Category: General

Not to keep kicking the dead dog…

Shel Holtz has a post on why, from a regulatory point of view, the press release isn’t dead. That’s a strong factual argument.

So let’s add some opinion.

The press release isn’t dead because it’s a well understood informational instrument that meets all regulatory requirements.

Huh? Let me explain.

If we can agree for one moment that good communication is about your audience. 

Agreed?

Then it’s the audience that matters.

When you’re designing a web site (how twentieth century) the commn mantra is think about your audience, understand what information they want, and make damn sure they can find it in the format they want or expect.

That’s why a press release is useful – yes I know they can be spam – yes I know they can be badly written – but they provide information in a common format that, in most cases, provide the same types of information.

I’ve nothing against the social media release, no harm in it.  But I’ll be sticking to press releases for a little while yet – even if it’s for informational rather than promotional purposes.

• Keith Jackson points to an article by Ingrid Jackson (relation? no relation? undisclosed) that looks at communications around a real-world merger. Definetely worth a read.

The communications fundamentals during a merger revolve around stakeholder buy-in. But the communications requirement is much broader than this. It includes stakeholder analysis, issue identification, key messages, strategic and action planning, coordinating external and internal communications, project management, and responding tactically to often rapidly changing circumstances.

 

• Richard Bailey ponders the issue of how do we capture the essence of PR.  He comes up with the terms Ideas Management.  I’ve always maintained that one of major issues facing PR’s image is the diversity of the profession (yes contrary to some discussion elsewhere I do consider myself a professional with a profession). It’s a tough one.

 

• Edelman have released the findings of their Trust Barometer. OK let me be a little naughty here.  I don’t like to “social media release” – I much prefer the traditional format.  Sorry, I know I’m showing my age, maybe this is just a bad example but I much prefer the introductory paragraph that we all slaved over for hours and hours and framed the news. I know badly written releases are bad, but….

 

• Morgan McLintic has been interviewed by Bulldog Reporter.  This item just about scrapes into this post about real PR due to all the Second Life references 🙂 .

 

• Chris Anderson ponders the effect on the “Long Tail” on PR. Brian Solis adds his two cents. This is something I’ve written about before (here) I think it’s going to be increasingly important for companies in the long run, the challenge facing PR is how do you pitch a “Long Tail” service? I don’t agree with Mr. Anderson’s assertion of PR moving from external to internal relations because that’s making the assumption that blogs become the single point of communication for everyone – nah…

I really don’t like this new fashion for Snap previews.

What’s the value? I can see what the linked web page looks like? But I’m clicking for content not eye candy (from blogs in any case), and those pop ups are driving me mad.

Rant over

That’s right, you’re not misreading the headline.  My favourite moose tickler set up the “Get a First Life” web page I referenced yesterday.

While reviewing his blog comments, he spotted a post from Linden Labs (creators of Second Life) and expected the usual cease-and-desist wording, instead they wrote this:

Moreover, Linden Lab objects to any implication that it would employ lawyers incapable of distinguishing such obvious parody. Indeed, any competent attorney is well aware that the outcome of sending a cease-and-desist letter regarding a parody is only to draw more attention to such parody, and to invite public scorn and ridicule of the humor-impaired legal counsel. Linden Lab is well-known for having strict hiring standards, including a requirement for having a sense of humor, from which our lawyers receive no exception.

In conclusion, your invitation to submit a cease-and-desist letter is hereby rejected.

Well done Linden Labs, common sense is a much maligned human quality.

Well done Darren.

Reviewing my last post, I realized a couple of things.

Firstly, I’m too grumpy and secondly, I’ve been writing about these issues for too long and so sometimes I assume that you, my most gentle of readers, have been with me every step of the way.

Untrue.

So let me add some additional context.

While reading the post, you may, if you didn’t know me better, assume that I am something of a King Canute character, slowly getting wetter as the waves of the “InterWeb Revolution” wash away my analogue existence.

That would be incorrect.

I believe that the new generation of online services, which have been building momentum since the dot com bubble burst, are having and will have a major impact on how we live, work and communicate – that’s everyone, not just the PRs.

However, I am also pragmatic. I question this move to an idealistic world where everything will be online and where we should listen attentively and heed the views of the visionaries that have been appointed by the digerati.

I question those who believe that all corporations are evil and PR people live to confuse and misinform.

I question those who lecture us without the wit to realize they’re talking about things they know nothing about – but by dropping the words “social media” they are suddenly world experts.

All of a sudden the term “audience” is to be banned.  Instead everyone is an induhvidual.

All I ask is that we question the vision of the unproven visionaries.

Change is inevitable for every living organism from an ant to a corporate PR professional.  Long-term success, whether we’re talking about simple survival or a successful career, requires us to adapt to changing conditions.

Yes, we will use the online media more – whether we actually know we’re doing it or not – yes, it will have a major impact, and yes, this means the practice of Public Relations will require review and refinement.

But no one has all the answers, and more importantly no one has opinions more valid or more valuable than yours, particularly when they are talking about your profession, which they clearly know nothing about – well beyond the usual sterotypes.

You turn your RSS reader off for a day and all hell breaks loose.

What’s it this time you might ask? Well now it’s the social press release… well no it’s not actually the social press release.  It looks like it’s the social press release but when you scratch a little, pull back the band-aid then it’s more a (nother) swipe at the PR dweebs.

I’ll try and explain.

Stowe Boyd kicks things off with a post following a Third Thursday event in San Francisco.  He criticizes the idea of a social media press release asking why PRs won’t just use blogs, he believes that we (that’s all us PR twits) are misusing the term social media.  We shouldn’t use the term “audience”.. there’s more, read it, I’m bored already. [Robert then weighs in with his broad PR expertise].

You guys, you make me laugh.

[There’s a wide range of discussion: Brian Solis, Mike Manuel, Chris Heuer, Shel Holtz, Stuart Bruce ]

I don’t intend to undertake a long, detailed and insightful defence of the social media press release because 1) I’d be too bored to hit the post button and 2) The guys above do a fine job of addressing Stowe’s issue.

Stowe underscores his deep understanding of the issue and his position as a balanced observer of the “new new” media with his follow up post:

“Social Media and Public Relations: The Press Release is Dead”

Fantastic stuff, straight from page two (or should that be permalink two) of the “new new” media online wiki (handbook is soooo Web 1.0) and I quote:

Everything that we know from before is dead.  This should be the first line of offence and defence against Neanderthals, who dare to question your opinions or even try and suggest that some off-line things may not actually be swept away by the all knowing, all seeing, all transforming power of the InterWeb.

Whatever. 

I think I’ll sit this dance out and spend the time thinking about all the AUDIENCES I’m going to fax this week. 

Really and truly.  Is there room for more than one ego in those Web 2.0 bubbles?

Excuse the (very un-Web 2.0) religous reference, but is the use of the term “audience” really a sin? Is it a cardinal sin or just a venial sin?

We should all heed the knowledge of the blogger who invokes that most powerful of all Web 2.0 commands: “Kill the press release.  We don’t need the press release anymore, just put it on a blog.”

Yes, I’ll go and tell the NYSE right now sir.

I don’t know how many times I’ve invoked this quote, but given I’m breaking all the Web 2.0 rules, I’ll break another and I’ll even modernize it:

It’s better to not type something, format it, hit “publish” and appear ill-informed than to hit publish and remove all doubt.

Web 1.0 rocks.

Anyway to cheer you up check out this video via Serge.

This [via Darren] made me smile:

Many of you who read this blog a couple of times a year will know that I prefer to take a pragmatic approach to “new” media.

I still haven’t upgraded for a second life, I love the press release (well maybe love is too strong a word) and I love the feeling of newsprint. Of course I see the potential of blogs, podcasts, RSS etc., but I don’t subscribe to those who do the cyber equivalent of wearing a sandwich board with “The End of the World (or traditional media) is Nigh”.

At any “New” PR conference I attend, you invariably get asked the question “it’s all very interesting but when will it go mainstream”.  And of course the answer is different for every country and market segment. Although there’s no question that the two biggest early adoptor “segments” are technology and politics.

Interestingly, a former colleague, who works at a reasonably sized tech firm told me yesterday that they did detailed analysis on product downloads over the past six months – we’re talking relatively large volumes – and they were staggered with the findings.

Over 40% of their product downloads came directly from a blog link.

Now that’s impressive – and not a sandiwch board in sight….

 

Postscript:

Jennifer McClure has a good piece in the Bulldog Reporter offering some tips for PR people who have to deal with (ahem) Web 2.0.  I’d love to know what people think of Katie Payne’s comment at the end of the piece.  Opportunistic or self serving advertising? You decide….

• I have to say these two posts hit the bullseye for me.  Mason Cole and John Wagner tackle the issue of the hair trigger bloggers [Stuart has a similar post here.].  The knee jerk reactions that spread like widlfire across the blogosphere, with some notable exceptions, do nothing to build the credibility of the medium.  Instead it betrays an immaturity that says to me it’s not quite ready for the real-time. We need more balance.

 

• One the other hand, the fantastic thing (potentially) about the blogosphere is the volume and diversity of opinion.  It’s incredibly interesting – though sometime very hard – to keep track of every blog.  However, sometimes its worth a good browse.  if you’re interested in getting your RSS reader wet, click over to Todd Andrlik who has pulled together a list of the “The Power 150 – America’s Top Marketing Blogs”.  Loads of food for thought among those links.

 

• Steve Rubel has a post on how ZDnet is remunerating its bloggers based on the number of clicks their posts get. According to long-time trade journo, Mary Jo Foley:

 

 “It rewards people… who do a lot of work to make sure that their blogs are popular, which is what I do.”

 

• Of all the new world technology, services etc., it strikes me that after blogs, the next most accessible audience channel is podacsting.  It has amazing potential as a communications and marketing channel, and as with all media if your content is right, you’ll build an audience.  One of the things possibly holding back corporate podcasts is the potential technical requirements. Scott Baradell’s client Blogtalk radio is offering a way to sidestep the technical issue. He’s even published five hacks for the PR pro. Worth a visit.

 

• Advice for PR Pros from Valleywag – via Phil Gomes.

 

• Finally, Richard Edelman comments on the recent laptop furore – I’ll say no more  – and Colin McKay has some feedback for him 🙂

It appears that yet another of our blogging brethren has been beamed into the Edelman mothership, this time none other than Gary Goldhammer.

Congratulations Gary!