for12K are worthy causes. Even if we haven’t lived in a war zone, been excruciatingly hungry, or have been blessed with keeping our vision, we can identify with those who have/do, have been/are, and haven’t/can’t. If you haven’t been touched by these issues directly, you have been, in some way, shape or form, indirectly.

When it comes to music, though, there is not a single person who has not been touched by it directly. Remember how excited I was to visit Graceland, or listening to/watching Adam Lambert? In other words, the soundtrack of our lives.

So please help Danny and his team support Musicians on Call. Here are some ways in which you can do this:

1. If you’re coming to #shonalitweetup, consider chipping in. Yes, the tweetup is still sponsored, thanks to PRNewswire, Mike Smith Public Affairs and dna13 (that means hosted beverages and pie aka pizza for a limited time, so that we don’t drink Bar Basic out of house and home). And you don’t have to chip in – but it would be so nice if you would.

2. Whether you’re coming to the tweetup or not, share this post and/or the link to its 12for12K page with your networks; Facebook, Twitter, even email… you know the drill. Oh, and how about embedding the donation widget on your blog?

3. If you really think this is a good idea, put the squeeze on people you can ask directly to chip in.

You, my community, have been very good to me – from egging me on when I started this blog a whopping 11 months ago, to helping me find Darby the GSD a home. I hope I’ve been good for you in some way too. Now let’s all be good for 12for12K and Musicians On Call.

One other thing – and this is very important – just because the tweetup is tomorrow night, we’re not going to stop trying to help there. 12for12K runs through the end of the year… so we have a few weeks to help them reach their goal. Let’s do it!

Can we help some very worthwhile causes find their pockets full of rainbows?

As always, thank you from the bottom of my heart. (Psst, I downloaded MoC’s logo from their site, in case you want to do that as well).

Tweetupin’ a Storm in San Diego

Disclosure: no one’s asked me to write this post, and I’m sure not getting paid for it, but I do thank sponsors of a certain event coming up. Now that you know all that… read on.

I don’t know what’s gotten into everyone lately, it’s tweetup this, tweetup that… oh wait, it’s that whole thing about moving your online relationships offline. My bad.

So in a few days, when I head to San Diego for PRSA 2009, I have not one, not two, but four tweetups to try to attend… and three of them are on the same day. Wow. We PR people sure like to party.

The one I’m doing a shameless plug for, though, is #shonalitweetup. Yup, you read that right. Before you start throwing rotten eggs at me, I didn’t come up with the name (I’m not that egotistical… I don’t think…). Here’s how it happened:

When I knew I was going to be in San Diego for PRSA09, I wanted to make sure I’d be able to meet up with some of my friends. A certain Jen Wilbur (who appropriately uses @rockstarjen as her Twitter handle) took on the unappetizing task of organizing it and next thing I know – she christened it with my name.

Whoa! And – wow!

So the long and the short of it is that from being a small get-together for a few people, we now have a possible 33 folks converging on Bar Basic from 5 – 7 pm on Saturday, November 11, to guzzle, greet and grin together.

I’m really looking forward to catching up with @Natalie_Joy, @DowntownRob, @richandcreamy, @JenMitch, @vargasl and so many more, and meeting @EricLeist, @nicklucido, @tressalynne and many others for the first time.

I’m also psyched that PRNewsire, Mike Smith Public Affairs and dna13 have seen fit to sponsor this tweetup. I know I speak on behalf of the entire PR community (or at least the tweetup attendees) when I say, “Your generosity shall not go unnoticed… or unburped.”

If you’re attending the tweetup, get there early if you want to enjoy the hosted drinks and pizza before they run out. I’m told there’s seating for 12 (hey, we didn’t think this would get so big!), and after that it’s Squishing and/or SRO. Don’t say I didn’t warn you! Ditto if you’re a late RSVPer.

And please say “thank you” to our sponsors by leaving a comment below and/or giving them a shout out on Twitter (don’t forget to include the hashtag #shonalitweetup). Where would we be without them?

See you in San Diego! And I found this great photo of fireworks in Serithian’s Flickrstream.

Sun, Sand and… Measurement

In a few days I’ll be Westward-bound; one of several hundred (or is it thousand?) PR and communication professionals converging on San Diego for PRSA’s 2009 International Conference (that’s me on Coronado Beach a couple years ago). My first experience of PRSA’s annual shindig was last year, when I was lucky enough to co-present with Katie Paine on measurement in Detroit.

The entire experience was a blast, and it will also live forever in my memory because that’s where I first met the beauteous and brilliant Shannon Paul and Lauren Vargas, caught up with the dynamite Kami Watson Huyse, first encountered Jason Falls, and was dissed (and defended, thank you Kami!) at my first tweetup. Ah, the good old days.

This year I’m lucky enough to have been selected by PRSA as a solo speaker and will be presenting on measurement on November 9 (here’s an interview I did to promo it a while back). If you’re attending the conference, do come by.

But more than plug my session, I want to pick your brains.

See, the thing is, my take on measurement is very simple (and yes, has been strongly influenced by the afore-referenced Sashet, the Measurement Goddess, aka Katie Paine).

You start at the end – what are your measurable objectives? And by “measurable,” I mean quantifiable and time-bound, not “increase buzz” or some crap like that.

You focus on what outcomes you’d like to achieve, not just outputs (like media impressions) and, if possible (because usually this takes some budget dollars), outtakes as well. A lot has been written about these recently, but I believe in going to the source, so here’s a great dictionary from the Institute for Public Relations (you should bookmark this).

And then you map out your strategy and tactics, track everything along the way, and then analyze the results of your program, based on what you were trying to achieve in the first place.

I like to use a couple of case studies, showing how this has been done both with “traditional” and social media, sometimes on a very tiny budget.

I show how, at my last job, we patiently tracked our communications against organizational key performance indicators, and how we were able to calculate – using a formula that was given to us by the equivalent of the marketing department – the value we added to the organization’s bottom line.

And I will tell you to stay away from ad value equivalency or AVE, which I hear IPR’s Measurement Commission recently voted down as a no-no when it comes to PR measurement.

My presentation’s probably not going to be earth-shattering for anyone (and I kinda hope it won’t, because the measurement debate’s been going on long enough).

What I hope it will be is engaging, and show practitioners who might be overwhelmed by all the jargon out there that measurement is not necessarily tough, mind-blowingly expensive, or tedious… and how to get started, or get back on the right track.

Looking for the Wisdom of Crowds

Here’s my question to you: are there any other questions you think I need to address? What else can I add to my presentation so that attendees can walk away with tips and ideas they can really use?

I can’t promise I can answer all of them, but I’ll try; if I can’t, I’ll try to find resources who can. Or, do you have tips I can include?

The bottom line is, I want the presentation to be about you, not me. So I’m asking you to help me deliver the content that will be most useful to you. I’m sure I can go it myself, but it’ll be so much more fun this way.

I’d very much appreciate your thoughts and feedback; just send me a tweet, or leave a comment below. I promise to give credit where credit’s due, and will be uploading it to SlideShare so that you can all see it.

Thank you!

Let’s Halloween Up PR

Growing up as a middle-class kid in India, Halloween was fascinating to me. We didn’t really celebrate it there as one does here in the U.S. and other countries (though it might be a different story now, I don’t know). It felt a little forbidden, probably because of its pagan roots, so that was appealing in itself. Over and above that, the idea of dressing up as something completely outlandish that I loved. Probably not surprising when you think of the horrendous school uniforms my friends and I had to wear all the way through high school (and no, I don’t have a photo and if I did, there’s no way in Hades I’d let you see it).

When I moved to the U.S., the first Halloween I marked was in San Francisco. Though you could argue every day is Halloween in SF, I remember my head spinning at the costumes I’d see on the street from 9 to 5′ers all ostensibly going about their daily business in a perfectly nonchalant way.

Even more amazing to me was that businesses weren’t just ok with their employees coming to work in costume, but that they got into the spirit of the day and actively encouraged it. I remember one year I was headed out on a business trip on – you guessed it – Halloween. Somehow getting my boarding pass issued by a witch or warlock made a typically cringe-inducing process fun. The airline staff was even – shock and awe – nice.

“Grownups” don’t go trick-or-treating any more, (at least, most of the grownups I know) but I think we love Halloween because it allows us to go outside the usual perception of ourselves. We can be kooky or dour and behave in a generally uncharacteristic manner for a day – and it’s ok. It lets us communicate a facet of ourselves that others might not generally know about, and often that helps break down barriers, just a little bit.

So the next day, when everything’s back to “normal,” and your co-worker does that annoying thing that irritates you, maybe you remember a completely different side of her because of Halloween merriment, and maybe you don’t react the way you normally would, but take a breath and defuse what’s potentially a workplace conflict. At least, I’d like to think so.

Halloweening Up PR

If public relations is really about relationships with our publics (as I believe it is) wouldn’t it be great if we took that same creativity and generosity of spirit to our work and audiences, co-workers, and clients?

Imagine providing PR counsel that’s measured, thoughtful, fun to plan and implement, gets you excited just thinking about it, out of the proverbial box and that doesn’t jump the proverbial gun. Wow, what a concept (not proverbial, though, hah!).

I know we say this about the holidays, the “Christmas spirit,” blah blah – but really – let’s put some Halloween into our PR.

Take a leaf out of Herman Munster’s book. I will.

How do you liven up your every day work, yet keep it real? Have you Halloweened it up in a way that makes you a better public relations practitioner? Please share, I’d love to know.

Thank you absentmindedprof for this great photo from your Flickrstream.

Can Someone Say “Stop”?

I don’t know how you organize your RSS feeds, but except for the feeds I have set up for client monitoring, mine are in alphabetical order. So my usual M.O. is to check my client feeds, and then go through the rest from A-Z. Some day I might progress to Amy Mengel’s system, but for now, I’m basic like that.

Lately, though, I find myself going to David Murray’s Writing Boots (which, if you don’t read or subscribe to, you should) first. Hardly a new kid on the block, he’s funny, irreverent, often brutal… and always puts a smile on my face. (This guy you’re staring at isn’t him, by the way… as far as I know).

I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry today when I read his latest on IABC’s Film Festival. I’m an association member, heavily involved at the local level (and somewhat involved at the international level). And I’ve found tremendous value in my membership, so far at least (just making that clear, I’m not going to diss IABC here). I’ve found the “IABC family” warm, welcoming and encouraging, for the most part, I truly have, and some of the smartest people I know are committed IABCers at the local, regional or international level.

But if only someone were to make a video like this one…

Creating A Stop Sign – Watch more Funny Videos

Looks like there’s a grand total of six entries in the IFF, by the way. So if you’re an IABC member brave (or confident) enough to do so, you’ve got two more days to enter. And props to IABC for trying. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Thanks for the laugh, David. And I found this amazing photograph on illuminaut’s Flickr stream.

One To Watch Out For: Rebecca Denison

I’ve “talked” so often to Rebecca Denison recently that I’m liable to forget I haven’t met her IRL yet. Tell you what, this young lady knows the right way to network.

Rebecca, a “new professional,” and I first connected on Twitter, where she asked if she could pick my brain on career options. I said, “yes.” Then we set up a time to talk, and I was impressed with her lack of entitlement. So now I’m doing whatever I can to help her with her career goals.

Rebecca’s an odd cookie. I say that in a good way, because here’s someone, very new to the field, wh

o’s in love with research and measurement as it applies to PR. When was the last time you met someone like that? So I thought a Q&A with her would be interesting. You can also read more from Rebecca on some pretty cool blogs, including those of Lauren Fernandez, Mark Schaefer and Heather Whaling. Oh, and on her own as well (highly recommended).

Tell me about yourself. Brag a little.

I’m a recent graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, one of the best undergraduate journalism programs in the country. I studied biochemistry for two years at UNC until I realized that my heart just wasn’t in it. Despite switching to the journalism school, I never lost my analytical mindset and critical thinking skills, and I think that this really gives me an advantage. I also feel like I’m on the cutting edge, so to speak, as I was in the first class on PR measurement ever taught at UNC.

I have two sisters (one older, one younger) who have truly become my best friends as we’ve grown older and more mature.  I am an avid college basketball fan (Go Heels!) and love to run when I have time. I’m fun and bubbly and rarely get embarrassed, but I do end up laughing at myself a great deal of the time. I have a loving boyfriend, who I am excited to visit in Australia next month.

You’re unusual in that you’re a new PR professional who’s extremely interested in research and measurement, an area that many pros grapple with even after years in the business. How did this come about?

My passion for PR measurement was instilled in me by Katie Paine.  I really credit Katie and my professor, Dr. Craig Carroll for where I am today.  Dr. Carroll helped me choose the best courses to hone my measurement skills and asked me to work with him for a variety of extracurricular programs.

During my first class in the journalism school public relations sequence, I heard a guest speech from Katie Paine about PR measurement, and I fell in love. Because it was my first class in PR, I assumed that this was something everyone in the industry was doing, and I was interested to be able to help measurement grow and change. I talked with Katie after the class and ended up taking an internship with her at the end of the semester which lasted through the end of my collegiate career. What I learned while working with her shocked me: barely anyone considered measurement to be as important as I did. My professors at UNC and Katie all taught me extreme importance of measurement, and it’s hard for me to understand why there are folks out there who still haven’t embraced it in their own work.

Once I discovered my passion for measurement, but realized that there wasn’t a degree program which would fit this passion exactly, I knew that a degree in public relations would be the best choice. I learned a great deal about the industry and about PR, and I think this only enhances my ability to understand PR measurement.

Working with Katie has given me the absolute best experience in measurement, and I was able to work with one of my professors, Dr. Carroll, to find a specific passion.  I helped him with the Carolina Observatory on Corporate Reputation which studied how the reputation of the top 50 companies in North Carolina were portrayed by the media.

Now that I have graduated, I am eager to become more involved with social media monitoring and measurement.  Particularly I am really excited to help measurement grow and change with the social media space.

What are your observations on the state of measurement in PR?

I am still surprised at how new PR measurement seems to be. Because of my own timing, hearing about it in my very first PR course and then being part of the first PR measurement course, it’s something that has always been an integral part of PR in my mind. I cannot understand public relations without the measurement and research aspect.

It’s encouraging to see that lately PRSA and the Institute for Public Relations have both endorsed measurement, so to speak.  The PRSA recently sought to come up with universal measurement standards, which is definitely a great step in the right direction. As I said before, I’m still baffled by the number of companies and professionals that don’t seem to understand the incredible value and necessity of measurement. I’m even surprised at what kind of research passes as acceptable. Some clients I have worked with only want to know how many mentions they have, which to me is just the bare bones, skimming the surface. There is so much else to learn and know.

Have you found PR different in practice than what you were “taught” it would be?

I’ve found that PR measurement can be so much more than what I was taught. There are so many different dimensions, and it really all depends on what a client wants and what is possible. I haven’t had any traditional PR experience outside of the classroom as I’ve been solely pursuing measurement. I have noticed that measurement is not as pure as it was taught. I understand that there are practical limitations to some measurements that just weren’t addressed in the classroom.

You’re also extremely interested in social media. What’s the RD take on SM?

Social media is the next big thing, well, it is the big thing. Everyone is talking about social media, and it seems to be the opinion that almost all companies need to be moving into social media in some way. For me, I’m just thrilled to be able to watch the space evolve and match measurement to new types of needs. As conversations happen more and more, how will measurement change? What new metrics will there be tomorrow? It seems that new tools and metrics are popping up every week, and I just want to be part of it!

What’s your dream job/client?

My dream job would be to be able to work as a consultant or with a small company doing measurement. I would really love to be able to start from scratch with a client, and to figure out what kind of measurement to do based upon their needs and how they want to measure success. From there I want to be able to perform the actual measurement, write the report and help the client understand exactly what the data is telling them. If possible, I would even like to help become more involved in the strategy moving forward based upon research.

Your must-have PR/industry related books are…

The books that I’m reading right now (or want to read) are Trust Agents, Twitterville, Measuring Public Relations and Putting the Public Back in Public Relations.

Isn’t she something? Rebecca, you’re an absolute delight. One to watch out for, for sure.

Who are the other young professionals you’ve come across who you think are the future of our profession? What makes them special? Do give the props via a comment below.

The Business of Business Cards

Last week I spoke at Communitelligence’s “Rethinking Corporate Communications 2009″ conference just two days after the GrowSmartBiz conference. GSB was a veritable smorgasbord of networking and ideas, with Steven Fisher’s presentation on killer business cards definitely a highlight.

So when I met Mahmoud Arafa of designframe at RCC and saw his business cards, I couldn’t but help think of Steve’s presentation. Check them out.

And this is the back.

The idea is that having a choice of cards for someone to pick from is a conversation starter, which will make his firm stand out from the crowd. I liked the use of colors, textures and fonts, so I asked Mahmoud to tell me more about his cards.

How did you come up with the idea for your business cards?

Your business card and website are extremely important for your business. It’s part of your persona and who you are. People judge you from your business card and website. It’s the calling card to start a connection.

Our aim was to design stationery that meets the following goals:

• Raises curiosity, so the recipient asks questions and start a friendly conversation
• Stands out and challenges clichés
• Says something about what we do
• Reflects diversity (in the type of industries we serve and the cultures we come from)
• Sends a message to our clients that you can have many colors in your identity while maintaing a strong distinguished visual identity.

The cards come in six colors, and Mahmoud says they’re all equally popular.

So does the color a person picks tell you something about him or her?

That’s the hidden tactic, sometimes colors say something about the card recipient. [This is what I've seen] from personal experience:

• Blue: Conservative, more on the corporate side of life
• Green: Nature lover, cares about the environment, and his/her health
• Orange: Vibrant and energetic
• Yellow: Sometimes happiness and sometimes indecisiveness!
• Red: Passionate and strong character
• Purple: Mysterious person

Are there any colors your business cards don’t come in?

Yeah, there are more than 24 million colors out there we used only six! Actually  that was purely for aesthetic reasons since we wanted to use colors that can work with our earthy brown.

Has this approach to your business cards resulted in more business development meetings for you and, ultimately, more business?

Absolutely. As the business cards create interest, they also trigger people to check our website. So when I follow up with them, they [are] familiar with what we do; then I take it a step further and [ask] them for a meeting.

I collect a fair share of business cards, as I suspect you do. In most cases, I’d be hard-pressed to connect a face with a card if I’ve just met them fleetingly (again, as I suspect you would). I’m not going to forget Mahmoud in a while, though. All because of a clever use of paper and color that are doing exactly what business cards are meant to do – open a door for you that will, ultimately, grow business.

With so much noise out there, this is an interesting approach, don’t you think? What steps do you take to make your business stand out from the crowd? Have they worked? I’d love to know. And if you’d like to learn more about Mahmoud’s work, just visit his site.

Dilbert Talks Twitter

Hattip to Mark Sofman for pointing me to this.

Why GrowSmartBiz Rocked

Though I was excited about attending the GrowSmartBiz conference yesterday (to which I was invited as “Media/Blogger,” which was very cool for me), I did feel a little grumpy about getting ready and heading out early. That’s what happens when you work from home. After reading about Mayra Ruiz’ trek from West Virginia, though, I’ve resolved to never complain about doing so again (well, I can try). I only had to drive about 10 minutes to a Metro station and endure a not-unpleasant trip on only one Metro line. Mayra, you’re dedicated!

I live-tweeted during the conference, so I’m not going to recap all of that here. But here’s why I think GrowSmartBiz rocked:

1. Great food. When you attend a lot of conferences, you know what a difference a hot breakfast can make. Eggs, breakfast potatoes… the works. And it was nice to be able to sit down and eat without trying to balance your plate, bags, etc., on your lap. I even got to meet the folks from Indique (can I get an Amen?) during breakfast. Sweet.

2. For the most part, the panels were engaging. You can read great recaps/POVs here and here, to name just a couple. I had to divide my time between the conference and the “Learning Center,” so I missed parts of some panels, but I had as much fun hanging out there with people like Raj and Rebecca Malik, Robin Ferrier and Mike Dougherty, to name just a few.

But just being able to hear from people like Chris Anderson was incredible. Steven Fisher’s presentation on business cards was hilarious and spot on at the same time (btw, Steve, if you decide to use my card as a “worst of…” example, just let me know ahead of time, will you?).

3. It was really about supporting small businesses and growing them smartly. How many times have you been to conferences and left, thinking, “That doesn’t really apply to me?” I’m not a business owner who needs financing, for example (at least right now), but if I do, or if I ever consider starting up a new business, I have a ton of resources to get started from people I trust. During the breaks, I saw several of the speakers engaging with attendees, no doubt giving them more advice and brainstorming. That kind of intellectual gift is invaluable.

4. Network Solutions didn’t sell till the cows came home. Sure, their branding was all over the place, but to be fair, it was their conference. As Jen Consalvo said, “the real story here is Network Solutions… they are a complete resource for small businesses – online and offline.” And it takes a big man (aka Roy Dunbar) to publicly acknowledge that, for many people, someone who’s not the CEO “IS Network Solutions.” (That would be Shashi Bellamkonda, in case you were wondering.)

5. Resources, resources, resources. Everyone who attended came home with a thumb drive loaded with speaker presentations (much expanded from the live event, I might add) and additional resources (like a free online marketing calendar… yes, from Network Solutions) to go through at their leisure. If you’ve ever lugged home a huge binder full of handouts after attending a conference, you know what a gift this is.

What would I liked to have seen done differently?

Truthfully – very little. The organizers (and I don’t know how much of that was Network Solutions and how much was CRT/tanaka, but whoever it was, you guys know how to put on a show) did a tremendous job. Having said that:

1. I’d have liked to have seen the speakers’ Twitter handles on their tent cards, or on the GSB site. Live-tweeting from such an event was not only expected, it was encouraged, and at times it was tough to keep track of what they were saying while simultaneously looking up their Twitter handles. Props to Priya Ramesh for responding almost immediately when I tweeted that out.

2. Sen. Mark Warner. He’s got great presence and clear curb appeal for a conference like this, but after the initial glow of being in his presence, I couldn’t for the life of me figure out what the current health care drama has to do with small business resources, which was pretty much all he talked about. Even worse, he followed Chris Anderson, whose shoes were mighty big to fill. If there had been some practical takeaways, that would have been one thing. When I go to a conference like this, I’m not interested in hearing politics. Having said that, I doubt anyone, even Roy Dunbar, can keep a Senator “on message.” Still, that was a bit of a let down.

3. Earlier in this post, I said “for the most part, the panels were engaging.” Right after lunch, there was a detailed presentation on the findings of the Small Business Success Index. That was a little dry, though the findings themselves were interesting. Of course, it could very well be that it was just after lunch.

And the final panel that purported to discuss integrating traditional with social media pretty much focused on social media, though Jill Foster did a terrific job of moderating it. Now, it could also be that I (and several others who attended the conference) live work in that space. So maybe we were persnickety. Maybe. I also wasn’t thrilled to hear Joanna Pineda say “$2.5K is a lot of money for ‘PR.’” I don’t believe it is. Then again, that’s what I do. So take that with a fistful of salt.

All in all, GSB rocked. It brought home the point of connection. Heck, it was a point of connection. Isn’t that what business is about?

Photo: Dave_B_

What did you like/love/feel apathetic/hate about GSB? I’d love to know.

Media By, For, And Of the Masses

I read about this First Amendment Center report on traditional media still being the first news source for a majority of Americans in PRWeek today (I’m sending you directly to FAC’s site since you might not be able to access the PRW article).

That’s really not a “a-ha” moment for me, despite all the ballyhoo the ongoing debate about traditional media being dead. But it’s an interesting read, and I was fascinated by the way they tried in some cases to break down the finding by demographics (African-Americans and Hispanics are more likely than whites to trust Twitter as a news source… who knew?!).

Reading the survey findings reminded me of an excellent case study by Sean Williams that the Institute for Public Relations published a few months ago, on “how a financial services company used media measurement and content analysis to gauge the impact of financial turmoil on its brand and reputation.”

Because the fact is that regardless of whether you think traditional media is dead, dying or merely comatose while social media beams down indulgently, if your work has anything at all to do with media, you need to be measuring it… and measuring it right.

Sean’s case study, as well as his follow-up blog post on IPR’s site where he shares lessons learned, are must-reads for anyone into media measurement, and why I think he’s one of the smartest guys around today.

He might just be my holy cow of measurement.

Photo: Heidi & Matt

DC Conference Mania

There are two great events coming up in DC next week that I’m really looking forward to. Here’s my not-so-subtle pitch for you to come and be a part of them, if your schedule and wallet allow, because I think they’re smart conferences for smart people to attend.

The first is the Grow Smart Business conference on Tuesday, Sept. 29 (you’ll have noticed my blog’s been sporting the badge recently). I was lucky enough to be invited to it and I can’t wait to hear from Chris Anderson, Sen. Mark Warner, Bob London, Jill Foster (I’ll finally get to meet her!) and so many others. I’m also going to be helping to staff a “learning center” that will be open throughout the day at the conference, so if you’re planning to attend, please do stop by and say hello.

I’m chuffed that IABC/Washington (y’all have heard enough about how I’m involved with them, no need for me to go on about it, right?) is a partner of the conference; with a significant number of our members at or owning consulting firms, this is a golden opportunity to learn from some real movers and shakers. So if you’re an IABC/Washington member interested in attending the event, you can get $100 off the conference registration fee ($299) by using the code IABCGROWSMART here.

The second is Communitelligence’s Rethinking Corporate Communications conference, immediately following GSB (Sept. 30 and Oct. 1). There are some really interesting speakers lined up, including Mark Weiner, David Henderson, Jack Holt from the DoD, my friends Mark Phillips, APR and Ned Lundquist, ABC, and many more. Yours truly will be part of the measurement panel along with both Marks (MarkyMark?) on Oct. 1.

IABC/Washington is also supporting this conference, which is built around delivering value in a tough economy; again, if you’re a member, you can get $300 off the standard registration of $900/$600 (depending on whether you work in a corporate or government/nonprofit setting). The details are on our website.

There’s always a lot going on in DC and no doubt I’ll be wiped after next week, but I wouldn’t miss either of these for the world. I hope I’ll see you there.

Photo: brianjmatis

Job Hunting? Give JobShouts a Holler

I came across JobShouts the way I seem to come across many new things these days: on Twitter. I’m not looking for a job (hey, my boss is very good to me), but I know many people who are, and for them, it’s definitely worth investigating.

According to its website, JobShouts is “no longer just a job board in the traditional sense,” but “a job search engine integrated with social media, helping to create connections and deliver better matching results for both employers and job seekers.”

Basically, you can search for jobs – and receive real-time postings – across multiple social networks with one click, which is a huge bonus for job seekers. Recently, it introduced a similar feature for those looking for candidates called Talent Search.

I thought this was a very smart use of social media, particularly Twitter, so I sat down virtually with Robin Eads, the co-founder, and asked her to tell me more about it.

Who’s behind JobShouts?

Robin Eads & Michael Quale. (AKA @imjustagoyle & @tall_geek). Michael has 20+ years working in technology, with a strong focus on technology integration. I have more than 15 years of experience in IT/telecom staffing, business development, resume writing and career coaching.

What inspired you to do this?

As a user of job boards all through my staffing career, I knew that every year job boards got more expensive; and every year they delivered less quality and more restrictions. I was so fed up with job board results that I quit using them and resorted to using only my strong Boolean skills.

Late in 2008, after my second layoff that year, I decided to start my own recruiting and career consulting company. Demand wasn’t nearly as high for recruiting due to economic conditions and I found myself providing a lot of pro bono assistance to job seekers, mainly via Twitter. I felt Twitter was a great tool for interacting and receiving real time information.

That’s when the idea was born. Michael and I were discussing the need for a better job board; one that provided fresh information about real jobs, in real time.  We discussed that the “pay to post” job boards would have to evolve with demand, which was rapidly moving away from that model. Michael came up with the name JobShouts when we talked about integrating with Twitter and it stuck.

We decided Twitter would be our first platform, since it was fastest way to receive information about jobs being posted. We liked that we could “tap in” to the API as a means to providing information more quickly. So JobShouts.com was born in January of 2009.

What can job seekers to do to optimize being found via JobShouts?

They can create a free (and private) user profile, that will allow them to receive notification via Direct Message on Twitter whenever a job is posted that matches their profile.

We’re working on a solution that will also allow them to choose how they receive that message (email, Facebook message, etc). For now, all job seekers that sign up for a profile must also have a Twitter account. However, they can set their Twitter DM settings to forward to their e-mail or phone so that they don’t have to monitor Twitter actively.

What PR and marketing efforts are you putting into JobShouts?

All PR and Marketing is home-grown, trial by fire. During my career I’ve had plenty of marketing experience including business development. The PR is all new and self taught, with the help of some great friends on Twitter. We’ve experienced a tremendous amount of support from some key industry people; namely Alison Doyle, Job Searching Guide from JobSearch.About.com. Her help and exposure landed us in the L.A. Times only 2 weeks after our launch!

Eight months later, we’ve been featured in the Baltimore Sun, New York Times, Tampa Tribune and on FOX-TV across the country. Most of this effort has been largely due to my own learning and relationship building. I write all of our press releases as well as our blog. I create and maintain relationships with people in PR, HR, Recruiting, News Media, etc and I pay attention and learn from them.

Our marketing plan is being refined as we currently take on the task of writing a formal business plan. JobShouts.com needs capital to continue to grow and pursue more innovation, so our business plan is crucial in developing investor interest.

How are you planning to measure success?

I think success has multiple levels. Personally, I consider what we’re doing as a success already – we’ve already done what the big job boards don’t do. We’ve already given recruiters, employers and job seekers a better and more cost effective resource.

As far as monetary success, there will be an enhanced set of features available to paid subscribers in the very near future. Some features will always remain free – but even the subscription costs will be reasonable. We strive never to be a Monster.com, so I suppose the ultimate success for us would be to us to eventually gain market share from them.

***

I imagine aggressive job seekers will be leery of focusing their efforts on just one service, but I do think JobShouts is worth a shot; if nothing else, for the time it can free up for them online, allowing them to focus on networking and relationship-building, which are still incredibly important, perhaps even more so today. (And if they’re still part of the “I don’t think Twitter’s much use” brigade, this might change their collective mind.) Their blog is fun to read as well, and if you’re not already doing so, follow them on Twitter here, here and here.

If you’ve been helped by JobShouts, would you let me know? How are you using social media in your job search? Do share by leaving a comment; successes and failures, we can learn from them all.

“Demystifying Communication…

… in a Digital World” is an article Cision asked me to write for its Navigator, loosely based on this presentation I made at Goodwill Industries International’s 2009 Summer Learning Event (which was great, every organization should put on an event like that).

I’ve subscribed to the Navigator for years, so was thrilled to be asked. Thank you, Cision, and in particular, thank you Scott Henderson for so graciously sharing the details of the Pledge to End Hunger for both the presentation and the article.

You rock.

Photo: fsamuels

The Power of a Tweet

This is what Lance Armstrong can do with one tweet.

What can I/you/we do? Gets one thinking, doesn’t it.

Photo: KezSLR

The Truth About Communication

I don’t remember exactly how I stumbled upon J.D. Roth’s Get Rich Slowly blog (probably because I was trying to find tax information online, duh), but is easily one of the most interesting blogs I’ve ever read.

I mean, just look at this post on “The Truth About Taxes.” It’s about the dreaded “t” word, which would normally have me running for the hills. It’s a long post, to be sure, but not once did my eyes glaze over. The information JD’s posted is easy to understand and clearly laid out. There are plenty of references and links, not to mention excellent use of visuals with some pretty cool charts (that he created himself).

And when was the last time you saw the words “for more exciting information about taxes” and believed the writer actually meant them?

This isn’t just a blog about finance, in my opinion. It’s a lesson in communicating clearly and well on a subject the author feels passion for.

And that’s what good communication is about.

Have you come across other non-communication blogs that you feel the same way about? Please share, I’d love to know.

Image: Darren Hester

Want to Freelance? TwitterSource

I had a lot of fun co-hosting the first #soloPR chat on Twitter today. It was a shame that my co-host, Heather Huhman, was locked out of Twitter for the duration, but pros like Kellye Crane, Jen Wilbur, and many more shared great tips on a career as a freelance PR professional, especially for new/recent grads. That’s right, I put “career” and “freelance” in the same sentence; because it can be a great one.

You can see the entire transcript of today’s chat at the #soloPR What the Hashtag?! page, but here are some gems from today’s chat:

It was great to meet new folks and reconnect with friends like Jennifer Mitchell, a feisty San Diego-based pro. Jen and I agreed to use the term “an agency of one” (which I first heard from her and promptly appropriated – with her permission – for my website earlier this year) on separate coasts. And Shane Kinkennon put me squarely in my place with a beautiful definition of “higher marketing”:

Many thanks to everyone who signed on today. I hope you’ll join the erstwhile Kellye Crane as she moves the #soloPR chat forward every Wednesday, from 1 – 2 pm ET. If today was anything to go by, we just tapped into an amazing resource.

You.

Do you have more tips you’d like to share on a career in freelance PR? Do leave a note in the comments, I’d love to know.

Photo: Photos8.com

Email Lists: To Add or Not To Add

I’m curious: how do you feel about being added to email lists that are clearly being used for marketing purposes by someone you don’t really have a relationship with, specifically, you’ve met only once? Being a good networker, you gave out your business card. Next thing you know, you’re on their email list (sometimes without an unsubscribe option).

I know how I feel about this, but what about you?

I’d love it if you’d take this quick Twtpoll and let me know. Your answers will help me greatly with the follow-up post.

Thank you!

Photo: Eternal*Voyageur

Communicator, Sell – and Share – Thyself

A couple of weeks ago, IABC/Washington (of which I’m president-elect) held its annual “resume review and networking night.” This has become something of a tradition for us, and one of the chapter events I enjoy the most. Every August, we scrap our usual monthly meeting format (bar, dinner, speaker, you’ve all been there before) and devote the evening to networking.

Um, yeah. Nothing new.

What I think adds a different dimension to this event is that we schedule a limited number of free resume reviews and career counseling sessions, which take place throughout the evening, which senior communicators – both members and non-members – graciously donate their time to do.

It’s a bear to organize. Putting the schedule together, dropping people in, rearranging things because folks have conflicts that come up, handling late requests and walk-ins when the schedule is already overflowing… yea, you get the picture.

It’s completely worth it.

If you’ve ever been a job hunter, let alone one in a down market, you’ve felt the pain of paying a few hundred dollars for an “expert” to look over your resume. Perhaps they made great edits, but your search hasn’t gotten any easier. You have no clue what you’re doing wrong … are you doing something wrong? And you get even more depressed when everyone around you seems to be getting the jobs they want (or at least, say they want).

It’s great to be able to provide this service free (the meeting registration is the only fee). Granted, most of the volunteer reviewers are not avowed experts in that area, but you figure after 20, 25 years in the business, they know a thing or two about resumes. More often than not, what people are looking for is not a once-over of their resume, but for someone to listen to them, bounce ideas around with, and perhaps walk away with a couple of new doors to knock on.

This year, we had 24 such sessions scheduled. Thanks to the generosity of our volunteers, we were able to knock out 54 such sessions – we accommodated everyone on the wait list, and then some (you can see some of the photos from the evening here).

But what really makes this kind of event, I think, is the recharging of batteries that almost everyone experiences – especially those who’ve been on the hunt for a while. I didn’t, but almost teared up, when one of the attendees told me that he’d barely been able to get out of bed in six months, since being laid off (and this is someone very senior we’re talking about here) but that this event – the first he’d attended in those six months – made it worth it. Yup, I’m mushy like that.

What added even more value to our event was the presence of Kate Perrin, CEO of PRofessional Solutions, the DC area’s only PR temp agency. Kate, who’s a stalwart of the DC communication community, made brief remarks on job hunting in a down economy; reassuring (don’t lose your confidence) but also candid (don’t apply for any and every job, get to grips with SM and put new technologies to work for you, don’t ignore the cover letter, and market yourself because you are your product).

Here’s a brief clip of Kate talking about marketing yourself. Yea, the camera’s shaky (I didn’t have a stand and it’s the first time I’ve done this), but hopefully it’ll give you a flavor of the evening.

By the way, if you’re interested in putting on a similar event for your own professional development group, PRSA or IABC chapter, please let me know; either shoot me an email or leave a comment below with your contact information. I’ll be more than happy to share our formula.

You’ve got to share – and sell – yourself. It works.

What programming have you found most beneficial, no matter where you are? Do you have a formula for job hunting or career success? Do share it so that we can all learn.

Photo: permanently scatterbrained

Demystifying Digital Communications

Last week I had the pleasure of presenting a couple of workshops at Goodwill Industries International’s 2009 Summer Learning Event in Grand Rapids, Mich. – an educational “retreat” of sorts for GII employees. I say “pleasure” because the event was organized beautifully, I got to visit Grand Rapids for the first time and, most of all, the workshops were a ton of fun.

The second class I taught (the first was on measurement) was on “social media 101.” What’s delightful to me about this kind of class is that you invariably learn as much, if not more, from your audience as they do (or you hope they do) from you. It was also one of the most engaged audiences I’ve spoken to, and I think the most fun part of the session was when attendees broke into a lively discussion on the pros and cons of social media adoption for nonprofits… all while we were exploring Twitter in real time. Remember this tweet from me that day?

Yes, it was so much fun that I couldn’t spell “sizzle” properly.

What was also interesting to me was that the attendees weren’t only GII employees in the marketing/public relations departments – there were folks from HR and IT present as well. What a great demonstration of willingness to break down intraorganizational barriers to communications to achieve a shared mission.

They also gave me some new phrases to incorporate into my vocabulary, such as “paying a personal visit” to employees who might be spending too much time online in the pursuit of personal pleasures, and “excusing them” if those suspicions turn out to be true. Ha!

Joking aside, the energy in the room was great; I wish I could have captured it.

If you’re at the 101 stage when it comes to learning about social media, here’s the presentation, sans a couple of slides I couldn’t get to (I told you the session was hot).

Many thanks to all my Tweeps who helped bring Twitter alive for the attendees that day, and to Scott Henderson for the great HungerPledge case study. You rock. And since the learning process is a continuous one, if you have tips to add for “newbies,” I’d love you to chime in and leave a comment.

~Photo: fsamuels

Don’t Dig Yourself, Lazarus

Yesterday I was millions of people taken completely unawares by Twitter’s DDOS (distributed denial of service). In plain English, that means that those of us who consider Twitter our virtual world were shut out from “talking” to our tweeps, conducting our informal focus groups and taking comfort from our cheering squads while the service was suffering from an outage.

Apparently this also affected Facebook, but since I’m one of those who streams content from Twitter to Facebook, rather than vice versa (or simply versa), the T outage hit me harder than the FB one. Just like Scott Monty tweeted:

Jokes aside (or gnashing of teeth, depending on which side of the fence you’re on), the outage reminded me of just how dependent fixated we communicators can get on our favorite channels of communication.

Seriously, if something did happen to permanently shut Twitter down… or Friendfeed… or whatever your preferred digital communication channel is – what would you do? And, more importantly, how would it affect your work?

I don’t know about you, but what I’ve learned over the years – and what was brought resoundingly home to me yesterday – is that good communication is not about using just one channel effectively (or simply very often).

It’s about using the right mix of channels to achieve your (or your client’s) objectives – and always having backups.

For example…

If you normally issue news releases via a wire service, do you also have a strong list of targeted media contacts whom you can connect with if the wire service fails… or if your client can’t afford it?

If your regular media monitoring service goes down, do you have a backup such as Google Reader?

If you communicate regularly with influencers via a medium such as Twitter or Facebook, would you still be able to reach them through good old-fashioned email, or not-so-old-fashioned Google Talk, AIM or Skype?

If you’re a company that uses Yammer, do you still have an alternate way to connect with your co-workers and employees?

Would you be able to pick up the phone and – be still, my beating heart – actually talk to someone who could move your communication plan forward?

When we talk about social media paving the yellow brick road to relationship-building, we’ve got to be able to walk the talk. Because if we don’t, the very thing we tell our clients we’ll help them do is at stake.

After all, it’s not about us; it’s about helping them achieve their goals and measurable objectives. And that means using what’s best for them, not for us.

That means being able to connect, with the right people, at the right time, no matter what the technology du jour is. It means keeping our communications alive, rather than digging into a deep and narrow hole from which might – just might – constrict us.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m still a #twitteraddict. But I don’t want to be Lazarus.

What do you think? Do you have additional – or opposing – lessons to share on communicating in the 21st century? Do let me know and please tell me if I’m completely off the mark. This is your sandbox as much as mine.

Photo: Sarah G…

You, Who?

You know how, sometimes, you’re reading a conference line-up, trying to decide whether you’ll attend or not, and you see a name you’ve never seen, or heard, before? Happens to me every now and then. I like to think I know more than a few people in our “biz,” but sometimes I can’t help but go, “You, who?”

Yes, I get excited by events that are being headlined by the rock stars of our industry, or the folks I call the “WHOs.” These are the folks who – at least to me – are the real deal, not just big fish in whichever echo chamber they’ve taken up residence. They have terrific experiences and lessons to share, and it gives me a kick to meet them.

What I’ve started finding lately, though, is that the “whos” are often more exciting to me than the “WHOs.” Because they share new ideas and have fresh voices – the stuff that keeps our profession growing and relevant. And I’d really like to see and hear from more of them.

If there’s one thing you can do for yourself as a communicator and our profession at the same time, it’s to share what you know. Because that’s the only way others will learn, and we can continue to shape the body of knowledge that future generations will draw on. And what good are all those great ideas if you keep them inside yourself?

So if you’re a “who,” here’s my challenge to you: start doing something TODAY that will take you from a “who” to a “WHO.” Get involved with your local IABC or PRSA chapter. Look for and speak at local events. Share your thoughts on Twitter or your blog. Better yet, do both.

If you’re a “WHO,” are you paying it forward? Are you reaching to the “whos” of our world to help them climb the ladder you did so successfully?

Take it from a former “who” not quite a “WHO.” And if you won’t take it from me, take it from Smokie. Don’t be Alice… or the guy who lived next door to her.

Whether “who” or “WHO,” how have you been helped? What tips can you offer those trying to break the thought leadership ceiling? Do share, I’d love to know.

Photo: sfdavidz

London Calling

I love London, no two ways about it. And next week’s first Twitgigs Experiment is another reason I wish I lived a little closer (just a wee bit).

What’s Twitgigs, you ask? A Twitter-gig, of course. But for a more-than-140 character description, my friend Rax Lakhani (who’s organizing it) says it’s a Twitter-enabled experiment at organizing a great evening of live music, and using the platform to enhance the audience experience.

Three bands – Essay Like Nephew (@EssayLikeNephew), The Seal Club Clubbing Club (@thesccc), Mike Dingham (@mikedignammusic) – will be performing at The Vibe Bar in Shoreditch on Thursday, August 6. It’ll also be livestreamed on the Twitgigs Ustream Channel, there’ll be live Twitterfall projections around the venue with various Tweet-stations for those who need ‘em, lots of Twitpic challenges (with cool prizes, I’m told)… and a hashtag voting system for the audience to vote for the winner of the Battle of the Bands.

Pretty cool. When I hear of something like this, though, the first question that usually pops into my head is… why?

The ever-patient Rax said, “Have you ever been to see a band and wished that you could tell them (and the rest of the world for that matter) exactly how freakin’ awesome they are!? Well, that was the initial driver behind putting on The Twitgigs Experiment. Twitter is the perfect medium to bring together musicians and music lovers.”

YES! Like Elvis!

So – how do you buy tickets and get involved? You have to follow @twitgigs (hey, this IS a Twitter-enabled event), and then buy your £5.50 tickets here (and you have to be over 18).

The Billy Mays Moment

But wait, there’s more! Rax has generously given me five tickets to give away to folks in London. So if you’re in London and would like one, re-tweet this post, and you’ll be able to go to what looks like a ton of fun.

I’m just glad I’ll be able to follow the event from across the pond. Don’t you love technology and social media?

What do you think of events like this? Do leave a comment; I’d love to know.

Phone booth & Big Ben photo: jpvargas

Follow Friday: The Graceland Edition

One of the things that struck me about Elvis’ former home on our recent road trip through Tennessee was just how comfortable it looks.

Graceland’s certainly an imposing structure when seen from afar – or even the front. But once you get inside, the rooms aren’t vast and the furniture looks really comfy. It doesn’t look too much like a rock star’s home, unlike some of the mansions you see on Cribs; it looks like a place you’d want to hang out in.

So this week, I’m highlighting five of my Tweeps in the greater marketing communications community who aren’t just rock stars at what they do; but more importantly, they’re good, honest people whom I feel comfortable with.

1. Robin Lane (@robinhlane). I first came in contact with Robin a few years ago while she was still at Vocus, and have been a fan ever since. She’s an amazing PR professional but more than knowing the mechanics of the business inside out, she builds and maintains relationships.

2. Arik Hanson (@arikhanson). Arik and I started “talking” on Twitter, and finally met at BlogPotomac earlier this year. Boy, is he a nice guy! He knows who he is, but he won’t beat you over the head with it. And that’s saying a lot for someone of his caliber and standing in the community.

3. Leigh Fazzina (@leighfazzina). Will you look at this woman’s bio? My god, what a rock star! But what’s even more amazing about Leigh are her energy and generosity of spirit. Just looking at her avatar is a a pick-me-up.

4. Arun Rajagopal (@arun4). I don’t even remember how Arun and I came across each other, but he’s now one of my closest Twitter friends. He’s great at what he does – advertising – but he’s just FUN to talk to. And he cares; you can tell that from the minute you start talking to him.

5. Judy Gombita (@jgombita). As far as rock stars go, Judy’s at the stratospheric level. We could probably take everything the rest of us know and it would fit on her little finger. But the even greater thing about Judy is that she never lets you get lazy. She’ll challenge – and make you think – about everything you think you know.

There are many more Tweeps who give me immense value – these are just five of them. Even if you don’t work in the PR/MarComm areas, I believe you should get to know them. Because they’re like Graceland: imposing but oh so comfortable to be around.

Who’re your “Graceland” tweeps? I’d love to know.

And The Award Goes To…

Seems a day doesn’t go by that I don’t get flooded with invitations to enter award programs, and I’ll bet you suffer the same onslaught. Is it just me, or are there more awards programs, more invitations and more deadlines to deal with these days? Not to mention the fees.

Ribbing aside, each of us has their favorite awards programs – or the ones they’d be thrilled to win. I was curious about this, so I posed the question to communicators (on Twitter, of course), and here’s what I got:

Sean Williams said it was the Institute for Public Relations’ “Golden Ruler” as did Katie Paine (who’s a founding member of IPR’s Measurement Commission; (SNCR, PRWeek and PRNews‘ awards also ranked on Katie’s list). Here are a couple more responses:

Brenda Drake (@brenleigh) elaborated further via email:

The One Word

Know how you’re always being asked for that one word that defines you? That communicates who you are? That describes your essence?

Here’s a little Friday fun: I asked my Tweeps to fill in the verb in René Descartes’ famous saying. All of them are considerably more multifaceted than one word, but it’s intriguing to see the word they connect with the most.

Here are a few, some lighthearted, some earnest:

And possibly my favorite:

Thanks to @overthinker, @donbart, @davidlwatts, @PookyMedia, @jgombita, @wrecklucy, @sherster, @MeanRachel, @alextanPR, @RebeccaDenison, @mikebsacks, @HeenaPRGal, @jasonbuck, @amyeandrews, @JGrassman, as well as everyone else who responded on Facebook.

You’re here, therefore I am.

What’s your word?

~Photo: intrepidation

Iron Hand, Velvet Glove

My friend Katie Paine, who’s at Bulldog Reporter’s PR Measurement Summit 2009 in New York as I type this (and which I’m not attending), sent me an interesting note via Skype. Apparently the conference notebook contains the following reminder to “Please Use Social Media Courteously during the PR Measurement Summit”:

Social media create powerful opportunities for communicating among a network of colleagues — which can be used constructively but can also lead to awkward and unpleasant consequences when used ill-advisedly. During recent conferences in a variety of industries, for example, participants have provided real time commentaries of the events that have precipitated misunderstandings, embarrassment and even anger. For this reason we offer the following courtesy guidelines for participants in this conference:

1. Avoid participating in social media conversations during presentations. It’s simply impossible to concentrate fully on speakers analyses and advice while participating in online conversations or creating social media commentary.
2. Avoid over-simplifying a speaker’s comments or position in any social media commentary. Most speakers offer a complex and nuanced perspective which cannot fairly be distilled into 140 characters or even 1,400 characters.
3. Keep commentary on a professional level and avoid commentary on personal issues relating to participants.

Again – I’m not at the conference, and typing what Katie sent me as printed in the handbook, so if there are any typos, they’re Katie’s and mine.

I couldn’t help but think, though: for “courtesy guidelines,” aren’t there an awful lot of implied dont’s around?

I have certainly come across speakers who prefer attendees not to tweet (since that’s the most prevalent way of participating in SM at least that I know of) during their presentations. Granted, they spent a lot of time (one would hope) preparing and no one likes to think their audience is not paying attention. But if they’re going to decide for me how much attention I can or cannot pay while attending a presentation – well, I’m going to be thinking of spending my money elsewhere next time around.

Avoid over-simplifying a speaker’s comment? Their “complex and nuanced” perspectives can’t be distilled into “140 or even 1,400 characters”? Good grief. What else do PR practitioners do but distill “complex and nuanced” perspectives into every day speak?

Should commentary be kept to a professional level? Of course it should be. But one would hope the majority of folks who attend such conferences already understand this. It’s called, er, being adult.

I don’t know if Bulldog Reporter provided attendees with a conference hashtag (I assume most attendees are following their guidelines and NOT participating in SM), but surely printing that in the handbook would have been useful as a way to track these conversations and, what’s more, open the door to a whole new potential audience.

I’ve lost track of the number of conferences I was unable to attend but which I was still able to learn from simply by tracking the hashtags. And as far as not being able to pay attention to speakers if we’re using SM: well, we work in PR. Multi-tasking is usually our middle name (or one of them). And most of us are smart enough to stop tweeting or Skype-ing if we’re losing the presentation by doing so.

I threw out a quick poll on Twitter: 1) Do you think conference organizers should dictate SM use (tweets, etc.) during conferences? 2) Would you listen?

Here’s some of what I got back:

I’m sure Bulldog Reporter had the best intentions in mind while drafting its guidelines. I just wish it didn’t come across quite so much as a way to control – or eliminate – the incredibly multidimensional facet that SM can bring to such conferences. Nineteen Eighty-Four was a long time ago.

What do you think?

~Photo: just.Luc

If a Picture Paints a Thousand Words…

… can a thousand words paint a picture?

Drum Roll: Darby Has a New Home

When I started blogging about Darby the German Shepherd a little under a month ago, I had no idea if my question, “Can Social Media Find Darby a Home?” would be answered, let alone in the affirmative.

(If you’re catching up on the Darby story, you can find the earlier posts at the bottom of this one. In a nutshell, though, Darby’s a beautiful GSD who used to belong to my husband’s late uncle, who lived in Portland, Ore., and died suddenly on vacation in late April. My mission in life since that time has been to find Darby a home.)

I am SO happy and relieved that finally, the answer, is a resounding “yes.” Last night, Darby went home with Ron and Shawnee Ostrom, a lovely couple who live just outside Portland with their two sons, Garrett and Blake. The Ostroms were one of many animal lovers who saw the story Portland’s KOIN-TV did on Darby last week. After several rounds of meeting her, talking with the folks at Townhouse Pet Care Center and myself, it was clear that not only did they love Darby – but that Darby loved them.

KOIN-TV did a follow-up story on the Darby “chronicles,” as I like to call them, last night. You can see just how happy Darby is.

You know how it is when you’ve been working on something really hard, and then it all falls into place and you can’t quite believe that it’s over? I feel a little like that right now. I just wish Tom (our late uncle) could have seen all this. I think he’d have been tickled pink. (Of course, if he were here, none of this would have happened, so it’s a moot point. But you know what I mean.)

This is not quite Oscar-worthy, but I do need call out a few folk for their tremendous support and help during the last several weeks:

First, the folks at Townhouse Pet Care Center – where Darby has been living – particularly Stacey Scott and Kim Allgeier – have been absolutely incredible. They closed Darby’s account a couple of weeks ago so that we wouldn’t have to worry about an unending bill, and have cared for her as if she were their own. I can’t even begin to express how grateful my entire family is to them. If their love and concern for Darby is anything to go by, Townhouse is a great place to board your animals, so take note, Portland.

Susan Ragan, a world-class and ex-AP photographer I’m fortunate to call my friend, was one of Darby’s first visitors when we heard about Tom’s passing. She took the photographs of Darby that have helped so many of you get to know her, including the one in this post, and has been ready to step in as a foster-mom if a permanent home didn’t work out. If you need an ace photographer, you need to talk to Susan.

Megan Drake: thank you for writing about Darby and bringing her plight to the attention of KOIN. Janet Tobiassen, DVM: thank you for writing an extremely timely story on planning for your pets and continuing to drive attention to Darby. Jen Zingsheim and Chip Griffin: thank you for letting me talk about Darby on Media Bullseye Radio.

Rachel Farris and Kevin O’Brien of PetRelocation.com: thank you for stepping up early in the game with your incredibly generous offer of transporting Darby to a new home outside of Portland, if that’s where we found one. We never had to take you up on it, but it was a lifeline for me at a time I felt I didn’t have too many. Er, any.

KOIN-TV, especially Tim Gordon: thank you for showing Portland what a lovely dog Darby is and caring enough about her to come back a second time.

There are so many people I’ve been put in touch with over the past few weeks, from the Oregon German Shepherd Rescue, to the Oregon Humane Society, to caring individuals all over the country – I couldn’t even begin to list them all. Thank you, everyone, who took the time to help me make a connection – you know who you are.

And finally, my Tweeps. You’ve been an amazing source of support and a wonderful community. Twitter was where this whole thing started; I’ll never forget that. Thank you, each and every one of you.

The story has a happy ending. Darby’s found a new home. And social media did it for her.

P.S.: I have no idea if Darby will keep tweeting. You’ll just have to wait and see, won’t you?

Tom Farrell (second from left) with his siblings a few years ago. R.I.P.

Earlier posts:

• Can Social Media Find Darby a Home?
• Will Social Media Save Darby? The Saga Continues
• The Darby Chronicles: Part III
• Social Media Might Just Find Darby a Home

Follow Friday: The Cherry Blossom Edition

For today’s edition of #followfriday, I thought I’d highlight a few DC-metro area communications professionals I enjoy interacting with on Twitter. Here goes:

1. Jon Newman (@jonnew). Jon’s a partner of The Hodges Partnership based in Richmond, Va., and authors Jon’s PR 1.5. He’s one of the nicest guys I’ve met (as in, IRL). Incredibly helpful and very smart. He “gets” Twitter and other social media tools, but isn’t so bowled over by the shiny new toys to forget what good PR is really about.

2. Mark Story (@mstory123). You know those people who just have to open their mouths and you double over with laughter? Not because what issues is asinine, but because it’s hilariously pithy? That’s Mark. Social karma, for Mark, isn’t something you talk about; it’s part of his fiber (look at his #blogmonday posts). And he’s really smart.

3. Daria Steigman (@dariasteigman). I first met Daria when I moved to the D.C. area about five years ago. I was new to IABC/Washington and she took the time to get to know me. A couple of years later, I ended up serving on the chapter’s board under her. She’s a remarkable writer and skilled at people relations (something a lot of independent consultants are not). You’re going to like talking to her.

4. Debbie Friez (@dfriez). Debbie is one of those people you just can’t help liking. She’s an animal lover, incredibly connected and successful but hasn’t let that go to her head. She’s involved with several professional development organizations in the area, including IABC/Washington, WWPR and PRSA-NCC and generously paved the way for my first consulting project with BurrellesLuce (and I’m not currently working with the company, just in case you think this is a client plug). Just an all-round great person.

5. Nicole Nolte (@NicolePRexec). I first came into contact with Nicole a couple of years ago – pre-Twitter – when she contacted me for some advice, and I was impressed by the way she didn’t take my time, or response, for granted. We’ve stayed in touch ever since and I was delighted to meet her IRL for the first time at Vocus’ 2009 Users Conference yesterday, where we co-presented on a Twitter panel. This young lady knows what public relations’ bottom line is: people relations.

Five great communications professionals who walk the talk in the Capitol area, all these folks enrich my Twitter experience. I think they’ll enrich yours too.

Are there other PR and communications pros in DC you find engaging on Twitter? Give them props by leaving a comment. They – and I – will thank you!

~Photo: ishutterthethought

Pinch Me. A “PR Readers’ Choice Blog Award”?

The one thing I never expected when I started this blog was for it to be nominated in an awards program. Blogging, in and of itself, is an adventure for me, and while I’m thrilled with the warm reception “Waxing UnLyrical” has received, I’m also humbled by it. After all, I don’t blog as regularly as all the gurus tell you you should; so the very fact that anyone reads this blog is quite a thrill.

One of the great advantages about being active on Twitter is the excellent PR and communications practitioners I’ve met through it. More than that, it exposes me to excellent blogs and posts and is truly a great learning experience.

One of the said practitioners is Arik Hanson, APR; so I’m really flattered that this teeny tiny blog has been nominated in the “most thought-provoking” category (there are four) in the PR Readers’ Choice Blog Awards. Several of the blogs I read on a daily basis, and whose authors I admire greatly, made the grade as well, such as Danny Brown, Shannon Paul, Bill Sledzik and Ryan Stephens. If birds of a feather flock together, I’m in great company.

So to whoever nominated me, thank you. While I personally think hell will freeze over before I win, I’d be tickled if you’d scoot over and vote for me. And if you’d rather vote for someone else – that’s fine too. Just vote!

Pulling My Talking Shoes Out

I should probably have done this earlier. Don’t they say something about better late than never?

Right, then. I have a hectic couple of weeks coming up with no less than four conferences in two weeks (probably baby food for some, but for me, that’s a lot). If you’re going to be at any, I’d love to say hello in person.

June 3 is PRNews’ PR Measurement Conference at DC’s National Press Club, which I’m really looking forward to because it’s on… you guessed it, measurement. I’ve been to several great conferences but the measurement ones are always my favorite.

If you were thinking of coming, please let me know so that I can get you the speakers’ guests discount code. If you can’t make it, PRNews is on Twitter and will be giving out a hashtag soon.

June 4 is Vocus’ 2009 Users Conference, where I’m participating on a panel on Twitter.

Er, did I just see you rolling your eyes?

Seriously, I love this conference. This’ll be my third year as a speaker, and I can’t wait, especially since I don’t have to prepare any slides. I’m told the hashtag is #vocus, so if you can’t make it, follow along.

June 9 I’ll take a long-overdue Acela Express trip up to the Big Apple to speak at T3PR on – you guessed it, measurement. This one’s a first for me, but several Twitter and IRL pals will be there, so I’m excited about it. Plus, I haven’t been in New York in ages.

And then June 12 I’ll be attending – not speaking at – BlogPotomac. Phew. I’m really looking forward to meeting, and re-connecting with, several Twitter friends.

So if you’ll be anywhere in my vicinity, do let me know. I’d love to meet you.

~Photo: leafar

Follow the Fellow who Follows a Dream

Today’s #followfriday on Twitter. Since I invariably get asked at least once on Fridays what the heck that is, here’s an excellent explanation by Micah Baldwin on Mashable, for anyone who’s about to pop the question.

Beginning today, I thought I’d highlight a few people I like to follow and why, every Friday. Lauren Fernandez started doing this a few weeks ago and I thought it was a great idea, so thanks for the inspiration, Lauren.

As to the title of this post: if you know where it came from, you know where I’m going with the people I feature in this post. And there’s a treat in store for you at the end. Just keep reading.

1. Katie Paine (@kdpaine). Let me count the ways. She’s the measurement queen – I mean, literally. The measurement lexicon we use nowadays has been strongly influenced, if not entirely rewritten, by her. She’s pioneered the way we look at PR measurement today, because she knew, when she started out, there was a better way to do it. She’s a cancer survivor. To top it off, she lives in the dreamlike Shankhassic Farm, which has been in her family for over a century, and whose main house she literally rebuilt through sheer willpower.

2. Meghna “K” (@meghnak). I can’t remember how or why I came across Meghna on Twitter, but I’m hooked. She’s 13. She loves to write. She writes well; she puts a lot of adult bloggers I come across to shame. And I love her spirit. Did I mention she’s 13?

3. Laurie Ashton Farook (@LMAshton). I think Laurie and I connected during the Mumbai terror attacks. She has a killer sense of humor and is another great writer. And anyone who’s a redhead by choice, met and married a man in “jaw-dropping fashion” (I did too) and lives in Colombo – one of the most beautiful places in the world – hasn’t just followed, but is living her dream.

4. Rachel Farris (@MeanRachel). If her Twitter handle isn’t enough of a reason to follow her, Rachel is a prolific writer with opinions she’s not afraid to express. She’s also managed to combine her love of animals, PR and social media in her job at PetRelocation.com. That’s how I “met” her; she picked up on the Darby story and has been an incredible resource ever since.

5. Bhavin Patel (@beepso). I taught Bhavin years ago (oh dear, I’m dating myself), lost touch and then reconnected with him on Facebook. Even though I haven’t met him in many moons, I suspect he still has that same twinkle in his eye. You’ve got to give props to anyone who blogs as “beelzebubbles.” Plus, he loves what he does and is eloquent about it.

There you go. Five great people who are both dreamers and doers. I’d follow them if I were you.

Whom do you follow who inspires and delights you? I’d love to know.

“Finian’s Rainbow” fans, I haven’t forgotten. Happy Friday!

“Follow the Rainbow” image by Señor Codo

Social Media Might Just Find Darby a Home

The Darby saga has been going on for weeks now (if you’re a first-time reader, check out my earlier posts at the bottom of this one to get up to speed, but long story short, she’s an “orphaned” GSD in Portland, Ore., for whom I’m trying to find a home).

When I started blogging, tweeting, etc., about Darby, I asked the question, “Can Social Media Find Darby a Home?” Truth was, I didn’t know. I just knew I had to get the word out about her any way I could.

Well, after several potential homes fell through – and I was starting to feel thoroughly discouraged – something wonderful happened yesterday. Portland’s KOIN-TV picked up Darby’s story via Megan Drake’s story on Examiner.com, and did a lovely segment on Darby at 5:30 p.m. (PT) yesterday. Here it is:

Check that Darby out. Isn’t she gorgeous? Truly an “e-star.”

As of this writing, I’ve heard from at least two people who are interested in adopting Darby, and very much hope one of them will work out.

Nothing’s a done deal just yet, though, so if you’re one of the many people who’ve been trying to spread Darby’s story, please share this video and/or post with those you think might be interested and/or able to continue the information chain.

As to thanks – there are so many of you to thank, I don’t know where to begin. For now, thank you EVERYONE who’s been trying to help, especially my Tweeps (or “support crew,” as one of them put it), and especially KOIN-TV; Megan Drake; Susan Ragan, whose stunning photos of Darby, including the one in this post, have put a face to this story; and the incredibly generous and kindhearted folks at Townhouse Pet Care Center, who are now caring for Darby free of charge until we re-home her.

The world is a better place with you in it.

Earlier posts:

• Can Social Media Find Darby a Home?
• Will Social Media Save Darby? The Saga Continues
• The Darby Chronicles: Part III

Adam Lambert and the Purple Cow

I was not a happy camper last night after “American Idol” aired.

It’s not that I dislike Kris Allen; he seems like a very sweet guy. But Adam Lambert has been the reason I re-engaged with the show after several years, so when Kris was given the crown, my shoes somehow ended up near the TV.

Following that, I spent about 20 minutes convincing one of our dogs that “it’s ok, Mommy’s not mad.”

I know, I know. And yes, I’m better now.

I know I’m not the only one to feel like this – but clearly many other people feel the opposite, which is why Kris won.

Two blog posts I recently read put my feelings in perspective for me.

The first is a killer post from Lauren Vargas about failing at the right time. If you haven’t yet, go there NOW. It’s a must-read.

Second, today Seth Godin posted a note on his blog inviting stories of remarkable businesses, services or organizations, that will be featured in the new edition of Purple Cow.

Adam Lambert is remarkable. He’s a purple cow. And he failed at the right time.

We should all be so lucky. Let’s make it so.

~Photo: Daveybot

The Ragan Experience

Last week I had the pleasure of presenting, for the first time ever, at Ragan Communications’ 2009 Corporate Communicators Conference in Chicago. As someone who’s wistfully devoured the CCC brochures every year, this was a big thrill for me.

My session on strategic communications planning took place a week ago today; unfortunately I wasn’t able to stay over and attend the “unconference,” so missed meeting many of the wonderful and smart people I’ve gotten to know on Twitter. I did get to meet Amy Mengel (whose Ragan recap is absolutely killer), Ann Marie van den Hurk, APR, and Lee Aase among others, catch up with the lovely Angie Jeffrey, APR, Katie “queen” Paine and the amazing Jim Ylisela, and have a fabulous lunch and walk with the effervescent and super-smart Kate Zimmer (see how happy we are?).

The Skinny on the Presentation

The presentation itself went well (I think); I must admit I was tickled by having to move from a breakout room to the main ballroom in order to accommodate all the attendees. I very much hope it was worth their while.

When I’m asked to make these presentations, I often wonder – as I’m sure all speakers and presenters do – what I can provide to the audience that will be of most value. Or am I going to say the same things everyone else does, but with a slightly different accent?

So Beth Harte’s recent post, “Social Media’s Dirty Little Secret” really resonated with me. If you haven’t read it yet, you should, as well as click through to Dan Keeney’s post to see the video she mentions and read all the comments.

See – I agree with Beth. Social media is nothing new. And I’m going to go one step further and say that 99% of the time, PR is nothing new. Strategic communications is nothing new.

A vast majority of the time, I find the tweets, blogs, LinkedIn questions, yadda yadda, that I follow and read/respond to… nothing new. And that includes the stuff I say.

Before your jaw quite reaches the floor, I think that’s OK.

We’re not – as the rest of the world loves to say about us “PR types,” rocket scientists, tech geniuses or wildly-brilliant theorists. Most of us will probably never rise to the level of a Les Potter or Jim Grunig.

But that’s OK.

Where we add value – I hope – is in reinforcing time-tested communications best practices with practical examples of how we’ve achieved success for our clients or organizations, and showing others how they might adapt those practices for their use. I have to believe that younger professionals in particular derive great value from this.

And perhaps we’re saying it in a new voice, or a new style, that people identify with, and which drives them to adopt the aforesaid practices.

That’s what I hope attendees got out of my presentation which, in a nutshell, tried to reinforce the importance of starting with your end in sight, putting measurable objectives in place, and figuring out your strategy accordingly. (Gosh, where have I heard that before? Here, and here, and here.)

So if you were expecting a flash of brilliance from my presentation, I’m going to apologize in advance for disappointing you.

Now that I’ve gotten that out of the way, here it is.

A special word of thanks to everyone who contributed to the presentation, particularly Lauren Vargas for reviewing it beforehand, and Bryan Person and Jenna Woodul of LiveWorld for a fabulous case study.

Will Social Media Save Darby? The Saga Continues

Since I first blogged about Darby the (female) German Shepherd, there’s been a lot of interest in her and her situation. There are so many people who have helped spread the word, and continue to do so, that I couldn’t begin to list them all here. But you know who you are, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

As an aside, almost all of you have connected with me through Twitter – what an incredibly effective communication platform (and guess what, Darby decided to get on Twitter too).

A few more details on Darby have emerged in the last few days, as well as answers to questions I’ve been getting. So here’s the Darby FAQ (remember, I’m not a dog trainer or behaviorist and am simply telling you what I’ve been told – any of this could change based on the environment Darby is in):

What’s the deal with the aggression?

A better way to describe this, according to the trainer at Townhouse Pet Care Center, where Darby is currently being cared for, is that she has a strong “prey drive.” This isn’t PR-speak; if you’re familiar with Shepherds (I grew up around them) and similar breeds, you know it comes with the territory.

The people who have had the most contact with Darby – the folks at Townhouse, my friend Susan Ragan and a good friend of our late uncle, all believe Darby can be re-socialized with the right attention and training. In other words, it’s highly unlikely that she’s un-rehabilitable.

What are Darby’s vital statistics and history?

Darby was adopted by our late uncle three or four years ago from a shelter. So she has the same history as just about any other shelter animal – not much. She’s a smaller GSD (between 60 & 70 lbs), spayed and from all indications in good health – she shows no signs of dysplasia, etc. But I don’t have access to any records on her, other than what Townhouse might have. Like any shelter animal, what you see is what you get.

Is Darby good with kids? What’s her temperament?

Yes, by all accounts she’s extremely loving and people- and kid-friendly. Like most GSDs, she’s extremely intelligent as well. She’s well-behaved, housebroken, and does not bark excessively.

Does Darby need to be an “only pet”?

I certainly think that would be an ideal situation, since she’d be in a non-threatening environment. However, if she does go to a home with other pets, she will likely settle down with the right amount of attention and training. I can’t promise you anything, though.

Have I tried to contact breed-specific rescues and other groups?

Yes. So far I haven’t had any luck in reaching them, other than the Oregon German Shepherd Rescue, who have acknowledged my emails and phone calls, but who have not made direct contact with me yet. (And yes, I’m still trying). The Oregon Humane Society has been extremely helpful in directing me towards certain rescue groups as well.

What if someone outside of Portland, Ore., wants to adopt Darby?

If this is the right fit, you bet I’ll talk to them. The folks at PetRelocation.com saw my earlier post and have made the incredibly generous offer of transporting Darby to her new home, wherever that might be, free of charge. So now we just need to find a home for her.

What’s going to happen to Darby in the next few days?

The perfect solution, of course, would be to find a “forever home” for Darby and move her there. Failing that, we need to get her into a foster home – of which there are potentially two right now – and continue the search for permanent placement.

Practically speaking, this would be a foster home in the Portland area. The folks who have stepped up so far, including her caretakers at Townhouse, have been incredibly generous with their time and support, but I would like to stop being a drain on their resources as soon as possible.

A couple of folks I’ve connected with through Twitter – both outside of Portland – are considering giving Darby a home as an option of last resort. But – and I can’t stress this strongly enough – they both have constraints and nothing is a done deal. So it’s critical that we keep looking for a home for Darby.

If someone’s interested in Darby, how can they contact me?

Email me at info@shonaliburke.com; if you’re on Twitter, tweet me. If someone you know or have passed the information along to wants to talk to me, please ask them to let me know how they got the information.

Will social media save Darby? I don’t know … yet. I certainly hope so; it has certainly been extremely effective in getting people around the country – and the world – talking about her.

I might add that Darby’s got more gumption than most people I know (including myself); she’s been hitting up Ellen, Oprah and Rick Sanchez as well (no response so far).

I can’t even begin to tell you how grateful we are for your support and concern for Darby. I hope you’ll continue to help put the word out there, however you can – by tweeting and re-tweeting this post, spreading the news among your online and offline networks, posting to your Facebook pages, etc. – so that we can put social media to use for Darby’s good.

Thank you.

Darby’s photo courtesy Susan Ragan

Can Social Media Find Darby a Home?

I love social media and networking. No surprises there. What is especially fascinating to me is their potential to bring together people who are virtually unknown [sic] to each other, and set the stage for something unique, something unintended and, quite possibly, something very, very good.

There are several examples of virtual “strangers” banding together to make a difference; certainly for non-profit organizations and causes, but also in response to personal appeals. Remember Beth Kanter’s birthday fund raising drive which raised thousands of dollars for kids in Cambodia? And how about the British teenager who was literally “saved by Facebook“?

I thought long and hard about doing this, and finally decided that if Chris Brogan can ask you to shave your head for charity (which I applaud, by the way) I can ask you to try to save a life.

Darby’s Story

My husband’s uncle died suddenly while vacationing in Panama a couple of weeks ago. To say it’s been a huge shock would be putting it mildly.

We are still not out of the rain forest, so to speak; unless you’ve been through it, you have no idea how much there is to deal with – or how complicated and arduous the process is – when a family member dies abroad.

Be that as it may, our uncle left no progeny behind… but he did leave a dog.

“Darby O’Callahan” is a spayed female German Shepherd, about 7 years old. I’ve never met her, but from what I hear, she is extremely affectionate towards people, healthy and quite a beauty. She’s also one of the few dogs I know who has her own Facebook page.

Should be a cinch to get her adopted, right?

Nope. It seems that Darby has lately been showing aggression towards other animals, which means she needs to go to a home where she’ll be an “only dog.”

Now, it’s quite possible this is a result of Darby’s recent stress, and her strong prey instinct (which is what the manager/trainer at Townhouse Pet Care Center, where she’s currently being boarded told me she probably has) could be trained out of her over time.

After all, if your “dad” had suddenly disappeared, and you’d been in a kennel for 3 weeks+, you’d be pretty ornery too… if you were still sane.

(Disclaimer: Much as I love them, I’m not an animal trainer or behaviorist, so I’m providing the information given to me by people who are more qualified than me in this area.)

I’ve been trying to contact a few different rescues in the Portland, Ore., area (which is where Darby is), but so far we haven’t had any luck placing her; I had a potential home for her which fell through when we heard about the aggression issue, which I was heartsick over. Several of my friends and family have received an email plea for me. Some of my Tweeps have been trying to spread the word.

Well, now I’m throwing it open to YOU. Can you help get the word out about Darby? Forward this post, tweet it, share it however you can.

The folks most likely to adopt her will, of course, be in the Portland area; can you activate your network(s) to see if we can reach people there? Perhaps even the media?

Approximately five to seven million companion animals enter shelters every year, and 60% of these dogs and 70% of these cats are euthanized simply because of a lack of resources.

Those are horrifying statistics in a country where almost two-thirds of households have pets.

I don’t want Darby to become another statistic.

Can you – the embodiment of social media – help find Darby a home? Anyone who’s interested, or wants to know more, can reach me at info (a) shonaliburke.com.

We would be so grateful. And I truly believe our uncle’s soul would be at rest.

Many thanks to the inimitable Susan Ragan for her great photographs of Darby, and to the folks at Townhouse for taking such good care of Darby while we try to place her.

Social Media, Social Karma

There’s an awful lot of social karma going around lately.

JOTW: My First Experience With Social Karma

For the last few years, I’ve occasionally guest-edited the free “Ned’s Job of the Week” e-newsletter. If you don’t know about it, it’s a free weekly newsletter that lists job postings sent to Ned Lundquist, ABC, by subscribers (as well as many he finds himself) in the spirit of sharing.

For a couple of weeks every year, I experience what Ned goes through on a daily basis: sifting through job postings sent by readers, looking for them myself, telling people how to subscribe and unsubscribe (even though the instructions are clearly listed in the newsletter) and then compiling all the information, along with other announcements that would be relevant (such as communication/PR events) into a newsletter that’s sent out every Monday.

It’s a lot of work, and I’m exhausted and relieved when Ned returns; but I’m always grateful for the additional connections I make by filling in for him, as well as honored by his trust that I’ll keep JOTW rolling along.

And I always ask myself: how on earth does he keep doing it?

The answer is very simple: Ned believes in social karma. Or rather, as he puts it, JOTW is dedicated to the “positive, unanticipated consequences of nedworking.” And no, that’s not a typo.

Ned didn’t start publishing JOTW to get something out of it. He did it to help a few folk he knew, and figured he might – just might – help himself along the way. Since its inception with a handful of subscribers, JOTW has grown tremendously; at last count, there are more than 11,111 members of the JOTW network. It now has a home on the Web as well as advertisers and sponsors.

The WIIFM Factor

Is Ned getting something out of JOTW now? You bet. But that’s not why he started it, and not why he keeps it going, or why he keeps it free to subscribers. And that, in my opinion, is why he’s successful.

Mind you, all this started several years ago, way before “social media” became the “buzzphrase” it is today. But to me, Ned epitomizes the inherent karmic element of social media. If you send something good out to your world – with no expectation whatsoever – something good will come back to you.

Twitter and Social Karma

One of the reasons I love Twitter is that it’s a perfect platform for social karma. Want to know who can enrich your network? Head to #followfriday. Want to show someone some Twitter-love? Re-tweet something interesting they’ve shared.

And through Twitter, I’ve come across even more instances of social karma.

Mark Story, for example, has started #blogmonday, where he highlights bloggers who might not be very well known. Arik Hanson posts interviews with professionals he thinks are “PR Rockstars” on his blog. Heather Huhman provides a wealth of PR resources by tagging relevant posts with #PRadvice. And there are countless others.

As far as I know, Mark, Arik and Heather aren’t necessarily “getting” anything out of their efforts. But I’m pretty sure they are enhancing their reputations (don’t worry, I’m not going to get into the whole personal branding thing here), building their networks and sowing the seeds for “positive, unanticipated consequences” which will have a beneficial effect on their work.

What’s the Communications Angle?

The first thing that anyone – including the many “gurus” out there – will tell you about social media is that it’s about listening, connecting and sharing. Everything else comes later.

If you’re a professional communicator grappling with the amoebic nature of social media, try thinking of it as your path to social karma.

After all, our business is communication, right? Sharing information, educating and informing audiences and hopefully, at the end of the day, doing some good by using smart communications to help organizations (or clients) achieve their goals.

Listening, sharing, connecting – this is what we DO. Don’t get intimidated by the technology behind it, or the buzzwords that tend to change quicker than David and Dania.

Call me naïve, but I believe social karma is a large part of what we do for a living. Social media is just another way to get there.

(Photo: Miss Bliss 55)

What about you? Is social karma part of your approach to communications? Have you found social media has increased your social karma? If you want to give props to someone who does, a comment would be a lovely way to do so.

Of Job Hunting, Cologne… and Twitter

On April 2, a few friends and I put on the “Dream Team” hats that Ned Lundquist, ABC, bestowed on us some years ago, to help folks “Pimp My Job.”

What on earth is “Pimp My Job,” you ask?

If you subscribe to Ned’s free, weekly “Job of the Week” newsletter, which I sometimes guest-edit, you know what we’re about. But in essence, we’re a group of communicators from near and far who provide advice – sometimes mercilessly – to those brave enough to ask for it. They submit their on-the-job – or job hunting – nightmares to us, and we have at it, maintaining their privacy. Advice is compiled and published in the newsletter. You can read previous PMJs here.

PMJ Meets IABC

A few years ago, when I ran IABC/Washington’s programming, I thought it would be fun to do a real world version of PMJ – and sure enough, it was. A couple of weeks ago, we reprised our “act” at IABC/Washington’s Senior Communicators Council meeting (disclosure: I’m President-Elect for the chapter, currently also Acting President).

Given how dramatically the economy has changed in the past few years, I wasn’t quite sure how the SCC meeting would go (it’s one thing to pimp your job while you still have it, quite another when you, and more and more of your peers, are out of work).

It was wonderful. Folks shared their experiences, asked for advice, gave advice, and I felt a tremendous sense of camaraderie among the attendees. We had some fun too: can you guess which Indian goddess the Dream Team is trying to portray here?

“It’s Not Rocket Science”

Now, none of what we said is rocket science (I couldn’t resist). Career advice abounds, especially these days. But there were two things that stayed with me:

1) It’s easy to get depressed when you’re in a go-nowhere job/laid off/have been job hunting for years, etc. But as Kate Perrin of PRofessional Solutions said, you cannot afford to let the “stink of desperation” cling to you. That’s when you’re in such a poor frame of mind that it comes across no matter where you are, who you’re talking to, or what you’re talking about … and that will come through in your interviews.  Do I need to give you examples? I didn’t think so.

2) Senior communicators must start understanding and using online social networks. Being… well, me, I gave the attendees a quick demonstration of Twitter which, as we all know, is just one of the many platforms you can use to connect with people. Time and time again, I hear “we don’t get it,” “I’m not technologically savvy,” what the heck is the point of (fill in your epithet network of choice) anyway?”

The point is two-fold: first, it’s networking. If you have experienced the advantages of meeting and communicating with your peers outside of your work, you cannot afford to ignore online venues that afford you the same opportunities. Yes, you have to then take your online network offline and put it to work for you. But you can’t do that if you don’t have an online network.

Second, you are probably finding that these days, more and more jobs require a knowledge of the online sphere and social media. How can you be competitive if you don’t explore the spaces potential employers need you to have an understanding of? It doesn’t matter if you don’t consider yourself an “expert” (there are too many wannabe experts floating around these days anyway, as Beth Harte points out in this most excellent post). But you’ve got to be able to talk knowledgeably about it – and you can’t do that if you don’t engage.

In my enthusiasm to bring a Twitter dimension to the meeting, I asked my tweeps to submit questions for the Dream Team to me via Twitter, hoping to be able to answer them live from the session. Many thanks to all of you who did (you can read the entire event-related tweetstream here). The meeting had so many facets to it that we weren’t able to get to all the questions, but they (and the answers) have been published in today’s edition of JOTW.

A final word: if you don’t subscribe to JOTW, I strongly recommend you do. It’s completely free and you will experience the “positive, unanticipated consequences of nedworking” first-hand. Subscription (and unsubscription) instructions are at the top and bottom of every email. The annual March 32nd issue itself is worth the price of admission.

The Bottom Line

Yes, it’s tough out there. But it’s tough for everyone, not just you. So check your desperation at the door and start using the networks around you. That’s what they’re there for, and you’ll be the better for it.

(Thanks, Ned for the use of your photo)

The Adam Lambert Litmus Test

Apparently I wasn’t the only one screaming at my television last night.

Why? I’d set my DVR to record “American Idol” (it allows me to skip the commercials), so when I figured enough time had passed in order for me to be able to skip all the ads, I settled in to watch it.

The show ran over. My DVR did not. And I missed watching the one contestant I’d been waiting to see: Adam Lambert.

So what did I do? I logged on to AmericanIdol.com (which is not a site I frequent) to see if the video had been uploaded yet. No. Then I turned to YouTube. Nope.

This morning, as soon as I brought my Washington Post in, I turned immediately to Lisa de Moraes’ TV column to find out what he sang (again, not my typical modus operandi). I can’t remember a time I’ve been so glad she watches so we don’t have to.

Once I knew which song Adam got a standing ovation from Simon Cowell for, I did a quick search for it, and voilà.

Phew. And all before 7:30 a.m. today.

The Adam Lambert Litmus Test

This is not a paean to Adam Lambert. But consider the atypical behavior – for me – that I engaged in, just to see and hear what he did last night. That’s engagement; not with the show, per se, but with what a single contestant brings to it, and which obviously helps the show.

The bottom line for effective PR is that you need to reach your audiences, and engage them enough to inspire behavior that helps achieve your goals. That engagement is what I experienced last night and this morning – and I’m still engaged enough to write about it.

That’s the kind of thing we should be measuring as PR professionals. Forget about clips and impressions (I’m still amazed at how many people focus on them as a sole or primary measure). It’s about engagement.

Does your PR pass the Adam Lambert litmus test?

What do you think? Have you been able to convince your clients and/or organizations to start focusing on outtakes and outcomes, rather than outputs? What’s your litmus test? I’d love to hear from you.

(Photo: Broadwayworld.com)

Customer Service: Taking PR From “Good” to “Great”

A couple of weeks ago, Zoë Siskos of Social Media Group asked me if I wanted to test-drive a new Ford Escape. Not being a journalist or a car/A-list blogger, I was flattered but curious, and my first reaction was: “Sure, but why?”

Zoë’s goal (ergo, her agency’s) for her client was to get “non-car oriented people in Ford cars to test them out.” Nothing else was required from me: no blog post, nothing. I wasn’t going to be paid for this, and the gas was on me, but insurance was taken care of.

Now, I’ve done my agency time and I know how the whole word-of-mouth thing is supposed to work. But I’ve met Zoë, like her, and one of our cars was due to go into the garage that week, so I thought: why not?

I’ve never had a particularly good perception of the brand, a view that I’m sure has been colored by my husband’s vivid memories of being regularly stranded, years ago, in England due to a Ford Escort that would reliably overheat. We’re a Toyota family, and we like it that way.

The Ford Experience

The entire experience was more pleasant than I thought it would be. The company that delivered the car was prompt and polite, worked with me on timing (because of a request I put in with Zoë), and for one week I was able to escape pet fuzz and bask in that new car smell. I loved the heated seats and, for a change, driving the kind of car road hogs tend to steer clear of.

As far as driving and all that important stuff goes, if you’re interested you should check out what real experts have to say, like the folks at Edmunds.com. Or maybe Robert Gibbs in the first 40 seconds of this video:

So much for my car review.

The Real Story Here

What really made an impression on me was when it came time for the car to be picked up. I happened to have a new business meeting that day and, while driving there, several warning lights in the instrument panel came on. Fortunately I wasn’t stranded on one of Virginia’s vast highways, but the car shut down almost as soon as I reached my destination. As soon as my meeting was over, I sent Zoë a frantic email. Determined to leave no stone unturned, I called her as well.

She didn’t bat an eyelid. She called the local contacts and made sure they got out to me as soon as they could to give me a ride home. (The test car did start up, but I wasn’t about to take a chance on it freezing up on me again.) She called me back to make sure they’d been in touch with me and that I was alright. Not just that day, but through the entire process, Zoë treated me as if I was SMG’s most valued customer.

Taking PR from Good to Great

That’s what takes PR from good to great. If you’re not treating your clients (and even if you work in house, you still have clients… they’re just your colleagues) like your most valued customers, they’re probably not going to remain your clients very long. That applies to any kind of outreach you take on in the course of your work; as Zoë did.

In my opinion, Zoë is not just a good PR person; she has the makings of a great one. Keep your eye on her.

And when I’m in the market for a new car, I’m pretty sure I will at least take a look at what Ford’s offering. No promises, but I’m just saying…

(Image: courtesy Ford)

Balancing the PR Bubble

If you follow me on Twitter, you’ll know that I tweet quite a bit. (Today I apparently crossed the 8,110 tweet-mark without realizing it). But every now and then, I’ll “go dark,” as they say in the theater.

You’ll hear from me once, maybe twice a day. Sometimes I just don’t have anything to say; sometimes I don’t come across conversations I want to engage in. And sometimes I happen upon conversations that are so negative or ridiculous or (enter your adjective of choice here ______ ) that I just need to turn it off for a bit.

What I’ve realized, though, is that when I go dark, I am making my own little attempt to break out of my Twitter bubble. Because there are other bubbles that need attending to.

Please, don’t get me wrong. I love Twitter, the new connections and relationships it has helped me forge, and the incredible amount I learn through it each day.

But there are a lot of other bubbles that are equally important to me; my “IRL” bubble of people I’ve met and worked with over the years, my IABC bubble, my email bubble… you get the drift.

I’ve found that if I get too comfortable in one bubble, the others can suffer. Not in a drastic, bubble-bursting way, but if I don’t watch over those relationships too, they could atrophy, which would leave me immeasurably worse off, both personally and professionally.

Balancing the PR Bubble

PR, to me, is like a bubble. In fact, it’s made up of a whole lot of bubbles, i.e. tactics, that delicately wobble and bounce off each other. When the bubbles are released gently, they can make a very pretty picture; you achieve success for your client or organization using a variety of tactics in a planned, strategic and integrated way. When they’re not, they burst, and all one’s left with is soapy liquid.

There are a lot of bubbles for us PR professionals to play with these days, not the least of which is Twitter. After all, if Jon Stewart, Ellen DeGeneres and David Gregory are talking about it, it must finally be cool, right?

Twitter is cool, to many of us. But it’s not the only bubble out there.

So in our haste to make sure the Web 2.0 bandwagon doesn’t rattle away without us, let’s not forget that. Let’s not forget what PR is really about. It’s not about using the latest “shiny new toy” just because you can, or because everyone else is. It’s about strategic thinking, measurable objectives and using the best range of tactics that will achieve those objectives for your client or organization.

Take care of your bubbles, both offline and offline, and they’ll take care of you. After all, who wants to be left with a handful of soapy liquid?

(Photo: bobtravis)

What do you think? Do you think tried and tested PR skills are being discounted in light of all the “shiny new toys?” Or have you found a way to blow many bubbles at once? I’d love to hear from you.

To ABC or Not, That is the Question

A couple of weeks ago we started talking about accreditation on Twitter (at least, I did). I serve on IABC’s Accreditation Council so, clearly, think it’s a good thing. I was curious about what others thought, so I asked my networks why they had pursued, or were pursuing, accreditation, and what value they derived from it.

What’s the Value of Accreditation?

The response overwhelmed me, not just by how many there were, but by how strongly people feel about accreditation.

There were a few recurring themes: curiosity as to whether one “measured up,” validation of one’s approach to communications, and value in staying involved with process by being a mentor or grader. On LinkedIn, Mary Hills, ABC, who’s director of marketing for the Council said:

And Jason King, ABC, accreditation liaison for IABC/Washington, said:

You can read all the LinkedIn answers here, but I found Maureen Ryan, ABC’s answer particularly interesting:

Maureen’s accreditation was accepted by two universities in lieu of the GMAT. Bill Spaniel, ABC made good use of it too:

Accreditation v. MBA

So: you’re thinking of getting accredited, but should you be considering an MBA instead? What if you already have one, does accreditation still make sense? Here’s what Dora Smith, currently an accreditation candidate, told me:

Sue Johnston, MBA, ABC said:

The “Official” Accreditation Value Study

A study on the value of accreditation was conducted by L.C. Williams & Associates for IABC late in 2007. I encourage you to read the executive summary, which is extremely interesting; some key findings were:

• Seventy-nine percent of ABC respondents said the designation improves their résumés;
• Sixty percent said it’s given more credibility to their department or organization;
• Eighty percent said it benefits the profession by providing a professional global standard; and
• More than one-half of them (53%) said that since being accredited, they ensure that evaluation, measurement and monitoring are part of their plans.

So far, then, we have increased credibility, greater confidence, more rigorous use of communication best practices and advancing the profession.

Not All Peaches and Cream

Amy Mengel made several points from a different perspective; first, that accreditation is not inexpensive, when you consider the initial cost as well as the cost of maintaining it. She said (via email, and all emphasis is mine):

“I’ve worked in corporate communications for about five and a half years now, so I guess I’m ‘eligible’ to go through the process now if I wanted to. But I’ve never felt like having ABC or APR after my name would help me move up the career ladder or land a better/different job in corporate communications. I got my MBA two years ago (entirely company-funded) and I think that’s been much more relevant and opened more doors for me. I think accreditation would be much more important if I were an independent consultant or ran my own business – or even a member of a smaller PR firm.

If I were to do it, I think my reasons would be purely personal – for the experience and personal knowledge gained from going through the process. If I set out to do it with the expectation that it would get me a better job, a promotion, a pay raise, etc., then I think I would be disappointed. It’s not a credential that most hiring managers in corporate comm roles seem to be  familiar with or understand - it’s not like a CPA for accountants where it’s almost expected that practitioners have it.”

And, finally:

“I’ll also admit that I think a lot of these programs (beyond PR/comm. accreditations) are ‘profit centers’ for organizations… I can still be a good communicator without it, and the variety of designations handed out (IABC, PRSA, AMA, etc.) somewhat diminishes the strength of any one accreditation program.”

Gulp.

My $0.02

I promised Sarah Ann Walters I’d also share my opinion and story, so here they are:

I earned my accreditation four years ago, starting the process just after moving to DC. I did it because I don’t have formal training in PR, and I wanted to know whether my work – which I “thought” was good – really measured up. I attended an accreditation “fun shop” held by Ned Lundquist, ABC (who’s also founder and editor of Ned’s Job of the Week), and since I wasn’t working (I’d just moved to DC, remember?), figured I might as well start on my accreditation.

It took me one and a half years, from application to certificate. I paid for it myself, but it’s one of the best things I’ve ever done. It wasn’t cheap and yes, it was time-consuming. But I grew in confidence and learned a great deal which was reflected in my work, which led to the promotions and pay raises.

It’s one of the reasons I focus so much on smart measurement as an intrinsic part of strategic communications. It has helped define my approach to business communications, and the business of communications. So while accreditation has certainly been a personal achievement for me, it’s one I’ve put to good use for employers and clients, and they’ve appreciated it.

As to hiring managers being unfamiliar with accreditation… well, that’s a little of a chicken and egg situation, isn’t it? Until we, as accredited business communicators, take the time to educate them, why should they care? The Accreditation Chapter Toolkit might have been designed for chapters, but it’s got a wealth of resources we can all adapt and use to grow awareness of accreditation.

Michael Sponhour, ABC, puts it best:

“I find it works in the most simple ways – I have ABC on my business card, websites etc. and it often prompts questions from people who want to know what it is – that allows me to explain about the whole process. People should not expect an earth-shattering change in their professional career, but a greater sense of confidence and new opportunities to tell their stories without resorting to bragging or overbearing self promotion.”

The Last Word: From Shel Holtz, ABC

There are a lot of issues the PR profession faces, and this post certainly isn’t going to get to grips with them all. But one of the most critical issues is our validity as a profession, which Shel Holtz’ recent post on the issue examined extremely well. I’ll give him the last word:

Accreditation, unlike certification, is voluntary, and there are plenty of outstanding, professional PR practitioners who are not accredited. And it’s as likely you’ll find an accredited communicator who behaves badly as you are to find a lawyer who acts less than ethically.

But when faced with two communicators who are unknown to you, but who both seem to be equally capable, you can be more assured that the accredited communicator is going to perform his job based on a thorough understanding of communications’ models and standards because he has gone through a process and judged knowledgeable.

Photo credit: hartlandmartin. My thanks also to everyone who responded to my query, via Twitter, LinkedIn and email, several of whom are quoted in this post. The lack of space that prohibited me from using all your quotes in no way diminishes the value of your responses – thank you again.

What do you think? Is accreditation important to you, or are you curious about it? What else do you want to know? I’d love to have you join the conversation.

PR, Please Think It Through

Twitterverse was buzzing about Skittles’ foray into social media this week. No, I’m not going to give you my take on that, there are quite enough of those already. I did find Laura Fitton’s early summary of it extremely interesting, though, and Lauren Vargas’ and Liana “Li” Evans’ posts summed up my opinion beautifully.

My point is this: when you embark on PR of any kind, have you thought it through?

In my mind, it doesn’t matter how edgy your tactics are, or how many layers you’ve put into your campaign (and let’s face it, we PR people love layers almost as much as a bear in Antarctica).

What does matter is whether you’ve thought it through. Because if you haven’t; if you haven’t configured a response or action for every possible scenario, your campaign could fall flat, and all that time you put into it will have been wasted.

What’s the Plan, Stan?

Before you get ready to pelt me with M&Ms, I’m not saying the Skittles campaign bombed. That remains to be seen, based on what their goals and measurable objectives were.

The success or failure of your campaign will depend, in large part, on the contingencies you put in place. If you’re planning a media tour, what will happen if your main spokesperson falls through? If your kickoff event is outdoors, have you considered the weather gods?

If you’re planning a new site launch, are all the additional bits and bobs in place and ready to be rolled out at the touch of a button – and what happens when something goes wrong? Do you have a communication network, whether it’s as simple as a phone tree, or a more sophisticated system of communication that includes mobile, so that the key players can reach each other?

Sometimes, It All Works

The other side to this coin is making sure you’re poised to take advantage of those rare moments when synchronicity rules – and everything works just right. Your live reveal is perfect, the weather doesn’t interfere, your key messages are beautifully represented in the media, your public is excited, and even the media wants more (shock and awe!). Are you ready to capture this excitement?

Or, will you bravely enter the “new world” of social media, turning your website into a platform for conversation – and then not talk to the folks who flock there?

Our plans don’t always work perfectly, but when they do, it’s magic. And if you’re not ready to roll with the flow (which you wanted, I might add), you could lose a great many opportunities to engage your audience further and prime them to be future customers, donors or evangelists.

Contingency planning is draining and time-consuming -  no arguments there. But it’s well worth the time you put into it because, believe me, something will go wrong… or unbelievably right.

Just ask Skittles.

(Photo: Chovee)

What do you think? How important has contingency planning been in your PR endeavors? Can you share tips on what has and hasn’t worked for you? I’d love to know.

Clicking Our Way To Ending Hunger

Yesterday I came across an interesting article: “What Would You Never Sell, Though Desperate For Money?” in the Chicago Tribune (hat tip to @ColonelTribune). That’s a relevant question in these times.

But what if you didn’t even have that option? What if you didn’t have anything you would never sell… to keep a roof over your head, or stay reasonably healthy, or put food on the table?

Not a pleasant thought, huh?

Through the Communicator’s Lens

As communicators, we don’t have all the answers, much as we’d sometimes like to think we do, to ending the world’s problems. What we can do, though, is harness the power of our networks to spread awareness that results in action.

This is why I’ve joined the Pledge to End Hunger, which launches today. I’m going to do my very best to motivate my networks to take simple, easy actions that could provide 140,000 meals for children in Austin during South by Southwest 2009 (SXSW).

Why Childhood Hunger?

Share Our Strength has some heartbreaking statistics here, telling us that one in six children were at risk of hunger at some point last year. Among them are:

• 5.1 million kids —43.6%—living at or below the poverty threshold.
• 5.9 million kids living with a married couple.
• 5.8 million kids -one-third—who live in single-woman households.
• 10.6 million kids living within metro areas—5 times the number living outside metro areas.

Just One Click

All it takes is a click via this online form. For each click, Tyson Foods will donate 35 lbs of food product, the equivalent of 140 servings (Twitter flashback, anyone?).

If 1,000 people take the online pledge, a semi-trailer filled with 140,000 meals will arrive at the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas in Austin during the SXSW ’09 Interactive Festival.

Of course, you can do more. You can take the pledge yourself, tell your friends about it, change your social network avatars, join the Facebook cause… and, if your pocket allows, make a donation.

You don’t have to do any of these things – but you can help me help kids by making one click.

Will you join me?

Home Is Where The Mouse Is… Maybe

A few days ago, Pew Research’s “Daily Number” was 38%: the percentage of Americans who, having lived in more than one place, don’t consider their current community home. Given that this is a country of immigrants, that isn’t surprising, and a feeling I (a naturalized American of East Indian origin) can relate to.

A couple of days later, we had a friend over for lunch. Canadian-born, he’s worked all over the world, including in several African countries, and now calls Liverpool, U.K., home. At one point he asked, “Where do you feel at home?” Initially, my answer was, “In this country, California” – because that’s where my husband is from, that was my first experience of the U.S., that’s where many of our good friends and family still live.

“Home” Is…

I kept thinking about that question, though. Where does one really feel at home? What is it that defines “home” from “away”? Can one feel at home in several places… or none?

… Where The Heart Is?

Pew’s report answers some of these questions, and the results aren’t surprising:

Among all respondents to the Pew Research Center survey, 57% say they have not lived in the U.S. outside their current state: 37% have never left their hometown and 20% have left their hometown (or native country) but not lived outside their current state.

The Pew survey finds that stayers overwhelmingly say they remain because of family ties and because their hometowns are good places to raise children. Their life circumstances match those explanations. Most stayers say at least half a dozen members of their extended families live within an hour’s drive; for 40%, more than 10 relatives live nearby. A majority of stayers also cite a feeling of belonging as a major reason for staying put.

(Emphasis mine).

Movers are far less likely to cite those kinds of ties. Fewer than four-in-ten say a major reason they moved to their current community has to do with family or child-rearing. Most movers have five or fewer extended-family members living within an hour’s drive of them, and 26% have none. The most popular reason that movers choose a new community, selected by a 44% plurality, is job or business opportunities, according to the Pew survey. About the same share of stayers (40%) cite job or business opportunities as a major reason for staying, but far more stayers choose reasons related to family and friends.

(Again, emphasis mine).

… Or Where The Mouse Is?

Where one feels at home certainly has to do with people and community – a sense of belonging. Which is why, as I continued to think about it, I realized that I feel at home in several places. This is not only due to the people I’ve met and relationships I’ve made, but because I stay connected to them through my mouse.

I keep up with them on Facebook and certainly via e-mail. And increasingly, my online home is Twitter, where I make new connections with fascinating people every day, taking offline relationships online and vice versa. Apparently there are quite a few people around the world who are interested in what I’m thinking about, in 140 characters or less, most of whom I’ve never met “IRL.”

That goes for me too. Because of the engagement I experience online, I’m fairly certain that should I experience another physical move, this community will help me root myself offline, to the point where I begin to feel at home – wherever I may be.

How Is This Relevant to PR?

One of the fundamentals of good PR is knowing your audience. And a key element of that is having an understanding of which media they consume, and which they don’t; where they like to get their information from. In other words – where they feel at home.

The media landscape is changing dramatically; today’s shuttering of the Rocky Mountain News has been drawing national attention. Will other traditional media stalwarts, such as the San Francisco Chronicle, follow suit? We’ll have to wait and see. What we know is that consumers have more choices than ever before, and the media outlets they call home – both traditional and “new” – are growing exponentially.

Let’s forget about the media for a second.

Consider the data from Pew’s Internet & American Life Project December 2008 survey:

Over half of the adult internet population is between 18 and 44 years old. But larger percentages of older generations are online now than in the past, and they are doing more activities online, according to surveys taken from 2006-2008.

Contrary to the image of Generation Y as the “Net Generation,” internet users in their 20s do not dominate every aspect of online life. Generation X is the most likely group to bank, shop, and look for health information online. Boomers are just as likely as Generation Y to make travel reservations online. And even Silent Generation internet users are competitive when it comes to email (although teens might point out that this is proof that email is for old people).

The Bottom Line

You may be an excellent PR professional who is not a Twitter devotee, Facebook junkie, or a fan of the countless online mechanisms that, for want of a better term, we call social media tools; and you are perfectly within your rights to remain so.

But as Internet users increasingly span generations, as millenials grow into their roles as business leaders and decision makers, I suspect you might be doing your employers or clients – and most of all yourself – a disservice if you don’t at least familiarize yourself with the online channels that help people meet, talk, work and grow – and where they feel at home.

Maybe, just maybe, home is where the mouse is.

What do you think? Where do you feel at home? Please share your thoughts and perspectives; I’d love to hear them.

Images: Pew Research Center

Recruiters: PR Also Means “People Relations”

Yesterday I received one of the most unusual calls in recent memory. It was from a recruiter with Profiles, who’d presented me for a position here in DC several months ago. Times are bad, hiring is slow; still, the process with this particular position has been dragging on for several months now.

When my path first crossed that of this recruiter, I made it clear to her that I didn’t expect her to “get me” this job; but what I did ask for was for whatever the final decision was to be communicated to me. I’ve encountered some recruiters who don’t do that, and there is nothing more off-putting than not knowing where you stand. As Rachel a.k.a. Jennifer Aniston said, “That, my friend, is what they call ‘closure’.”

Well, this recruiter walks the talk. While I have no idea whether we’re anywhere near the finish line, she has consistently kept in touch with me to try to keep me engaged. She follows up regularly with the hiring organization, and lets me know what their response has been. And when they do make their final decision, I know she will communicate it – whatever it is – to me.

For someone who’s not working for me, as Lindsay Olson explains in this excellent post, I call that pretty good “people relations.” Good people relations is something that not just PR professionals, but everyone, should aspire to – including recruiters.

Recruiter Horror Stories

We’ve all heard the horror stories about job candidates. Ad nauseam, I might add. But what about the recruiter horror stories?

Apparently there are quite a few, as my Twitter network told me:

Jason Buck “had an ‘interesting’ experience at temp agency party, where one very drunk recruiter told me exactly what she wanted from me, in earshot of all… I won a bottle of champagne at the next party for being ‘the most adaptable temp.’ ”

Another (whose identity is concealed on request) had this experience:

1. Brought me in to interview in October – seemed positive
2. Sent writing sample, never heard back
3. The main recruiter left – still hadn’t heard back
4. Move to November, I got laid off
5. They had me come in to interview three times, and meet with about eight people
6. Never heard from them again – by then I was so put off I didn’t care anymore though

And one of my Facebook friends, who also requested to remain anonymous, went through 10 (yes, 10) interviews to join a global recruiting firm; discussed a possible niche practice with the COO; drove 100 miles through a snowstorm for the final (10th) interview only to be told she was “more concerned with moving up the ladder than learning the ropes of the  business.” Her subsequent emails and phone calls were not returned.

The Bottom Line

No, job candidates should not chew gum or eat brownies during interviews. They should present themselves professionally, and follow up diligently and politely. And they should not expect recruiters to work for them – that is certainly not the way it works (though often good recruiters will give candidates tips and an insight into the recruiting process, as Lindsay and several others do).

But candidates can expect recruiters to work with them, and afford them the same courtesies they would like to see returned. After all, job hunters are people too. And when the economy turns, these same candidates, who are beating down every door they can see right now, might just be in a position to do someone a favor.

It’s called good people relations.

What do you think? Do you have tips for recruiters – or candidates – that you’d like to share?

Thanks to @KarenRussell, @jasonbuck and everyone else who contributed to this post.

Five Ways to Show Twitter Love

It’s a cliché. A “Hallmark holiday.” “Every day should be Valentine’s Day.”

Ever heard – or made – any of those remarks?

I confess; I have, and I think they have a ring of truth. But cliché or not, Valentine’s Day is a way – admitted, perhaps born of artifice and over-commercialized – to show one’s appreciation and affection to those who make your life better.

To me, that includes my Twitterverse. So, for those of you who have fallen in love with Twitter, here are five ways to show your Twitter love on Valentine’s Day:

1. Mr. Tweet is a great way to find interesting people to follow, depending on what your interests are. I like to follow those in my profession (public relations), writers, social media savants, IABC members and, sometimes, folks who are just downright interesting, funny and who would probably rear up at being categorized in any way.

Take it one step further and give back to those you follow by giving them a recommendation on Mr. Tweet; this will help others find them. It won’t cost you more than a click, and there are more than enough of those to go around.

2. Re-tweet… with credit. Just as bloggers get a charge out of comments on their posts, because they show engagement, it’s very satisfying to see something you tweeted about spread through re-tweets, especially when you didn’t ask for it. If you frequently re-tweet interesting posts, links or news – good for you.

Give credit where credit is due by adding the original Twitterer’s handle when you forward the update. TweetDeck and Twhirl make this easy to do; if you’re just getting started on Twitter and using the Web interface, copy and paste in the original update, precede it with “RT @<whoever>” and boom, you’re off.

3. #FollowFriday. Increasing Twitter followers seems to be the be all and end all for some. I can’t deny it’s satisfying to see one’s follower numbers go up, but what I personally get more satisfaction out of is the engagement, the conversations I have with other Twitterers.

A great way to pay it forward is to participate in Twitter events like #followfriday, where you recommend Twitter users to others. It helps if you explain why, e.g. “Foodies: @<whoever> #followfriday” and so on. Using the hashtag with no spaces between the two words will help others find them.

4. Engage. Speaking of engagement, one of the most remarkable things about social networking is the ability to talk to and get to know people you might never have come across otherwise in the “real” world. Whether you choose to follow everyone who follows you is up to you. But one of the nicest things you can do is respond when you are mentioned in tweets, or when someone sends you a message.

For example, yesterday I recommended Paisano on #followfriday, because his updates make me think, inform me and, sometimes, he’s just very funny. I was completely unprepared for him to write back and thank me; let’s face it, he’s a pretty influential Twitterer. When he did, I was impressed and, as a result, I will be following him even more closely now.

5. Go offline. Twitter is a wonderful way to get to know people online. As you develop those relationships, take them offline. Meet up for coffee, attend tweetups in your area… get to know the people behind those avatars. We live in a uniquely multi-dimensional world. Take advantage of it.

Those are my five ways to show Twitter love; I’m sure you have many more. Won’t you share them with me… and the love?

Happy Valentine’s Day.

Photo credit: ~Athena

Writing: PR’s Sleeper “R”

My foray into the U.S. public relations world dates back to 2000, when I had just moved to this country. Apparently “networking” was the way to go (in India we called it the “old boys’ club”) and, dutifully following the lead of more experienced professionals, I plunged myself into monthly meetings of the San Francisco Bay Area Publicity Club (which we fondly called “The Pub Club”).

Of all the characters – some offbeat, some extremely colorful – that I met, no one left a more lasting impression on me than “Mr. T.” I can’t remember his full name, but I do recall that his first name began with a “t,” was older than the average Pub Clubber (20-something), had worked primarily in Tech PR, and had recently been laid off (we’re talking late 2000/early 2001 here).

Mr. T said to me, “I can’t write, but I don’t think that’s important. I know how to do PR, and there are enough writers to go around.” (Or words to that effect.)

I remember being quite taken aback by that pronouncement. However, being a (fairly) well-brought up Bengali girl, I smiled politely and moved on to exchange pleasantries with the less-outré attendees at the event. But Mr. T’s words stayed with me. Every now and again, I wondered if he was right.

I don’t think so.

If you’re a journalist, author or successful blogger, you already know why.

PR professionals – especially those who are new to the industry – if you ever had doubts about the importance of being able to write well, consider:

Your communications with clients, the media and internal constituents invariably comprise a high volume of writing. How will you convince them of the validity of your plans, pitches or whatnot if you can’t express yourself well in the written medium?

We live in an age where short attention spans are not just the norm, they’re “ADOS,” as Peter Shankman famously describes himself. Lose your audience before your first paragraph is complete, and you risk the possibility of losing their attention for good.

We are trying to survive through a time of record job losses and the fear and self-questioning that accompany them. If ever there was a time to showcase the diversity of your talents, it is now.

Getting Started on Writing Well

Being able to write beautifully may be a gift, but being able to write well – both succinctly as well as with meaning – can be learned. Here are just a few ways:

Give yourself a précis exercise. One of the most useful high school English classes I had to go through was “précis,” or the practice of distilling several, often long-winded, paragraphs, into a finite number of words without losing the essence of the original writing. Try it: create a table in Microsoft Excel of “x” number of cells, and allow yourself no more than one word in each cell (punctuation marks can be included after a word). How good are your compression skills?

If you haven’t already jumped on the bandwagon, get thee on Twitter. What better exercise in expressing yourself succinctly than in being restricted to 140 characters?

Capture your soundbites. While this word may have been bequeathed to us by audio-visual media, there is nothing more potent than a catchy phrase that rolls off the tongue, that not only captures the essence of what you’re trying to say, but can be used across many mediums, be they press releases, op-eds, or messaging documents.

You may be well ahead of me and, if so, please do share your tips. If you’re still trying to figure out the skills you need to hone as a public relations professional, though, don’t dismiss the ability to write well.

It might make the difference between being – well, Mr. T and you.

Image courtesy Debbie Ridpath Ohi.

What Makes a Mentor?

About a month ago, I saw a tweet from Shel Holtz, ABC, that piqued my curiosity:

Not one to bridle said curiosity, I followed the link Shel provided and immediately signed up for the Mentorship Connection. Again, almost immediately, I was told (via e-mail) that I had been matched with a willing mentee: Nick Lucido – and now it was up to the two of us to connect and figure out how I could help Nick move towards his PR career goals.

What Nick and I have in common are a passion for smart PR and the desire to give back to the broader PR community by being actively involved in it. Thanks to the similarity in our natures, it took the two of us almost a month to speak via telephone this past Friday (though we’ve been corresponding via e-mail and Twitter since we were put in touch). I was struck by his drive and conviction – how many of us knew while still in high school that PR was our chosen path? – but most of all, by his willingness to extend himself along paths unknown.

What Makes a Mentor?

About a week after I saw Shel’s tweet, Kami Huyse wrote an insightful post on why mentors are vital to the development of one’s career. I’ve had many friends, colleagues and supporters who have helped me over the years, and I hope there will be many more.

But as I read Kami’s post, it reminded me of the mentors who have – perhaps without knowing it – been instrumental in helping me navigate my career and grow into my PR shoes. John Mason, one of the most visionary educators this world has seen, was an early mentor; since I moved to the U.S., I can never repay the kindnesses my first boss, Charly Zukow, and measurement queen Katie Paine have shown me. More than kindness, though, they exemplify the dictionary definition of a mentor:

What John, Charly and Katie have even more in common is that – at least from my point of view – they didn’t come to me and say, “Hey, I’m going to mentor you.”

What they did, instead, was lead by example, letting me know their respective doors were always open. They recognized potential that I did not, and armed me with the confidence to plumb that potential. They steered me towards taking on ever-increasing challenges that, when I succeeded, showed me possibilities I didn’t even know existed. And when I failed – because we all do – they let me lick my wounds but, before long, picked me up, dusted me off and set me back on track.

What John, Charly and Katie have in common is that they earned the title of mentor. And whether they know it or not – or like it or not – they will always be my mentors.

If I can do even one-tenth for Nick of what has been done for me, I will count myself fortunate. And perhaps then I’ll earn the title of being his mentor.

What about you? How have your mentors inspired you and earned your trust? I’d love to know your thoughts.

Why Little Things Matter

Today, I’m sending you away from my blog – yes, you read that right – to read my guest post on “Communication Overtones.”

As you know, that’s written by the brilliant, perceptive and generous Kami Huyse, and I am honored to be one of several guest-bloggers visiting with her over the next few days. I had a tough act to follow in Lauren Vargas, and her guest post, along with several conversations I’ve had on Twitter recently, led to mine: why PR should sweat the small stuff.

I do hope you will let us know what you think. Come back and visit with me soon, won’t you?

Is Your PR Better Than Broccoli?

Ode to Brassica

PR lessons can come from the strangest places. Now, I’m not going to create a laundry list, but as I was cooking dinner last night, the broccoli florets that I was steaming looked me square in the face and said: “Is your PR as good as we are?”

At first glance, broccoli’s a pretty unprepossessing vegetable. Its scientific name, brassica oleracea, is enough to give one hiccups. It’s not elegant or neat, like asparagus. And its color, while not unpleasing, doesn’t exactly shout out for attention, like that of a tomato.

Yet broccoli’s one of the most popular vegetables in the world today. Why? Because it’s easy to cook and is packed full of nutrients. You don’t have to do much to broccoli to derive its benefits. It’s not hard to find, deeply satisfying and delivers its goods quickly and directly. Broccoli simply – is.

Good PR’s much like broccoli.

Think about it. Good PR doesn’t get lost in semantics, and can work without the bells and whistles we so often want to dress it up in. It focuses on measurable objectives and outcomes, rather than hiding behind outputs. And it adapts to the changing needs, and technologies, of our times.

With new buzz words and phrases being born every day, perhaps it’s time to go back to the basics, and remember what PR is really about, and what takes it from average to good or, even better, great.

So, is your PR better than broccoli?

Through a Lens, Richly

Communicators: how do you use your lens to impact the world?

While channel-surfing a couple of years ago, I came across the documentary “Born into Brothels.” Having been born and brought up in Calcutta (now Kolkata), I was instantly captivated by the story. More than that, I was touched by Zana Briski’s commitment to these children born, through no fault of their own, on the wrong side of the street; and her covenant to open their eyes and bring them the riches of hope – through a camera lens.

The original Kids with Cameras. Source: Kids with Cameras

The Communicator’s Lens

When “Slumdog Millionaire” swept last week’s Golden Globes, I was reminded of the “kids with cameras,” and the power an image has to convey what, often, 516 words cannot. That is the essence of what we, as communicators, should aspire to, isn’t it? To convey a message to our audiences in such an efficient and impactful way that they are moved to action, enabling our clients or organizations to achieve their goals.

As communicators, we each have a unique lens through which we reach out to, and touch, the world.

Just in the last several days, I have come across many passionate communications professionals putting their networks to work for the greater good. Take Beth Kanter, who raised more than $3,500 for the Sharing Foundation which helps kids in Cambodia. Or Danny Brown, who’s initiated the incredible 12 for 12K campaign. You need look no further than your e-mail inbox, Twitterstream or Facebook friends to find countless examples of how an image – coupled with the power of connection – can change lives forever.

As my tribe that has overwhelmed me with birthday wishes today, I’m asking you to use the power of your lens to make a difference for the kids with cameras. You can:

• Join the Facebook group for Kids with Cameras. (We can’t donate to them via Facebook right now, but we’ll find a way to help them.)
• Donate whatever you can – whether it’s $5 or $50, directly to Kids with Cameras. If you’re clicking through from this post, please select “Hope House,” since Avijit is already in the U.S. If you’d like to make the donation in someone else’s name, just check that box (and if you want to make it in mine, I’d be more honored than I can tell you; just make a note of that in your comment below so that I can send you my email address).
• If the amounts in option #2 above don’t work for you, you can make a donation of whatever amount is comfortable for you by either calling or emailing them a check.
• If you’re unable to donate or join the Facebook group (I know it’s a tough time) but would still like to help, just send me a note. We’ll find a way to put our talents to work for them.
• If this cause touches you, please tell your family, friends and colleagues about it. Spreading the word is the greatest power communicators have!

You can change the world through your lens. How you do it is up to you.

8 Letters, 60 Years, And A New Frontier

This is a story of how numbers and people intersect.

Yesterday was my mother’s 60th birthday. Since she lives 13 and a half hours ahead of me, I was up early to wish her. I typically log on to Twitter first thing in the morning, to catch up and generally confab with my “tweeps.” While I was doing this, I noticed a tweet discussing the fun one could have with a made-up hashtag like #SHTYMFM (Say Hi To Your Mother For Me).

I thought it would be fun to tweak that and ask people to wish my mother; she’s been grappling with the emotional roller coaster of officially retiring on her birthday from a long teaching career, while still a vibrant resource for her students. All they had to do was reply to me and include the hashtag #SHBTYMFM. (You don’t need me to spell that out, do you?)

I’ve experienced, over and over again, how generous “Twitterville” can be, but even I didn’t expect for 24 people, none of whom have ever met my mother, to wish her. That number includes a few who sent good wishes her way before I introduced the game, used #SHTYMFM as a hashtag, and one who sent her a virtual birthday cake.

My mother was touched and overwhelmed. She has also created a Twitter account. I don’t expect her to become a social media maven overnight, but I am excited that she is taking the plunge into what is, for her, a brand new frontier. On the other hand, she’s quite a remarkable woman, so I wouldn’t put anything past her. And to everyone who responded, again, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Eight letters flew my mother’s way from three different continents, spurring her to not consider 60 years as the end of her relevance, but as an opportunity to explore the limitless potential that awaits.

That’s the power of connection.

Point. Click. Connect.

Truth be told, I didn’t expect to be writing this post at this very minute; after all, one wants one’s first blog post to be slightly more than just “why I’m here” blather, doesn’t one? However, I was given so much help today in working out some WordPress kinks by Joe Perez of Zealous Marketing, it reminded me all over again of the power of connection that we, as communicators, possess.

Why do we do what we do? And by that I mean “public relations,” “social media,” whatever you want to call it… I’m going to call it “communications.” It’s not the easiest of lifestyles – one is often on call. And it certainly isn’t for the money, though of course there are those who have made a most lucrative business of it.

Well, I do it because I love being able to use my talents as a communicator to bring people together and figure out how to use communications to reach a shared goal, to achieve common objectives. It’s not always easy, since everyone doesn’t start out talking the same language at first. But it sure is fulfilling when we finally get there.

I believe – at least, I hope – that’s the reason most of us do it. Good communication enables powerful connection. And that connection can have a positive impact on lives at micro and macro levels which, in turn, can influence the way the world turns.

That power of connection blew me away today, when thanks to my Twitter community, I received expert help within minutes, and that was just for an issue I was having with this little blog (if you’ve been plagued by similar issues, by the way, check out Joe’s “Installing Google Analytics on WordPress” video). Imagine that power of connection at macro levels; what great possibilities lie within a communicator’s hands.

Point. Click. Connect. That’s all it takes.