Say What?!

Better to keep quiet and be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.

                                                                                    —Abraham Lincoln

 

This is not the case for crisis communications, unfortunately.

The very best thing a company or an individual can do is to be responsive should they find themselves abruptly or unwillingly put in a public spotlight.

An example—the biggest scandal of 2009 to 2010 was Tiger Woods and his private affairs becoming overwhelmingly public, vastly diminishing his popularity to the general population, after the car accident at his house on Thanksgiving night in 2009.

Surprisingly, though, Woods was criticized almost equally as much for not speaking publicly about the incident. He did not hold a press conference, or make any kind of public appearance or statement, until February of 2010.

Not to say that him holding a press conference would take everything back to the status quo, but the issue needs to addressed by all involved before misinterpreted conclusions are reached.

One question was posed to The International House of Pancakes (IHOP) recently after a fight broke out at one of their locations and the video was posted with high volumes of views.

They have yet to comment on the issue.

This is the not the first in what has turned out to be a series of fight videos at fast-food restaurants.

In the weeks leading up to the IHOP fight, there was an incident at a McDonald’s in which a transgender woman was attacked and beaten—in what is being described as a hate crime—with an employ standing over the victim taking video with their camera phone.

Unlike the Woods scandal, McDonald’s was quick to respond, saying the attack and employee behavior was “unacceptable, disturbing and troubling.”

Simple as that because all people what is a response—just something that says they acknowledge the incident instead of trying to ignore it.

Now the questions have been raised with IHOP—not what will they say, but why haven’t they said anything?

Crisis communication is a different situation in that there is no way to be proactive and get out in front of an incident due to the suddenness and no lead-time. In that essence, be proactive by letting people hear about it from you instead of the newspapers or other media.

With the alternative (the Woods situation), the best stance is to take a stance. A quick response will (obviously, but with an impact) squash any chance of a group questioning your lack of a response and calling you out.

A Square Peg in a Round Deal

One of the newest, more replicated trends has been the launch of several daily deal programs, offering substantial discounts to customers while gaining exposure and driving business for the merchant.

Of the many, GroupOn and Living Social have risen above the rest to be seen as the most popular and successful.

But a recent analysis has shown which demographics have been determined more likely to use which service, playing an important role in determining which service would better suit certain offers.

A survey by the Nielson Company has shown that Living Social users are more likely to be wealthier, younger and to have a college degree.

Compared to 30 percent from GroupOn, Living Social users are 49 percent more likely than the average American to have an annual income of $150,000.

Living Social users are also more likely to be under the age of 35 and (46 percent Living Social to GroupOn’s 39 percent) more likely to have a college degree.

GroupOn’s customer base is older, with 57 percent of their customer base between the ages of 35 to 64. The same age group represents 51 percent of Living Social users, but they are also tapped into the youth market with one-third of their users falling between 21 to 34 years old.

Based on the numbers alone, merchants can decide which service would better fit their product or service.

Other factors playing a part in decision-making might fall under the intangibles.

Just this week, an article posted to CNN Money detailing a first-person account of a restaurant owner’s dealing with both GroupOn and Living Social.

In it, she describes the lack of communication with one, even after several attempts to reach out. With the same service, she became frustrated that her deals were not being accepted by their marketing department—they seemed to be too good a deal, thus not making them enough money.

In her deals with the other company, the same restaurateur applauded their ability to work with the deals being suggested, and setting them aside for another time should they be better suited for another season.

All in all, not all daily deal sites are the best fit for those willing to offer the deals. Shazaaam! and Buzzphoria have dealt with a number of daily deal programs, gaining experience in which deal would best suit certain companies, better hitting their target markets and certain demographics, to better meet a client’s expectations.

Make Honesty An Issue

Trust Who You Trust To Handle Your Business

We have all seen them and most gleam very useful information from them. However, more than one public relations firm saw online product reviews as an opportunity to advance their client, breaching protocol widely viewed as a cheat and globally renounced as being unethical.

Within recent years, one story stands alone as a bright example of a lapse in ethics in the public relations industry.  Reverb Communication, located in Northern California and specializing in video and phone apps, was suspected of having their interns and other employees posing as consumers and posting very positive customer reviews on the product’s Apple iTunes page — driving traffic to that page and product, however, violating industry ethics — an allegation Reverb strongly denies.

In an investigative piece published on MobileCrunch.com, the reporter discovered several early, 5-star product reviews on the pages of apps of clients represented by Reverb. After clicking on the reviewer — to see which other products that person had reviewed — it was discovered that these several reviewers also gave gleaming 5-star review to several other Reverb rep’ed apps, having reviewed none others that weren’t covered by Reverb.

Reverb denied these claims in a statement released after the publication of the article, saying that several employees may use the apps Reverb represents and may chose to write positive reviews themselves, without being “commanded” to by agency. However, in a document released in the original article by a company insider, there are specific details as to what step-by-step procedures need to be follow when assigning these interns to write and post their clients’ product reviews.

In the face of the evidence, Reverb Communications has denied all claims of ethics violations.

However, this is hardly the first claim of this type made against a company or public relations agency. Heavy names such as Sony and Burger King — for example — have been accused of similar claims.

When considering hiring an agency to represent your company and your values, take the time to review the agency to ensure that you feel comfortable hiring them to represent your name and brand — that they carry the same values you do as well as operate above the standards and ethics levels set forth by the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA).

Shazaaam! Public Relations, since its founding in 2001, has conformed to — and acted above those standards — in all its activities, projects and operations.

And Here Comes The Pitch

No. 3 in a series

 

Around here, the time taken to write a press release is not time taken lightly. When a press release is presided over, it is a collective effort on the part of the entire staff – from the person who write the words on the page to the president of the company for review.

But we have already established that the press release is still a relevant medium here – we could say it until we are blue in the face and out of breath. But one testimonial to the relevance of this tried and true form of communication would be the recipients of the press release.

When calling and pitching a story to a newspaper or magazine editor or programming directors for various broadcast media outlets or anybody, the number one response that is received from them is “Did you send me a press release?” When we pitch, what we are going to say is as presided over just as if it were a press release – what bullet points we need to get across about our client and their campaign in a limited amount of time.

These people who make the decisions at media outlets do not have large amounts of free time to sit and spend a length of time on the phone, listening to you cover all of your key points. They do not have time for the various “alternatives” to the traditional press release many critics have suggested – we have absolutely never heard some one say “Have you tweeted me?” or “Did you send that to my Facebook page?” If you refer them to the posting you put on their social media networking site, your call would not be taken seriously and your information happily discarded because your credibility have been called into question.

The pitch and press release work together to supplement each other – a press release is followed by a call (pitch) to the recipient and what the pitch covers, the press release expands upon.

A pitch is a great tool that allows you to interact with the people who have been selected to receive your press release. It is expected of you. There is an almost certain chance that the release you sent out is one of several which were received that day, but when you supplement that with a pitch, it causes the recipient to pick it up, read it over and take in all of the information it contains. And while on the phone, you can plan out what will come from the press release you wrote with purpose.

A Safe and Healthy Alternative to the Press Release??

No. 2 in a series

Any void is a bad void.

If the press release is truly dead, buried and never to be heard from again, then what – the question stands – will take its place? What will fill the empty space left when the dust settles on the public relations industry and it is without its press releases, which have stood for generations? Critics and new media-types would have us all believe that the “New Age” began with the innovation of social media, specifically with web sites such as Facebook and Twitter. These “tools” have replaced the long-standing press release as a way of communication with editors and media officials and has streamlined the process of creating exposure for a client.

Now, there is no doubt that social media has changed the way we think. But has it really changed it to a point to where that is the “go-to” for all brands of media? Many industry pundits and the critics of the press release began saying two years ago the press releases will be dead in 36 months. Many have taken it further by saying that if a client cannot state what they have to say in 140 characters or less, then something needs to change. We here at Shazaaam! agree, however, to only an extent. We work hand-in-hand with our sister company Buzzphoria for social media marketing.

But! it is not as cut and dry as some of these pundits and critics might make it out to be. One hundred and forty characters is pushing the concept of brevity. Yes, gone are the days of pages and pages of narrative concerning the client – these days, shorter is acceptable if it contains concise and focused writing; keeping to the point. This more explains and demonstrates the fluid nature of the changing press release. A release losses its professionalism, however, if it is sent via Facebook or Twitter – it loses it exclusivity, making the recipient feel simply like one of many of a blindly sent message, like receiving an advertisement in the mail addressed to “resident.” The media still wants that personal touch and communication, much like the client themselves (They also, FYI, still ask for a press release when contacted). The media does not want to have to rely on their Facebook and Twitter accounts for story ideas – “Hey Buddy, did you see that game last night? By the way, let me tell you about the great changes at Med Tech.” No!

The press release is changing though, much like all industries change over time – this is inevitable; across-the-board. And the press release is no exception in our industry. But it is not dead. It is becoming more brief, more concise with streamlined information “blocks” and multimedia links for the media’s benefit.

It has changed, yes, but not replaced and certainly not dead.

Is The Press Release Dead? Live Press Release! Thrive!

No. 1 in a Series

To the opinion of many, the life and times of the press release – which has been used for decades by the professionals in public and media relations – is obsolete and as-good-as-dead technology.  Many critics out there would have you believe that creating a press release is a losing and wasted effort – that it is taken with no consideration as they are perceived as spin with meaningless news and quotes while praising their clients as masters of the universe. That they are sent out over the wires – Business Wire, Market Wire, PR Newswire and PR Web, for example – to thousands of faceless journalists to join a pile of thousands of other releases which are either never given another thought or look or are passed along to the trash faster than they are received. And if these journalist do wade through these exaggerated “oceans of releases,” critics see them as merely pre-assembled stories – and basically transcribe it – to their publication and have it run under their byline – with their own spin spun throughout its body.

Here in today’s digital age, where everything takes place in milliseconds with megabytes, we at Shazaaam! believe  there is still a place for the tested tried and true methods that made this industry. In fact in today’s “iAge”, the press release remains the dominant source of marketing. In a survey, “Mapping & Tracking: The Optimized Marketing Supply Chain” sponsored by the Chief Marketing Officer Council shows that a vast majority (84 %) still use print collateral leads. The highest percentage of “new media” leads ranked in at 39%, with multimedia tools. This is not to say that multimedia and other “new mediums” don’t have their place in today’s fluid market – not at all. But this does show the place and the seriousness that press releases and other printed collateral still garner in the “age of tomorrow – today.” Papers are still passed around the office.

Of course we understand that the press release is not the only tool for distributing information and creating the news for our clients – we more than utilize our sister company, Buzzphoria (www.buzzphoria.com), for social media. The critics’ misperceptions about what goes into a press release and how they are received could not be more off target. A release is assigned, written, discussed and reviewed. It is not presided and hovered over by lawyers featuring quotes from low level officials. NO. They are carefully and honestly written to ensure that a maximum amount of information is provided, with room to grow on the journalist and on the editorial side. The sources quoted must have a role in the story and are able to provide perspective or insight – not just to give a name to the story. Releases are sent out to targeted media outlets – electronically put into the hands of the people who should have them. They are followed up on, not just blindly sent out like a fishing line with a worm on the end, hoping someone will bite. We follow up and follow up and follow up, working for the client and getting their news out there.

SHAZAAAM!/BUZZPHORIA LISTED A FOURTH TIME IN METROPOLITAN DETROIT’S “101 BEST AND BRIGHTEST COMPANIES TO WORK FOR”

The Michigan Business and Professional Association (MBPA) has named Shazaaam!/Buzzphoria LLC as one of Metropolitan Detroit’s “101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work For,” marking the fourth year in a row that the agency has been named.

“We are proud to receive this high honor once again,” said Adrienne Lenhoff, Shazaaam!/Buzzphoria founder and president. “We take special care in making our workplace a creative and fun place to work for our employees,” she added, “and the results show in both our work for clients and the dedication that our staff shows every day in accomplishing their goals.”

Shazaaam!/Buzzphoria and 100 other businesses in greater Michigan will be honored at an awards luncheon on Wednesday, September 22, 2010, at The Dearborn Inn, a Marriott hotel located in Dearborn, Mich.

Shazaaam!/Buzzphoria, Novi, Mich.-based businesses, have also received numerous recognitions from Crain’s Detroit Business named as a “Cool Place to Work.” The selection of Shazaaam!/Buzzphoria, along with other winning companies, affirms to its employees, clients, vendors, and to the business community at large, that it is committed to being one of the Best and Brightest companies to work for.

MBPA qualifies companies using independent research that evaluates company communication, community initiatives, compensation and benefits. The organization also reviews other categories such as diversity and multiculturalism, employee education and development, employee engagement and commitment, and work-life balance.

“Because the companies selected have created impressive organizational value and business results through their policies and best practices in human resource management, we believe it is important to recognize their accomplishments, especially at a time when all businesses are being challenged in ways never before seen,” said Jennifer Kluge, MBPA executive vice president and chief operating officer.

Metro Detroit’s 101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work For is sponsored by AT&T Michigan, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, Corp!, Magazine, Davenport University, DTE Energy, Pepsi Bottling Group, Douglas Marketing, The Designate, Strategic Staffing Solutions, WJBK Fox 2, HRAGD, the Detroit Athletic Club and McGraw Wentworth.
About Shazaaam!/Buzzphoria

Founded in 2001, Shazaaam! (shazaaam.com) is an award-winning, independently owned, group of affiliated communications companies headquartered in Novi, Mich. Shazaaam! Public Relations, Social Media Marketing Agency Buzzphoria (buzzphoria.com) and experiential marketing company Promo Marketing Team (promomarketingteam.com) specialize in traditional public relations, social media marketing, product sampling and street-level marketing promotions and events, respectively, on a national level. Specialties include media and public relations, guerilla marketing, online viral marketing, electronic and new media development, mobile tours, product samplings, social networking and event coordination and management.

The 10 Essential Things You Need to Know about CAN-SPAM Compliance

Ok, so we’ve all received the unwanted emails offering up everything from millions in unclaimed dollars to imposter designer watches to the latest and greatest viagra-like substance, diet revolution, multi-level scheme, etc, etc, etc…

While those types of emails are considered by most of us a nuisance or spam, how aware are you of whether YOU, your brand or company has ever violated CAN-SPAM laws?

To make it easier, the folks at our social media division, Buzzphoria (www.buzzphoria.com) have put together a list of the 10 essential things you need to know about CAN-SPAM compliance.

1. What is CAN-SPAM? Written into law in 2003, CAN-SPAM is a United States federal government measure to ensure that all email adequately identifies its origin, allows a user to remove themselves from future mailings and provides the government and ISPs a right to action against anyone not following CAN-SPAM requirements.

2. Did you know that CAN-SPAM is only applicable to email that is sent and received in the United States? It also overrides any state level spam laws.

3. If you have specific CAN-SPAM questions, you’ll want to refer to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). They’re the governing body in legal prosecutions and also update CAN-SPAM’s core compliance requirements. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is also involved when it comes to emails that are sent to cell devices.

4. Under CAN-SPAM once a recipient has opted out of receiving your email, you may not contact them again for further marketing opportunities. An email unsubscribe operates similar to a Do-Not-Call list with telephone numbers.

5. In terms of opt-out function, landing and links CAN-SPAM requirements keep things simple for the recipient. Senders are allowed to only have the recipient take one action after landing on the unsubscribe page from an opt-out click-thru. At that point, the recipient can click on a confirm button, check a box, etc. Senders cannot require recipients to sign into an account and perform other actions to be removed from the list or require a fee. You must support the unsubscribe link and the resulting landing page
for at least 30 days to ensure that recipients have enough time to unsubscribe. This helps avoid senders from having confusing or complicated opt out mechanisms.

6. CAN-SPAM mandates that you must remove a recipient from mailing lists or suppress sending to them within 10 days of receipt of their opt-out request.

7. Transactional email is exempt from CAN-SPAM since it is mandated by the FTC. CAN-SPAM defines transactional email as one which “facilitates an agreed-upon transaction or updates a customer in an existing business relationship.” This definition prohibits marketing messages from being labeled as transactional although it does allow for marketing content in a transactional email. It is advised that a sender get input from someone who’s an expert in email law to certify that the content does apply to the
transactional definition.

8. CAN-SPAM requires that headers accurately reflect the originator of the email message. Failure to do so is considered fraudulent and in direct conflict of the transparency spirit of the law.

9. CAN-SPAM has no volume thresholds for enforcement. Any amount of email sent, even if it’s just to a single recipient, is covered by CAN-SPAM.

10. Violation of CAN-SPAM can result in monetary fines and jail time depending on the number of offenses and the sender’s intent. Also, a sender in violation can face civil damages from private ISPs.

Will Your Branding Power Diminish Thanks to Facebook?

For centuries, companies have kept a finger on the pulse of their brand power. But as more social web networks seek to launch innovative applications that put consumers in control, some companies fear their branding power will flat line.

The marketing industry is in an uproar about Facebook’s latest changes to user’s privacy settings and its launch of community pages, a topical site that collects users’ wall post and Wikipedia content, as it poses risk to companies’ brand power.

In recent months, the social networking conglomerate overhauled its privacy settings and community pages to group users’ common interests as a way to boost social web interaction. But Facebook users shunned the new service because many of their wall posts were published to open networks without consent. Marketing professionals are also upset as many believe the launch diminishes companies’ control of branding.

“This is nothing more than forced marketing,” wrote one Facebook user, who also expressed that users should be able to freely express themselves without their comments being pooled to community pages.

Community Pages are a new version of Facebook pages that are soley dedicated to a string of topics or experiences that Facebook users share. The application, by large, resembles the official pages of businesses, organizations and public figures.

While Facebooks’ community pages haven’t completely rolled out, many of the pages display company logos, background information from Wikipedia and comments from Facebook users about companies and their products. Another hiccup in the service is that Facebook isn’t filtering users’ comments about companies or products, leaving room for negative comments to linger on pages for days on end.

The possibility of negative responses coupled with uncanny web features stands the chance to confuse Facebook users and erodes the social website’s relationship with companies to build their advertising presence on the site, say marketing professionals. Experts have also have pegged the application as a risk to the growing amount of companies who have pumped advertising dollars into Facebook to strengthen their brand presence through official web pages.

Most marketing professionals fear that Facebook’s community pages stand to gain more recognition than actual approved company pages. There are also concerns that company officials will not be able to edit dated content on the pages nor respond to any defamatory comments made by Facebook users.

There has yet to be a clear winner in the debate about how Facebook’s community page and privacy changes stand to impact companies’ brands. Since many have asked how to strengthen the pulse of their brand, we’ve provided a list below of ways that companies can combat the increasing concerns. For further interest on how Shazaaam! Public Relations can revitalize your brand or even help you navigate through the social media industry please contact us at 248-3660-0388.

How Can Companies Tighten Their Reign On Facebook’s Community Page?

1. Uphold a united front: Marketing experts have widely suggested that behemoth and grass –root brands join forces against Facebook and continue to voice their dislike over the potential threat of Facebooks’ community pages. It is believed that the more vocal companies are about the use of logos and content published, the more likely the social website will take notice and change its policy.

2. Know your rights: Companies can call their Facebook sales representative and have their logos removed, if they initially haven’t approved of the moniker being published on the site.

3. Start monitoring accounts. Assign a company official to revise and edit the content on the Wikipedia site. Companies can set up alert systems that inform them when there are any changes to their Wikipedia account.

4. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. With a number of companies believing that their brand power is diminishing, businesses need to chase after the social media markets where their clients interact the most. Companies should also make sure that they are proactive in pushing positive word of mouth advertising and producing great products and services.

Local Charity Jimmy’s Kids Loses 21,000 Toys in Flood

Jim Tuman of Jimmy’s Kids on Channel 4 WDIV: http://bit.ly/8p6J59

For 20 years, Royal Oak resident Jim Tuman of “Jimmy’s Kids” has been helping over 30,000 kids each Christmas. This year he needs your help. A flood destroyed about 21,000 of the toys destined for kids this Christmas.

Jimmy’s Kids is a program started in 1989 to create Christmas parties for local children 4 to 11 years of age who are indigent, physically or emotionally challenged, or forgotten. When Tuman started the program in 1989, he serviced 22 kids in Detroit; the program has since expanded to service over 30,000 children and families in need.

Jim is working with the 11 Southeast Michigan Play It Again Sports to rebuild his inventory. All 11 locations will serve as host sites to drop boxes and will challenge Metro Detroit to donate toys and coats for the needy in the community. With a donation, shoppers will receive 10 percent off of their purchase of a regularly priced item.

Donations can be made at any Play It Again Sports location until December 24.