Blogger Relations Done Right

The increased profile and readership of this blog has raised my distaste for the lazy public relations hacks who pepper me with pitches for products and services that are in no way consistent with my editorial focus.

Here are a couple of off-target missives from December:

--A new flavor of chewing gum infused with vitamins
--Gambling trends among China's working class
--A Web enabled garage door system 
  
I'm a PR person by training, so I would like to think I am more tolerant than your typical journalist who has spent a career wading through this stuff.  Yet, even I am tempted to reply with a curt inquiry about whether the hack in question has actually read a post before sticking me on their spam...er...distribution list.

Today brought a bright light of encouragement that all is not lost in the world of blogger relations.  I've included below an exchange I had with Sean McVey of Hinge Marketing, whose thoughtful and targeted pitch will most likely lead me to invest time in writing a review of the book he's pushing.

The third-party credibility and awareness garnered from effective public relations remains incredibly valuable and contributes to the success of an organization.  Like all things worth having, it just takes an investment of time, thinking and consideration to get it right.

Good show, Sean!

Hi Marc,
I have been reading Strategic Guy since late summer and it has been a consistent source of information for me. Our company only dabbles in Social Media but we are learning.

I was wondering if you would be interested in reading a book our company recently wrote and launched. It is called Spiraling Up - How to Build a High Growth, High Value Professional Services Firm. Based on interviews of 300 CEO's, it documents what high growth companies have in common.

We are looking for feedback on the book from other marketing and PR companies and we'd love to know what you think about it. Let me know and I will send you a hard copy. Or, you can get the soft copy at www.spiralingupbook.com. 

Thanks,

Sean

------------------------------------------------

Hey Sean,

 

Thanks for the note and the offer to forward along a copy of the book.  I'd welcome the opportunity to review it and, if appropriate, write a post with my thoughts.

 

Here is my work address:

 

Marc Hausman

Strategic Communications Group, Inc.

1400 Spring Street

Suite 330

Silver Spring, MD  20910

 

I would also like to compliment you on the professionalism of your Email.  Unfortunately, most of the notes I receive are from public relations reps who refuse to take the time to actually read my blog, before sending me some off-target, rambling pitch.

 

I hope it's cool if I cite you as an example of blogger relations done well.  Enjoy your evening,

 

Marc 

 

Colleges Fail on Social Media

Are the journalism and communications programs at US colleges preparing students for a business environment shaped by social media and Web 2.0 technologies?

That is the question I pondered as I walked across American University’s campus last week. On the invitation of former Forbes senior writer Matt Swibel, I had just spoken to a class of about 40 sophomore and junior communications majors. The experience had me worried.

The source of my concern was not the quality of students in the class. Far from it. By and large they were an outstanding group. Smart, energetic, inquisitive and focused on how to best prepare to competitively enter the workforce.

Rather, it was the students shocking lack of knowledge of social media. Perhaps I had unrealistic expectations as I was under the impression that the generation now making their way through higher education were raised on IM, blogs, virtual worlds and online communities.

With the exception of an intimate knowledge of the features and functionality of Facebook, this group came up short on even the basic tools of social media.

-Who in the class writes a blog? No one raised their hand.
-Who in the group reads blogs on a regular basis? All quiet.
-OK…how about social networks other than Facebook? Does anyone in this group have a LinkedIn profile? Blank stares.
-Has anyone heard of Twitter or Plurk or Pownce? Those are Disney characters, right?

I spent the better part of the next 90 minutes walking the class through blog publishing platforms like WordPress and Blogger. We explored LinkedIn and its group functionality. We looked at Twitter and talked about the business applications of micro-blogging.

Woven into the discussion were examples of social media programs Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) currently has in place and their related writing requirements.

All in all, my guest slot at American University was fulfilling. I have a passion for social media and enjoy speaking on the topic. The students were engage and (I hope) came away with a better understanding of the skills they need to develop prior to entering the work force.

However, my unease about their lack of social media engagement lingers. Are college journalism and communications programs building this into their curriculum? If not, we sure are doing this generation a disservice.

Blogosphere's Untamed Ugliness

When a college-aged intern named Kathryn at Qorvis Communications fired off an Email to TechCrunch’s Michael Arrington requesting information on how to purchase an article reprint little did she know that she was about to experience the untamed ugliness of the blogosphere.

Qorvis Gets Crunched
Social Times
http://www.socialtimes.com/2008/03/qorvis-gets-crunched/


For the sake of full disclosure, Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) competes against Qorvis from time-to-time. I know one of their partners – Doug Poretz (http://www.qorvis.com/an_influential_firm/bios/poretz_d.html) – fairly well and think highly of him and the firm.

I’m also an avid TechCrunch reader. I find the reporting, insight and analysis of their bloggers to be helpful in understanding the market, its players and the trends.

After reviewing the comments and dialogue on CrunchNotes (http://www.crunchnotes.com/?p=449) I think there are a couple of important lessons learned from this situation:

1. Similar to media outreach and industry analyst relations, PR consultancies must task its experienced and well-trained staff with blogger relations. The traditional agency model of cowboying up a group of junior staffers for tactical execution has proven ineffective. Bloggers must be treated with the same professional respect and courtesy as other influencers. It’s not happening right now. Arrington notes in his comments the constant deluge of press releases TechCrunch receives from uninformed PR hacks.

2. Regardless of the diligence and professionalism PR representatives demonstrate, we have to journey into the blogosphere with a thick skin. There’s no peer review process as there is in traditional publishing organizations. To get cut-through, many bloggers rely on an emotional, combative stance.

3. Never pick a fight when challenged. It merely confers credibility to the blogger’s post or comments and keeps the issue relevant. It was a misstep for Qorvis’ Seth Thomas Pietras to go after Arrington on his own blog. He will never win that fight.


Seth Thomas Pietras, March 22, 2008

Congratulations for picking on and publicly humiliating a college intern who was giving you the courtesy of asking permission to use your content for our benefit. Given how dumb this issue is, I’m baffled at the extent to which you all have gone to attack this smart, capable young woman. I hope you feel great about yourselves. Have a great long weekend.

Seth Thomas Pietras
Senior Director
Qorvis Communications


Mike Arrington, March 22, 2008

Seth -
Assuming you are actually with Qorvis.

I’m not sure you understand the amount of time that firms like yours take up by throwing random crap - mostly press releases - our way. To then send yet more email that shows you don’t know that we are not a print publication is yet more time wasted.

I took the time to post this in the hope that PR firms will begin waste less of my time in the future. In that way, it is an investment.

It may very well be that your intern is smart and capable. Combine that with an ability to do a Google search before sending out emails like this, and you’ve got yourself a winner. A quick tutorial to your staff on what a blog is and isn’t might be a good idea too. Or, as a last resort, actually visit my site.

You did not request permission to use my content. I get requests like that occasionally and know what they look like. You asked for a reprint of an article, which print publications do. So, in addition to wasting my time, you are also a liar.

Finally, I am not humiliating your intern specifically. Her last name was removed. I am “attacking” your firm, not an individual. If you take this kind of liberty when you spin your clients - specifically twisting the facts and then injecting emotion into your message, I feel badly for them. They deserve competent and ethical representation.

Bloggers in the PR Pecking Order

When launching a public relations initiative where should we prioritize bloggers in the order of outreach? Do we connect with them prior to industry analysts? How about the trade press?

These questions were top of mind last week as I participated in a brainstorming session with the Tellabs team at Strategic Communications Group (Strategic). We planned out tactics to support an announcement of research that points to dissatisfaction among telecommunications professionals about broadband availability in the United States.

New survey finds gaps in U.S. broadbandIndustry professionals dissatisfied with broadband availability and definition
http://www.tellabs.com/news/2008/nr032008.shtml


A few days later I came across a post from Nick O’Neill of social media consultancy Capital Interactive bemoaning an undisclosed company for not informing him of news prior to distributing a press release.

Lesson Learned: Embrace Your Local Bloggers
http://www.socialtimes.com/2008/03/lesson-learned-embrace-your-local-bloggers/

“Personally, I felt side swiped when a local company that I have directly communicated on a regular basis decided to announce a press release without first privately announcing the news to local bloggers,” O’Neill writes. “…Cater to the desires of local bloggers and you will be handsomely rewarded. Go against them, and you immediately have the most vocal group of individuals in the community building negative press for you business.”

O’Neill (and any blogger who feels this way) needs to get a clue. For starters, publicly traded companies have to follow well defined SEC guidelines related to the announcement of news. It’s called fair disclosure.

Bloggers also need to recognize that while they are an important channel to the market, in many instances they are of equal or less significance than other influencers, including journalists, analysts, academics, think tanks, etc. It’s not a knock, merely an acknowledgment that a trade editor who has a readership base of thousands will often be of higher priority.

O’Neill’s contention that a blogger slighted will turn angry captures my biggest concern about the blogosphere: irrational thinking without the peer review process that defines quality journalism and analyst commentary.