By this point, most if not all PR professionals have heard about Chris Anderson’s spam list. The New York Times has taken notice and he is one of the top stories at PRweek.com.  A lot of people seem to be really upset with Chris for his tactics. I really do not understand why everyone is upset with him.  I am sitting here in college, with a reminder in my planner to write a thank you not to a speaker I heard last week.  I am not going to e-mail him; I am going to write an old-fashioned thank you note. I know this person does not want me to flood their inbox. If I realize this, how do companies and professionals think it is ok to send spam out to other professionals? Personal relationships people, personal relationships…that is one thing I have heard since I started learning about PR. It is not about what you know, but who you know. Unfortunately, for those spammers who flooded Chris’ inbox on October 7, everyone knows who they are. That is a risk they took, they were doing something wrong and they were called out on it. If this spam list is such a big hit to all of its members, why were they doing it in the first place. It was just a matter of time before it blew up into something like this.  I know I have replied to spammers and asked them to please quit sending me things and I still receive their newsletters. I guarantee you Chris’ inbox has a lot more room in it these days!

This week I have decided to actually write my own blog. I am not going to get idea from other websites, I just want to share a few thoughts. My first thought is Twitter. I do not understand the fascination with it. Honestly, it reminds me of being in the seventh grade and rushing home to play on instant messenger and talk to the current boyfriend of the week. I am too busy to play on Twitter, how in the world do PR professionals have time to sit there and just write about brushing their teeth? Seriously?

My second thought involves politics. Pick a side, that is my advice to every political candidate every where. I am tired of turning on the television in the morning to catch a little bit of the news and listening to someone’s representative waver back and forth over black and white issues. If I can tell you’re just avoiding the question, so can the rest of the world and it looks like you have something to hide. This is why politics has such a negative reputation which really bothers me. If, I emphasize that if, I go to law school, I want to practice law for a few years, but one of my future goals is to do PR for a political campaign. I don’t want to be that person who wavers back and forth. I want to sit there and answer questions, and I want questions answered, now.

Professional sports athletes, we all know that you are overpaid. When asked about how much money you make, please don’t respond by talking about how little teachers, police officers and firefighters make. You’re not going to give up a cent of your money and give it to a teacher so don’t pretend. Yes, I wish i excelled at sports in the way many professional athletes do, and I wish i made millions for doing something I loved, but don’t pretend like the money does not matter. I am tired of turning on ESPN and hearing about how much money a player wants to stay with a team, or how much it will cost a team to keep their star player.

Those are just a few of my PR thoughts for the week!

October is breast cancer awareness month. This month I have seen pink everything; pink tennis rackets, cooking utensils, dog collars, purses, bookmarks, bracelets, picture frames, and so on. This is a subject that hits home for me. My grandmother was diagnosed with breast cancer about two years ago. She always kept up with her mammograms and the lump was simply missed. Her gut told her that something was wrong and she got a second opinion, she was right.

The Susan G. Komen breast cancer foundation is one of the most known foundations in the world. I know you’re wondering how this relates to PR. The reason the Komen foundation is so well known is because breast cancer has become “a trendy cause.” Please do not take my previous statement as insensitive; what I mean by this is there is little or no PR needed in order to get the public to embrace the need to find a cure for this disease. Everyone has a mother, sister, wife, girlfriend, or best friend that is a women, yes men can get breast cancer, but it is still viewed as a female disease. Our society still has an inherent need to protect women.

We don’t know the cause of breast cancer, all we know is it could happen to anyone, at anytime, and that is scary. As a PR practitioner, why not encourage your client to become a supporter of breast cancer research? As I say this I ask myself is that ethical? Is it ethical to jump on the bandwagon in order to portray yourself in a positive light? You may care about the cause, but are you only donating your time or money for personal gain? Does it matter? If you help find a cure, does it make it ok to support the cause to promote yourself? Everyone seems to be thinking pink, I have to wonder whether it is genuine support, or whether there are ulterior motives. I honestly could care less what the motive is. I will be the first person to buy a brownie pan I do not need in order to support breast cancer. From someone who has had a loved one fight breast cancer, I say think pink, I don’t care who you are or why you do it, just think pink!

     It has been 25 years since the infamous “Tylenol Scare”. By this point, every person who has taken any kind of PR case studies class has heard the details of this case and knows why it is such a PR milestone.
     Here’s a little background just to refresh everyone’s memory; seven people died after ingesting poisoned Tylenol caplets. The caplets were laced with cyanide. It turns out the poisonings were a result of tampering and Johnson & Johnson, manufactures of Tylenol, were not at fault. The reason this is such a PR milestone case is because of the way Johnson and Johnson handled the situation. They spent nearly $100 million on a recall and showed that their customer’s safety was their priority. Their stock originally plummeted, but rebounded and exceeded expectations.
     The reason this intrigues me is because as much as PR has changed since the “Tylenol Scare,” one simple principle has endured, and that principle is always put the public’s interest first. Twenty five years later and this is still the golden rule for practitioners. Every business would tell you that their consumer always comes first, but it takes tough times, such a crisis, to put this claim to the test. How many times have we seen scandals or cover-ups that have cost a company their reputation and ultimately they fail? We see it too often. After seeing Johnson & Johnson’s remarkable comeback and continued to success, I have learned to stick to the golden rule, no matter what it will cost.

Traditional media outlets seem to have taken a big hit since the advent of the internet. It makes sense, why pick up a large, awkward newspaper when you can just sit at your desk, sip your coffee, and get your news at the click of your mouse?

Personally, I don’t like newspapers. The only newspaper I pick up is The Plainsman and that is only once a week. I would much rather head to the computer and browse the internet and hit up the major papers such as the AJC or The Times. I can print the articles that I’d like to read again or I can send the link to a friend at the click of a button…simple!

However, my opinion is totally different concerning magazines. I subscribe to two magazines that I receive monthly. My roommate and I will both set aside time to read our magazines the day we get them. I have never once read a magazine article online, qute honestly, it does not cross my mind to do so.

A new survey, conducted by Deloitte, shows that the majority of Americans also have some affinity to magazines. In fact, 72% of those surveyed said that they enjoyed reading print magazines. They said this knowing that they could receive the same information from the internet.

Why? “You can read them (magazines) on a train, laying in bed, or sitting at the table,” says Ed Moran, director of product innovation with Deloitte. I agree with him. Magazines are just convenient. They travel easy and they’re full of entertainment and ideas. I don’t think print magazines are going anywhere anytime soon.

Don’t be sketchy. I don’t care if you’re one of the top PR practitioners in the world, or someone like me who is taking a social media class and wondering how they’re ever going to be PR practitioner, you should know not to be sketchy. Wikipedia has been under fire for a long time, it has no shred of credibility and every teacher I’ve had at Auburn that has required students to do any research of any kind specifically bans the use of Wikipedia as a reference.

A new tool has been invented to track who edits Wikipedia pages. Bad news for those who are trying to be sketchy. As a PR student, I avoid Wikipedia like the plague. So it comes as a shock to me to hear that that PR firms are coming under fire for editing their client’s entries Wikipedia pages! What?

I mean, I guess it makes sense. I spend the majority of my life in an educational setting where Wikipedia’s flaws are well known, the majority of the public does not spend their life in the classroom setting and may still reference Wikipedia. So as a PR practitioner, why not take advantage of being able to edit your client’s information in order to portray them in a good light. Ok yes, that argument made sense, but now you’re getting caught so quit! I don’t think editing Wikipedia would be worth losing my credibility over. I don’t even have credibility yet, but I already know that i wouldn’t want to lose it!

Procter & Gamble, creators of the popular deodorant brand Secret, have launched a new campaign to appeal to contemporary women. Secret has not only toyed with what is perceived to be “hot”, but has gone beyond that and introduced a totally new perspective on “hot.”

Secret has established www.becauseyourehot.com. This is where most of the efforts for this campaign are centered. Marina Maher Communications was brought in to bring media and consumer awareness to the effort. MMC knew they needed a face. They needed to partner with someone famous who embodied the contemporary idea of a women that Secret is trying to convey. The person they chose to partner with was Jennifer Lopez, “a modern expression of feminine confidence.”

Lopez brings elite singing and dancing techniques to the campaign, MMC took advantage of this. Together, they launched “Secret’s Show Us Your Moves.” Essentially it is a nationwide casting call to find America’s hottest female dancer. If you can’t make the casting call; submit a tape of your hottest moves. You must convey confidence while dancing to J.Lo songs.

I think this is a cool idea, however I’m kind of discouraged by it. I am young and pretty confident, but can’t dance to save my life! I do realize millions of women can, I just am not one of them. I think it is a very unique and great idea, but I do think it inherently limits itself. You can be a contemporary, confident women without having hot dance moves. No big deal though, I’ll buy Secret anyway!

Read more here.

Delta Airlines threw a pizza party for their passengers who were delayed and stuck in the airport. Yes, you read that correctly, Delta held a pizza party. What a smart idea! You have lots of very perturbed passengers sitting around in an airport, why not feed them, for free, and very unexpectedly. Why not try to take their mind off how much they hate flying at the moment, and do something to get back into their good graces?

Delta received a Savvy PR play rating from PRWeek.com. It also received the honor of being named PR Play of the Week. PRWeek relates this back to a little league coach who buys the adoration of his team with a few pizzas. Can Delta say cost effective? Honestly, if it saved them one nasty complaint letter, it was probably well worth it.

One passenger told the New Your Times that they couldn’t believe how well they were being treated, all because of pizza! Delta flight attendants also sat with passengers talking about how they were all stuck there, all in it together. Ok yes, you are all in the same place, but as PRWeek points out the flight attendants were being paid to be there, while passengers paid to wait. If I had been there I would have appreciated the gesture, but I would also expect a little more than some pizza when it is all said and done. Show me the Skymiles!

By this point we have all heard Don Imus’ infamous statements that insulted the Rutgers University female basketball team. It was big news, great PR drama, but at this point, it has blown over for most. Imus came off as an insensitive jerk and was fired, no surprise there. The female basketball team played the role of the victim perfectly. They were viewed by the press and America as distinguished young women who did not stoop to Imus’ level.

Well, now the slur is again being brought to national attention. Kia Vaughan, a member of the team, has now decided to sue Imus as well as CBS Radio. She is suing for defamation. Kia Vaughan? Who knew that name until she decided to sue? Vaughan’s claim is that all she wants to do is return to her life as it was before Imus made his comments. She just wants to be a student and a respected basketball player.

What easier way to be a student then to just move on, go to class, got to practice and go out and be social when you get the chance. America has moved on, why can’t Vaughan? AS http://www.prweek.com/us/ says, “A lawsuit will never help you return to a simpler life. It will make you look very greedy.” I could not agree with this statement more. Yes, Imus was in the wrong, and yes the team was attacked, but it happened. It can’t be taken back and you just have to move on. The team walked away with more recognition than they had before and respect from many Americans. Now, this lawsuit will spark negative attitudes concerning all the women involved. How is going through a legal court battle returning to your normal life? It is not. Again, as PRWeek states, “go to class, play ball, and stay out of court.”

First, let me start off by saying that this is the type of CEO I would like to work for one day. I was very impressed by this speech. I had no idea why he was speaking in the UK until well into the speech, but it did not matter. The speech started off with a brief introduction and a picture of Ramen Noodles on the screen. Can you think of a better attention getter in a room full of people who are now successful, but were most likely at some point a poor college student?

I also notice his dress. He is not decked out in a fancy suit, he is wearing the geek squad uniform. I knew it was the geek squad uniform even before he said it, that is a sign of successful marketing. The most important form of public relations is employee relations. What better way to relate to employees then by staying on their level to some degree? He goes on to say later in his speech that he learned to rely on reputation. How do you distinguish yourself and establish a good reputation…you do so by giving good service to your customers. Who is going to be out in the field in your customer’s homes establishing your reputation, who is going to be driving around in your signature vehicle…your employees! I would say geek squad is very successful in regard to employee relations seeing as employees are now taking their driver’s license photos in their geek squad uniform!

Word of mouth. Word of mouth has always been a very powerful tool, it can make or break a company. Blogs have added even more power to word of mouth and he realizes this. Again, reputation, people talk, they always will. A good reputation leads to good word of mouth which in turn provides free advertising! Simple!

He also talks about naming his company. The word “geek” seems to carry a negative connotation for many. The CEO however, tells the audience that they are all geeks and he is right. He goes on to talk about how being a geek is having a passion. It is putting something off such as laundry in order to indulge your passion. It is watching a football game instead of cooking dinner. How well do you think your dad or husband would take it if you called them a football geek?

You can view his speech here.