Tag Archives: Publicity

Social Media 2020: Public Relations 2001 vs Social Media Relations 2010

13 Tuesday Apr 2010

Posted by in Human Resources, Information Technology, Management Practices, Passionate People, Public Relations, Re-Imagine!, Rotary, Social Interactive Media (SIM), Social Media Relations, Tom Peters

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A lot has changed in the last nine years in regard to the world of Public Relations.  In Part One I compare the fable presented in the Late 1990’s book, Who Moved My Cheese by Spencer Johnson to the reaction towards today’s new world of Social Media.  In Part Two of this series I compare how we looked at Public Relations in 2001 versus how we look at it today.

Paul Kiser

(Read Part One of this series – Social Media 2020: Who Moved My Public Relations?)

Public Relations 2001:  The Power of Third-Party Media

In 2001, Public Relations was more distinct.  A person could easily identify the roles and responsibilities. Publicity was defined as earning the attention of third-party media of an organization through free media channels. Promotion described the use of paid third-party media advertising (newspaper, radio, TV, phone book, mail, etc.) to gain public attention.  It was easier to define Public Relations in 2001 because it consisted of three distinct roles:  1) The organization seeking publicity/promotion, 2) the third-party media, and 3) the target audience.

Of the three roles, the third-party media was considered a deity.  The goal of PR professionals (and non-professionals) was to gain favorable attention of those key people in the third-party media so that they would talk about you to their audience.  You could buy your way into the hearts and minds of the media, but the goal was to seduce the media and gain their favor.  Journalists, newspaper editors, television news directors, and other media professionals had the power to make or break the public image of company and/or influence customers purchasing habits.  The people in the media were the gatekeepers to the public.

In 2001, the Internet was not new, but it was still primarily a place of email and websites.  PR professionals were promoting websites as another tool in their arsenal to reach the public, but many organizations still had their doubts about the importance of how a website could increase their business.  A few could see beyond the existing uses of the Internet.  Some of those gifted few might have imagined a world where junk mail and the yellow pages would become obsolete, but the idea of masses of people in continuous connection to each other was hard to fathom by almost everyone, especially PR professionals.

The New Cheese: The Individual

Tom Peters - author of Re-Imagine! New Business Excellence in a Disruptive World

One person who saw something brewing in the early part of the new millennium was Tom Peters.  In his 2003 book, Re-Imagine! Business Excellence in a Disruptive Age, he devoted a chapter to Individual Branding.  He suggested a future where the skills and experience of the individual would be key to ‘New Business’.  A world where a person isn’t swallowed up as a commodity in the belly of a corporation, but rather as an independent professional that companies would compete to have on their team.

(Go to Tom Peters Re-Imagine! website)

In 2003, it seemed hard to imagine how an individual could become relevant in a business world that often captured employees and then made them sign non-disclosure, non-compete, we-own-you agreements.  The ability for someone to market themselves was severely restricted, if not, banned outright by the corporation that made no promises of job security, but demanded total loyalty.

Perhaps Peters could see that the blogging sites of 2001-03 were signaling a new age of individualism; perhaps there were trends in place that Peters could project in the future; or perhaps (and this is my theory) that Peters has the ability to travel in time; but with the development and massive growth of Social Interactive Media in the last five years, Peters accurately predicted a new world of branding of the individual that is now a reality.

The Individual Trumps False Corporate and Media Gods

The rapid growth of Facebook and Twitter are two of the significant factors that changed the world of Public Relations.  Facebook made Social Media acceptable to millions.  Social Media allowed an individual to connect with hundreds of other people without the approval or denial of a third-party media deity.  Ideas, opinions, and knowledge were now being shared and it all bypassed the traditional gatekeepers.  It is hard to say what was the critical mass flash point that pushed Social Media into the mainstream, but once Facebook exceeded 100 million users there was no doubt that the Age of the Individual had dawned.

Twitter’s contribution to the age of the individual was two-fold.  The 140 character limitation for Twitter messages created a need to link to blogs, articles, and websites to fully convey new information and ideas; therefore, the practice of embedding links into a Tweet became commonplace.  That spurred a new connectivity of an individual’s ideas and opinions to the rest of the world.  Prior to Twitter, a blog was primarily found via a Google search, but a Tweet brought more attention to the general public without relying on a deliberate search, AND, the Tweet put new information out to an audience that was already interested in the topic.

The second impact of Twitter was a continuous flow of connectivity.  As a Social Media tool it put people in touch with each other 24/7/365.  While other Social Media tools could make a similar claim, Twitter encouraged users to stay connected and placed a priority on real-time interaction.  This was a pace of communication that corporations, with layers of control and approval, were not equipped to handle.  The corporate practice of running every statement or concept by a Public Relations professional before it goes public was not possible in the world of real-time information.  Twitter was designed for communication of individuals, not corporations, which is exactly the way users wanted it.

A Different Flavor of Cheese

Nobody will deny that Public Relations is still not a viable function in today’s world, but the old concept of the worship of third-party media like newspapers has been lost.  Discussing the Internet and Social Media when a newspaper professional is in the room is like discussing a new girlfriend in front of someone who used to date her and got dumped.  Public Relations is no longer an effort to make the best possible impression with the public as it is about being genuine.  Users of Social Media can spot a fake PR effort and anything that smacks of a corporate sell job is rejected…permanently.

To survive in a world of ‘Social Media Relations,’ corporations no longer can hide behind the perfect façade of Public Relations.  A business will be judged by the sum of its individuals and that means less control and manipulation of its employees.  The successful company will unshackle its people to dazzle its customers with their expertise of the business, and their competitors will tremble in fear.  It’s a new world, but not for those who don’t adapt and adopt.

Tom Peters world of New Business is here and Public Relations can no longer hide behind the curtain in New Oz.

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Social Media 2020: Who Moved My Public Relations?

12 Monday Apr 2010

Posted by in Information Technology, Management Practices, Public Relations, Random, Rotary, Social Interactive Media (SIM), Social Media Relations

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Paul Kiser - CEO of Enterprise Technologies, inc.

Twelve years ago the book, Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson was published.  It gave us fable about mice and men and how each handles change.   In the book Johnson’s mice discover the cheese is all gone and immediately begin to search for a new supply of cheese; however, the when the humans discover the cheese is gone they assume someone has moved it and become angry because they saw themselves as victims of change.

I think we can apply this lesson to the field of Public Relations.  Some are handling the massive changes in the field with acceptance and are adapting to the new paradigm, but some are taking a more human approach and seeing themselves as victims.

The new social media like Facebook, Twitter, and blogging are seen by some as evil, corrupt, and useless.  Some business people feel it is unfair that people are making purchasing decisions from information they glean off the free social media sites when they are paying for advertisements to influence them.  Some in the traditional media (newspapers, commercial TV, radio, etc.) may feel it is unfair that their sources of revenue are abandoning them for inexpensive promotional tools on the Internet.  It’s all soooo unfair.

Someone moved Public Relations and it’s just not right!

I mention this because a few weeks ago a friend let me borrow a book called The Publicity Handbook by David R. Yale and Andrew J. Carothers.  It was published by McGraw-Hill in May of 2001.  In the nine years since it was published the field of Public Relations was moved.  What we knew and understood about communication and media in 2001 has little to do with the world of communications and media of 2010, and the speed of change seems to be accelerating.  Consider just a few of the changes since 2001:

  • Newspaper Circulation: Down 21% from 2001 (55.6 M) to 2009 (44.0 M) and newspapers lost over 10% in 2009 alone.
  • Newspapers Closed: 105…in the first seven months of 2009.
  • Social Media Sites: MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, etc. all started after 2001.
  • Blackberry Smart Phones: 2002

So what can a book on publicity have to say that has any value in today’s environment?

Quite a bit. The Publicity Handbook is a good foundation for anyone who is trying to learn the basics of the field of publicity and I it is a book I would recommend; however, for me, it gives a measure of how much has changed in the past nine years.

Next —  Social Media 2020:  Public Relations 2001 vs Social Media Relations 2010

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Fear of Public Relations

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Does Anybody Really Understand PR?

Rotary: All Public Relations is Local

25 Thursday Mar 2010

Posted by in Public Relations, Rotary

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by Paul Kiser

Paul Kiser - District Public Relations Chair - Rotary District 5190

Rotary is challenged in the role of Public Relations. For almost a century we didn’t see a need for Public Relations.   There are good reasons why this was the case, but now we recognize the need for a Public Relations function.

Unfortunately, despite the efforts of many smart and skilled people we are still in the infancy of fully incorporating Public Relations into the hearts and minds of the organization.   In the recommended Club Leadership Plan published by Rotary International, every other club function has a list of its sub-functions, except Public Relations which is blank.   That should not be surprising considering how little time Public Relations has had to evolve in the organization.   The idea to establish PR as a separate club function was a bold step, and it has taken years for the basic concept of Public Relations to take hold.

However, it is time we take another bold act and fully incorporate the function of Public Relations into the soul of the club.   The reason to act is simple: the survival of the organization depends on it.

Rotary International - 105 Years of Service Above Self

Rotary and Public Relations: History
When Rotary was first formed in 1905, it was a small club of four members.   The membership grew rapidly but it remained one club started by young professionals who sought to exchange business based on ethical practices.   There was no need to be concerned about Public Relations because it was just a group of people ‘doing their own thing’.   The change came in 1906, when a prospective member suggested that he saw no reason to join unless the club was doing something worthwhile for the community.   The club members agreed and in 1907 Rotary completed the first community project by building public toilets in downtown Chicago.   It was at that moment that Rotary began interacting with the community, thus Rotary Public Relations was born, but not recognized.

As the decades passed, individual Rotary clubs continued to interact with the local, regional, national, and international communities around them and yet the understanding that Rotary was involved in Public Relations with each interaction did not fully sink in with the clubs, nor the larger organization of Rotary International.   Some clubs equated Public Relations to be ‘publicity’ and shunned the idea of bragging or boasting about the community project and programs, not understanding the publicity is only a part of Public Relations.

The Rotary Theme Logo for 2009-10

What Changed?
As Rotary approached its Centennial a realization came about the need for Public Relations; however, this need was still thought of as publicity.   Many clubs were experiencing a slow loss of membership and it became apparent that the organization needed to make people more aware of Rotary in order to continue to attract new members.  The idea of ‘getting the word out’ was the driving force behind adopting a Public Relations strategy, which is why the efforts have been focused on publicity.  This is probably why the Public Relations function is somewhat of an orphan in the Club’s organization because the priority has been on external communication.

Public Relations: A Holistic Approach
Rotary Public Relations should involve the development of a relationship between the Club and the community. It does involve getting the message out (publicity) but to do that a Club must understand how that message will be perceived. This can only be done if a Club is already aware of their TRUE public image in the community. Public Relations is a two-way relationship that requires listening to the community’s perceptions before sending out a message. If the Club does not know what the community perceives about Rotary, the message could be misunderstood leading to a negative Public Relations outcome.

In order to listen to the community a Club must be accessible to the public. This can be a major problem as a Rotary Club only exists for 1 1/2 hours per week.   Most clubs have no office, nor any physical presence outside of the Club’s weekly meeting. The only way for the public to access a Club is by creating a presence that can be accessed 24/7/365.   Fortunately a Club website can provide that presence, but many clubs do not have an updated website and many more don’t have a website at all.

The other problem is that public image is formed primarily by what a person experiences on a personal level.   An airline can say it loves its passengers in a national ad campaign, but the passenger will determine her or his image of the airline based upon the experience with the people met when purchasing tickets, boarding, and flying. Thus, people perceive Rotary based on the interactions with the members and their Club.

Rotary Public Relations: The Next Level

The Rotary Theme Logo for 2010-11

To move to the next level Rotary Clubs should ask questions of non-Rotarians in the communities about their perceptions of Rotary and the Rotary Club.   This should be done in a way that the person does not feel like they need to make the ‘nice comment’, but rather allow the person to be completely honest.   The Club should be prepared to hear information that may be unexpected and equally prepared to take appropriate action to work to repair any misconceptions or misunderstandings.   Correcting misconceptions is the role of publicity, but it must happen after the Club is aware of the existing public image.

The Club should work to be accessible to members and the public with an active and updated website.   The website should offer information about upcoming programs and projects, contact information via email or phone, and information about the Club, the Area, the District, and Rotary International.

To establish a plan for the Club Public Relations the Bulletin/Newsletter Editor, Programs Chair, Webmaster, along with other key Club leadership should meet to discuss Club goals and how the Club’s Internal message tools can be used to assist in communicating those goals.   Using the resources for Club planning available from Rotary International, the Club Public Relations Committee can establish short-term, annual, and long-term goals.

The key is understanding that all Public Relations is local and that public image is what non-Rotarians perceive about Rotary.

Rotary related blogs by Paul Kiser

Rotary Public Relations and Membership: Eight Steps to a Team Win

Rotary@105:  Our 1st Rotary Dropout

Best Practices:  Become a Target!

Fear of Public Relations

Does Anybody Understand PR?

07 Sunday Mar 2010

Posted by in Management Practices, Public Relations, Rotary

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by Paul Kiser

Question: What is PR.
 Answer: The 16th and 18th letters in the Alphabet.

Paul Kiser - CEO of 2020 Enterprise Technologies, inc.

That’s probably the best answer most people can get today about the beast that has become Public Relations. Public Relations used to be so simple. It was about promoting your organization. You did it through newspapers, radio, and television. If you were good at it you could disguise it so it looked like news. It involved writing skills, and people skills, and often it involved that attractive young, female, PR representative in the tight business skirt. It was all so easy…if you knew what you are doing and had the right connections to the right people.

And then came the Internet, and bloggers, and MySpace, then Facebook and Twitter. Perky people fell in love with the new ‘social media’ and the cynical people loathed it. Young people became texting experts and old people smirked and scoffed at the young people…well, maybe old people have always done that…but they did it more.

Slick PR types smiled, and then didn’t smile as much, and then didn’t smile at all. A tight skirt didn’t translate on the Internet. A slap on the back didn’t register on the virtual shoulder. All the ‘critical people to know’ at the newspapers, radio stations, and television stations were not as important in a world that was tuning out of traditional media. Newspapers started measuring the drop in circulation not by how much it dropped from last month, but how much the percentage of drop increased from last month. Publishing became something anybody could do, not just magazines and newspapers…and the soft thud we heard was the editor’s cigar hitting the floor as they sat in their 1960’s office chair with mouth agape while kids with cell phones were ‘scooping’ reporters with laptops.

O Brave New World
New technology did not kill PR, just everything we knew about it.  The PR Stoics still say that PR really hasn’t changed, but who are they trying to kid.  The field of Public Relations is changing daily, sometimes hourly.  A 15-year old kid can make a bigger splash than a 30-year PR veteran, and the teen can do it in one Tweet.

Public Relations has been evolving for over a decade; however, in the past five years the media world experienced a 10.0 magnitude earthquake in best practices of PR that has shattered everyone’s understanding of the field.  Whether it is a corporate entity, a non-profit organization, or a political campaign; what worked in 2005 is only going to work for a smaller and older segment of a society.  The Public Relations experts are mixed in with everyone else trying to stay on top of the tsunami of change.

Reality Check in a Virtual World

  • Publicity is not Public Relations –Get the message out, yes, but then listen for the response
  • All Public Relations is local – “How does this impact me?” is the only question people want answered
  • Public image is about what OTHER people think about your organization – Forget what you know, it’s what they think that is important
  • Genuine trumps ‘Slick’ every time – Manipulation and selling is red flagged by the social media audience
  • Passion trumps formality for the social media audience – Passion scares the traditional audience
  • New PR: Shape the message to the audience – Old PR: Control the message!
  • Communication is organic and messy – PR is about doing 1000 LITTLE things right, not just one BIG thing right
  • The true value of advertising is declining – Super Bowl ad may be seen, but does it translate to commerce?
  • Advertising = Spam – The audience has found the OFF button and they are not afraid to use it!
  • Public Relations is a two-way process, not just broadcasting –Can people find out more?  Can they even find you?

more Connected, more Segmented, and more Complicated
The new world of social media allows us to be more connected, but it also make us more aware of things we may not like or agree with on flashpoint issues.  This can cause some people to ‘unfriend’ or ‘unfollow’ with those that they disagree, which divide people into segments of like-minded audiences.  Organizations need to be aware of their audience and how that audience perceives everything they do.  Even one worker can have a negative or positive impact the on public relations of an entire company.

Public Relations is a now a 24/7/365 field where an organization has to understand all age groups, all media resources, and look in the mirror constantly to see what the public sees from their point of view.  What works today may not work tomorrow.   What worked yesterday might be novel enough to work again.  Branding is important, but like a woman’s make up, too much and you look like a whore.  An organization’s public image is the sum of its individuals as much as it is advertising.  Everyday Public Relations gets more chaotic and less forgiving.

“Does anybody really understand Public Relations?” is the wrong question.  The question is who can afford not to?