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Jul 14 2011

PR Advice from an Industry Veteran on Her Birthday: Patrice Tanaka

July 14, 2011 – 2:27 pm

By CRT/tanaka (@crttanaka)

It’s not everyday you get to celebrate the birthday of someone of the likes of this. Public Relations by day, Samba dancing by night, she defines the expression – “Living Life to the Fullest.”

Patrice TanakaAs Chief Creative Officer for CRT/tanaka, Patrice is the leading ambassador of the whatcanbe vision. Her work is her passion, creatively providing clients, colleagues and everyone around her with new ideas, displaying by example that true happiness comes from within by always envisioning a bigger, brighter and better future. Her smile can light up a room, her expertise is unfathomable, and most of all, her selfless kindness and giant heart makes her an extremely remarkable woman.

On behalf CRT/tanaka, please join us in wishing Patrice Tanaka a very Happy Birthday!

Here’s some valuable advice from Patrice on her birthday for young professionals in PR and, for that matter, anyone:

Do what you love.  Most people live their lives as if they have the luxury of infinite time.  I am always informed (and haunted) by the memory of the nearly 3,000 people who died in the Twin Towers on 9/11.  They went to work that morning not thinking that they would NOT return home that evening.  It’s important to do what you love and to live as if you had precious few moments in which to do it.  By doing so, you won’t waste your time and your life.

Surround yourself with people you respect and admire.  If you do, you will always learn, always be inspired, always be challenged to do great work.

Learn something new every day.  That’s the great, built-in thing about our profession.  We are engaged in discovery and learning on a daily basis.  In fact, continual learning is required to do great work in PR (or in any other industry). 

Show your passion.  If I’m excited by an idea, others know it.  And it excites and encourages them.  I love working with passionate people.  They’re excited about work and life, in general, and it’s exhilarating to be around them. 

Be positive.  It makes coming up with a solution so much easier.  Far better to invest your time and energy in brainstorming a solution than sapping it with worry and doubt that you won’t.  At CRT/tanaka, our focus is on whatcanbe, NOT what can’t be.

Stand up for what you believe.  We have the opportunity and responsibility to do great work for ourselves, our colleagues, our clients and the community-at-large.  Doing great work, however, requires that you advocate for what you believe in and sometimes fight for it against people you admire and/or who are senior to you, including colleagues and clients. 

Live in alignment with your core values.  Your power comes from living in alignment with what you believe, what you hold most dear and who you are.  That is why I work at CRT/tanaka where we are guided by “Nine Shared Values,” our mission of “Goodness.  Genius.  Greatness.” and a vision of whatcanbe.

Pursue your joy!  Like many New Yorkers in the wake of 9/11, I was depressed and in a malaise, thinking about those nearly 3,000 people who died that day. I wondered how I could live my life so that I would be prepared to die if that ever happened to me.  This is what I decided and this is how I’ve been living my life ever since:  “Choosing joy in my life every single day; being mindful of that joy; and sharing that joy with others.”  Yes, I am definitely pursuing my joy!  And, that is my biggest piece of advice to anyone who asks.Becoming Ginger Rogers Book Cover

If you agree with these views and also live your life the same way, make sure you check out Patrice’s new book, “Becoming Ginger Rogers…How Ballroom Dancing Made Me a Happier Woman, Better Partner and Smarter CEO.”  

Be sure to become a fan of her on Facebook (Becoming Ginger Rogers) and on Twitter (@BeGingerRogers)

In the words of Patrice herself – Happy Birthday, “Doll”!

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AddThis Social Bookmark Button By Bryan Virgil Crist | Posted in PR Industry Trends | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments (10)
Jul 13 2011

You Can Run, But You Can’t Hide: The Thin-dustry is Coming for Your Booze

July 13, 2011 – 10:14 am

bethenny-frankel-skinnygirl-margarita-475x316-1THE BOOZE BIN

Guest Post By Lauren Heilman (@mslaurenheilman)

Three words – bathing suit season. Yes, it’s that time of year again; but even if you aren’t ready, I can assure you alcohol companies and their marketing teams are.

Now that summer has finally arrived, the push for convenient, low-calorie refreshers is on the rise. Whether you prefer flavored light beers (MGD 64 lemonade) or skinny spirits (Firefly Skinny Tea, Skinnygirl Margarita), there’s definitely a guilt-free beverage waiting for your consumption.

While mostly targeting a young, female demographic, marketers are going out of their way to make us regret that delicious Blue Moon we had after work (not to mention that extra 15 pounds that crept up on us over the winter – if only we had stuck with our New Year’s resolutions). Marketers want us to embrace their product in order to achieve our weight-loss goals.

For me, the best way to manage the whole alcohol-calorie dilemma is to simply drink less (or just eat right, exercise regularly and drink what I want), rather than relying on water-flavored beer and less than harmless alternative sweeteners (i.e. Sucralose, Aspartame, Truvia).

Unlike food, which is a necessity, alcohol is a treat reserved for enjoyment and relaxation; why skimp when the pleasure of your drink lies in its content? I like being healthy just as much as the next girl, but shouldn’t we simply drink less of what we love instead of compromising taste or quality?

Here are just a few statistics for thought (all servings 12-ounces):

  • Bud Select 55 – 55 calories, 1.9 g carbs, 2.4% abv
  • MGD Light 64 – 64 calories, 2.4 g carbs, 2.8% abv
  • Bud Light– 95 calories, 6.6 g carbs, 4.2% abv
  • Skim milk – 129 calories, 17.9 g carbs
  • Orange juice – 168 calories, 28.2 g carbs

For a few extra calories, why waste your time and sacrifice flavor?

Skim milk and orange juice are rather healthy and we might not feel remorse consuming one (or both) on a daily basis. But when compared to a Bud Light, the calorie and carbohydrate count is interesting to note.

How can we enjoy ourselves (responsibly) with so much pressure placed on the caloric content of our booze? I know we’ve all seen the MGD 64 commercial with the stein-guzzling guy drinking Michelob Ultra. Very unrealistic, but we get the point.

Honestly, whether I like it or not, the “Thin-dustry” is here to stay. Every day, our world is shifting increasingly toward portion-control and healthy lifestyle choices – which is obviously a great thing considering the obesity epidemic in the U.S. – but where do we draw the line and recognize that sugar substitutes may not actually be healthy?slim-waist-tapemeasure-sm

Yes, we should all be more health-conscious, but sometimes, it’s okay to indulge in moderation with a real-deal drink. The thought of one day seeing a bottle of Patron with Splenda on the label or a 55-calorie version of PBR turns my stomach. Literally, Jack Daniels would roll over in his grave. Next thing you know, Weight Watchers will be promoting a low-calorie Fruity White wine. Oh wait…

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AddThis Social Bookmark Button By Guest Post | Posted in Digital Marketing, Healthcare, PR Industry Trends, Wine, Food & Nutrition | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments (3)
Jul 12 2011

Word Play Politicizes Energy

July 12, 2011 – 8:30 am

Obama Solar

by Mike Mulvihill

An excellent blog post Sunday by Kate Galbraith in the New York Times (Word Choice Matters for Energy Policy) points out the depth of our nation’s political obfuscation on energy policy.

Ms. Galbraith points out that when President Barack Obama speaks about the fuels of the future; his term of choice is usually “clean energy.” This is a different term than alternative energy and is used separately from descriptors such as renewable, sustainable and green.

President Obama, in a major speech on energy security this spring, called for 80 percent of the United States’ electricity in 2035 to come from “a wide range of clean energy sources,” in which he included natural gas, nuclear power and clean coal.

This is exactly what our energy policy should be – use a wide portfolio of fuel sources to keep electric energy affordable and reliable, while we invest in developing new technologies that will make alternative and renewable energy (wind, solar, geothermal, etc.) more affordable and, thus, commercially viable on a broad scale.

But politicians do not want voters to hear them embrace quick adoption of clean, renewable energy sources that will dramatically increase retail electric rates if we act too quickly. Nor do they want voters to hear them utter the harsh reality that it will take 30 years to reduce our dependence on coal without incurring significant consumer cost increases. And politicians and policy makers don’t have the stomach to tell the American public that we need to invest billions of dollars in research and development of new technologies to make even the 30-year plan work.

Otherwise, alternative and renewable energy will continue to be the power choice of the elite. University of Montana School of Journalism, with the help of American Public Media’s Public Insight Network, reported and wrote stories for New West on the energy economy of the Rocky Mountain region. They found that even with tax credit programs, the cost of renewable energy home installations is economically out of reach for most Americans. Installing these systems can cost tens of thousands of dollars and, in order for them to be effective, wind and solar power require just that—wind and sun.

Politicizing energy has been an American practice for more than 100 years. It is time to remove much of the politics and make energy our nation’s next moon program. After all, we actually live on this sphere… and there are all those NASA brainiacs looking for work.

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AddThis Social Bookmark Button By Mike Mulvihill | Posted in PR Industry Trends | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)
Jul 11 2011

Pitch it, Pitch it Good: Tips from Marshall Kirkpatrick, co-editor of ReadWriteWeb

July 11, 2011 – 10:11 am

By Rosalie Morton @rosaliemo

One of the best things about working for a mid-size agency is the quality and intimacy of the trainingDevo sessions. Our training committee is fantastic, and always looking to us for our input on what WE want to learn about.

What is the most evergreen topic in PR? Best practices for pitching. How to get that reporter or blogger to pick up your story.

We were fortunate enough to have Marshall Kirkpatrick, co-editor of ReadWriteWeb present on “Pitching for Coverage.” It was great to hear it from the horse’s mouth.

Marshall’s tips

Identify and engage with your community online.

- Use a custom search engine to find the perfect outlets for your story like Blekko

- Now engage with that community. Follow your target bloggers on Twitter. Add insightful comments to their posts. Make it easy for yourself! Use lists on Twitter to organize your contacts so you can easily see what they are tweeting about. Create a Google Reader so that you receive their stories right to your smartphone or desktop.

- Add as much value as possible, early on.

Anddddd. Repeat. With dignity, Marshall emphasized.

Develop a reputation for adding interesting value, and then you won’t be sending cold emails.

Create the Pitch

- Embargoes- Marshall loves and respects them, as do a lot of other bloggers… but not including TechCrunch.

  • The best time for an embargo to lift is 9 or 10 AM PST, 12 PST or 4 PST… but not 3!
  • Prepare a great launch document that includes a short description, quotes, screen shots, logos, link for launch and an FAQ—answer the questions that you know are interesting, but a blogger or reporter who is not familiar with your brand or product might not think to ask.

- Pitches- Short, sweet to the point. Why does the blogger want to write about it?

- Being annoying- This was my favorite part… Feel free to call anyone who hasn’t replied, and call them again. Keep calling until you get pushback (ahhh, a welcome sigh of relief from me!).

  • Don’t worry that you are “being annoying,” until they respond negatively.

Annnnd Repeat.

My personal takeaways: It was a big relief to know that I can send that extra email or make that extra phone call, if I really think a story is a good fit, but I haven’t heard back yet. I may have just fallen to the bottom of their inbox. It also was great to hear just how much bloggers value personal relationships.

My next steps: Sorting out the mess that is my Twitter lists and updating my Google Reader with additional relevant reporters and bloggers.

What’s on your pitching punch list?

Image from http://www.legitreviews.com/news/7386/

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AddThis Social Bookmark Button By Rosalie Morton | Posted in Digital Marketing, PR Industry Trends | Comments (7)
Jul 7 2011

In Social Media’s Shadow: Tried and true tactics ready for revival

July 7, 2011 – 11:07 am

By April Sciacchitano (@aprilcs)

For every trend, there’s a counter trend.  With digital media challenging the industry with a steep learning curve the past few years, we’re now settling in.  We have tweeps and fans, we’re measuring success, and we have an idea of what’s next.  We’re even starting to think in campaigns instead of platforms!

Good.

Now what’s been pushed aside in the digital rush?  Face to face communication and real-life interaction.  Even the digitally-minded know people crave it, evidenced by Facebook’s partnership with Skype and Apple launching its FaceTime app.

Digital efforts might feel grassroots because of the one-on-one engagement it creates.  However, digital engagement is a supplement, not a substitute, for these tried and true marketing tactics – events, community relations, word-of-mouth. Why?  Because time and again, people prefer face-to-face communication for anything that’s important to them.  They want it from their employers and their family – and if they don’t want it from your brand, you’re not being interesting, relevant or present enough.

90 percent of word of mouth recommendations are taking place in person.  Then too, only 13 percent of Americans have Twitter accounts.  Together, this is a serious case for getting your digital strategy on the ground.  Here are traditional tactics that are supercharged with a digital twist:

May I be amazing at you?

Word of mouth is well worth revisiting with social media in a supporting role – fans are more readily identified, contacted, engaged and tracked.  Use this intel to reach fans in unexpected ways. Andy Sernovitz says it all the time:  Surprise them.  Stop trying to be “relevant” to customers and be amazing to them.  

When it comes to turning a digital relationship into a real-life interaction, Hollywood gets it.  When The Dark Knight neared its debut, media received a cake with a cell phone in it.  With this kind of creativity mailed to their doorstep, fans will not just tweet about it and blog about it.  They’ll talk you up every chance they get. 

Conference fun.

Is this any oxymoron?  Are you talking about trust falls?  No – the new influentials you’re pushing contests to want to connect on another level.  If you can get from “too busy” to “yes,” they’ll love you for getting them out from behind the screen. 

Using an event to DO something together has special appeal for online influentials, and some are taking note.  Zephyr Adventures adds fitness activities to blogger conferences.  BlogHer and BlogWorld have become must-do expos for brands.  With lean staff at print publications, expect to connect your brand more with in-person blogger events like these.

Don’t forget your neighbors.

Community relations have been the most likely to get replaced by digital engagement.  But grassroots activity now means you have an ally in a crisis.  Don’t wait until you need community leaders to start forging a relationship.  The digital link here has taken care of itself – community groups are on Facebook.  Become their fan, but don’t forget there’s no substitute for your presence at their next meeting.

After all that social media account management, creating real-life touchpoints will be fun.  And returning to these tactics with a digital twist only makes them more powerful.  Go get ‘em!

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AddThis Social Bookmark Button By April Sciacchitano | Posted in Digital Marketing | Comments (8)
Jul 6 2011

Buggy Buzz, Dissected.

July 6, 2011 – 9:32 am

THE BOOZE BIN

By Cassandra Bianco (@cnbianco)

worm cocktail

Bugs could be sexy. Ok fine…only a little.

The New York City cocktail movement has trickled so far along, some bars want something… special to differentiate themselves. So why not fix up cocktails with some additional, natural, seasonings?

Creepy is cool, and insect drinks are currently swarming the scene, or at least the publicity scene. Beginning with Falai Café’s squid-ink cocktail in SoHo, this tippler is terrific for newcomers. However, if you’re up for making the (grasshopper) leap, try the city’s latest at TriBeCa’s White & Church, which features $14 insect- and arachnid-garnished concoctions. These include the “Blue Velvet,” a tobacco-infused brandy topped with scorpions; the “Summer,” a coconut, crème caramel and cricket blend; or the Mexican worm-based “Why Not,” a tequila, Cointreau, lime juice, and avocado cocktail. Mezcal and latin cocktails are equally trendy now, so it’s not surprising to hear the little wormy “Why Not” is a true hit. Historically, one of Mexico’s most famous culinary insects is the agave worm, eaten on tortillas and placed in bottles of mezcal liquor, so it’s great to hear authenticity is in order.

Here are my 3 morning thoughts, with hopes to further percolate the matter, but not pester:

  • Insects are innovative. For this creativity, I applaud. Perhaps these establishments were inspired by a certain sustainable food TED talk. It’s an eco protein, and could be very trendy in the future. But for now, quite frankly it just bugs me a little.
  • Crazy, or clever? The bars could be catering to the 48.7 million yearly NYC tourists, many of which are Japanese and Chinese folks accustomed to critter cuisine. If they are targeting niche tourist communities, well that’s ingenious. The Japanese savor aquatic fly larvae sautéed in sugar and soy sauce, but are mostly known to brave poisonous fugu. They also serve boiled wasp larvae, fried grasshoppers, fried cicadas, and fried silk moth pupae…all sounding quite excellent.
  • Bottom line: If you have bugs on the menu, journalists pounce. When I asked Grubstreet’s Jenny Miller, she agreed: “If you have bugs in a cocktail, a journalist’s ears perk up — it’s something different.” To gain media attention, we must constantly research and pitch new ideas, i.e. no Beetle Juice, please.

And so, I wish you well on your eco-eating adventures. If the kids get a little envious, feel free to serve up some cicada ice cream. Bon appetit.

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AddThis Social Bookmark Button By Cassandra Bianco | Posted in Digital Marketing, PR Industry Trends, Wine, Food & Nutrition | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments (0)