Be’Cause’ of You

I don’t mean the hit song by Kelly Clarkson. I mean YOU—the PR pro, publicist, idea peddler, creative genius, whatever you want to call yourself. You’ve got clout and Klout. You are in a position to make a difference.

What I’m talking about here goes beyond securing hundreds of thousands of dollars in media placements for a client (although that would be the icing on the cake). It’s about making a difference in people’s lives by counseling your clients to roll out a cause-related PR campaign. If they haven’t tried it, I believe it’s time that they do.

I’m so psyched about penning this piece on cause-related PR because I’m a big believer in its merits. And I’ve seen it time and time again on how media outlets are much more open to covering your news if it’s tied-in with a reputable charity. The question is why haven’t you gotten buy in from your client. Continue reading

Maximizing Your Superbowl Investment

With just about two months before Super Bowl XLV (or the “Big Game” if you don’t have the promotional rights to say Super Bowl), brand plans for Dallas-week are in full swing. Countless companies will launch new products and campaigns because of the heightened media commitment and fan interest. With so many companies crowding the marketplace, brands often use celebrities/athletes to differentiate themselves and get noticed. Here are several tips to accomplish those goals at the Super Bowl:

1. Know Your Milestones…
A brand can’t just go and hire any celebrity as their endorser, they have to be relevant. So who’s relevant at the Super Bowl? Well, this year it’s being played in Dallas so the marketability of former Cowboys greats like Emmitt Smith, Troy Aikman, Deion Sanders, coach Jimmy Johnson, Moose Johnston and others increase. Also, Continue reading

5 Simple Ways to Stay Organized

Staying organized is easier for some than others—that is a fact. Even the savviest of us have had something fall through the cracks.  With the end of the year coming, and a million and one projects to get done, it’s nice to get back to the basics of organization.  You don’t need a complex system to stay organized, you just need to find a system that is right for you, and you alone.

  1. Tackling the Email Beast. As a PR professional, or marketer it’s likely to get hundreds (if not thousands) of emails a day.  We can’t sit around all day and just respond to emails–so what do we do?  We need to tackle the beast in one fell swoop.  Folders will save your life–seriously, they will.  If I need to find an email quick, fast and in a hurry I know I can go to the folder and find it fairly easily.  This also cuts down on your inbox number, and keeps your important emails stay where you can see them.  If you use Gmail, you should try their new feature Priority Inbox, which does this process for you automatically. Continue reading

How to Pitch a Publicist

I know, you are probably scratching your head right now. Well, the topic of pitching a publicist isn’t as silly as you might think.

Yes, that’s right, publicists get pitched too. Whether it’s for product reviews or hiring a blogger for a myriad of services (writing, conference sponsorship, and consultant opportunities) – it happens.

Bloggers and publicists – it seems we are all just trying to find a way to get along and work together. There is a lot of information out there on how to pitch bloggers, yet there’s not much material on pitching publicists or, what I refer to as “reverse pitching.”

Every day, more and more blogs are popping up and it’s making the blogging arena pretty competitive. Since I work with a lot of bloggers, I’m continually asked from a publicist standpoint on how I like being approached, or what do I look for in working with a blogger. Let me just put it out there that every company, brand and publicist looks for different things.

That being said, here are a few pointers to keep in mind when pitching a publicist. Surprisingly, these may sound familiar. Continue reading

How to Prepare for Your Performance Review: Top 10 Review Mistakes & How to Fix Them

After 20 years in Public Relations leadership roles, I have been involved in more performance reviews than I can count. And while I wish that every meeting was a jubilant, high-five frenzy…some are not. Why?

To be truthful, themes emerge over time. Here are the top 10 review mistakes I’ve seen:

  1. Poor explanation for mediocre outcomes
  2. Defensive posture on mistakes
  3. Lack of self awareness, particularly regarding weaknesses
  4. Modesty prevents appropriate horn tooting Continue reading