Washington Women in Public Relations Executive Communicators Committee Brown Bag Luncheon with Johna Burke, Senior Vice President, Marketing for BurrellesLuce

Addressing a packed room on May 19 at Golin Harris in Arlington, VA, Johna Burke, Senior Vice President, Marketing, BurrellesLuce, began her presentation by telling the group that according to CNBC.com, the second most stressful job is a public relations executive.

She sang the praises of EVERNOTE, an organizational app that allows the user to take notes from phones, desktops and online.  The notes can be text, images, files, audio and more and this app is searchable and cloud-based.  Other useful tools to consider: Username Check, Google Labs, Screengrab! (a Firefox plug-in) and twitthat.

“The more things change, the more they say the same,” said Johna when she reminded the attendees that AP was the first viral means of distributing information.  Today, hyperlocal is the new trend and includes print, online broadcast and hybrids (think tbd.com and Patch).  Hyperlocal initiatives are community – not geographically – based and great for niche targeting.

When building relationships with today’s media, communicators must:

• Understand if the journalist thinks like a print journalist, online journalist or MOJO
• KNOW the hot topics/memes and pitch around those themes
• Understand if your “story” is a story or PART of a story
• Have an online newsroom: Executive speeches sources of quotes
• Deconstruct tweets for influencers

Apply measurement best practices
Although no “fix” exists for overcoming measurement challenges, these helpful tips will help you find a solution that works with your measurement goals: Consistency, Manageable and Outside Expertise.

Johna warned the group about graphic seduction.  Although graphics can be very pretty and exciting, never use images you do not understand; sometimes all you need is an Excel spreadsheet. She also stressed the importance of knowing your stakeholders “no matter where they are,” with an example of an inmate in jail.

Barcelona principles
The second European Summit on Measurement met in Barcelona last year, where the participants agreed to basic PR measurement reasearch princples, known as the Barcelona Principles. Currently, a working group has used the principles to devise new, validated metrics.  WWPR members will have access to the exciting new system of metrics, as soon it is complete, probably in mid-June.

Kim Ash, WWPR Executive Communicators Chair, Speaker Johna Burke, BurrellesLuce, and Kendra Kojcsich, WWPR President

This week, I (Alison, that is), took part in a BurrellesLuce webinar titled “The 12 Essential Talents of Marketing Communications Leadership… and other Lessons Learned from Harry Potter.”

The program was moderated by Johna Burke and hosted by Alan Cohen, who actually worked on the initial promotion for the Harry Potter books in the United States.  

Some key insights I learned as a result:

• Kids can read! Kidding. But one of the main reasons I joined into this webinar was my absolute kudos that one literary phenomenon could prove that people do still, indeed, have imaginations.
• Who we are and what we’re made of is as much about choices as abilities. Even Dumbledore said so!
• Dumbledore is key. Turns out, almost every single talent is something Dumbledore does, not Harry, as I assumed when I signed up. I love a good twist in my webinars as well as my books.
• Social media is like Harry Potter wizardry (thanks to Johna for asking this question)! Everyone has a voice and has the power to influence and inspire – no wand required.
• Much like the evil Lord Voldemort at Hogwarts, there is a deadly character spreading around businesses – disengagement!

 And, of course, the 12 Essential Talents:

1. Acute awareness of self and others. Treat others as creative, trustworthy and responsible just as Harry did so many times with Hermione, and others…
2. Challenge perceptions and interpretations – Dumbledore was a great wizard but kept and open mind. Those scared of feedback make mistakes.
3. Think like a visionary. Help people see and touch your values. Be clear and concise. For Alan, his PR team shared a vision to make that book a success and saw everything as an opportunity. Gave them ability to constantly move forward
4. Creating alignment as it creates a North Star to set compasses by. Let small steps and victories, like winning a Quidditch match, keep you aligned toward the bigger goal.
5. Act decisively. Decision making is shared leadership quality. Make sure people have enough information so they can also make decisions. Share decision making!
6. Engage others! You do not do it alone. The more you serve the more impact you have on your team. Go deeper. Go under the stairs. Learn about people – you may have a Harry Potter in your midst
7. Possess powerful energy. Dumbledore looked about a million years old but was such a force, he was a great leader to all ages. Lord Voldemort had energy too, but it was intimidating and he lost in the end.
8. Emotional intelligence. It’s a bigger predictor of success than IQ! Create space between stimulus and response and remain calm as Dumbledore often did. Look at how you react versus how you want to react. Often, you need to just slow down a bit and ensure you are not leading with fear.
9. Communicate dynamically! It isn’t just about what you say, but how you say. And, it’s also about actually very much about listening – within and between the lines. Be present. Care. Try to understand. How do you use your words? Seek clarity.
10. See patterns and trends. Left brain is where verbal, rational thoughts turn to numbers and words. Right brain is all about the visual. Try using both sides – see the full story!
11. Create high-energy teams. You need your Harry’s, Ron’s and Hermione’s. Everyone has a gift. Everyone has weaknesses. Leverage the good stuff to fight the bad!
12. Display integrity through consistency and authority.

The white paper on the topic is also available by clicking here.

So, is Dumbledore the world’s greatest leader?

And how can you “Potterize” your leadership role among your friends, colleagues and family?

THE 12 ESSENTIAL TALENTS OF MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS LEADERSHIP…AND OTHER LESSONS LEARNED FROM HARRY POTTER

REGISTER NOW http://budurl.com/uxym

***

We’re all familiar with the old brain-teaser: “If a tree falls in the forest and no one’s there to hear it, does it make a sound?”

A question that’s much easier to answer – and more relevant to effective leadership practices – is: “If an employee offers an idea, and no one pays attention, does the employee stop participating?”

In most cases, the answer is a definite yes. Ignore a staffer’s input, and he or she will feel put out, turned off, alienated, and discouraged from offering suggestions in the future.

It’s no surprise that one of the biggest challenges to leadership today – perhaps the biggest – is that of employee disengagement…staff members feeling they are not being heard, a feeling they translate into not being valued and ultimately not part of the creative team. So they tune out and stifle themselves from offering potentially valuable contributions in the future.

 It’s not much different from the man who complains to his psychiatrist, “Doctor, everyone ignores me.”

The doctor responds: “Next.”

The opposite side of the disengagement coin is that, at some of the nation’s most successful public relations firms, employees at all levels are inspired to present ideas, no matter how far out of the proverbial box, and encouraged to question ideas of top management. And their challenges of these ideas are not only tolerated but even applauded. 

When I was publicity director of the Scholastic team spearheading the publicity campaign for the Harry Potter book series, we all knew our mission and were committed to it. But at the same time, we welcomed the questions from everyone on the team, even when they reflected healthy skepticism.

Like the best elements of brainstorming, everyone was encouraged to present free-flowing ideas, confident there’d be no snap judgment articulated, no scoffing or rolling eyes or turned-up noses. Everyone’s idea was listened to, encouraged, and amplified. And as a result, we were all strengthened with everyone feeling he or she had shared in moving the team and its mission forward.

Some team leaders need to remember that it doesn’t diminish the boss’s luster to have an idea from a lower-level employee implemented. In fact, it rebounds favorably. Part of leadership is identifying and implementing good ideas, whatever or whoever the source.

An employee’s willingness to present possibly controversial ideas or to challenge those of higher-ups emerges only in a company culture that encourages it. That culture develops only when the leader is willing to identify employees’ hidden assets and potential and helps develop those qualities. The results: greater individual contribution and professional growth.

Leaders who understand this welcome employees who think differently from themselves. Rather than clone themselves, they don’t limit those they hire to “yes-men or -women.” Rather, they seek out even “no-people,” individuals who aren’t negative for the sake of it, but rather who aren’t intimidated about pointing out flaws in the boss’s thinking or who will sometimes take a contrary position, a la devil’s advocate.

A good balance to strive for: while demonstrating he or she is in charge, the boss realizes the possibility of being wrong, and thereby demonstrates an open-mindedness that encourages risk-taking for the ultimate good of the team.

Beyond this, forward-thinking bosses maintain an open-door policy, literally and figuratively, encouraging employees to share not only professional but personal matters as well. This means being a good, attentive listener, an often forgotten component of good communication, whether with an employee or a client.

You may have read recently of the first wedding to take place in space. When the capsule came back to earth, reporters hurried to interview family members. One reporter cornered the groom’s grandmother.

“How was the wedding?” he asked.

“Beautiful,” she said.

“The ceremony?”

“Fine.”

“The music?”

“Fine.”

“The food?”

“Fine.”

The reporter said, “All your answers are positive, but there’s something in your tone that suggests everything wasn’t ideal.”

“Well,” said the grandmother, “to tell you the truth, there was no atmosphere.”

Yes, atmosphere matters. We’re in a serious business, but that doesn’t mean the environment has to be solemn. A wise leader put a premium on fun, light-hearted moments that help foster camaraderie and provide a pleasant cushion for the inevitable long hours and hard work.

They can also reflect the positive – contagious – energy that filters down from top to bottom in a thriving company, one where employees feel engaged and connected.

The plus factors are numerous, not the least of which is what a current Employment Engagement report by Blessing White (http://ow.ly/3vT4h) has found: engaged employees plan to stay at their firms for what they give; disengaged stay for what they get.

 The company’s survey also found that “executives appear to struggle with key leadership behaviors, especially what’s required to create a high-performance culture.” It also points out that managers have to understand each individual’s talents, interests and needs, and then match those with the organization’s objectives…while creating personal trusting relationships.

Blessing White emphasizes the importance of leadership focusing on engagement, “creating the dialogue, stirring up participation and driving people to focused, purposeful action.”

It urges the adoption of a “coach approach” as a means of transferring disengagement into “high-energy buy-in motivated employees and strong results.” By focusing on “what is working” and the strengths and individual needs of employees, the report contends, the odds of success are increased. The report notes that recognizing that each individual is motivated differently (seldom by money), will help create opportunities that mesh with individual needs.

The company strongly recommends self-evaluation to determine how open a leader is to engaging in a dialogue even with someone with a contradictory perspective, without feeling the need to prove anything about the leader’s point of view…and flexible enough to accept and implement someone else’s better idea.

All these goals are attainable, starting with listening – really listening – to that employee offering a potentially super idea.

 ###

 Alan Cohen, president of Acts of Balance Executive Coaching (http://www.actsofbalance.com/) and a PRSA Counselors Academy member, is an executive coach, trainer and brainstorm facilitator with more than 25 years of experience in business, including public relations and human resources. 

Download a free copy of “The 12 Essential Talents of PR Leadership” at http://ow.ly/3vT7d

***

As a student, I was fortunate to have internships that provided me with pitching responsibilities. One of the major roles of entry-level PR professionals is building and maintaining relationships with media representatives. My relevant experience made the transition from student to professional that much smoother because I was properly prepared for future responsibilities.

A model from the Nicholas Lindsey Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Show. (Image Rights: Nicholas Lindsey Brand)

 A few weeks ago, I concluded my post-graduation internship with Weber Shandwick – a global public relations agency. As a consumer brands intern, one of my major responsibilities was pitching the media on behalf of clients I represented. I was able to practice everything from writing and distributing pitch e-mails, using social media tools to engage my targeted journalists, the proper way to pitch bloggers and of course, jumping on the phones to tell my client’s story.

This experience prepared me for one of my most challenging roles to date – serving as a PR manager for a Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week show. Nicholas Lindsey, a brand designer and one of my fellow PRSSA graduates, was in need of last-minute PR support for one of the biggest shows of his life. Immediately, I jumped at the opportunity; it was a great way to help a friend in need and a way to practice what I learned from my internship.

As PR manager for the show, my main responsibility was media relations. On show day, I had journalists present from Essence Magazine, NBC Universal and fashion bloggers from around the country, including an NYC Fashion Examiner. To solidify these high profile media representatives, I used everything I learned from my internship, especially social media for media relations purposes. My wonderful PR agency allowing me to pitch as an intern led to something I am very proud of – my first national magazine placement: NYFW Designer Q/A: Nicholas Clements-Lindsey.

To answer Tressa Robbins’ question, posted on the BurrellesLuce Fresh Ideas blog, “Should PR Interns Pitch the Media?” … YES, they should – I am a living example of how it can prepare interns for the “real world.” In fact, I recently accepted a full-time position with Fahlgren Mortine Public Relations where I … pitch the media on behalf of clients.

Giving the valuable experience interns can learn from pitching, can you think of any reasons why they shouldn’t? 

***

At the end of last month, the BurrellesLuce team invited me to attend the Bulldog Reporter’s Media Relations Summit. Being a young PR professional, who had just attended my first PRSA event at the beginning of June, I was eager to partake in the day’s activities. With a lot of great companies being represented at the summit, I knew that I wouldn’t be disappointed in this amazing learning experience.

While there were very informative “Meet the Editors” roundtables, I had the pleasure of listening to four panels that all mirrored the same message throughout regarding growing industry trends. Some of the key messages conveyed were:

• Keep your skill set up-to-date
• Participating on the Internet is no longer an option

During the first panel, the skills every public relations professional needs were discussed and writing was stressed to be the biggest skill. Like any PR professional knows, writing is essential to their everyday tasks and the panel talked about how being able to tell stories requires writing skills. These writing skills need to have a visual image and content, which helps to develop the full picture of what is impacting areas.

Moving more towards the social media aspect, during the other three panels I listened to, the need for more incorporation of the Internet into PR was a strong topic. In today’s PR world, there really isn’t an excuse to not be on social media and engaging with your and your clients’ audiences. Steve Momorella from TEKgroup International presented the statistics that:

• 90 percent of social media users follow/monitor news and information daily
• 75 percent of social media users visit corporate websites after a story
• 73 percent of social media users believe social media sources with news is more timely

In the second presentation, Tina Brown from The Daily Beast still thinks that as PR professionals we are still retro and need validation through print or TV. She went on to say how we can help shape the response of stories on the Internet by participating and also assisting to make the story go viral.

By being part of the conversation, we as PR professionals can help to position the story in a positive light. However, if there is no presence, anything can happen. As social media is continuing to grow, Bev Yehuda from Products MultiVu stated that “social media is the start of a transition away from ‘push,’ one-way communications to a world full of interactivity between PR professionals and the media.”

Being a young PR professional, what do you foresee as some future trends in the industry? How are you getting your company and/or clients into social media?

***

From left: Johna Burke, BurrellesLuce; Lynn Sweet, Chicago Sun-Times Washington Bureau; Howard Arenstein, CBS Radio News; Doug Stanlin, On Deadline blog, USA Today.

This post first appeared on the @OgilvyPR blog, Social Marketing exCHANGE, June 29, 2010.

I’m clearly a geek, but I’m going to proudly say it: it’s an exciting time to be in media relations.

I started my career in media a decade ago and as the field has changed, the practice of getting key messages in front of target audiences via the media has only gotten more interesting. From crafting the story idea, to hearing the spark ignite for a reporter, to reading or listening or watching the final story unfold – the entire process is exhilarating. Social media has only broadened that landscape for me – I have more choices than ever to spread my clients’ messages and make an impact with the audiences that matter. And while media relations may seem more complex then the days when I used to thumb through a media directory book to find a reporter’s name and beat, in a lot of ways I find it much more strategic and exciting.

This geeky love I have for media relations was recently nourished when I was lucky enough to attend the PR News Media Relations Next Practices Forum as a guest of sponsor BurellesLuce. I got to hear from some of the best talent in the industry across all walks of PR life including corporate veterans Stephanie Anderson of OSRAM SYLVANIA and Ed Markey of Goodyear; consulting mavens Karen Hinton of Hinton Communications and Andrew Gilman of CommCore Consulting Group; and nonprofit leaders Laura Howe of the American National Red Cross and Glen Nowak with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; among others.

And – I can’t but help but show a little pride here – Ogilvy PR had a great client showing:  Mark Phillips of the USO and Colleen Wilber of America’s Promise Alliance both had wonderful insights to share. The keynote speaker was former Marriott spokesman and current Senior Director of Communications for Catholic Charities USA, Roger Conner, who shared his PR experiences both humorous and humbling.

The knowledge these speakers imparted was too much to share in detail, but some highlights were:

• Think like a newsroom
• Use social media to collect real-time feedback on the quality, tone and resonance of a conversation – listen constantly
• Let others (volunteers, employees, customers or consumers) tell the story for you
• Don’t script people – just teach them how to use social media tools effectively
• Don’t tell media what the news is – just tell them what you have and how they can use it
• Individuals as influencers are becoming increasingly important – never underestimate your audience
• Say the full message: not just “go online,” but “go online and donate”
• Mobile media is the next frontier in terms of location, platforms, video, social search, virtual collaboration and cloud computing
• Before you spend any resources, make sure audience is there; speak the right language and understand who you’re trying to influence
• Stop trying to control the message – just be part of the conversation
• You must call media on their mistakes – they are working as fast as we are, and mistakes happen; it’s our job to give them the correct information
• Claim as much real estate as you can on a TV screen – provide information for the lower-third/crawl, facts, b-roll, bulleted messages, etc.; have your spokesperson hold a prop
• Your actions must match your words

One of my favorite parts of the forum, the “Media/PR Smackdown,” was a panel of well-respected and much sought-after journalists Howard Arenstein, Correspondent of CBS Radio News and CBS News Radio’s Washington, DC, Bureau Manager; Doug Stanglin, Editor of the “On Deadline” blog at USA Today; and Lynn Sweet, Columnist and Washington Bureau Chief of Chicago Sun-Times. They reinforced the tried and true of the media world – don’t call unless you know the reporter’s beat, you know your pitch fits perfectly with what they cover, you’ve already sent an email, and you have a personal relationship. But they also taught me a thing or two about how journalists have embraced the recent changes to the media relations landscape. Reporters love Twitter. I can’t emphasize that enough. They love it personally, and they love it professionally. Doug Stanglin uses his Twitter as a news aggregator. Reporters also love blogs – their own and others. They no longer have one deadline a day – they have them throughout the day. And they are truly excited about sharing their news on different platforms.

So apparently I’m not the only one geeking out about media relations today.

Above all, the overwhelming message of the forum was loud and clear for me: I am not alone. I heard it from the friends I made at my table and around the room and the speakers who represented so many industries and so many types of PR. We’ve all had great ideas but neither the adequate time nor resources to get the job done well. We’ve all dealt with public crises that we didn’t see coming. We’ve all been met with overworked and under-resourced journalists who can’t (or won’t) hear us out.  We’ve all had to deal with leadership who didn’t understand how the media work and expected us to move mountains with only a spoon to start digging. But we all love what we do. We love shaping stories, spreading our clients’ messages, and entering in the public conversation. We all have a passion for getting it right the first time. And we all have a zeal for where media relations has come from – and where it’s going.

And somehow, just knowing that – that I’m not alone – feels good.

You can find more about the forum on Twitter: @mrf. 

Last week, I had the pleasure of attending the PR News PR Measurement Conference, and grappling with some of the toughest issues the PR industry faces.

In my mind, the fundamental question that united the day: how do we make sure the decision-makers within our organizations understand the value public relations brings to their businesses? The speakers who asked and answered these questions were brilliant and the attendees thoughtful.

Here’s my biggest “a-ha” related to the day: when presenting PR results to the C-suite, we need to “talk the talk” of those executives. Meaning, we need to make PR results relevant to the issues and concerns most critical to them.

To do that well, we must fully understand the business objectives against which executives hold PR accountable. Stop being preoccupied with delivering the fanciest metrics on the block (“marketing mix modeling” or “weighted media costs” at the end of the program. The best investment of time and resources is spent at the very start of the PR planning process. This time should be spent clearly articulating the relevant business objectives, and creating clear, measurable PR goals that map to those business objectives. If that’s done at the outset, good measurement becomes so much easier. And our results will be the kinds that make the C-suite sit up and take notice.

Another great take-away from the day: PR has many illustrative metrics available that make setting PR goals (and delivering the corresponding results) much more impactful than ever. It’s critical to examine the measurement tools available (quantitative and qualitative) and hand-pick the ones that will best “make the case” for the positive impact of PR on the organization’s specific business. This reinforced my belief that PR cannot live in a silo. We need to access the metrics available from other teams – like sales and marketing – to help us create the richest measurement reporting possible.

I left the day feeling inspired by the work my PR colleagues are doing in measurement. We’re facing some of the industry’s most challenging times. We’ve got some really smart people asking (and answering) tough questions. I’m excited by where we’re headed.

Instead of being a “shared experience,” TV is quickly becoming “an experience we share.”  That observation, made on a recent episode of NPR’s always-enjoyable Culturetopia podcast, really rings true for me.

I’m a first-generation television kid and am old enough to remember when the television dial was really a dial with 13 numbers. There were just three networks plus an educational channel and an independent channel or two that mostly showed old movies. Miss “The Twilight Zone,” “Ed Sullivan,” “Laugh-In” or, later, “Saturday Night Live” and you risked being left out of the lunchtime conversation. 

That was pretty much the way of the world until the first video recorders began appearing in homes and offices in the 1980s. Almost overnight it became possible to borrow a missed episode of “Cheers” from a coworker who hadn’t forgotten to set his VCR (as long as he didn’t have a Beta machine).  

This opened up a whole new world for communications professionals. Suddenly it became possible to record, copy, and share cassettes of the annual meeting or positive media coverage with employees, customers, and other stakeholders. 

Fast forward a decade or two and digital technology made it possible to post videos on company websites and e-mail links – or even short clips – to your key publics. Even more importantly, you could forward clips of cats playing the piano or bears catching fish to your friends.

Technology has continued to advance at warp speed. You can now see most of your favorite shows online or buy them for a couple of bucks on iTunes. More than 65,000 videos are posted on YouTube every day. And someone somewhere almost certainly watched the Super Bowl on his cell phone.

With more than 100 million viewers, the Super Bowl is one of television’s few remaining shared experiences, something almost everyone watches at the same time. Maybe Michael Phelps swimming at the Summer Olympics or the finale of “American Idol” also qualify. I’d like to hear your nominations. 

So what does all this mean for professional communicators? 

In some ways it makes our jobs harder. We have more channels to monitor and more competition for people’s attention than ever before. We have to do a better job of training, prepping, and equipping our spokespeople, because screw-ups can live on and on in cyberspace. And we’ve got to be more prepared than ever to respond quickly, effectively, and creatively to disasters, rumors, and PR challenges that didn’t even occur to us a few years ago.  Bad news can go viral faster than you can bathe in a KFC sink.

On the opportunities side of the ledger, we also have more tools at our disposal than ever before. We can respond to negative press overnight or, ideally, even quicker. We can set up dedicated YouTube channels, as Best Buy, Mercedes Benz, Apple and hundreds of other companies have done.  And we can get the word out – from executive speeches to news clips – faster and to a broader audience than ever before, with a few mouse clicks.

Six decades after television took over America’s living rooms, its power to communicate, persuade, and entertain continues to grow.  What are you doing to tap into the power of television in the social media age?

Image: AdWeek

As Oprah tearfully announced that her upcoming 25^th season would be her last, a flurry of tweets began flying before the credits even started rolling. The question on everyone’s lips (or tweets): “Who would be next?” Oprah, a towering icon of television talk, leaves behind a unique brand and some sizeable shoes to fill. As the voice that launched a thousand small businesses, authors, celebrities and lately, politicians, she has harnessed the power of her daytime audience in a way that no competitor has. Where other shows are more specialized, the Big “O” packs a punch in terms of variety, serving up everything from celebrity interviews to self-help, confessionals to contests, all with a side of fashion and fanfare. This broad base has made Oprah into a holy grail of public relations, the golden ring for communications professionals and clients to strive for.

So, who is next? Where will we turn when we have a new book to promote? An expert on multiple personality disorders to pitch? Or a golf pro ensnared in a PR-tsunami with a big apology to make? Already names are being tossed around.

Funny girl, Ellen DeGeneres seems to be the natural heir to Oprah’s talk queen crown. Her appeal is broad, although she only commands less than half of Oprah’s estimated seven million viewers. This fall has seen the two together on the cover of O, The Oprah Magazine and appearing on each other’s shows, leading many to believe that Ellen’s succession could be a natural one. Still, it’s hard to imagine her hi-jinks and dancing paired with a tell-all from Whitney Houston, much less Sarah Palin, both of whom appeared on Oprah this fall.

Rumors also suggest a Katie Couric daytime program following the end of Couric’s contract with CBS in 2011, but Couric’s image, as a sophisticated girlfriend, does not have quite the same warm, likeability of Oprah’s mentoring presence. Other names like Tyra Banks, Whoopi Goldberg, Paula Abdul and even Sarah Palin are floating around as potential daytime divas. Morning shows like Good Morning America and the Today Show offer a similar variety to Oprah’s programming, but still cannot match her numbers. And then, of course, there are the prime time and late night outlets. Leno, Letterman, and Conan remain strongholds for celebrities while Colbert and Stewart offer politicos, authors, economists and other thought leaders.

Perhaps Oprah leaves behind her a void that no one show can fill. Fans of her self-help segments may gravitate towards spin-offs Dr. Phil and Dr. Oz. Viewers interested in celebrity will stick with Ellen or Tyra. Lifestyle audiences could turn to Martha Stewart, the Oprah-launched, Rachel Ray or a rumored new program for Oprah regular, home improvement/design guru Nate Berkus.

So where does this leave PR professionals? The end of Oprah could be just another step towards the increasing hyper-fragmentation of the media as niche outlets multiply on and offline. The result: continued need for greater targeting efforts, heightened listening, and connecting with audiences where they are by PR. Does this require more work than one big push for the golden Oprah standard? Probably, but the outlets for exposure expand drastically as do the opportunities for meaningful interaction. Building buzz from the bottom up is daunting and without the ultimate “stamp of approval,” individual influencers need to be discovered at every level of communications. They might look a little different than Oprah and come in the form of mommy-bloggers or local anchors, but perhaps their reach will be even more personal and their audience even more engaged.

Between now and the end of Oprah’s reign supreme, there will be undoubtedly hundreds of potential candidates to take her place. Of course, there’s still one candidate that might be the best replacement for Oprah, and that’s Oprah herself. Although the full details of her next venture have yet to be released, or even developed, what’s brewing is a network that uses Oprah’s successful show as a jumping off point, promising dozens of new programs to pitch. So, as we enter into the end of an era, how will you be tailoring your PR efforts? Who will be your big get?

Please share your thoughts with myself and the readers of BurrellesLuce Fresh Ideas.

The legal industry is not faring well in these difficult economic times. For years, the lone pioneers have been screaming to restructure how law firms function and operate. I can recall back in the summer of 2007 when I read in one of the legal publications that lawyers were now billing clients at $1000 an hour. I knew then the writing was on the wall, unless of course your clients are oil sheikhs! The end was in sight. According to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, the legal sector lost 4,200 jobs in February and 1,300 in January. And the body count continues….

Regardless of how we got here, one thing is for certain. Rightly or wrongly distrust of the former masters of the universe – whether they are of the legal field, the newspaper industry, or some other sector – is at an all-time high.

Nevertheless, there is still hope. The cornerstone of a good relationship is trust, and trust is based on open and honest communication. A company’s reputation, or the essence of how it is viewed by all of its publics, is the leading factor in its ability to achieve success.

Restoring the battered image of the corporate world is not going to be a small feat, especially when each passing day the public is becoming more and more annoyed about the bailout monies given to institutions. Undoubtedly these institutions will need the help of sound public relations leadership,  making the role of public relations more critical than ever before.

It is also an important time to evaluate what we in the public relations industry are contributing. Are we taking a reactive or proactive role? Is the glass half full or half empty?

Time is the most precious commodity we have. For those of us with jobs, I say reach out into to your networks, take that time to find out if someone needs a writer, pass on job opportunities to those in need. Every little bit counts; you never know how it will boomerang back to you. It is great time for building and strengthening communities and relationships. We are all connected and if we stick together the center will absolutely hold.

Many companies give lip service to customer-focused communications. Think – when was the last time you actually sat in a market research session (not behind the two-way mirror or sending one of your minions) with your customers – face-to-face – and listened to them? And when was the last time they had a chance to help you with your marketing? Most companies would answer never, or worse we do that all the time.

It’s likely that neither response is true.

In traditional market research you usually ask for their response to your already-created materials. So you’re communicating to them that you’re not asking what they think, you just want to know what they think about your ideas.

If that’s what you do, be prepared to learn next to nothing about how they really feel.

True customer-focused communications does not resemble what most companies are used to calling marketing. To resonate with your customers, you need to communicate with each person in a way that is compelling to them, based on their needs. Given the chance, they will give you the information you need to make your marketing more effective. But you have to be humble enough and listen enough to learn from them about how they want to be “told and sold”.

There are multiple benefits to using this kind of communications:

• You’re speaking to customers in their language
• Your customers are getting your messages quicker
• Your message is consistent and recognizable across all customer groups
• You’re giving customers assurance that you will meet their needs

This type of research is more efficient and effective-you do the research once, and you execute the right message once, saving you time and money. And finally, by using actual customer-focused communications, you are separating yourself from the usual clutter, which strengthens your brand.  For a comparison of traditional market research vs. customer-focused research see www.holtzmancom.com/teamwork_openmind.php.

Example:  Stiefel Laboratories wanted a direct-to-consumer website created to launch their new Rx acne medicine.  The primary audience for this launch was teenagers with active acne. In a customer-focused research session, the kids shared with us not only what they wanted to see on a website, but also their concerns about acne – for instance, they were concerned about what to do when they had a breakout on a date night.

They helped us create a website. It was truly unique. Not something that appeals to brand managers or adults, but to the target audience. Scripts for the medication jumped from 100,000 to over a million.

Some of their competitor’s tried to imitate their site (see the case history) but they never caught on to why the Stiefel website was so successful.  It’s simple.   

If you listen to your customers, they will end up listening to you, seriously.