The Most Potent Word in Journalism

It’s one of the most potent words a headline writer or a reporter can use, and if it’s used to describe you or your organization, it’s clear what the writer thinks, but more importantly what that writer wants the reader to think. You’re guilty.

The word is, “Denies.”  As in, “The company denies wrongdoing.”

Let’s put this proposition to the test.… Read the rest

The One Question Most Lawyers Should Ask Themselves Before Marketing

I’ll save you the suspense. The question is, “Who are we?”

Of course, it’s much easier to slap a web site together with photos of walnut-paneled courtrooms and a judge’s gavel thrown in for good measure, but by striving for sameness in law firm marketing, you won’t stand out, and while standing out is not the only thing, it is important to most professional services marketing.… Read the rest

Media of the Mind: The Podcast

My first love when it came to media was radio. It was the music, the personalities, the sounds, the voices, the unexpected, even the commercials. All of it. This was before formulaic formats and research-driven audio.

Soon, I found myself working in any number of studios at all hours of the day, and in the field, talking to listeners, talking to sources, working control boards, writing, planning, editing, producing, using microphones to capture voice and sound.… Read the rest

Case Study: Updating an Assisted Living Facility’s Crisis Plan

What do you do if a resident of an assisted living facility “elopes” and no one can find him? Or when caregivers are accused of possibly mistreating patients and residents?

These are just two of the hypothetical scenarios we had to address recently when we helped an assisted living facility update its crisis communications plan and conduct media coaching for senior leadership.… Read the rest

Beware of Some Social Media Crisis Experts

If you Google the term “social media crisis,” or even the term, “brand crisis,” you’ll probably find no shortage of advice columns or online videos on how to see your organization through a crisis. Typically, the authors or presenters are social media experts or marketing gurus.

What they usually are not are crisis communications veterans. In all too many cases, they may not have even handled a single crisis for a client.… Read the rest

Facebook Privacy: A 2009 PR Strategist Article had a Point

In 2009, I wrote a piece for PRSA’s Public Relations Strategist on the dawn of social media and privacy issues. At the time, it made the rounds in PR ethics circles, but given the recent Facebook crisis, I thought I’d revisit it, nine years later. It still holds up, perhaps more now than ever:

PR Strategist – Ethics and Social Media – Spring 2009

“Social networking media are essentially a virtual gold mine for marketers and professional communicators.… Read the rest

How Private People Use Social Media

As PR people go, I may be more privacy-minded than most. Yes, I’m on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.  I have this website and this blog and a podcast.

For the past few decades, I’ve spent most of my waking moments trying to get my clients, my organizations and sometimes myself visibility in the media and other places.… Read the rest

Whose Truth Is It, Anyway?

I had an interesting interchange with a colleague, Karen Swim, President of Words for Hire in Detroit, on social media recently. The thing that prompted our discussion was her posting of this article from Forbes about a new analytics program called Protagonist which is claimed to help “better manage communications strategies.”

That sounds good, and if it does what it says it does it could be very meaningful, but I have my concerns for one simple reason.… Read the rest

One Question that Would Change the Tone of Protest Coverage

When it comes to the media and protestors alike, protests can be big business.

Media coverage of protests tends to generate consistently high ratings, page clicks and readership, which attracts more ad revenue. And when it comes to the protests themselves, in an increasing number of cases there is more than meets the eye. In some instances there is the stated reason for the protest, such as a common environmental or a safety concern, and then the unstated reasons that may better explain why someone was willing to make an investment of thousands if not millions of dollars to prop up the protestors.… Read the rest