PRBreakfastClub

It’s December 16 and I am sitting in front of my Mac Book, planning on what kind of holiday message I’ll be sending my LinkedIn and Facebook friends and colleagues. Some of these people I’d consider very close friends indeed; I can swear creatively in their presence and they won’t care. They will join in. They will one-up me. Others, I know only through work or school. I might have a cocktail with them, but I would avoid saying anything less than charming. I would be a perfect gentleman. I’ve read about them in books.

OK, so my holiday greeting will be very general and all-encompassing. I will save the draft and send it on December 25. “Happy holidays to you and yours,” I type. “Travel safe and stay warm!” Read the rest of this entry »

Recently, fellow PRBCer Keith Trivitt raised an interesting question about PR folks’ background. Essentially, he said, you don’t need to be trained in communications or PR to be successful in our field:

It takes all types to be a successful communicator. Some are bold and brash. Others are quiet and reflective. And still some are a mix of the two. Each can be successful in their own way. And as long as you have a bit of wisdom, a lot of patience and a major drive, a lot of different people from various backgrounds can be successful communicators.  Read the rest of this entry »

When I read PR Week’s Industry backs controversial campaign aimed at cutting PR spam, posted on January 29, I had a #HeadHitsDesk moment. This battle, this debate, this controversy will never end, will it?

To sum up this piece by Gemma O’Reilly, a number of PR professionals have endorsed a campaign to end the spamming of journalists. My first thought? Kiss-ups. If you really want to do your part in not spamming journalists, don’t do it yourself or put outrageous demands on your lower-level staff to land an unattainable number of media placements (note: this is not me accusing any of those PR people backing this initiative. I have no idea how they individually operate themselves, their businesses or their staff. Rather this is a call to all PR pros.) Read the rest of this entry »