Strive Notes

Well, that certainly trips off the tongue! I think my definition would be ‘SaaS + Unified Communications = Live Mesh.’

Click here to read the rest of this Tech Talk column.

1 Comment »
Filed under: Tech Talk

Image via Wikipedia

Here’s a review of my home that ran in today’s Independent:

A motorcycle circuit, a tax haven and what else?

The Isle of Man crams as much history, legend, scenic beauty, wildlife and folklore into its 227 square miles as whole regions of the British mainland. And its reputation as a haven of petrol-heads and sub-Blackpool boarding houses is entirely undeserved.

Elements of its two main towns, Douglas and Ramsey, notably the number of failed shops and businesses, suggest that the world has moved on and left it behind. But the island is re-modelling itself for the modern breed of active, ozone-seeking visitors who bring more to their holiday than a bucket and spade.

Click here to read the rest of the review from The Independent.

No Comments »
Filed under: public relations

My penultimate top 5 blog post for May!

1. The Truth About PR People is that We Often Tell the Truth. This blog is linked to a story from Ad week about a bogus blog in the USA. Students of Hunter College in New York invented a girl (Cee) who launched an online appeal for a missing bag. Sounds strange but the tactics used by the PR class have caused quit a stir. It’s really different to anything I have heard before and I found it a good read.

2. The message that stands out from ‘Five Thoughts on The Future of Public Relations’ is that although change is scary, PR agencies unwilling to embrace it will ultimately be squashed by it.

3. This is a post I definitely agree with. If journalists experienced things from a PR angle and realised what working in PR meant, I think it would work wonders for their journalistic future. Great idea.

4. This is something I read today and thought huraahh! I wrote a blog post just the other day about manners in PR (well the media in general) and I think stories like this reflect exactly what I mean. My post has been slightly misconstrued but my underlying point is that no amount of good PR tricks, marketing and expertise can replace simple good customer services and manners. People you interact with deserve and expect your respect and only when you give it will you receive it back. Like Catriona says ‘they [PR, marketing and customer service] go hand in hand’ or at least they should.

5. First of all I find the amount of people studying PR at Leeds Metropolitan University and writing blogs astounding. That course is making a lot of noise and looks like it’s getting more and more popular by the day. Anyway, like Lizzy says, PR can be applied anywhere but there is a difference between flyering and working in an agency. I’d say you need the qualifications to work in a professional agency, and you will benefit from them greatly. Just because you work in Burger King does that make you a chef? In any profession there are levels and the better your experiences and qualifications the better you will ultimately do!

2 Comments »
Filed under: public relations

Image via Wikipedia

MySpace has more than 200 million registered users worldwide and has claimed to be the driving force behind many cultural phenomena such as Lily Allen, the Arctic Monkeys and Enter Shikari.

Also, there are a lot of ‘established stars’ who have started MySpace blogs in an effort to keep themselves in the public eye.

Canadian legends William Shatner and Neil Young are both on MySpace as are TV personalities Ellen Degeneres and Will Farrell along with hundreds of other celebrities.

But now with the launch of HyperTargeting, the folks at MySpace are getting serious about opening up their network to marketers and for those companies looking to hit the youth consumer demographic, this is fantastic news.

Click here to read the rest of this Tech Talk column

No Comments »
Filed under: Tech Talk

Another month is gone already and summer is upon us. April was a great month at Strive Notes with the highest monthly traffic in almost a year.  Here are posts which had the most views:

5. Could OS provide the answer? This Tech Talk column looks at how two of the British political parties are striving ‘to own’ open source.

4. Twitter, tweeting and all things micro is another Tech Talk column where I explain the hows and whys of micro blogging.

3. The third Tech Talk column on this month’s list has to do with Internet addiction.  I am NOT an addict!

2. Deana asks, Why are all the bloggers dropping dead? in this popular post.

And finally,  the single most popular post for April 2008…

1. The Journo: Reg Crowder, a profile on one of my favourite freelancers.

Thanks to everyone who takes  the time to stop by Strive Notes. We are proud to part of your community.

No Comments »
Filed under: public relations

photo credit: karenchu121

You might have decided that social networks like Facebook are not relevant to your company. You might think that you don’t know enough about it to get involved. But here’s a story I heard yesterday, which explains why every company needs to take social networks seriously.

A young intern from our office was very excited about getting a second interview for a job a major global brand (a leader in animated movies and amusement parks). She put considerable effort and expense into trying for the job having taken a full day in preparing her application and having travelled to London twice for interviews, paying her own travel and hotel.  When she was called for the second interview we all were all excited for her.

She’d been sitting by the phone all week to hear if she got it or not. Then she saw her friend bragging about having won the plum position on Facebook. She’s naturally disappointed about not getting the job, but is actually outraged by the way she learned of it.

Not usually prone to strong language…she turned the air blue she was so upset that she was not informed personally and had to learn the news secondhand. She said, “How could  a company like XXX treat people this way?”

So the company’s reputation is damaged in this young woman’s eyes and those of the people around her. She has hundreds of Facebook friends, so her circle of influence is not insignificant.

This is just one small example of how companies need to be aware that dynamics of personal communication have been changed by online social media.  A few errors like this and negative messages could gain momentum.  Be careful!

2 Comments »
Filed under: public relations

I found myself blasting out an email to the team today to remind them of some fundamentals.  It occurred to me that I should wrap it into a blog post for future reference.

If the target publication is a broadsheet, a news release can have up to 500 words.  For a tabloid, keep it to 300 or 400 words at a push.

For trade or technical media you can let it run up to 800 words if there is a lot of technical information that you need to include.

Sometimes a client wants to include all kinds of historical information that isn’t directly related to the story.  Counter this by putting it in the notes to editors.

Remember a news release is a door opener.  It’s a tool to start a conversation.

You are not Tolstoy. You should not attempt War And Peace.

5 Comments »
Filed under: public relations

photo credit: falsalama

This represents an annual growth rate of 43 per cent. But Forrester believes the sector may begin to dwindle in five years’ time.

This is hardly crystal ball stuff. Five years is two lifetimes in the world of technology, so saying things might drop off is hardly a risky prediction. Click here to read the rest of this Tech Talk column.

No Comments »
Filed under: Tech Talk

photo credit: albertini

Jo is off until next week. Until then you’re stuck with my PR top 5. Enjoy!

1. Leo suggests that you shouldn’t take notes during a meeting so that you free your mind to truly listen to the discussion. I’m not so sure.  I can’t remember a single thing after five minutes if I don’t write it down.  Maybe the solution is to bring someone to take notes, or tape the conversation.

2. Both Sally and Heather got personal on their blogs this week.  It’s posts like these that give the reader insight into the person behind the blogs and makes them unique.  Thank you both for the honesty and for sharing your private lives with us.

3.  Morgan McLintic explains the merits of keeping timesheets.  Strivers please take note.

4.  Dan York and Sallie Goetsch guest hosted FIR The Hobson and Holtz report.  They did a good job but I missed Neville and Shel. Their personalities are fundamental to the show’s appeal.

5. Peter Wilby continues his brilliant  Brass Tacks series with # 14…Offer them a chance to interview. It’s an excellent tactic to meet the needs of each reporter.

6.  Okay.  Okay.  I know a top 5 should end at 5, but this week I just can’t help myself…there’s so much good stuff out there.  Here Seth Godin explains why quality, not quantity, is important when it comes to website traffic.

7.  On Word Wise, Dan Santow regularly reminds us of all the basics of English grammar. In this post he discussed the collective noun, something that I find many Britons fail to understand.  It’s ‘the company is’ people! Not ‘the company are’.  Get it right, already!

3 Comments »
Filed under: public relations

Image via Wikipedia

PR people are seen to be liars. This is the finding of a survey conducted by Ciao Surveys and reported by Roy Greenslade on his Guardian blog.

According to the survey 60.3% of people in Britain believe that PR officers often lie, while only 3.3% are convinced of the opposite.

Why do we get such a bad rap? I suspect it’s those of our colleagues who work in high profile politics. Yesterday’s Telegraph tells us how Gordon Brown’s spending on spin hits £1.75 million. And Hollywood does us no favours with Wag the Dog and Thank You For Smoking.

Not to mention TV comedies Absolutely Fabulous and Absolute Power.

What we never see portrayed are the hard working communications professionals that have been my colleagues these past 17 years. Where are the stories about those who work 15 hours a day on software launch campaigns? Let’s have a TV series about the PR department of a local telecoms provider.

Too boring you say? Try living it!

Are PR people professional liars? Absolutely not. There are at least two sides to every story. Our job is to make sure our side of the story is known, that’s it.

Perhaps it’s time the CIPR did something proactive about these negative perceptions?

HAT TIP: Pudding Relations and India PR Blog.

Other Strive Notes on this subject:

• PR: the lying profession?

3 Comments »
Filed under: public relations

photo credit: bryanpearson

While I am not usually one to comment about the right and wrong ways to pitch a story, Brian Solis’ post about Five Wrong Ways to Pitch RWW and One Great Way, really started the old cogs whirling.

Marshall Kirkpatrick explains the ways to increase chances of getting written about on ReadWriteWeb and other tech blogs.

The ‘no nos’ seem self-explanatory - make sure you send the pitch to the correct email address. Phone calls; some people love them others hate them. This is true with many contacts on my own hit lists and knowing the preference is part of building positive relationships.

I was more interested in the idea of using social media such as on Twitter, Facebook and IM to pitch jounros. I certainly remember 10 years back, spending hours printing, addressing, enveloping and franking stacks of press releases. However, as time moved on, electronic press releases took over, and now developments are moving on to using social media tools and RSS feeds get information to journalists.

Personally, I am drawn to the RSS feed idea, but we will be missing some really important opportunities for our clients if we limit ourselves. It’s all well and good for these guys to rant on (present company excluded, Marshal). But really, how are we to keep up with which Web 2.0 format each individual requires when trends are moving faster than a March Hare?

I understand that Journalists have countless PR companies offering them the ‘next best story’, but please spare a thought for PR guys and girls who have a diverse cross-section of clients in their portfolios. It’s not out of ignorance we use email or phone, we are just trying to get the information to right hands. How on Earth can we be expected to keep up with each individual’s preferences on the latest fads?

So please don’t ‘dis’ me for emailing or phoning. Perhaps you could keep us PRs up to date by putting your current preference in an automated email response?

No Comments »
Filed under: public relations

Regular readers of Strive Notes will know that I write a weekly column in the Isle of Man Examiner. It’s called Tech Talk and I focus on general technology sector news and information.  On occasion local companies contact me with their news and if I think the story is interesting enough I’ll write about it. Yesterday this note hit my email box:

Hi Sherrilynne,

As the PR agency for X Company, someone has informed us that you are always looking for ideas for your column in Business News.  If ok with you, we have a few ideas that we would like to write about specifically for your column as well as a few articles we have written in the past on topics such as XXX and their XXX for you to use as you see fit.

As I’m sure you are not likely to use these in their full form, but edit them as you see fit, I would ask that because these have all been approved in their final form by our client that you run the final version of what you plan to publish by us first, if and when you decide to use anything.  This is just so that we can make sure their message is kept consistent, as I’m sure you understand.

Please let me know if this is ok with you, and if interested, we will send a few past articles through and work out a plan where we supply you with an article on a new topic regularly (maybe once a month or so).  Let me know your thoughts.

Thanks.

Kind regards,

Ms PR Professional

Ok so, putting aside the fact that the writer’s grasp of the English language is suspect undermining the service being offered, let’s look a bit closer at what is being proposed.

First of all someone told her that a newspaper columnist needs ideas?  This seems like pretty basic assumption for even newest of PRs.

Then, she’d like to write my column for me?  This indicates a lack of understanding of the very fundamentals of journalism:  A column is a recurring piece or article in a newspaper, magazine or other publication. What differentiates a column from other forms of journalism is that it meets each of the following criteria:

• It is a regular feature in a publication
• It is personality-driven by the author
• It explicitly contains an opinion or point of view

To propose to write my column on my behalf would be insulting if it wasn’t so laughably amateur.  And to offer it not once, but regularly, monthly even, hilarious.

To ask to see my copy before it’s published?  Erm the only response I can think of is ‘Foxtrot Oscar!’  How could anyone who calls themselves a media professional ask such a thing?

When I read this pitch I laughed so hard I fell off my chair.  When I picked myself up I realised I have a moral dilemma.  Should I let this PR’s boss know that she sends out pitches like this?  Should I let their client know how they are being represented?  What would you do?

No Comments »
Filed under: public relations

My daughter in Canada just sent me a link to a story about the Ottawa mayor getting all hot under the collar about a blog post. Her friend Darren loves to poke fun at politicians on his Apply Liberally blog.

Apparently blogger Darren McEwen had written a post accusing the mayor of misleading tax payers; the mayor’s son, Michael, who is in his 20s, took exception and left a comment.

When asked about it by a CBC reporter, the mayor cut short the interview and threatened to erase the journalist’s tape. The thing is, he’d agreed to the interview to discuss the blog site and only got steamed when his son was mentioned.

Here’s my question: should he be upset with the reporter for asking the question or with his own son for making the comment? Now the story’s got momentum with much blogosphere and high profile mainstream media coverage.

It’s a case study on how not to handle a media interview, how not to handle blogger relationships, and how not to handle family relationships.

Too too funny!

UPDATE:  FlackLife has a thorough analysis of Mayor O’Brien’s performance.  And check out YouTube for a summary with audio of the interview.

No Comments »
Filed under: public relations

Another blog from Jo of this week’s top five.

1. The PR Rolodex Myth, PR agencies being hired based on their client relationships.. I’d never heard of it but it makes sense. However, I think the list speaks volumes, a relationship with a journalist may get your phone call answered or your email replied to but if it’s a bad pitch without a proper news angle then that relationship is irrelevant!

photo credit: holeymoon

2. This post made me laugh apparently it’s the ‘World’s New Worst PR Email’. It gives me a little more confidence about the press releases and emails I write.  Sure enough I’ve never heard of this band… strange that??

3. I have to say I agree with this but I also wondered why it took a poll to tell us. I would have bet money on it too, it’s common sense. People go to blogs for a lot of things.  When I am travelling I make sure I’ve done my online research first, but if a real life friend or family member advises me against it why would I ignore them and believe the blog?

4. DELETED BY EDITOR.

5. I included this because I heard about it on the radio a few weeks ago and I have to say I was appalled by it too. If this is what magazines rate as ugly, what chance do the rest of us have? -Poor Sarah Jessica Parker!

1 Comment »
Filed under: public relations