Can I can get a big cup of STFU please?

How many times can you beat a dead horse? Apparently, every quarter if that horse is the PR is dead meme.

Well, this time it's more a slow build kicking of the horse: the recent meme started with the launch of Cuil, and Robert Scoble not being pre-briefed. There, he decided that he's done with the PR game.

Robert fed the fire with his recent post highlighting a company that he found through word of mouth - albeit a company that is not a mass consumer product, and likely will do okay with little PR.

It bubbled up in other posts - from Steve Rubel (who seems to forget that he's in PR and collects a pay-check at the world's largest independent PR firm), from TechCrunch, from Mashable. All people that have and continue to profit from PR people and PR firm relationships, with scoops and sneak previews. Here's the usual TechMeme crowd putting their voices into the one-way conversation.

A more balanced POV came from ReadWriteWeb - the pro's and con's of what is happening in PR.

So, here's my .02 - there's nothing new here. There's nothing new being said, just the same things every year (or is it every quarter now?).

I have written in the past that we need to train and educate. It's simple, and yet the firms aren't fully embracing it.

And, Ryost made the most pointed comment on Twitter to my first eye-roll on the situation: PR will become more valuable as newsrooms continue to shrink.

The fact is that social media is ONE part of public relations. A SMALL part, if you are a good PR person or firm. The other parts are traditional media (while it might be shrinking, it still reaches that middle part of the country), analyst relations, events, and more.

PR is about relationships. It's about relationships so much that Lowe's went to Abraham Harrison for it's recent project because of its relationships with people at Lowe and because of their relationships with bloggers. See - it's about relationships.

It's also about writing, about talking, about conveying a story. But, without those relationships, there's nothing there. And, unfortunately, with the industry's reliance on technology - let's email, let's launch a blog, let's get Twitter, let's do this and that ... well, you're failing in PR.

As my friend Andy Abramson (and, full disclosure, my firm) notes, it's BAM now: Bloggers, Analysts, Media. You need to have the right mix for the right story, and it's never one size fits all. Go and try to do local PR and see how far the social media only strategy works.

Social media is just a tool in the PR mix. And, it's just a good tool in the mix for certain clients and brands. For technology and consumer technology, it's great. For consumer goods, it's great. But, it's NOT the only thing. The PR bloggers - on some level - have become so enamored with the tools, that they are unable to take a step back but have become lost in their reflection like Narcissus.

But with the current posts - just concentrating on technology only - even the companies with no PR are not going to survive. You need to be able to tell a story, have trained executives that know what and what not to say in public, you need to have a plan.

The thing is - it's not just PR people that need to educate. It's bloggers and social media people. There are certain social norms that are kept in the norm, but seem to be ignored and broken in social media.

Now, I'm not talking about the embargo fiasco with Jeff Pulver; the PR person there should have not sent out a mass email, should have sent individualized outreach, and just asked the simple "do you do embargoes" without all the news.

I'm talking about being invited to press conferences or events. That invitation means that you are getting special insight - and by blogging guesses on what it is, just to be ahead of the curve - provides no real value to the readership, but is just guessing and hurts the press conference because the PR firm is inundated with people that want to be included in the press conference.

There goes that exclusivity and news hook.

So, here's my simple rules for public relations professionals.

1. Develop relationships. If you are a PR person - at any level - and cannot call up a reporter (not email, but pick up the damn phone) and set up a lunch to talk ... the you are not providing value. From the AAE to the SVP, you need to have relationships. If push comes to shove on a client deadline, everyone should pick up the phone and pitch and land a meeting. If the SVP is so detached from the media and client, what value is there?

2. Read. Not just blogs, but media. Traditional, social, new - be on a steady diet of media, so you think beyond today's news and come up with trend pieces and stories.

3. Think beyond today. It's not a race, it's a marathon. It's the long term strategies that work, not the panic. A good PR person never sweats, never panics but is calm.

4. For the PR bloggers that are calling for PR to be dead - if you believe that the industry needs to change, go to your local college and teach a session or two. Mentor students that email you - if memory serves, I have responded to and helped every college student that has written to me (War Eagle, my favorite PITAs) - both in the US and internationally. Instead of bitching about the state of PR, go do something.

I'm not prone to think PR is dead or dying. I do believe there are issues, but also talk to junior staff, help out when I get bad pitches (hey, I get them a lot and respond back to them), and try to help out for the most part. Instead of just talk, walk a little.

Taking Stock - Can Social Media Do What It Claims?

July 5th was the five year anniversary of my blog. I started thinking about the bigger issues, and wrote this post on July 8th - and waited until I could get more information (see sidenote on bottom).

Ten-plus years ago, I started my career in public relations. One of the first campaigns I worked on was the Cure Breast Cancer stamp - working with a friend that was on the campaign, to get it launched and to get people to buy it.

That's a nice high for PR: doing some good work that changes people's lives.

I look at what I have done in social media, and it is not the same. And, while people are glomming onto social media, there seems to be very little being done in the circular nature of the social media consultants.

You don't hear/read about campaigns that are helping change the world. You don't hear/read about campaigns that are being done with the large agencies or consultants that are trying to help make the world a better place.

You read social media people talking about social media ... and that seems to be it. It's the self-fulfilling prophecy of Valleywag's 250. And, I have written about this before, and nothing much changes.

There are groups of social media people that fall outside this realm. There are networks that are more community than others.

I have spoken at and asked for help and advice from various social media fundraisers, such as TechSoup and NetSquared, and spoke to a few of these people at Blogworld Expo.

So, this is my challenge to the social media consultants and the power of social media. Prove to me that it works.

Here is one situation - help raise funds for Lisa Gift-Kelly at Clusterfook.

It's a deserving person, who has cancer and is trying to make sure that things stay afloat and is able to afford treatment, as well as make sure her family will be okay and not fall under the weight of health care costs.

Here's my question and request: show that social media can change the world. Right now, it's just talk.

Robert Scoble - rally your readers and community to give just $5 to one or the other. Heavy is the crown for someone in your position, but times like this call for a rallying of troops. And, it fits into your recent post that tech blogging has failed ... maybe because it's too insular?

Steve Rubel - you often talk about community, but then use the card that you did not ask for a leadership position. You started a skin cancer blog, but inexplicably let it die. Here's an opportunity to do something for someone with cancer, and to show leadership in social media and PR.

Social Media Club - you now have 44 board members of social media experts and consultants. Have them get the word out, have them work with the larger community of readership and help make the world a better place one person at a time.

Chris Brogan - you are one of the nicer people I know, and always do the good thing. Get your massive network to help out. It's not about blog tips, but it's about affecting change.

Jason Calacanis - while you might have retired your blog, you still have your Calacanis army on Twitter and your new newsletter. Rally your readers and followers. Plus, well, you are a mensch.

Now, there are tons of other people that I can think of to add to this list, but just using these four (plus SMC) as an example, and because of their position in social media. There are a ton of other people that write about social media non-stop, who have written books (Rohit Bhargava, Joel Postman, Geoff Livingston, Shel Israel, Brian Solis, Chris Heuer, amongst others) and would be good candidates to help spread the word and raise money.

Is that all that social media is? Is it to just sell stuff? Is it just a self-fulfilling circle that links to itself over and over? Or is there a higher value to social media, where we can make people's life better and really rally people to help others.

And, while there are organizations, groups and people that are doing good online, the vast majority of social media / blog noise comes from the consultants. Prove me right - that social media can do more than just be about social media talking about itself, but help change people's lives and change one part of the world. Social media consultants have a vested interest to do this, to show the world an example of social media doing good.

Go donate on the side through the SmartyPig Widget, or send people to Lisa's donation page.

When I wrote the post, my hope was to see if social media can do for Lisa what it claims the buzz can do for people.

As a sidenote: On a recent post, Lisa questioned if I was still helping her out, among other things. I have and had been researching alternative funding beyond Paypal, and doing traditional offline PR with face-to-face conversations with a myriad of people. As for the outreach that I am doing in my off-hours, in public relations you need to be ready and prepared for all and every question. I should have kept her up-to-date, and am now emailing her weekly. I apologize that I was not as proactive as she would have liked in the ten days between our correspondence and posts (which she has since taken down).

Do We Need to Embrace the Fan, and Other LA Conference Thoughts

Recently, I attended OnHollywood. It sucked. Really, nothing else to say about the conference than that. From sneaking a look into the conference center, no one was really paying attention - or attending - the sessions. From watching the demonstration stations, people just stopped doing demos and looked bored. They had an open bar sponsored by Men7.tv (no, not a gay porn channel - and yes, I thought that too), and the event was best characterized by someone else that was down from San Francisco: SF is about networking, LA is about cliques.

A few months back, I attended Forrester's Marketing Conference in Century City.

We were sitting in Century City - a city I used to work in - and Harley Manning, the VP of research, pointed out that the reason that the Forum is being held in LA is that this city is a marketing city. Just look at the name of the streets - Avenue of the Stars - and this city embodies marketing (mostly of itself and entertainment).

Marketing's new imperative for success is engagement. You see it in the change of how brick and mortar stores are set up, such as the family setting of Jordan's furniture and all the bells and whistles. Or look at how Nike set up a community to engage it's customers - running tips from pros, a full community based on running.

I think he's wrong - yes, LA is a city of marketing but it is not an engagement city, but one of dreams and schemes. The city is built on falsehoods, on dreams, and never has had a foot in reality. It's fakery - the people and the industry - and it sells dreams. Sells them so well that it's not hit as hard during recessions (people will always use entertainment to escape).

Also at the Forrester Conference, Brian Haven talked engagement and understanding your customers.

It's a hot topic - and most marketing publications are covering it. But it is also risked becoming a buzzword. No, it is a buzzword ... and one that seems to be built on more what we want than what customers may want, or what corporations might want.

As an example, Haven talked about the launch of the Cincinnati Ikea - a hardcore fan of Ikea that was lobbying to bring Ikea to Cincinnati. She is passionate, she is an advocate, and she brings people to the brand. There was a connection to her with the brand - but the brand did not give back in that relationship ... to the point that legal came in and asked for a disclaimer and then asked for her to give up her blog domain bc of the Google juice was getting better than Ikea's.

Um, is Ikea wrong, though? Ikea has a responsibility to its shareholders, to its customers, to its brand to be ... on brand. This woman, to be blunt, was not on brand. No, I am not naive to think that everyone in Ikea is from Sweden ... but I do want the people to look a certain way, and the woman did not fit that mold. She looked Midwest, for lack of a better or tactful way to say it.

And, why do brands have to embrace its fans ALL the time? Let's not forget that fan comes from the word fanatic. And, well, fanatics are scary and can be detrimental to your brand.

According to Haven, Ikea should have engaged the Cincinnati Ikea fanatic, given her scoops on the store, outfitted her with new technology. They should have reached out and embraced her ... but that's wrong. Did they want to embrace the fanatic that took to camping out at their store prior to opening? Do they want to be associated with a woman that made up puppets and Saint Ikea, and other things she did? Or does the brand have a responsibility to stay on brand, and protect the brand?

Back to OnHollywood, the most interesting discussion I had was with Taz Arnold from SA-RA. We were talking rappers, Jay Dilla, Lupe Fiasco, Wale, and how the music industry is changing. If you think about it, the rap game has always had its own distribution system that was different than the rest of the industry - there was (and still is) the underground mix tape market, where people find new voices and sounds ... and might buy them. You still can catch people in different cities selling their CDs on the corner. When I was in LA for the last E3, I bought a CD at Roscoe's. Wasn't too bad.

"What's the deal with this rap stuff? Since Napster, the sales been crashing - and since Napster the game has been flooded by has-beens and never-wll-be ringtone rappers." Wale, The Mixtape About Nothing

Arnold and I were talking about the merchandising of rap, and how that is where the game is going. You have x million people buying a single - it's not about getting them to buy the ring tone next, but what about the clothing line? What about clothing lines or other merchandise? It's what Kanye West and Lupe Fiasco have expanded into, as well as the Neptunes/N.E.R.D and the Billionaire Boys Club. You have an audience ... you work with them to keep them in love with the brand, this time a rapper.

I love that one of the three interesting and smart conversations I had at OnHollywood was with a rap producer. He had a better grasp on the market than most of the so-called social media experts I know, and a lot more interesting thing to say than quite a few of the people speaking at the conference.

Also, I had no clue who Arnold was when I was speaking with him ... and then I see his cool "Hood" "Love" rings in the Estelle/Kanye "American Boy" video. And then him. Hmmm, typical me.

Writing this on the plane home from BlogPotomac reminded me of the ethics panel. Social media experts are SO caught up in their only little world - their own circle - that they cannot think of what might be accepted practices in other communities. Just because "we" don't like character blogs, does not mean they do not have their place (and, sorry, some of them are much better than other corporate blogs with real people, or the top social media bloggers). Just because we beat our chests about transparency and disclosure does not mean that campaigns are not being done with fake comments or fake stories by marketing and advertising firms. Social media purists got their panties in a twist about LonelyGirl15 not being real ... but the audience did not care. And, Hollywood points to Blair Witch Project as a great online campaign ... but if you remember, it was presented as a true story. Sacrilege in social media ... but did people care, or would people care nowadays? Shit, I got that stupid video of the office worker going insane 10 times one day ... and I looked at it and said fake (the rows were too narrow for wheelchairs, so ADA would have been all over their ass).

It is different in LA, and while the city seems to be behind in social media ... does that mean the industry here is wrong, or is it that the purist techniques from the digerati have no place down here, that it's a different market and different mentality? I watched the taping of Valley Girl/The Jesse Draper Show and thought "this would never play in SF" ... but maybe that isn't their audience (heck, talking transparency, the co-host "Coco" is not even her real name). I watched them taping, and realized I'm not their audience. The hostess did seem nice, and shy. When she walked by me, she gave a shy smile and little wave and because she was so tall, she seemed to be to be slouching. Embrace the height.

One perk in LA so far? The nice folks at SAS did handwriting analysis at the Forrester Marketing Conference. I'm a rockstar.

The Art of Strategy. Or How I Like to Say No, and People Hate Me for That.

Tomorrow morning - or today, depending on when you read this - is BlogPotomac. It's an unconference, so more on the conversation and less on the one sided-lecture.

It's even a Powerpoint free. And while at Communitelligence's Executing Employing Social Media Conference, I noted that I'm not big fan of the verbose PPT presentation (I spoke on crisis in social media and influencing the influencers - btw, there is no such thing), I did prepare a one page slide for BlogPotomac.

All it had was one word big: Why?

This fits in to the pre-conference interview I did with Debbie Weil, and the recent question from Joe Ciarallo from PR Newswer. And, well, for people that really read my blog, sorta fits into what I have been saying for the past five years.

Any social media strategy should start out with that one question: Why? Think of yourself as a five-year old child and continually ask questions. Ask why.

Why does this make sense? Why are we doing this? Why is this the right strategy?

Social media strategy is that easy. No, I'm serious - and even though it won't play well in large agency life (btw, the days of real counsel and strategy and client push-back seem to be dead) - it is always the first question. And second question.

If the answer is "well, everyone else has a blog" - you're launching a strategy for the wrong reason.

If the answer lives in it's own world and is not connected to the overall public relations and/or marketing strategy, it's the wrong answer and disconnected from what is really needed.

Social media is not a separate strategy. It should not be a separate strategy, but an overall part of the public relations strategy. Social media is COMPLEMENTARY to the overall public relations strategy.

Here's a perfect example of charlatan social media experts giving out shitty advice: my Mom is a realtor, and social media is becoming hot there (and, since realtors tend to be luddites and late to things, Facebook should be over soon). Some asshat gave a presentation in Phoenix and told all the realtors to join LinkedIn and Facebook.

Why? Well, it really never trickled down what he was trying to explain (or, more to the point, he's like every other social media "expert" that spouts out buzz words and talks a lot ... but does not walk the walk and had no real point). The point he was trying to make is to network and grow ... but are you really going to search for a new realtor or look for a home on Facebook? Or are you going to throw a sheep at them? Yes, I got nothing but love for LinkedIn ... but in real estate, face-to-face networking needs to be the first step.

But, seriously, I hear the same things spouted off by the so-called experts that speak a lot ... but that's just it, they speak a lot.

If your agency or consultant spouts out to start a blog, bitch slap him/her. And hard. And many times. If your agency or consultant just says "engage" but has nothing beyond that, lay down the pimp hand. Repeatedly. If your agency's or consultant's sage advice for you during a crisis is to start a blog and start engaging (a true story that lead to a large stupid agency losing a large portion of the business of a client in finance), it's obvious that the agency or consultant has no idea what they are doing.

I blame the disappearance of the PR generalist and the rise of the specialist. It's the death of PR, and is getting worse with the silo-ing of talent. When I started PR, we had to be able to write, pitch, cold-call, do media AND analyst relations ... or we were pretty much told our career would go down one path of a specialist - with a sneer.

Don't call me a social media specialist or expert. I'm a mutha-fucking generalist.

But, hey, watch BlogPotomac here tomorrow - here on my blog!! You can watch me say no and ask why, see what I'm wearing, and talk about the Tao of Why in social media.

Online Video provided by Ustream

PR Pitching and Blacklists

In all this tempest in a teapot over Gina Trapani's Wiki - PR people are ignoring a few basic facts: it was her personal email address; it's intrusive; PR is still not training; junior staff is not being supervised ... the list can go on and on.

I think I've pitched LifeHacker once in my career - and pretty sure I used the tips@lifehacker.com email address. Eh, I can't remember, but odds are I did ... because I'm sure that list is still being used, and the old firm isn't on the Wiki.

Bondage Teapot
Originally uploaded by publicenergy.

But, you know, one of the problems with PR is that we rely too much on technology. We are not dialing phones like we used to, so are missing out on the development of real face-to-face conversations and relationships.

So, I'm going old school. I've hired a former FBI agent. He used to be deep undercover in the mafia, and went by Johnny. He's digging up records for me - all legally, of course, with no pre-texting - for cell phone numbers. None of this wimpy work phone crap, though: I'm going hardcore and getting personal mobile phone numbers.

Because, when I call, I want to be able to reach the person immediately. No voicemail (like reporters return calls, snort). Just direct connects.

If this does not work, there is always showing up at the homes. That's the next step - popping over for breakfast or dinner (no pork, please, I'm Jewish). We'll get those meetings, and we'll get that coverage ... because I'm going that extra mile.

That's just how I roll.

Train or Perish

Training seems not to be taking place in agency life, or for that matter, in corporations. Or, well, PR and communications cannot just move past pushing the message and learning to work. It goes back to when are we ever going to learn?

This past week, Johnson & Johnson pinged a few of the momosphere bloggers to invite them to a camp, and then sent out one of their PR firms, RF Binder, to make more of a mess (although, I am not sure of the order of the mess and who was responsible for what). I thank Erin Kotecki Vest for pointing me to the first post, and for letting me see the whole thing blow up from the start.

You used to be able to see the pitch letter here: one word of advice, if you cannot get a blogger's email address, move on or do it less obviously. Or, just be a good sleuth because you usually can find a working email address (she has since taken down the PR pitches).

I killed Jeremy Pepper
Originally uploaded by tmd.

I am not going to break it down and write what I think of the situation. Susan Getgood did a great job breaking it down, and you can get the full story from Stefania of CityMama / Kimchi Mamas (one point - no one ever reaches out to her as an Asian mom, but only via CityMama).

But, this just goes back to my old post - this is about community relations, not pitching media. That means getting to actually know the community, getting to be a part of it, reading blog posts - and meeting the people. It doesn't mean using the community, and I still laugh at some of the people I have run into at BlogHer over the past years that did not participate, but just walked around. Or when they did participate, did it in such a heavy-handed way, it was embarrassing for PR people that were there to learn, talk and participate.

So, instead, I'm going to bullet out my thoughts and backchannel chatter I hear about PR and marketing firms, and how they think they are working in social media and why they just don't get it. And, I am only naming names on personal experiences, not hearsay.

• The office will not send us to events like BlogHer because they do not want to spend the money on building relationships, they just want us to pitch
• The firm tells its junior staff to create Wikipedia profiles and change their clients entries to more complimentary entries, and delete bad information
• The office's social media expert tells junior staff that it is okay to comment anonymously / fake names on blogs to steer the conversation - and encourages it
  
• The firm's social media expert is respected by no one in the office, but seen as an empty suit
• The firm will not send people to events because they are not billable to clients, and not worth the investment
• Junior staffer in office decides he/she is a social media expert because they are on MySpace or Facebook
• Join Twitter and just start adding people! Oh, don't participate in the conversation
• Just spam people (thanks ContosDunne - I've only called you three times to be taken off your blog list, as well as email and you "verify" that I am off ... just to get pitched again a few months later)
• Mass email bloggers, because it's no different than press outreach and you just have to cast a wide net
• Social media is a waste, and all that matters are interactive ads

I am sure there are more examples out there, but this is what I could think of sitting down and not getting overly-frustrated

A while back, I used to write about the Clueless Train. It was great, because I would find some great photos ... but it looks like the train has left the station, and PR people don't care. This is sad, and will leave us in the dust because we won't just look at the landscape and realize that it's back to public relations.

As a note, this is why the Edelman Digital Bootcamp at UGA was so important - it was training the next generation of PR people to think differently and to embrace more than just the usual suspects. This is why SMU, Auburn and UGA seem to be a step ahead, and I cannot speak more highly of the students I have worked with there (and help them when I can): they care about PR, they get it is changing, and they try to embrace the new with the old.

And, while they may be a PITA, they should be listened to by senior staff, because they will have some good ideas.

As an aside, I am going to be speaking at BlogPotomac, and hope to hit on some of these details. It is events like these, though, that are good for both learning and meeting people. If you are in DC, please come by.

Technorati Tags: public relations, PR, communications, marcom, marketing, training, education

And say, children - what does it all mean?

It's always interesting to read about SXSW , go to mixers/events in San Francisco, and listen to the people talk.

And, then go outside and walk around the City, and look at the graffiti that's creeping into my neighborhood, and see the homeless people on the streets.

This came to me last week, when I was walking to Supernova Mixer, and listening to Jeremiah Owyang speak on social networks. As usual, Jeremiah had a great presentation and interesting points.

And, he engaged the audience and had them interact on what people think the future is going to bring, and had good discourse and disagreement: is the Valley too male and old to think of what the kids are doing? How big is mobile going to be? What are the future aspects of social networks going to be? Is it air, as his colleague, Charlene Li says?

And, for us in technology and social media ... this is relatively important stuff. But, it also shows that the digital divide is probably worse in the Valley/Bay Area than other parts of the country when someone in the session says "No one shops at Walmart".

No, just no one you know ... and you should expand your social universe to find out what real people are doing, or what they are like. An elitist position like that is the big difference between success and failure, IMO.

As we are entering a slow-down in the economy (or correction, or whatever you want to call it), it's a good idea to take a step back and see what the real world is doing, and how it is doing, and how will what we are talking about have a real impact on the real world. And, by the real world, I mean every day people that DO shop at Walmart. Or, the people that are worried about money to the point that they are sharing a meal when they go out to dinner, as I saw last week (and this was a middle-class looking older couple). Yes, I like to go to the mall and watch people - it's my own way to focus group, and see what people are doing / thinking / reacting. Plus, the fact that the mall isn't that busy says a lot also.

Now, we can all have fun in our world discussing the Sarah Lacy / Mark Zuckerberg interview at SXSW ... but it just doesn't matter.

Now, we can all have fun in our world discussing what is going on on Twitter, or what the latest app you gotta have is on TechCrunch, and what is launching and why it might be better than X or Y ... but it just doesn't matter.

What does matter? Well, to the general public, the fact that the Young and the Restless just celebrated its 1000th week win ... that is big news. And, well, as a PR person, I'd love to get a win like that and get a client's product on the show (product placement rocks).

What does matter? The work that people and groups like Beth Kanter, Britt Bravo, TechSoup / Netsquared, Geeks Doing Good, BlogHer (among a lot others) are doing - this is work that might have a larger affect on our world, and is admirable. Heck, even Facebook is pushing people to give blood because of the crisis in the US right now.

What does matter? Well, opening our eyes and seeing what is going on in the world, and not so much in our own bubble. And, no, I'm not talking about the presidential race (because, well, that sure is spun and not real), but the neighborhood or the city you live in.

And why should this matter? If we continue to live in our social media worlds, we might be leading in some technology way, but we are also in danger of missing what is happening in the rest of the world - the real world - that might have more of an affect on our products, our clients, our jobs than we want to admit.

Go outside and watch how real people interact with one another, not just how geeks/techies interact. Learn about how what we do in social media can and should have an impact on the digital divide, and if we are making the world a better place.

Technorati Tags: public relations, PR, marketing, marketing communications, communications, SXSW08, Sarah Lacy, Facebook, Economy, Philanthropy

Working Nostalgia in PR - and Happy Valentine's Day!

I don't write about product launches much anymore - well, never anymore - but this was just too good to pass up, especially since today is Valentine's Day. M&M's had come out with Green M&M's for Valentine's Day.

I didn't see any PR on the launch, and had to search for the press release (look, they did an SMR - and it didn't seem to do anything for them!) - but I did come across a POP set-up at Walgreen's, where I clicked the photo in this piece.

Despite the seemingly lack of PR on this (and, I watch enough TV, read one print and at least 2 online papers a day, that I am sure I would have caught something), the product did bring out old memories from when I was in the 5th grade.

And, being sick this week, I dreamt of the school (being sick brings out old memories and dreams for me).

In the fifth grade, my best friend (Ezra Bookstein) and I decided to go along with the urban legend of Green M&Ms, and start a horny collection of candy. Did we believe in the aphrodisiac properties of the M&Ms? Not sure, but come on, we were stupid kids. So, we had a lucite box, and we started filling it with green M&Ms, and then expanded it to other green candy, such as gummi bears and Now & Laters.

This went on for a few months, and the girls took notice of it, so decided to start their own corollary, the hot collection. Same idea, but since they were hot, it was all in red. I am pretty sure that Selma Beitner (aka Selma Blair) came up with the idea.

So, pretty much two groups of students at a school with a lot of time on their hands, disposable income for candy, and sweet tooths. I also learned about Greek history that year (thanks Mrs. Levy!) and how to write well (thanks Mrs. Levy!) and about orchids (thanks Mrs. Levy!) and about my namesake (thanks Mrs. Berris). Yes, I went to a small school.

Seeing the green M&Ms, though, brought back these memories - and it's a smart move to tap into nostalgia for products. It's why Transformers worked well as a movie, why there's talk about other 70's and 80's properties being made as movies ... or being re-released for my generation's own children. And, yes, I bought a few packs.

The three things I wanted to say about this post: first, the SMR doesn't work, or this would have had more coverage. A better written release, smart outreach, better PR would have done more. Second, yes, I went to school with Selma Blair, but haven't spoken to her in about 20 years. Third, hope you all have a wonderful Valentine's Day!

Greg Brady gets Community

I last wrote on online community, and how too often, the social media "gurus" just look to one community, and do not move beyond that community. I can name a couple examples this week alone, of product launches and video conferencing that just applies to the circle ... and barely moves beyond it.

Part of what I wrote about, though, was the communities that I was involved with. And, well, that left out a lot of communities that I have done SOME work with, but would not consider myself a hardcore member. But, that does not mean that they aren't out there, and I am trying to talk to them for my blog.

And, Jonathan Trenn touched upon this recently, as well - that the community is insular, and lacks diversity. And, just look around, and you will notice that he's not wrong.

So, in preparation for my community post, I was approached by MyLifeBrand. They ping me often on their latest communities and updates, and I usually flag them for future use, or to use in my pitch blog. So, when they reached out to me about Barry Williams taking his community to MyLifeBrand, I took the opportunity to speak to him. Come on, it's Greg Brady!

No, I didn't ask him about the sexual escapades on The Brady Bunch (although we did talk about the passing of the Al the Butcher). But, here's an actor (not what we expect to be on the cutting edge of social media) that is older (and, for some people, older than 25 is old in social media) but who probably gets it more than a lot of the companies and social media gurus out there. Or, he's been trained really, really, really well.

I think he gets it, IMHO.

Barry Williams from the Brady Bunch
Originally uploaded by grilled cheese.

So, below are the notes from the conversation:

The whole point of the community is that is the anchor for The Greg Brady Project (hence forth GPB) - and we went with MyLifeBrand because they seemed to have the kind of social networking technology that we were looking for. At GPB, you can go into the community, and aggregate all your social network sites that you are involved (MySpace, LinkedIn) and pull them into the community. It lets you import your friends, message friends, all within the community we are creating at the GPB.

One central point, though, is making the site a way to be a centralized social network. We brought in other tools that we like, such as MyBlogLog and Flickr, and put them into the community to help assemble the Greg Brady Project as a fan community portal with a blog, a blog that's written by me [Barry Williams] and co-authors and guest authors.

The co-authors are a big part of the fan base, and by sharing the platform of the GBP, we are giving the fans a voice within their own community. It's an actual conversation with my fans, and an authenticate conversation. We also have guest authors, who are usually other celebrities that come to share and give their perspectives on celebrity, working with me (or being my friend) through the years, and other fun anecdotes.

The whole idea of the GPB was that I was looking for a place to meet the fans. I had a Web site for 8 years, but it was a one-way street and I was looking to create and maintain and foster relationships, so I transitioned the site into a blog and a community. Now, it's more real-time than a static Web site.

And, now all kinds of interesting things have happened by creating the community to speak with fans, and also business partners and communities. It's a big world to explore with community, and it's a way for me to have a current voice that allows me to be real with the fans, share what I am doing and grow the community. And, I wanted to make sure that it was no another Brady Bunch fan site (but still Brady friendly). It's not for the minutiae of Brady fans, but a personal and current journey. This is an active site, where I am part of the community and active in the upkeep.

In the 42 years I have been in the business, I have met interesting and great people, I have great memories. And, people have asked me about those over the years.

I did not design GPB to be self-serving, but to give back and be part of the community. We did research, and we discussed how we were going to create the community. It took some time (about 9 months) to think through the layers, visit other sites, and found that the celebrity blogosphere ... well, there were a lot of elements lacking.

For example with a lot of other celebrity / Hollywood blogs, you don't typically have regular contributors. It's not usually interactive. We came to the idea of co-authors through an essay contest to the community. We were looking for enthusiastic people, and we found some great ones for the community.

The one thing that I have run into is that this is a time demand, and I knew that it would require a partnership with my fans. That's how I look at GPB - it's a powerful tool for social networking, and it's about caring about the relationships, and keeping and growing those relationships. Social media helps that, and it is always evolving.

The generation that really is on top of this is the younger crowd, the late teens and 20-somethings. And that fan-base is pretty large for Greg Brady, and I would not have had a way to reach them without these tools. This is about conversations with me and the fans. I bring in other celebrities for first-person experiences. And, with the MyLifeBrand partnership, the unique platform has allowed me to do more with the community, and gave me channels of interactivity with the fans.

This is what I loved about the interview: The one thing that I have run into is that this is a time demand, and I knew that it would require a partnership with my fans. That's how I look at The Greg Brady Project - it's a powerful tool for social networking, and it's about caring about the relationships, and keeping and growing those relationships.

Think about that - so many social media gurus and experts don't even get that it's about the community and the conversation, and yet here we have a 70's child star that gets it. He understands that it's about conversations, that it's about the community, he understands that it's about engagement and keeping them interested enough to coming back.

Why can't more corporations get that?

The Question of Community

Back in October, I wrote a piece on PR losing to advertising for social media. A lot of people brought up a lot of good points (including that there doesn't need to be a fight).

A friend - Kevin A. Barry - noted that the most important part was "this is not PR anymore, but it's community relations." And, well, how true that is and has been.

And, I have been thinking about that for a while - actually going back to TechCrunch 40. This is a long-term, mulled over blog post, thinking about the events and activities that I attend in the Social Media, Web 2.0 world ... and what is the real value of these events?

Part of the issue is that social media is pretty much a misnomer. Many of the people that jump in as gurus or experts or consultants are Bay Area myopic, and think nearly 100 percent of Web 2.0 communities or Social Media communities ... and that ignores the real communities that do matter. And, that also ignores the past communities (Yahoo! Groups, Deja nee Google Groups, AOL - things that are still highly used, but just aren't "cool" enough now). The joke of it all is that if I look at my past career, I have been doing social media outreach for the past ten years ... it was just via message boards and enthusiast Websites.

The interesting twist is that the article in Fast Company calls out the Tipping Point as a false idea when it comes to influencers. I'm not judging if Watts is right or wrong, but the interesting thing is that it is all community based. People do not like to move out of their safety and comfort zone, and try out new communities. But, as PR people, we need to move beyond one into all communities. And be smart about it.

But, forget people - this is a total mindfuck for companies. From start-ups to large corporations, everyone wants to wrap their arms around social media ... but they do not want to spend the time it really does take to do community relations. And, yes, this is community relations, finding the communities that CARE about what your company or product does, and convey that you care just as much about their community and that's why you are approaching them.

Think about that - you have to humanize a corporation; corporations seemed to be able to at least convey some emotion at one point. There were connections that people felt for companies and products, and consumer loyalty. And, it went both ways.

That's the point: Social media is about more than just one community, the social media community: it's about all the verticals and other communities that likely matter more to your client or business.

So below are paragraphs on various communities I have been involved with - and insight and opinions on them. It's about relationships, not just media lists. Something too many people forget, or just don't get.

Photo Industry
I'm going old skool here, but this is how I got my start in PR: Kodak and then Ofoto. And, how did I help build communities for both? Enthusiast Websites. Working with the people that started DP Review or Imaging Resource or Creative Pro or Steve's Digicams. These were the original blogs that covered digital photography, and I was able to build relationships with them for my clients and myself ... to where I still talk to a few of them not because they are contacts, but because I think of them as friends (take notes - it's not just about pitching). I also worked in the Usenet groups, letting them know they could contact me about the latest KPro camera. How? I would join, read and announce occasionally. Not SPAM, just a quick note. See a pattern on how little things change over the years?

SecondLife
Yes, the online community that loves to be mocked by bloggers ... and one that I believe has taken a massive hit because marketing and PR people jumped into a community without looking or learning or experiencing the community. But, now that the marketing firms have left, it is back to the wonderful community that it was to begin with. There are still many active communities in there - the two that come to mind for me are the non-profits, corporations doing education (such as Cisco or IBM) or medical communities for support and education. It's a vibrant community, albeit not as big as it might have appeared with firms jumping in without looking. But, then again, would any business plop down in a community without research? No, but that's cool and Kosher in SL and other online communities?

Web 2.0
Yep, I'm lumping in all of Web 2.0 into one community, as a lot of it is a cult of personality or a cult of blogs. Look at the various blogs that cover the Web 2.0 space, and the followers that they have. At The Crunchies, you had a full Herbst Theater, and then people crashing the after party to the point that it was shut down for a little bit. Or, look at the past TechCrunch parties, and the cult of personality that surrounds Michael Arrington. Yes, he wields power with that blog, and does have influence.

If you have been to any of the Mashable parties, including OpenMashable in San Francisco, you see that the events have been drawing anything from 75 people to about 300 people in San Francisco. And, it's a pretty well read blog.

Plus, you have Read/Write/Web and CenterNetworks and B5 Media and GigaOm. All of these blogs and networks are well read, and have their loyal readers and all break stories. At the end of the day, they can all be under the umbrella of Web 2.0 communities, though. All of them started out in different ways - I still cannot break myself of the habit of thinking of GigaOm as a telco blog - but they have all expanded to cover a wider audience.

My favorite part of the community is Techmeme, though. Despite the recent snark on the algorithm, Techmeme is the cornerstone of the Web 2.0 community and what is being said and written and talked about at the events. While people might not want to admit it, Techmeme does run the news of the community.

Enterprise Irregulars
I include the Enterprise Irregulars (they all have individual blogs, and this is supposed to aggregate those blogs) because I love the geekiness of the enterprise, and I see Twitters and blog posts that seem to ignore this community, and to the point, just not get this community. If you are an enterprise technology, you read this group's group blog ... and you learn. And the best part is that this community is one such that if you do not know them, and do not have their respect, the knives can come out. Shit, I am friends with some of them, and they will still bring out the knives for me if I do not bring the goods. Outreach is only good if the client can deliver, and if they cannot, is it worth your personal reputation?

Public Relations
Okay, I include this because it is such a growing community - a lot of GOOD young PR bloggers that care about PR coming up through the ranks, but unfortunately a growing group of charlatans that are wrapping themselves up in social media with no experience, no skills and no right to counsel clients.

I digress. Through traditional PR and now through blogging, the community has grown and connections have grown, and for me, friendships started and cemented. Plus, meeting people I would have never met and learning of new and smart programs.

I would have never gone to Omaha if not for my blog, nor would I have met Jennifer Windrum at SRA. She reached out to me about something that is for a community that most of the social media people don't think about: everyday people, or in this case, American Idol fans. She showed me what they did tonight on American Idol, and how they are reaching people in that community about the pride of Omaha and their client.

Or, meeting Jason Falls in person, and having him talk to me about a true Twitter project that was better done than anything else I have read or heard about - but reaching an audience that most people don't think about, but is strong as hell: NASCAR and Baja 1000 enthusiasts.

I credit the kids at Auburn - the good kids I wrote of prior - and their instructor, Robert French, for really pushing smart ideas forward, and knowing that it goes beyond blogging.

Social Media
Read Chris Brogan. Read Jeff Pulver (also read him for VoIP). Read Jeremiah Owyang. Read Eric Rice. Read Teresa Valdez Klein. Read Liz Strauss. These people talk (and beyond talking, actually do - a rarity in social media bloggers) about social media and grasp what is going on. Do I agree with everything they write? Of course not, but they are good primers and understand community, and for the most part, do seem to express and talk about more than just one community. But beware the people that wrap themselves up in the flag of community evangelist - quiz them to see if they can talk beyond just Web 2.0.

Health
I wrote about the Health blog community before, and just want to reiterate that it has a different community, one that deserves and needs respect that goes beyond traditional social media outreach. A perfect example of its personal nature is the column that Amy Tenderich of DiabetesMine wrote in Newsweek.

BlogHer
I have written about BlogHer a few times - three, to be exact. And each time what I am trying to convey is that there is no other community like BlogHer.

In Chicago, there were 800+ people that came for the national conference, and another 550 attended in SecondLife. Think about that - 1350 people women (give or take a handful of men) that came together to share ideas and thoughts and views. And, no, the did not all agree with each other, and there were a few good arguments there about race and blogging.

Within the BlogHer community, though, I have been lucky enough to go to three events and meet and convene with MommyBlogger, Foodie Bloggers, Business Bloggers, Social Activism bloggers, Crafters, Political bloggers and more. But, the thing is that it is one big community with a wide variety of interests and thoughts.

Twitter
Twitter is a microcosm until itself. It has such a wide variety of users - and more outside the circle - that it can be overwhelming to read people's views in 140 characters or less. It is a community - one that actually mirrors the other communities that exist in social media, but one that is harder to communicate with from a brand stand point. How do you get people to friend your corporate Twitter account, unless you are really being part of the conversation and talking/responding? It is a hard balancing act. At least there are ways to search on Twitter now, so you can catch conversations and respond.

BlogWorldExpo
Though this was the first year of BlogWorldExpo, the group that Rick Calvert brought together outshined the no-shows and other missteps. IMHO, he should drop the usual suspects because they are just saying the same thing, and keep going with what the show brought that no other show has thus far in social media: the Godbloggers, the Milbloggers and the Political bloggers.

I have never met groups of bloggers that are more committed to what they are writing, more enthusiastic nor more passionate than these three groups. These communities showed what can be done with blogging when it's done from the heart, and rival BlogHer for a great show. Hopefully, this was just the first year of the event.

In respect to space, I did not write about all communities - Digg, Videoblogging, Environmental, Facebook, MySpace, Gossip Blogs, VoIP, etc. - that are just as active and have loyal fan bases. And have their problems and personalities.

And, there are other communities that I am learning more about, such as TechSoup/NetSquared, and the communities that LaughingSquid intersects.

That's the point, though: if you are doing outreach, it is about becoming a part of the community, working with the community, respecting the community. And, the communities are verticals, and are everywhere ... you just have to look and move beyond the insular circle.

Think less media relations, and think more public and community relations.

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