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The Power of Networking – Kate’s Story

Friday, January 8th, 2010

I’ve been at Broadreach PR for a year now and one of the first things I learned was that the power of networking is not just for professionals, but is also extremely valuable for college students and recent grads out there on the job hunt.

Take for example, how I became a PR Specialist here at Broadreach.

When I graduated college in August of 2008 with a degree in Integrated Marketing Communications, I knew that I was going into tough job market, but I wasn’t actually that worried. I left school thinking that finding a job would take maybe a couple of months – I’d send some resumes out, go through a few interviews and then land a job. I was a fresh and ambitious young woman- how hard could it really be?

And then reality, coupled with an impending recession, gave me the who-know-what kind of slap in the face. (more…)

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Don’t Let People Forget You

Friday, October 30th, 2009

Woody Allen once said that “80 percent of success is showing up.” And whatever you may think of the controversial comedian-director, he’s onto something there when it comes to winning new business.

If you offer a solution to someone’s problem and are standing right in front of that person, you have a far better shot of getting the job than a competitor down the street.

Of course, you can’t spend your days sitting on your prospects’ doorsteps, waiting for them to call out your name. You can, however, keep your business front-of-mind with strategic networking efforts that include as many of the following three elements as possible: (more…)

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Is That Really What You Meant?

Friday, October 16th, 2009

On the way home from the fair the other day, I noticed a marquee sign in a small community proclaiming “Best Thai Food in Town!”

Now, I like Thai food, and this place might be wonderful. But instead of convincing me that I should stop by, the sign made me wonder: Can there be more than one Thai place in town? Is this the best claim to fame that the owner can come up with, even if there is a second Thai place?

We stopped somewhere else.

I’m not trying to pick on this harried restaurateur. In fact, the experience was one of several I had last week that got me to thinking about the unintended consequences that marketing choices can create in the mind of a potential customer.

If you shoot too low with your superlative, the claim will make the shopper wonder whether there is much of an attraction there. If you overstate your case and claim to the best Thai food in the world, for example, you also are likely to turn them off with a “yeah, right” response. (more…)

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Shark Vision Can Bite Your PR Effort

Friday, October 2nd, 2009

Organizations sometimes behave like sharks when it comes to getting their message out: They do a great job of looking ahead to the next big project, but never back at their existing materials.

Do you have shark vision?

Do you have shark vision?

This problem has been on my mind recently because I keep seeing otherwise well-run organizations relying on inaccurate websites, brochures and collateral material to tell their stories. Facts change, but these once-perfect marketing vehicles do not. No longer does the company have 47 stores, or achieve a 15 percent recycling rate, or sell XYZ product.

(more…)

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Can GM Perform Public Relations Jujitsu?

Friday, July 10th, 2009

The other day, I told somebody that a particular company was small, “no General Motors.”

Now, I realized right away that this phrase has kind of lost its punch, and I switched it over to Wal-Mart, the biggest corporation in the world. General Motors, of course, is just a shadow of its once world-dominating self.

But GM is trying to rebuild. Just this morning, the corporation crawled out of bankruptcy court from the financial wreckage and debt that this once-great company had become.

(more…)

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Branding: Search for the Essential

Friday, June 19th, 2009

In junior high, we did science experiments that distilled one liquid from another, leaving us with highly concentrated substances that we’d weigh and measure and use for other experiments.

Branding is a lot like that. It requires you to break down something – a product, business, political candidate – to its essence.

We’ve been doing a lot of that lately, working to create positioning statements and brand books that capture the most-important aspects of our clients’ operations, starting with 25- and 50-word statements and a tagline.

(more…)

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Don’t Get Drunk on Social Media

Friday, June 5th, 2009

Social media is like a cocktail party. That was an intriguing metaphor discussed by Rob Landry of Pemaquid Communications, a Portland Web design studio, during a recent Maine Public Relations Council seminar.

The comparison is spot-on in all the particulars that Rob talked about – and in another couple crucial ways that didn’t come up.

The idea, of course, is that social media is not a monologue like the one that has taken place between traditional media and the public. Instead, social media is a conversation, where the most popular participants are witty, interesting and helpful.

(more…)

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