Find the killer 10/14/2009
 
 Dexter takes interactive viral video one step beyond the "Elf Yourself" model.  I found this when one of my students, Heather Waber, sent me a link.  Pay attention to the evidence bag at the end of the clip.
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Amazon Review 09/25/2009
 
I know this is shameless self promotion, but when someone as capapble as Ken Lizotte says something nice about Marekting Public Relations, I just have to share.

Amazon review of MPR: http://bit.ly/om5bz  
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Advertising is not PR, social media, or word-of-mouth, except that, well, it is.  Especially when a campaign is tied to a big budget or a radical departure in the way a company does business.   Let’s face it, the media and consumers talk about ads, which in turn creates buzz that makes more news and spawns more word-of-mouth.  I bring this up because I am intrigued by General Motor’s “May the Best Car Win” campaign.  No matter whether it is by design or not, this campaign has a significant marketing public relations component, and I think the GM execs are missing the mark by applying a dated solution to a contemporary problem.  In a time when consumers look for products tailored to their needs from companies that actively interact with them, GM is using the old school “we’ve put our money where our mouth is” approach.  This is basically a “take it or leave it” arrangement.  (Sure I can take it now, and decide to leave it in 60 days, but it’s still all about the product.)  There is no interaction and no hint of awareness about the needs and desires of the customer.  This is a great example of archaic sales philosophy that just won’t work to reposition a fallen mega-corporation.  It is going to be the company that positions itself a partner in a customers’ driving experience that will win in the long run. (The experience extends beyond customers’ transportation needs, and includes the symbolism of the automobile as a marker of personal style and connection with the physical environment.)

To make matters worse, GM selected the wrong messengers.  With global awareness and environmental consciousness sharing the front of consumers’ minds with distrust for the corporate establishment, making gray haired, white males in suits the face of the GM turnaround is a non-starter.  Anyone remember Marshal McCluhan?  If the medium is the message, what are consumers taking away from any message delivered by GM chairman, Edward Whitacre, and his soon to retire colleague, Bob Lutz?

 This may just be to be the latest no va (don’t make me translate) introduced by GM. 
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Quid pro quo is a Latin term meaning something for something.  I mention this because recently I saw a Twitter post from Richard Laermer (author of 2011: Trend Spotting for the Next Decade & Full Frontal PR) stating, “Another topic colleges never seem to teach kids: ‘quid pro quo.’”  So, I figure I am the person to right this wrong, at least from a public relations standpoint.

When I hear this term it usually has a negative connotation and often has to do with a marketer trying to use the fact that his or her company advertises with a particular medium in order to get some publicity.* Any editor or journalist with a shred of professional credibility will tell you that this is never to be done and breaches the church-state wall that exists between editorial and advertising.  They believe this when they say it, because they should, and I applaud them for it.

The problem is the wall is often more like a veil.  Frankly, media companies like their advertisers.  Ads pay the bills, and it’s nice to give some legitimate mention to deserving customers.  What’s more, media sales folks love feature stories they can “sell into.” When a medium is running a piece on golf, you can bet that the sales team is dialing golf courses, golf retailers, and golf equipment makers as soon as they know the feature is going to run.  Is the former scenario any more or less ethical than the latter? Is there not some form of quid pro quo at work in both instances?

Reflections:

Is there much difference between receiving editorial coverage as a reward for placing advertisements and just paying cash for editorial coverage? How do these practices differ from paid product placement?

Is it unethical for an MPR professional to copy their advertising sales representative with a press release and pitch letter being sent to the editor of their medium?

*Another, more basic, example of quid pro quo is commercial broadcast media.  Viewers and listeners get access to television and radio programming with the understanding that there will be advertisements mixed into the content.
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While this is not directly related to MPR this is important to all of us.  Please share your thoughts on this, and please, please, spread the word by sharing this video.
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There are things I wish I had included in the text, but just didn’t have the room for them.  The MPR campaigns executed by Diageo in support of their Captain Morgan brand rum and themed around the 2004 and 2008 presidential elections are an example.   They incorporated social media by having www.captainmorganforpresident.com link to a Facebook fan page, and they used traditional media by distributing some great press releases, albeit tongue-in-cheek to the mainstream press.  In 2008 the release they spelled out the “Captain’s” platform and posted a YouTube video.  In the 2004 release they promoted an event during the Republican convention giving rides to the Hamptons to people who wanted to get away from Manhattan and the bustle of the convention.   Really a great concept with strong execution.

Reflections:

What makes a great press release?  What elements of greatness does the 2004 Diageo release show?

What are the common threads that tie traditional media, social media, and event PR together?
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Part of my job as an educator and blogger is to find useful information and to pass it along. To that end, I’ve put up a page with lots of great links covering a myriad of MPR related topics.  I trust that you will find them useful.

Check back often because I will post new ones when I find them.  Also, if you find a link you’d like to share, please let me know.
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In selecting their ten most powerful women in the world, Forbes Magazine used two criteria: the size of the organization that they run and their ability to garner media mentions.   Granted, for many of these women the former criterion led the latter, but, let’s face it, power rarely comes silently.  I point this out to illustrate that it was not an advertising or sales effort that earned these ladies their potency; it was media mentions and word-of-mouth.

Reflections:

Take a look at the collection of media mentions accumulated by these women over the years and see how MPR has shaped their careers and established their power.  Contrast those in the business arena to those in the not-for-profit and government sectors. (Lexis-Nexis is a great tool for this if you have access to it, but Google works ok too.)
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Thanks to the most creative Creative Director I know, Bill Childs (Morning Call/Tribune) for sharing this.
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If you reside in the U.S. you were likely exposed to multiple news pieces highlighting the 40th anniversary of the famed Woodstock Music and Arts Festival.  Rolling Stone’s blog Rock & Roll Daily, USA Today, and ABC News are just a small sampling of the outlets that showcased a Woodstock retrospective.  Cultural significance aside, this anniversary is salient to marketers because it is a good example of how the salacious (sex, drugs and rock & roll) can help sell a story to the media.  It also illustrates how- in the world of 24/7 news-something as simple as an anniversary can have a similar effect.   NPR’s Marketplace ran a great story (An influx of 40-year anniversaries) on the use of anniversaries as a promotional ploy. In addition, there are a seemingly endless number of secular and non-secular holidays and cause or awareness related days, weeks, and months that can be used to connect a company, product, or brand to a larger story.  August is National Inventors month in case you didn’t know.

Reflections:

How would you use an anniversary celebration to garner media mentions and word-of-mouth for your business?

Are there any cause or awareness related days, weeks, or months that tie into your business?  What connectors would be interested?
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