PR from the Bathroom

15 07 2008

Not quite sure what it is about toilets and PR, but for some reason, some of the more interesting examples of PR seem to come from the lavatory (here too).

Maybe it’s the intimacy of the situation. I’ve said it before, online technology provides the intimacy organizations/groups/etc. seek in creating relationships with strategic publics. What better intimacy than sharing the personal confines of the organizational “throne”…as the Rock Group, Barenaked Ladies, have demonstrated quite well in a new PR campaign on YouTube:

Here, Ed Roberts of the Barenaked Ladies fame, records and distributes through YouTube, low-budget, seemingly webcam quality, songs produced in the bathroom.

Simply Brilliant.

The value of intimacy, sacrificing perfectly honed, crafted, and designed productions in favor of imperfect and seemingly unrehearsed productions in order to relate to publics, is so underappreciated in PR discussions. The producers of The Blair Witch project discovered this value over a decade ago, when they produced a low-budget film that attained cult classic status because of the raw artform it used.

Videos like the one above by BNL represent PR as art, rather than science, and a real understanding of an organization’s public (in this case, the fans, who crave an insider, up-close-and-personal access to the band). This raw viral video form also depicts an organization as human, an organization that makes mistakes…and thus, an organization that is more real (which might entail posting bloopers, which BNL also does on YouTube).


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Categories : Miscellaneous Ramblings, New Media, Public Relations

Guerrilla PR? Bledcom 2008

9 07 2008

I spent the weekend in Slovenia, speaking at the Bledcom 2008 Conference where the theme was Integrated Marketing Communication, exploring the relationship between Marketing and PR in Integrated Marketing Communication. I was lucky enough to be a part of one of the more controversial panels.

IMC Panel at Bledcom in Slovenia: L-R: Dejan Vercic, Me, Paul Willis and Ralph Trench

Quick background: There is an established discontent between Marketing and PR…and this clash is amplified in the Academic World. Many scholars are concerned that Marketing will threaten the credibility of PR and sorely limit what PR is to merely publicity and promotion.

So, I have to admit, I’m not surprised that the panel I was on was so controversial.

I spoke on PR in marketing mix modeling, and how organizations are evaluating PR activities against sales…often considered a no-no, because PR’s value transcends superficial sales figures (a point I agree with to some extent, though I don’t agree with scholars who think you can’t connect relationships with revenue).

Two other presentations on the same panel were even more intriguing (read: controversial).

Dejan Vercic and his wife Ana Vercic set out to prove that an Editorial has more impact on consumers than an Ad…only to find that the difference is negligible. (I was actually shocked by this…in an age when Advertising is supposed to be dead, you’d think editorials would carry serious credibility…)

But perhaps the most heated debate came from a presentation by Ralph Trench and Paul Willis from Leeds, UK…on public relations’ inclusion in guerrilla marketing.  Ethics in PR is a huge deal…as it should be, but the word “ethics” in PR often gets translated into transparency. When Trench and Willis discussed some successful PR campaigns where a leading alcohol manufacturer created a new brand and used guerrilla PR techniques to get the word out (i.e. not being up front about the parent company), some in the audience were more than a little upset. One raised her hand and said she would teach her PR students to ignore such tactics (I guess she’s never heard of P&G, who don’t put their name prominently on ANY of their products).

Now…I do believe in ethical  PR. I believe in transparency, too. But teaching students to ignore such tactics only makes the problem worse…because when they get into the work force, they’ll be under-skilled (PR is quite often used behind the scenes in a “guerrilla” fashion to create hip and trendy brands) and, students won’t have a clue how to manage viable communications tactics like Guerrilla Marketing.


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Categories : Marketing and Branding, Public Relations, Relationship Management

Rochambeau and Internet News

23 06 2008

For the past few weeks I have been doing some in-depth research on technology and journalism, and one thing I have concluded is that online technology is requires a new approach to journalism–one that gets the audience involved. It’s a reader-experienced based model–no more of the age-old rhetoric: “Just the facts mam.”

Now, news is emotional. News is personal. News is a story in the dramatic sense….in other words, it’s nothing like the AP report I found online today on the Rock Paper Scissors championship in Las Vegas.

http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/up/player/popup/index.php?cl=8432301

After watching this clip, I thought: That’s it? What about the experience? What happens there? So many questions of curiosity. And then I was struck by just how badly journalists blow it by sticking to the traditional model. And intuition tells me, a good majority of journalists are still blowing it.


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Categories : Communication and Meaning, Miscellaneous Ramblings, New Media

Afraid of Transparency?

15 06 2008

David Stern

I’ve blogged on this topic before, but since I’m an avid NBA fan, I can’t help but touch on the ongoing NBA controversy. David Stern seems adamant on toeing the line on his stance on officiating in NBA games: Rule number 1) the Referees may be human, but they are always right 2) If any doubt arises, refer to rule number 1. It’s almost as if the Commisar (I like that title for Stern better than Commish) is putting everything on the integrity of his refs. And for a sport that is SO influenced by officiating (Curt Schilling in his blog of Game 2 of the finals said refs determine the game more than any other sport), this may make sense…or does it?

Tim Donaghy, the referee who reportedly bet on NBA games he officiated, came out this week claiming other NBA games were fixed…Stern’s reaction? Donaghy’s just a convicted felon taking everyone he can down with him to save himself. It’s almost as if Stern is afraid of being open and upfront with his most important public: the NBA fan. As more and more allegations come out reinforcing suspicions by NBA fans, Stern continues to toe the line. Maybe it’s time for the NBA to open up to the fans and not only allow NBA scrutiny, but openly discuss the league’s own scrutiny of its refs. If nothing else has been learned about communication technology in 21st century business–the most important lesson is this: The public WILL be informed whether you like it or not, it’s up to you to decide who’s going to inform them. And in a transparency focused society, that informant had better be you, or you’re going to be staring down the barrel of a public relations disaster.


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Categories : Issues Management, New Media, Public Opinion and Influence, Public Relations, Reputation

What is PR and Why on Earth does it Matter?

11 06 2008

About a year ago, I was having a conversation with someone about my current academic endeavor. After telling this individual that I was currently working on my Ph.D., the following brief interaction took place:

Him: So, what are you getting your Ph.D. in?

Me: Public Relations

Him: Wow, you can get a Ph.D. in that now?

Needless to say, the conversation was short, but it made me think. I ignored his apparent ignorance on the value of a Ph.D. in PR (it’s one of the fastest growing needs at universities and organizations increasingly need research-proven individuals to help them manage this complex environment of public-organization interaction). Frankly, I’m used to responses like this (which is why I commonly say my Ph.D. is in Communication, which it is…), but the whole interaction has got me thinking…what does PR mean to everyone else. I’ve come up with 4 categorizations, two from the general public perspective, two from a business perspective…first the public

1. Public Relations is Spin. I can’t say how annoying it is to read this somewhere. It’s out-dated, it’s antiquated, and it’s usually something someone who has no idea what PR is says. In fact, such a person would call it PR and not public relations, as in, “that’s just PR”. At the same time, this is probably still a valid opinion…because some PR practitioner out there still thinks his or her job is about spinning stories in the company’s favor.

2. Public Relations is lip service. Seemingly related to point number one, this one has a point of departure, and that is in the way organizations actually RESPOND to the general pub’s concerns. On some level, yes, organizations use PR to pay lip service to what people want to hear, but on a slightly higher level, PR is, to the general public, the body that carries out socially responsible endeavors for the community.

Now…the business perspective…

3. Public Relations is Promotion: This perspective seems like the most common. Public relations is a disguised form of marketing, and comprises everything that the company does that is not paid for as or by advertising. For example, sponsoring an event, giving away some free product, or reaching out to blogs to sponsor contests. In other words, PR is marketing that seems like it’s more than just marketing.

4. Public Relations is Strategic Management: On higher business levels, PR is about strategic management of corporate image and reputation. It’s more than just branding, it’s working out the organization’s existence–and the legitimacy for its existence–in the global community. This part comprises everything from gathering reputation issues, listening to customers and activist groups alike, and then advocating the interests of the public to the organization, and that of the organization to the public. At this level, PR is total communication management, from issues management to crisis response to whatever fits in between.

And…now…one bonus point for good measure

5. Public Relations is building relationships with stakeholders, or people who affect or are affected by an organization’s decisions. This one is by far the most intriguing, because up until this point, this seems like a very academic (read: unaccessible) definition of public relations. For those of us in the Ivy Towers, this makes sense. Yes, PR is for building relationships…there you have it! But practically speaking, what does it entail? What does it preclude? Can you really hire someone and say, “Welcome to the PR position…now, go build relationships with people who affect or are affected by our decisions!”? Not really. Now, there are plenty of studies revealing what goes into building relationships, but as of yet, it seems like there is no set of practical guidelines or instructions for a new PR person to jump in and start working (at least, in the same way that “PR practitioner as news provider and press release writer” has).

Now, my rambling is done…but, when all is said and done, I think PR Research has to go further than just saying, “It’s about building relationships” we have to establish standard operating procedures.


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Categories : Marketing and Branding, Miscellaneous Ramblings, New Media, Public Relations, Relationship Management, Reputation

Instant Academic

31 05 2008

You may or may not know, but I’m launching into my Summer of Horror…in September, I’ll be taking my comprehensive exams for my Ph.D. program in Communication/PR. So, that means I’ll be reading like a mad man all Summer long, taking notes, burying myself in my office, growing a beard…ok, maybe not that last one.

In commemoration of this “joyous” time, I’ll be posting regularly…Yeah I know, shocking. But hear me out…

I’ll making regular weekly posts on the subjects that I’m studying, particularly: Public Relations, Marketing, Branding, Qualitative Research, Global Public Relations, and New Media. In the Academic world, we live and die by endless “literature reviews” that comprise far too many pages, and are usually quite boring to read…I’ll be posting these mini-lit reviews on this blog…

Rest assured, they’ll be “Cliff’s Notes” of my Ph.D. program…read it, enjoy it, and have fun studying for my comps with me!


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Categories : Communication and Meaning, Issues Management, Marketing and Branding, Miscellaneous Ramblings, New Media, Public Opinion and Influence, Public Relations, Relationship Management, Reputation

A little self-promotion isn’t a bad thing, right?

30 05 2008

I recently presented a paper on Public Relations, Branding, and Marketing at the International Communication Association in Montreal. The paper won the prestigious Plank Top Student Award.

I’m pretty excited about the award for more than just getting the extra money…It reaffirms that my area of concentration in my research is a valuable area. Public Relations and Marketing are increasingly intertwined professionally, presenting several challenges for both the academic side of the industry, as well as the professional.


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Categories : Marketing and Branding, Public Relations

A Modest (Book) Proposal

3 04 2008

images.jpg

So, my wife Staci is really into reading. She loves sitting down with a good book. Jane Austen is usually the preference, or anything similar (she’s really into Stephenie Myer’s Twilight Books), though she’s been branching out lately. And we’ve come across an interesting situation. Being conservative and religious, we’re finding reading isn’t as “safe” as it used to be. In particular, she’s finding some of the books that are highly recommended, have sexually explicit material.  It’s hard to pick out a book and get a sense for the kind of content you’re going to come up with. Even in Harry Potter books, you would come across some explicit language.

So, my wife came up with this idea: Books should have a rating system. Movies have it. TV has it now. Even video games have it. Music at least warns you of explicit material. Why not books? They’re considered entertainment media, right?

So why is this on this blog? Well, it’s always my endeavor to define PR, and I think this is PR. The first book publisher to offer a rating system, is the first book publisher to show that it really does value its readers. Public relations is about creating a relationship with publics who are affected by or who affect organizational decisions. And readers are probably the most important public a publisher can focus on.

This is going beyond getting book reviews at the NY Times and sending out press releases about a new book release, this is creating a relationship of trust with your readers that says, I know your interests go deeper than reading a story. You have values, morals, and interests that we value. The first book publisher to do this will be the first book publisher to branch out from PR as promotion to PR as strategic relationship management…and…

The first book publisher to do this should be the first book publisher to thank my wife in the acknowledgments section of the book. 


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Categories : Miscellaneous Ramblings, Public Relations, Relationship Management

Calling all Bloggers

2 04 2008

So, the fun of being in Academia is my life is defined by the research I do. Currently, I’m doing a rather large study on blogger opinions of PR people, and the idea of companies approaching bloggers for publicity on their blogs. I’m looking for any range of blogger who has experience with or opinions on (mostly experience with) public relations people regarding their blogs.

If you have time for a quick interview, either comment to this post with your email, or drop me an email at squirrelzipper at yahoo dot com.


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Categories : Miscellaneous Ramblings

The NBA: Where PR happens

20 03 2008

top-20-players-in-the-nba-20060428032925044.jpg

By now, you probably know that I’m a huge NBA fanatic…

Reading some headlines, I came across a bit of news that’s a good example of how PR is more than just working with the media to get a press release out.

The New Orleans Hornets recently launched a new website to promote their star PG, Chris Paul, as the MVP this year. I don’t think he has a chance, frankly…Kobe is the MVP this year (and yes, I know I’m biased). But I like the PR implications here. First, you have to ask yourself, who is the public here? The fans don’t vote for the MVP, the NBA writers do, and the last few years, the choice certainly hasn’t been influenced by public opinion (Steve Nash 2 years in a row and then Dirk Nowitzki were anything but consensus public picks.) So the “public” here isn’t the traditional public you’d think of…but the NBA writers.  Second, you have to love the creativity here. Promoting someone within the organization (albeit a superstar NBA player) through an online campaign that’s sure to get some buzz (oops, I think I already did that).

But we don’t stop there, folks. The fan may not be the main audience here, but they’re certainly “activating” the fan…inviting them to post videos explaining why Paul should be the MVP. Viral video is emerging as one of PR’s biggest “weapons,” and this is yet another example.

So, you kill 2 birds with one stone here…you try to influence a particular strategic public (the NBA writers) AND you get another key public (the fan) involved as well.

My hat goes off to the Hornets here….even if Paul doesn’t win the MVP (that honor will go to Kobe).


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Categories : Marketing and Branding, New Media, Public Opinion and Influence, Public Relations

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