It’s another blood boiling week for the PR industry. I realize Spin Sucks got it’s name because, well, spin sucks. But sometimes it’s exhausting having to communicate over and over and over and over and over again that publicity is not PR.
Earlier this week, Matt Royse had a fantastic guest post on the seven ways social media is changing PR. In the comments, and later on Facebook, Jon Aston challenged the story by saying, “Are there really PR pros out there who still aren’t aware of this?” Oh Jon. I wish that were the case. Which will clearly be evidenced in this week’s fourth topic, which includes four stories.
Instead, we’ll keep fighting the fight.
5. Are You an Introverted Boss? When I was in high school, I was NOT popular. I went to three different high schools so you can imagine it was difficult for me to make friends anyway. But I’m also an introvert, which with mean kids, means you’re stuck-up. It took until probably two or three years ago for me to realize that my introversion did not mean that I was stuck-up or shy (well, most times), it simply means that I enjoy my alone time. It’s hard for people to imagine because I speak multiple times a week and I lead two businesses, but it’s true. I am an introvert. This Harvard Business Review blog post talks about how to spy your introverted colleagues and how to compassionately work with them, especially if you’re an extrovert.
4. Advertising vs. PR: How to Measure the Value of Editorial Coverage. It’s been another rough week for the PR industry. Yes, another. It seems we get slammed by one bad egg, that goes viral, at least once a month. This month, however, it began innocently enough when Ragan had a guest blogger, with a decade of experience, talk about the importance of advertising equivalencies and media impressions. Hello Jessica? 1990 called and wants you back. But it got better. Chuck Hemann blogged that AVEs are a scourge on public relations and Shonali Burke responded with rubbish is as rubbish does. The good news is that Ragan asked Shonali for a rebuttal piece, which ran on Thursday: PR industry must consign AVE to the graveyard. I encourage you to read in the order I linked here. First your blood will boil and then it will begin to calm, thanks to pros like Chuck and Shonali.
3. Coaching Urged for Women. If you’re in PR and a woman, your blood is about to boil a second time. If you’re not in PR, but a woman or a man, your blood is about to boil. This article sums up a McKinsey study by saying that women haven’t reached the pinnacle of leadership in most companies because they lack coaching. Sure they also say, “businesses need to work harder to change the mind-sets limiting women’s opportunities, such as the popular notion that a woman can’t juggle certain jobs and family duties.” I agree with that, but I’m not sure coaching is what is lacking. Perhaps Howie Goldfarb is right: It’s chauvinism.
2. Metrics Advice: Think KPIs, not ROI. THANK HEAVEN! Someone has their head on straight. Finally. Key performance indicators vs. return-on-investment. Publicity vs. PR. Revenue vs. profits. It’s all important but it one makes you money and the other just looks impressive to the outside world. We have this conversation over and over and over again within the PR industry. Measure your results to the business goals, not AVE or media impressions or sentiment. If you’re trying to figure out how all the new social tools relate to your business, read this story.
1. Family Takes 11 Year Vacation. Dead serious. A couple left their Argentinian home 11 years ago and have been driving ever since. They’ve had four children, each born in different countries, and they’ve traveled 145,000 miles. I don’t know about you, but six people in a car ride that never ends? Doesn’t sound like my kind of fun.
Have a story I missed and you think it should be included? Leave it in the comments for us!