Friday, April 27, 2007

Best Practices in PR

The practice of public relations is often misunderstood and under-appreciated. Public Relations is critical to any organization’s success, whether it is for marketing purposes or for maintaining a responsible reputation.

Throughout the duration of this semester, I compiled a “holy grail”, if you will of best practices for PR. As PR continues to change, so does its practices. In my research of speakers, PR blogs, experiences from inside and outside of class, readings, and lessons from my professor I have listed five crucial elements to the success of any public relations campaign.

Read the newspaper daily. Part of PR is being up to date. Researching currency in public relations is the most important element of PR. So many factors hang on the relevant findings of conclusive research. Find out what the competition is up to. Find what’s current. Find what’s hot. In order to know where you are going you need to know where you are now and position campaigns in a way reflective of your findings. In doing so, messages will never be dated, information will always be accurate, and your PR strategy will always be a success.

Targeting and connecting with the appropriate media. Paul Rand of marketingpower.com tells this story to reiterate the importance of this practice. A former foreign editor of The Wall Street Journal loved to tell reporters going overseas that he wanted them to scour Sri Lanka for an old man with a white beard sitting under a tree who had cornered the tea market. “Find him,” he commanded. Whether such a recluse existed or not, the editor knew such influential people exist and finding them is key to executing any PR message. Placing the right kind of information in front of the right people can spell success or failure. You would not pitch a business story to the editor of the entertainment section. That guarantees your story will not be picked up. Pitching to the wrong outlet is public relations death.

Timing is everything. Keep your stories up timely. Pitching an old story is like curdled milk. It is past its expiration date and nobody wants it. Sometimes, if a story is more lax with its release date it is helpful to wait for slow news day. If you pitch a story when the media is starving for news, it’s more likely to get published. A story pitched the day after the September 11th attacks about a new line of clothing stands zero chance of reaching publication, unless you applied a timely angle. If the designer donated new clothes to the victims of the attacks or set up a memorial fund, you might stand a chance.

Stay on the cutting edge. Know what’s trendy. Staying up on current events and trends provides the necessary knowledge to position PR practices in a way that is relevant and interesting to society. For example, people no longer watch the nightly news. Right now, people get their news through alternative channels. Comedians like Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien provide just enough information about current events to allow people to feel caught up and informed while being entertained. There are companies out there like, LookLook.com that have capitalized on the importance of trendiness and provide information to companies about trends and catalog them.

Be a great writer.
Your ability to write sells your ideas. It establishes you as a credible source. In order to be taken seriously you need to communicate effectively. Be polished. Keep writing tight and concise. Convey your message clearly. Keeping to the point and eliminating fluff is key to great writing. Only excellent pieces get media hits so in this case, it pays to be anal retentive about grammar, errors, and formatting.

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Crow and David School Colleges on Global Warming


Sheryl Crow and Laurie David kicked off their “Stop Global Warming” college tour right here at SMU. It was an unseasonably chilly and windy day for Dallas, setting the perfect background to drive home the harmful effects global warming is having on our planet.

Singer Sheryl Crow and Laurie David, the producer of “An Inconvenient Truth” were accompanied by the Dallas, Austin and Arlington City Mayors. Together they acknowledged that Texas is the number one emitter of carbon dioxide in the country, yet Gov. Perry continually chooses to ignore the problem.

The tour ends April 22 - Earth Day - at George Washington University in Washington D.C. but not before making 11 stops along the way. Crow and David are touring in biodiesel-fueled bus.

Here's a quote from People.com about Crow's visit to SMU.

The magazine asked what she's doing personally to reduce pollution and energy consumption.

"I try to wash my clothes in cold water as much as I can," she said. "I turn off lights in rooms that I'm not using. I drive a hybrid. I'm getting solar panels for my house."

You too can help the crusade by joining the virtual march online at http://www.stopglobalwarming.org/. So far, 700,000 people have already signed up and the list is still growing strong.

And by the way, I think the fact that the tour kicks off at SMU where President Bush wants to put his Presidential Library demonstrates these two women are not only passionate and committed, but that they have a great sense of humor.

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

SMU Students Want to Be Their Own Boss

Many young people experience a major outbreak of the entrepreneurial spirit during their college days. Maybe it’s that youthful sense of pride and ambition that seems to be characteristic of people in their twenties. Maybe it is because life hasn’t beaten us to a pulp yet. Whatever the case, entrepreneurial ventures and the desire to be self employed is on the rise in college students across the country.

It is a trend that is specific to this generation’s college grads. One factor to consider is the way today’s youth was raised is far more technologically advanced than our predecessors. We grew up on the computer instead of in front of the T.V. and were practically born with blue tooth technology embedded in our ears. This immediate access to communication created a need for instant gratification in young people not seen in previous generations. Having instantaneous and unlimited flows of information at upon one’s demand surely creates jaded expectations. Young people are seeking that same immediate success in the work place after graduation. College graduates no longer seek to stay at one stable job and climb the corporate ladder. They want to be the corporate ladder and set their own standards as they go.

This is especially the case here at SMU. Right now, in college dorm rooms across campus the next generation of Bill Gateses and Michael Dells are hard at work. The Cox School of Business even offers an entrepreneurship program at the Caruth Institute and its website includes a list of recent grads that have gone on to successful being their own businesses.

Many SMU students express the desire to be their own bosses after graduation and start their own companies. One thing to consider is the demographic of students that compile the SMU student body. There is definitely a shortage of broke, Ramen-eating college kids here. Tuition is prohibitively expensive. The Princeton Review explains the typical student at SMU carries a Louis Vuitton bag, charges on daddy’s credit card and is tan all year round. There are far more BMW’s in the parking garages than hand-me-down Corollas. But despite the privileged upbringings of SMU kids, entrepreneurial aspirations appear to be on the rise across the country. Whether or not they ever achieve this goal, the entrepreneurial way of thinking is on the rise.

This shift in attitude is apparent across several business ventures. It seems like these days, whenever you look at a newsstand, at least one major business magazine has a cover story about a wildly successful entrepreneur in his or her 20s or 30s. According to author, Jennifer Kushell, that's not surprising when one considers that one out of every five small-business owners in America is under 35, and that more young people are starting businesses than ever before.

Read more in:
“The Young Entrepreneur's Edge: Using Your Ambition, Independence,and Youth to Launch a Successful Business” by Jennifer Kushell

Or find out more about entrepreneurial ventures at SMU:
http://www.smu.edu/newsinfo/stories/entrepreneurs-29march2007.asp

http://www.cox.smu.edu/centers/caruthentrepreneurship/

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Dawn Dishes it Out: A Case Study in PR


On May 4, 2005 Proctor and Gamble staged a wash-a-thon of record-breaking proportions at Irwindale Speedway in Los Angeles in order to prove that a single bottle of Dawn dishwashing liquid can clean 10,000 dishes. Then, daredevil Kaptain Robbie Knievil jumped over the stacked dishes in a death-defying motorcycle jump.

Proctor and Gamble staged this event as a promotional stunt to generate awareness and hype around Dawn’s long lasting benefits. Despite the small size of the bottle, the wash-a-thon set out to prove that Dawn dishwashing detergent packs more bang for the buck compared to bargain brand counterpart.

Proctor and Gamble allotted the campaign a budget of $500,000 and employed the tactics of a public relations firm that designed the following plan.
Strategies:
1)Infuse the low-interest dishwashing liquid category with excitement

2)Create memorable, larger-than-life visuals reinforcing that "a little Dawn goes a long way"

3)Appeal to Hispanic consumers via location and spokesperson/host

Target Audiences:
•Primary: Middle income, working women with children
•Secondary: Hispanic consumers who are value seekers

Tactics:
The agency created a bi-lingual umbrella theme: Dawn Goes the Distance (Dawn Supera la Distancia) and developed a four-pronged integrated marketing effort:

•Hold a massive eating/washing event that will prove just one 25-oz. Dawn bottle can wash over 10,000 dishes, lending credibility to Dawn’s long-lasting claims.

•Market and hold the event in a Hispanic targeted area. (Los Angeles, home to the majority of U.S. Hispanics) and Hispanic celebrity host to emotionally connect with target

•“Wow" visual for media coverage and advertising shoot with stunt jump

•Celebrity spokesperson (Knievil) to communicate Brand value message and generate attention.

Results:
Did the campaign work? The answer is, yes. Two years later, you are still reading about here. And the numbers don’t lie, either:

•The program achieved its goals and exceeded expectations. 13,350 dishes were scrubbed clean with just one bottle of Dawn, when the original goal was 10,000 proving Dawn as powerful and effective detergent.

•Coverage saturated the media including 575 Hispanic and general television hits. ESPN and CNN both covered the story

•The finances and profitability of dawn increased in part, due to the campaign. Dawn detergent sales increased by eight percent and competitor dollar and volume share fell despite their own versions of heavy promotion.

Ultimately, the “Dawn Goes the Distance” campaign proved a success. The tactics implemented fulfilled the original goals outlined by Proctor and Gamble and increased product profitability…And in case you’re wondering….Knievil cleared the jump