Persuasion

On Being Thankful…

The PR business is tough.  Oftentimes, the very people who want to “spin” your story, also are “spinning” theirs.  We compete against agencies that make a lot of promises they can’t keep. These promises sound very appealing during the new business pitch and quickly fall apart when it’s time for execution. 

Our approach always has been to pitch honestly and to exceed our promises.

So as Thanksgiving approaches what I am most thankful for is the relationships we have made with clients over the years and our incredible retention rate.  Many of our biggest supporters are clients who have had promises broken by other agencies and then come to us for real business support and genuine guidance.

This marks our 11th year in business. Some clients have been with us almost as long.   I look forward to another 11 years with our clients…our friends.   

Happy Thanksgiving!  

--Deborah Massa

It’s carving time!

Department heads, managers and business owners are going through the annual tradition of carving…not the turkey but the budget estimated for 2010.

As pundits watch the process, they forecast whether expenditures will be up or down next year.  In the case of public relations, one outlet managed to predict both an increase and a decrease in PR spending in the same article. 

Regardless if your public relations investment is more or less than it was this year, it should be designed to achieve specific, measureable goals.

We work with some pretty sharp companies that use our PR efforts and tie the results to leads, sales and lifetime customer value.

If you want to know more about how to measure your public relations to make sure you get the ROI you want, get in touch with me lmuskin@teamclarus.com or call 847.432.7300.

--Linda Muskin

When you need to know….

I am connected.  I text, twitter, instant message and email.  I spend most of my working day online or attached to my iPhone.  Online communications are quick and direct but when you really want to know if your message arrived, it takes a personal touch.

I sent an email to a favorite reporter and couldn’t understand why she didn’t reply promptly as was her custom. It turns out, she did but I didn’t receive it for some reason.  She sent a second reply after hearing my voicemail and now we are back on track to get some work done.

My daughter, a high school senior, has been busy trying to make the early college application deadline for her first choice school, but she was disappointed to receive an email notifying her that they are missing a portion of her application. Although she emailed it, they never got it. 

Lesson for today: if something is really important or you really want to connect, sometimes you have to make it personal and call.

--Linda Muskin

It’s Time to Stack the Deck

Would the NY Yankees put the fate of the World Series in the hands of rookies?  Clearly not.  They stacked their roster with as many solid, experienced players as possible. 
 
So I am always confused when I see companies hire PR agencies that are comprised mostly of twenty-somethings right out of college.  In fact, while reading a competitor’s blog I was struck by the fact that 80 percent of their staff is 25 years old or younger.  I’m sure the owners of the company are attending the new business meetings and closing the deals, while the junior staffers are back at the office managing the day-to-day client work. 

During tough times especially, it pays to think like a World Series champion and make sure you have the strongest team possible.  That means having experienced PR professionals on your side who have been through industry ups-and-downs and can maximize your tight budget. 

That doesn’t just mean watching dollars and cents.  It means drawing on years of experience talking with sales reps and company executives, as well as researching industry trends to be sure you are communicating the right message to the right audience to drive the most sales leads. 

Over the years, we’ve welcomed many clients who have enlisted our expertise after having worked with these inexperienced agencies.  They turn out to be our most loyal clients.

--Deborah Massa

Tomorrow’s PR Grad: A Criminologist?

I have twin daughters who are high school seniors this year.  That means that for the last two years I have spent many weekends touring colleges, doing online research and now supervising the application process.

Since my daughters don’t plan to go to the same school, multiply all that by two.

So I was intrigued when I read this article: 6 Surprising Academic Majors That Lead to Great PR Careers.

Much has changed in PR since I started in the business in the ‘80s.  Back then, writing, accuracy and strategic planning were the skills stressed for success in PR.  As an undergrad, even I knew there had to be more, which is why I opted not to be a PR major and instead earned my degree in English with a minor in Business.

This article identifies some interesting areas of study for tomorrow’s PR pro, including criminology, sociology and psychology, as well as English.

My twin daughters don’t plan to enter the “family business;” however, the more colleges I visit, the more I’m tempted to go back to school!

--Mara Conklin

PS: Here's one of my daughters on a visit to Kenyon College.

A life in seven words

“It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it.”  My mom would tell me that when I was getting mouthy as a kid, but those words took on a different meaning when I started working in the communications industry.

My editor at the Chicago radio station where I worked taught me to keep the story to three short sentences.  For a radio listener, 30-seconds is an eternity; more than enough time to switch stations.  I became an expert at writing pithy, tight copy.  At the station, the mantra was: “write tight or not at all.”

Today, social media is shrinking the word count again. Twitter sets the maximum character count at 140.  Recently, a high school freshmen I know was asked to write her memoir in seven words.   She could do it in just a couple minutes: “Asked to put on high heels. Screamed.”

Now more than ever, Mom’s advice is still valid.

--Linda Muskin

Delivra Taps Clarus for Strategic PR

Did you ever meet someone and feel like you’ve been friends forever?  That’s how we feel about our new client, Delivra (www.delivra.com).  Delivra is one of the original email software and service providers. 

Since we’ve been working in the email space almost as long as Delivra’s been around, we are well aware of the company.  Our job is to make sure everyone else knows them too. We’re on our way. 

We kicked off our new relationship just four weeks ago by creating new messaging for the company and designing a customized media outreach plan. Already Delivra has been featured in BtoB and TechNewsWorld, and there is more to come.

--Mara Conklin

Our newest old client: The Schneider Corporation

Did you ever meet someone you just “clicked with” right away?  That’s how it was when we met Jill Snyder more than a decade ago.  Jill is vice president of marketing at The Schneider Corporation, a new client of ours.

We have worked with Jill at several other companies before she joined Schneider recently.  A very talented marketer, Jill joins companies during their greatest need, builds a marketing infrastructure then moves onto her next challenge.

While at YourEncore, we worked together with Jill on a PR program that has won a fourth award this year.

Jill says the relationship works because she always gets the “A” team with Clarus.  We think it works because together we ensure that PR tactics can be measured and  linked all the way to sales.  After all, isn’t ROI what it’s all about?

--Mara Conklin

Client Bill of Rights

We hear a lot in the new these days about the bill of rights, the document that limits the power of government.  Lately, there is talk of a patients’ bill of rights and even a passengers’ bill of rights, to protect the interest of hospital patients and those who fly on airplanes.

So we got to thinking, what about a client bill of rights.  Let’s face it, there are horror stories out there about how clients have been treated by their PR agency.  Therefore, no preamble is necessary.

Client Bill of Rights

You have the right to…

1. …have the same senior level executives who won your business work on your account every day. 
   
2. …the agency’s “A” team, no matter the size of your budget.
   
3. …call anyone on your account team at any time and get an up-to-the-minute accounting of what is being done on your company’s behalf.
   
4. …know up front what is included in the retainer amount and how expenses are calculated and billed.
   
5. …expect an agency to proactively challenge you with ideas that will help your business identify new opportunities.
   
6. …an agency that will protect your credibility and offer guidance about what constitutes news and what does not. 
   
7. …expect that your agency is acting ethically and with integrity on your behalf.  The agency is an extension of your staff and should be held to your company’s standards.
8. …an agency that will counsel you on the dangers of distributing news without  first obtaining all necessary approvals, as well as information that is not defensible.
   
9. …a verbal and written re-cap of all activity performed on your behalf on a regular basis.
   
10. …an agency that will recognize the need for and be able to provide a network of professionals to help with whatever services might be necessary to maximize your sales and marketing efforts.
    

If you have questions about how an agency fulfills any of these rights, email me at dmassa@teamclarus.com.

--Deb Massa

Chicago’s Olympic loss offers PR lessons

Chicago’s failure to win the 2016 Olympic games was a blow to the city and to those residents who supported the bid.  The loss also offers a few PR best practices that can translate to nearly any organization.

1. Bring your “A” team.  Always use your “A” team throughout an engagement.  In the case of the Olympic bid, Chicago carried the bid  until the last moment when national leaders came on the scene.  The outcome might have been different if it had been positioned as an American Olympic bid that was hosted in Chicago. 
2. Identify and meet the customer’s needs.  President Obama personalized pitch to the International Olympic Committee did little to address the key concerns of the IOC: “...there is nothing I would like more than to step just a few blocks from my family's home, with Michelle and our two girls, and welcome the world back into our neighborhood.”  That comment explains the needs and wants of the president, but he did not identify the need for finances, housing, security, etc.  Likewise, don’t take your eye off the needs of your customers.
3. Manage communications aggressively.  Less than a week before the IOC voted, Chicago’s newspapers were covered with stories about a high school honors student who was beaten to death by his peers.  This was only one in a series of teen deaths this year.  With the Internet, it is easy to find out about previous misdeeds or news you would rather not showcase.  The best way to avoid an unfortunate, ill-timed disclosure is to manage communications aggressively.
4. Create messaging and stick to it. Chicago spent three years raising money and preparing for the Olympic bid, but recently the city fathers started introducing new talking points about how this event might impact the tax structure.  Create messaging early on and stick with it so your story is told in a consistent and compelling way.

--Linda Muskin