Square Pegs: Not Just a Sarah Jessica Parker Sitcom

I have a window seat in the PMG office.

Okay, there’s only one desk that’s could be considered to be turned away from the windows, but that’s neither here nor there. I, the summer intern, have a window seat in the office. As a result, on occasion, I get to gaze upon the Waterfront. Or more truthfully, upon the people who are outside enjoying its splendor.

At least, some of them are. Others are parallel parking.

It’s a regular sight, people attempting to parallel park outside my window. Some succeed, some reevaluate, and some…well, some think that their Hummer is the size of a bread box. They wiggle, jiggle, and creep their way into a space that is not meant for them – it’s a little something called Square Peg Syndrome.

There’s a lot of Square Peg Syndrome in PR.

Imagine: You have a widget client – oh, what glorious widgets they produce! The bestest widgets you ever did see – plus, they’re nice people, which is always an added bonus.

The client has a dream: To reveal their latest widget on The Ubber Hip Show! Unfortunately, you know that The Ubber Hip Show doesn’t hit any of the widget’s targets and, in fact, may take away from other potentially potent placements (alliteration – love it!). But the client wants it – and they’re nice, remember?

So, you focus all of your energy on getting on The Ubber Hip Show. Days and nights of e-mails, calls, and, despite your best efforts, pleading that leads to…absolutely nothing. It’s a no-go and the widget client gets pitiable coverage on their latest and greatest invention.

And you know the sad truth? The Pretty Nifty Variety Hour, another popular show, would have hit your client’s target and their promotional dates perfectly – and you knew it, too. If only your focus wasn’t so pinpointed.

Sqaure Peg Syndrome AKA Over-targeting. It kills…your PR campaign.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some Waterfront gazing to catch up on.

Talkin’ Social Media

Last week I was invited to talk about the basics of social media on the Mark Johnson Show on WDEV as part of my participation in Vermont Business & Industry Expo.

As always, Mark was delightful to chat with. In case you missed it, here it is: Nicole’s Interview with Mark Johnson

Thanks again to Mark for welcoming me to the show.

If you missed the Expo video that we produced for the show, you should see it.  Izabela Socha at PMG scrambled to get this together and did a great job!  We now call her “Hollywood” – look for more from her soon!

Don’t Talk to Me!

Social media done well includes three things:

1. Contribute to the conversation. Sure, there is a lot to be learned by reading tweets from others, but chances are you have nuggets of information that others would find incredibly valuable. Why not contribute your thoughts?
2. Listen to your customers, critics, competitors, brand evangelists… really to everyone who has something to say about your company, brands and you! Chances are you will learn something, and better yet, you may be able to get ahead of issues.
3. Engage. As a marketer it is easy to blast messages at your fan or follower base. This is not engagement. Engagement requires a give and take – kind of like a good relationship. If you are listening it is easy to react and engage.

It is pretty simple stuff. But, somewhere along the way we became comfortable with talking at and to rather than with people. Said that way, social media can really bring us back to basics—if you want to do it well. And with the global community that we now have access to thanks to the internet, our conversations have more reach.

Bottom line: don’t forget that social media is a conversation and requires interaction. Kind of like a dance, sometimes you lead and I follow. Other times, I lead and you follow.

Also, taking a step back and perhaps sending a note card to contacts from time to time, rather than an email, might set you apart from the crowd. A total retro move, I know, but I can guarantee you won’t get lost in the stream!

The “…ations” of Our Business

When did the occupation of public relations become so confusing to people?  When I graduated from college, I received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication.  My studies were concentrated in public relations.  I understood this to mean that my job would be to communicate a business’ message to the public: directly, through the media, and if needed and depending on the company I worked for, lobbying.

Today, there seems to be some question as to what this practice entails.  Is it just effective writing? Is it a robust database to help your clients get traction in the media? Is it throwing a press release on the wire? Is it lobbying a bill on the Hill? Is it working with investors of a business to get the company’s messaging across? Is it social media?

The truth is, effective PR firms and people know how to do all of that, and in most cases, do much of it well.   The business of public relATIONS is all about communicATION. And in today’s world that means communication to many types of people across multiple channels.  The multiple channel piece of the equation is key.

From bloggers to national broadcast television placements, it is all important and beneficial. In fact, some of the smaller, less “glamorous” placements can do more for your bottom line.   Consider the reach an outlet has AND how respected they are.  A very targeted blog about a specific subject may get your client more traction than a mainstream newspaper placement.  Think podcasters are important to target? You bet! Leave no stone unturned and achieve better results.

Bottom line: relate and communicate information effectively across all channels. That is what today’s PR is all about.

Twitter. Why Bother?

Twitter.  We have been hearing about it a lot more lately.  In fact, as a pr person I have been seeing an increased number of queries from the media asking for “experts” on Twitter – so there must be something to it, right? Ellen tweets.  And apparently Jay Leno did too for awhile.

I have blogged about it before… and here I go again!

A few of my non-marketing friends have recently dipped a toe into the Twitterverse and wonder what all the fuss is about.  Well, friends… it takes more than a week to really figure it all out.  If you are basically tweeting out what you had for dinner and how your commute went – then you are missing the bird… err, I mean boat!

Here are some quick suggestions on how to get some meaning out of your time on Twitter:

• Search for people in your community that you want to follow. For example if I search the code #BTV (which is the airport code for Burlington, VT) I can see all of the stories that are related to people tweeting about Burlington.  This works for most other cities too.  And if there is a tweetup – go! You never know who you will meet and what sorts of handy tidbits you can pick up!  

• Find out what people are talking about by using the search function or visiting Hashtags.  

• Work in a specific industry? Find out if there is a virtual get together and tweet in!  I rather enjoy Monday night when there is #Journchat and have connected with many a pr and journalist there for some engaging conversation.

What you tweet about is up to you… I find that a mix of my work life and helpful or good links with a small dash of personal works best for me.  I have been able to start some great conversations and have learned a lot about topics that interest me and those that I did not know about before.

At the very least – secure your Twitter name.  Like a domain name, once it is gone – it is gone!

I came across the following tonight and thought it was hysterical.  Too bad that the writer of the clip has not realized that most people have moved past mundane tweets and have become more engaged… but it is fun to watch anyway!

A Little Excitement and Optimisim

I was going to blog about the right, and wrong, way for socially responsible companies to blend what they’re doing into their brand message, blah blah. That’ll wait for anther post, because I’m all in lather on the current unfounded economic pessimism.

Ever since I’ve been paying attention to the economy in ‘82 (a few years before I was set to graduate from college), I’ve seen the hysterical ‘sky is falling’ scenario at least three times. But each time, forward-thinking, innovative, RESPONSIBLE companies, and their dedicated employees, came out of the slump with a huge tailwind.

It won’t be different this time, after this readjustment. That’s the great part about our system – you’re free to game it, but eventually, surely, if you’re not guiding your firm with a sustainable plan and credo, you will be weeded out. Note: ‘crowds are wise’ (Google it).

And the surviving firms will thrive.

It’s kind of an accident that our little PR firm works only with socially responsible companies. We sat down over a bottle of wine three years ago and thought, “What’s the broadest cut we can make about the clients we want to work with, the ones that we can emotionally get behind?” It was pretty simplistic, and we chose SR firms as our niche – firms that were being responsible to their customers, their employees, their business partners, and their communities.

Well, none of us (clients included) partook in Wall Street’s $18 billion bonus payout this last year. But guess what? Our clients are all doing exceptionally well, all things considered. They’re optimistic about the future, their customers are loyal, their employees are loyal, and their vendors, bankers, and contractors are loyal.

I’m no economic guru, but from where I sit, this is a time to be excited and optimistic about. Yes, there is a lot of hurt everywhere, but that’s a done deal, it is what it is, and will be. Think instead: the companies all of us want to work for, the ones that create the products that will make us healthier, more comfortable, more productive, more secure, more competitive globally…they’ll be pushing roots into the newly weeded soil all around them.

Give it 10 months. Feed on the intelligent optimism of our capable political leadership and our visionary corporate leaders. Tune out the bad, and keep pushing ahead. There is a massive opportunity here for the firms that had the foresight, or maybe just the gut instinct, to lead into the future.

That’s exciting, and little PMG is seeing it in our clients every day, at the grass roots.

Jump on in!

I came across this post on VizEdu, it is another great example of how social media works. 

These posts continue to serve as a reminder to me that social media is not something that we can control. When speaking with clients and potential clients, the questions most asked are:

1. how quickly can we get this going? 
2. what happens if the conversation goes in a way we would prefer it not to go?

How fast you can get your social media campaigns going will depend on how much time you have to spend signing up for accounts, “friending” or following the right people, and monitoring your brand to identify opportunities to interact. This is not something that happens overnight, though relatively speaking, your company’s foray into social media can be quick.

Well, friends, if you are going to embrace social media, you have to be ok with giving up control. Part of the viral aspect of the campaigns that you do is how you interact with your customers and how they influence others about your brand. Sure, you may have some not so wonderful things said about your company – but how you address those comments will go along way with the public.

Here are three quick suggestions for those wanting to dip a toe into the social media waters before fully committing:

• Start small and build. It is ok to implement one or two social media tactics and master how those work before jumping into the rest.

• Join a community that has an active dialogue about social media. This is often the best way to learn on the fly.

• Understand what you are using. So often clients want a Facebook business page or a corporate Twitter account, but they do not use the services themselves, so they do not understand what they are looking at and how these sites work. It is valuable to understand that your blog and your micr blog can work together – you don’t have to know how if you have somebody doing this for you – but you should at the very least know what you are looking at.

The social media water is warm, come on in!

Nicole

Gobble, Gobble… DROOL!

 

A Sample of FoodPornDaily.com

Food, glorious food! As you may know, at PMG we work with a lot of food companies, chefs, restaurants, and food lovers in general. So, in honor of the upcoming holiday where we will celebrate our nations’ history and bounty, and as you get ready to cook and indulge in one of the best feasts of the year, I wanted to share with you one of my favorite sites.

foodporndaily.com

Ok, I know what you are thinking. “Nicole, porn? Really?  What ARE you thinking?”

I was reminded about this site when Iza and Leah clicked over from the PMG homepage. I had forgotten that not everyone was in the know about “my little porn secret!” And then it started… they could not stop looking at the pictures.  Why not spread the word?

Warning: be sure that you are not hungry before visiting this site! The pictures are amazing and you will want to head straight to the kitchen and get cooking or call-up your favorite takeout place!

From all of us at PMG Creative, Happy Thanksgiving.

Hello, I work in PR.

You have to be able to not take yourself too seriously. This is one of my favorite PR clips; I’m sure you have seen it.

Under Construction

So, we are headed into our second week of renovations at PMG’s Burlington, VT headquarters. What’s new? We will have new environmentally sound carpet by the end of the year, a couple of walls will be painted and we have new windows.  

Oh – and we will be lead free!

It has been a little crazy here with hammering and playing musical desks. But, it certainly has made coming to work more adventurous!

We look forward to welcoming you to our updated digs after Jan. 1.