If you’re in the PR industry, you’ve spent endless hours debating, agonizing over and reading about the future of PR. But it’s not every day that you’re invited to look into the crystal ball of one of the great PR minds of our generation.

Last week, Worldcom Public Relations Group invited its members to do just that. Paul Holmes, president & CEO of the Holmes Group and editor of the HolmesReport, shared his predictions for the PR industry in 2012. And to my relief, it looks like there may be exceptionally clear skies ahead.

In fact, Holmes predicts that PR will soon earn a seat at the executive table as the C-suite begins to recognize the importance of effectively managing relationships between organizations and key stakeholders.

But is PR really ready to take on this challenge? According to Holmes, we’re in an era of unprecedented opportunity for our industry – but it won’t all be smooth sailing.

Here are the 10 things Holmes says PR must “get right” if we’re going to succeed:

1. Recruitment: We must attract top-level people – those who understand not only PR, but the business environment impacting our clients.
2. Development: Our industry is evolving; it’s critical that our people keep pace. We must ensure we are continuously seeking out and providing learning opportunities for our colleagues/employees.
3. Retention: Attracting the best people isn’t enough; we must also retain them. It’s important that we create engaging work environments and put our people first… even if that means letting clients go when they don’t do the same.
4. Research: Think Moneyball. Billy Beane was able to defy conventional wisdom and outsmart much richer baseball franchises with the use of research. PR needs to do the same.
5. Conversation: PR isn’t about crafting and delivering messages. It’s about two-way conversation; listening as much as talking.
6. Content: We have to become adept at content creation. We must be able to create content that enables us to reach stakeholders in an impactful way.
7. Courage: “Do one brave thing today… then run like hell.” We must have the courage to counsel our clients; to truly earn a seat at that executive table.
8. Integrity: Credibility is critical to our industry. As Marcus Aurelius said, “If it’s not right, don’t do it. If it’s not true, don’t say it.”
9. Independence: The advice we give must be genuinely neutral in terms of media channels and tactics. PR folks: that means that if the right solution is advertising (gasp!) – that’s what we recommend.
10. Measurement: At the end of the day, if we’re going to have a seat at the table, we must become better at measuring the value of PR and the relationships it builds and manages. We have access to more data today than ever before. We must find more effective ways of using it!

What else would you say PR needs to “get right” to survive as our industry and the business environment we work in continues to evolve?

To connect with Aven:

Phone: 212.840.1661
Email: aven@blisspr.com
Twitter: @avenlea
LinkedIn: Aven James

[Full disclosure: I am a New York Giants fan.]

As a leader, sometimes it doesn’t matter whether you’re right or wrong. It just matters that you make a choice. Actually, that’s completely untrue. While decisive action can earn you the respect of your key stakeholders, New York Giants Head Coach Tom Coughlin would be the first to tell you that when leaders send the wrong message, it could spell disaster, or worse, it could mean your job.

In just a few words: “adapt or die.” Coughlin, who is about to lead his team to its second Super Bowl in five seasons has taught us that and it’s given him historic success. But there also are lessons for us as communications professionals. Let’s think of the coach as the “agency” and the players as the “clients.”

Lesson No. 1: Adjust the message if it’s not working. Post haste.

Coughlin joined the Giants in 2004. After three seasons of locker room and front office tumult brought on by his rigid leadership style, he led the franchise to the Super Bowl in 2007. Just as they will this Sunday, the Giants faced the New England Patriots. Quarterback Tom Brady was still captivating audiences on and off the field. Coach Bill Belichick was still donning hoodies and being lauded as a brilliant strategist. The communication between player (client) and coach (agency) was clear. The system worked. The Patriots won games. No one asked questions. No one was threatened with a pink slip.

Then there was Coughlin, who was being nudged out because he couldn’t communicate clearly with his players and, thusly, was losing games. Here is a leader who proved he could convey a gameplan to a squad of the toughest men in the world, but he couldn’t get them to even like him, which meant they couldn’t execute. That’s when he changed (sort of) in mid-2007. While he held firm on his approach to the game, he adjusted his master-commander dynamic with the players. Communication became a two-way street. It was interactive. One might even go as far to say that Coughlin went from traditional to digital. Either way, it translated to a Super Bowl victory that year.

In 2008, following the improbable Super Bowl victory, a former business editor at the Star Ledger wrote:

“He (Coughlin) was an autocratic tyrant with an explosive temper who was fired from his last job and came close to being canned from his current one.

But Tom Coughlin had an epiphany: The taskmaster coach, who once fined two of his players for being late for a meeting even though they had been in a car accident, loosened his management style this season and opened lines of communication with players.”

Fast forward: this season’s negativity and dissention reared their ugly heads again when it seemed the Giants only succeeded at losing when it mattered most. But this time was different. This time the leader refused to waver.

Lesson No. 2: If you’re confident that the message is sound, stay the course.

While Coughlin may’ve softened his approach before his last Super Bowl appearance, by and large he’s been the same person throughout. Yet this time his players are in his corner.

In the communication business, the client has to buy into an idea. Once we establish the message, the onus is on us to execute. It’s a two-way flow of ideas, but the foundation of that flow begins with us, just as it began with Coughlin. Get your client (players) to believe and then follow through. What proves execution more than a Super Bowl victory?

To Connect with Matthew:

Email: matthew@blisspr.com
Twitter: @kirdahy
LinkedIn: Matthew Kirdahy

Last week, the Wall Street Journal ran an article entitled “Drug Reps Soften Their Sales Pitches.”  In it, Jonathan D. Rockoff reports that several drug companies (including GlaxoSmithKline, Merck& Co and Eli Lily & Co) told sales reps to stop “detailing” doctors with aggressive, tightly-scripted sales pitches and instead provide information that doctors really want – i.e., patient education materials, caregiver resources and reimbursement guidelines.  In the process, physician satisfaction has improved and drug sales are rising.

With this shift, big pharma has discovered what the services sector has long known:  customers want conversations and solutions, not well-rehearsed messages.

The challenge, of course, is that real solutions are hard to come by.  As Chris Wright of Zs Associates notes:

“Shifting gears has proven thorny in some cases….Some longtime sales representatives, used to repeating  a scripted message, aren’t equipped to intuit and respond to what doctors want.  Promotion of drugs is highly regulated, making it tricky to give salespeople lots of leeway in what they discuss with physicians.”

In this respect, healthcare companies are quite similar to financial services organizations.  Both sell complex, sophisticated products.  Both are highly regulated.  Both have been slow to adopt new marketing and distribution models.  Both are under intense pressure to transform themselves due to new regulations and new financial strains.

Each sector has important lessons to teach the other, including:

1. Education and Personalization.  More than a decade ago, financial services companies understood that consumers are in the driver’s seat.  In response, they supplemented product campaigns with financial literacy programs, decision-support tools and advice.  They also customized products and educational programs by customer life-stages, behavior patterns and goals.
2.  Consultative Sales.  Years ago, money management firms replaced “sales professionals” with “advisors” and “planners.”  Today, big pharma companies are moving toward a more consultative sales model – as are health insurance companies, who are acquiring healthcare advisory firms and integrated care management firms at a rapid pace.
3. Endorsement-Marketing.  Pharmaceutical companies are experts at endorsement-marketing.  They understand the power of Key Opinion Leaders (e.g., doctors, researchers) – and the credibility of advisory boards and academic studies.  Financial services companies have been slow to enlist expert endorsement.  As consumers take on more responsibility for their financial futures, look for more guidance from highly-credentialed financiers and risk managers.

What other lessons can communicators and marketers in these two sectors teach one another?

Connect with Meg:

Phone:  212.840.0095
Email: meg@blisspr.com
Twitter: @megwildrick
LinkedIn: Meg Wildrick

The idea for this post struck me as I was reading the back of a frozen fish sticks bag. I’m sure it sounds odd, but so was the fact that the messaging stuck with me. I was first drawn in by the description – that they add only 35% breading vs. 50% of most national brands. But what really caught my attention, surprisingly, was the picture of the founder and chairman of the company (Trident Seafoods) on the bag, followed by a message describing the fish they catch, the preparation process and his commitment and confidence in their products. The note ends with an email address and invitation for customers to provide feedback.

I know it’s just marketing language, but somehow it grabbed me. And sold me. On fish sticks of all things?

It started me down a path of thinking about how my own clients’ leadership teams demonstrate their commitment to and passion about their firms to the external world. Most B2B companies don’t sell products and services that are as simple or tangible as fish sticks, so how can leaders effectively showcase their zeal?

Enter the thought leadership PR campaign. Think about 1 or 2 critical issues facing the firm’s customers to which the CEO can bring personality and a point of view. Then, address those issues forcefully. This can provide several benefits:

• Rally Employees: Leaders set the tone for an organization. If they demonstrate passion and commitment on a particular point, it can quickly energize others. Whatever the topic, the messaging should also help to underscore the mission or purpose of the organization. What makes the company and its employees tick? Think about IBM and its “smarter planet” platform. Leadership expert John Baldoni offers some good insights about why it’s important for leaders to define a clear purpose for their organization and its trickle-down effect on achieving results.

• Prompt Customer Conversations: If the head of the organization is visible in the marketplace talking about the challenges and trends affecting its customers, that’s an excellent prompt for connecting with clients and prospects. Take one or two of the articles in which the CEO appears and have the sales force use it as an excuse for an email marketing or calling campaign around the issue. We often have clients tell us about being in a new business meeting where a contact in the room brings out an article in which a senior leader was quoted. Did that seal the deal? Maybe not. But, it sure helps to warm the room.

• Humanize the Brand: It’s easy for B2B brands to lack personality. Personality gets shaped through a combination of content, (the aforementioned) purpose and visibility in the marketplace. And social media has helped bring a more direct connection to an organization’s leaders. There are a host of hospital CEOs who are blogging to help demonstrate their hospital’s commitment to the community, tell its stories, and discuss challenges/solicit improvements. The number of socially engaged CEOs is only expected to rise – check out this infographic on the future of C-suite social engagement from Social Times. Think about the statement you make by having a CEO directly engaged with customers and prospects online, even if it’s in a limited way, like a weekly chat on a general social platform for the company.

What outcome can a good thought leadership campaign produce?  Craig Badings recently compiled thoughts from a variety of leading experts on this very issue, which is worth checking out. Or maybe you’ll just end up buying fish sticks?

What thoughts do you have to share about the impact of CEO passion on PR programs?

(Note: I have no affiliation with Trident Seafoods; just a big fan – as is my 2-year old)

Photo by eschipul

Connect with Kellie:

Email: kellie@blisspr.com
Twitter: @kshe
LinkedIn: Kellie Sheehan

Fun, for me, is:

• Holding my 6 year old upside down until he giggles
• Watching the Golden Globes instead of the Giants this weekend
• Sneaking a good piece of fiction into my business travel

Sometimes work is not fun. There are lots of good reasons for that.  Budgets grow smaller, project scopes change and turnover happens.

Once in awhile, you have a project that puts a smile on your face.  This one made my year a little brighter.

Our client, Life University, is the world’s largest chiropractic school. They have a mission that goes way beyond Chiropractic, though. Simply put, they want you to start thinking about your health in a new way.

Dr. Guy Riekeman, President of Life University, believes “your body knows better.”  He hopes each of us will begin listening more carefully to the signs our body is giving – and then act on that innate intelligence.  We can start to do this with lifestyle changes of clean diet, appropriate sleep, exercise, healthy attitude and having our nervous system free from interference.

From a marketing perspective, Dr. Riekeman has been a terrific client for many reasons. He has great ideas to share, he has lived a rich life (entrepreneur, author, film student, among others) and he is a dynamic storyteller. The real bonus?  He has a sense of humor and is willing to try new things.

So, when we launched his new blog, we wanted people to “meet him” in an exciting new way.  Instead of a boring biography, we worked with Jonathan Mann of TedMed fame to create a song that summarizes Dr. Riekeman’s life and his philosophy.

The result? A song that stayed in my head for weeks and put a smile on my face for months. Give it a listen here:

The song has been incredibly well received by his old – and new – audiences. (And I still listen to it, just for fun.)

So why am I telling you about this?  After all, we rarely blog about clients. But I honestly believe digital marketers need a creative jolt this year.

I want to encourage you to think more creatively about your 2012 marketing content and thought leadership. Digital PR offers you new ways to package and share information. Why not take advantage of that and experiment?

Have you tried a new approach to packaging your marketing content? Will you share it with us?

Connect with Elizabeth:

Phone: 212.840.0017
Email: elizabeth@blisspr.com
Twitter: @elizabethsosnow
LinkedIn: Elizabeth Sosnow

Comfort – If you’re in this business, you’re a Mad Men fan. That being the case, you know Roger Sterling, partner at Sterling Cooper. In the show, Sterling mentions something to the effect that 50 percent of his business is getting people to like you. (Note: he was shouting at an account executive at the time) Returning back to reality for a second – billionaire industrialist John D. Rockefeller said, “The ability to deal with people is as purchasable a commodity as sugar or coffee. And I will pay more for that ability than for any other under the sun.”

While in the eyes of a client, much of a PR agency’s success can be quantified in media “hits” and other end-results, it’s the relationship forged in the life of the account that ends up being the true strength of an agency. If you are to succeed at an agency, client relationship-building must be a primary goal.

Credibility – Why are you here? For the purposes of this exercise, think less philosophical and more skill set. Under the best circumstances, you will be given ample time to prove yourself on the job. The pace with which new talent is integrated into an account will vary by agency and job title. Regardless, it’s important to have a voice as early as the first week with clients and your work will speak for itself in due course. Be succinct in discussing your background as it’s relevant to the account. Study the client’s business and offer expert counsel by introducing some new ideas. It won’t always matter that you’re right. It will always matter that you’re smart and speak eruditely about the company.

Continuity –To avoid an argument, let’s agree that change is neither good nor bad. It just simply is. Your arrival at the new agency represents change, whether you were part of a wave of new hires or are filling a new post. Every client has a different tolerance level for change. Your job is to get them comfortable with the new arrangements. Assuming the existing work was satisfactory, the client expects a minimum of what they already have, but ideally, your agency wants to exceed those expectations. You’ll want to show that by working you into the lineup, the team will ensure a consistent and continuous level of performance in a smooth transition.

Now, go make Sterling and Rockefeller proud.

Connect with Matthew:

To Connect with Matthew:

Email: matthew@blisspr.com
Twitter: @kirdahy
LinkedIn: Matthew Kirdahy

The idea of “local” has been on my mind a lot lately. Businesses and communities that serve local needs seem to be popping up everywhere. From the recent IPO of local review site Yelp, to Google pursuing local search marketing, and more and more restaurants and grocery stores promoting local food – local is making a comeback. We’re also seeing an increased interest in local public relations campaigns, not necessarily moving away from the national focus, but complementing and supporting it.

When done right, local PR is a beautiful thing. It takes advantage of all the great work a firm is doing on a national level, and leverages it for the local offices without having to reinvent the wheel. Like Yelp or Google local search marketing, it uses the same framework and building blocks, but inserts customized messages for each market. The overall messages are nationally approved so the firm presents a unified voice across the country, while still promoting local spokespeople in key offices and gaining local media attention (i.e. Business Journals, Crain’s, local daily papers, radio and TV stations). We’ve found that this unified voice helps with both internal and external communication.

For large national organizations, or even mid-sized companies with several offices around the country, replicating a nationally driven program across each office can be an effective media strategy to boost awareness of the firm and its local executives within the local community where they do business every day. This type of program also reduces costs, given that the content creation is happening on a national level.

A nationally sanctioned local PR program isn’t just a one way street. Often, some of the best national marketing strategies and thought leadership ideas emerge from the trends and conversations going on in the local markets. Our monthly PR calls with the local offices of a national client provide invaluable intel that has supported and strengthened the national programs for that client.

So how do you go about creating a nationally sanctioned local PR program, and what are the best practices? Stay tuned for the next post in this local series to answer those and more local PR questions.

Have you worked on a local b2b marketing strategy, or been a part of a local PR program? Please share your ideas and experiences in the comment section below.

Connect with Emily:

Phone: 212.840.8079
Email: Emily@blisspr.com
Twitter: @eweinman
LinkedIn: Emily Weinman

Sometimes I feel a little bit like Noah in the middle of the flood.  Only in my case, I’m drowning in a sea of marketing predictions for the coming year.  It seems that almost everyone has an opinion on what will happen next.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t some powerful, actionable ideas in the deluge. Here are 10 trends that will almost certainly influence B2B marketers next year:

1. Pictures, Not Words:  While it pains the English Literature major in me, most marketers have begun to accept that video and illustrations are becoming a critical element for many marketing programs.  In fact, Cisco predicts online video will account for 90 percent of all Internet traffic in the next three years.

• 2012 checklist: How much budget can you move from “word content” to “picture content?

2. Easy Bite Media Consumption: We are now a community of “scanners,” so we want our information delivered to us in small chunks and sound bites.  Major news organizations – and the Obama reelection campaign – are using the Tumblr platform to satisfy that need.

• 2012 checklist: You’ve investigated WordPress blog platforms, but have you considered short form alternatives?

3. New Insights into Customer Segments: Every second, your customers and prospects are scrolling the internet and your website, hoping to better understand your company. New tools like Personyze will allow you to understand what your visitors want, so you can give them a more customized experience on your website.

• 2012 checklist: You’re probably already using Google Analytics or a paid tool, but have you investigated how to extend the power of that data to create more personalized marketing content?

4. Your Marketing Program has a Plus One: Most B2B companies are still trying to determine how to differentiate their editorial voice on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.  Meanwhile, Google Plus is quietly weaving “plus ones” into their search algorithim. That means you have to pay attention to it. Now, please.

• 2012 checklist: Establish your page and circles…and spend time with me?

5. Turning Social Media Disconnects into Coherence: Most of my clients have social media monitoring tools that grab almost endless amounts of data. The tricky part is teaching yourself to find meaningful trends that impact your business.  Are you reacting to surface data or looking below for actionable insights?

• 2012 checklist:  Think of your monitoring tool as the first – not last – stop on your analysis.

Tomorrow, I’ll share 5 more predictions for 2012. But, in the meantime, do you have a “marketing bet” for next year? What is it?

Connect with Elizabeth:

Phone: 212.840.0017
Email: elizabeth@blisspr.com
Twitter: @elizabethsosnow
LinkedIn: Elizabeth Sosnow

We subscribe to seven different publications in my apartment. They range from the daily Wall Street Journal to The Economist and New York magazine to Food & Wine and Fast Company every month. I also follow countless blogs and am signed up for daily e-newsletters. You might call me a content addict. And I’m not breaking the habit anytime soon.

As marketing communications strategists, we help our clients become part of a story (or even create the story itself), whether it’s a single article or a larger narrative about an industry, trend, or movement. We do this by crafting original messages that aren’t being talked about yet, which means we have to know – better than anyone – what is being talked and written about, so we can come up with fresh ideas for the media.

When junior employees start at BlissPR, the first thing we tell them is to read. A lot. It starts with diving deep on the publications our clients care about, whether it’s a financial services magazine or human resources trades, as well as the national dailies. We push them to read with a purpose in mind, and always ask questions: How could our clients fit into that article? What’s the flip side of that story, and how do we tell it? This kind of “strategic reading” helps generate ideas that can break through the clutter journalists receive every day – which is essential for a successful media relations campaign.

The ability to do this comes with experience, but any professional, no matter their length of tenure, can start doing the same thing with a little guidance. I’ve broken down my approach to strategic reading below, which can also be applied to other types of content.

1. Look for what’s not there: When you finish reading an article, take a minute to think about what it didn’t cover. What questions weren’t asked? Who else could have been quoted to round out the story? If you give some thought to this, you’ll likely come up with an interesting twist on the story that could be your next big pitch idea.
2. Consume content that has nothing to do with your clients: Inspiration can strike in unlikely places. While it’s imperative to keep up with publications important to your clients, it’s equally important to stretch your brain a bit and see what kind of ideas you can derive from unrelated sources. Even though we serve B2B clients, I’ve gotten ideas from consumer PR blogs, lifestyle magazines, and the metro section of the New York Times.
3. Go beyond reading and watching: Journalists are curious by nature, so it only makes sense that they like connecting with other people who like ideas. Next time you read an article that pushes your thinking, take the next step and send the reporter a short note. Ask questions or commenting on stories (with no pitch involved) can often spark conversations that lead to meaningful journalist relationships – and interesting dialogue!

We all process a ton of information each day, and it can be tempting to do your reading for clients and simply check it off your list. But you will have a much easier time generating creative ideas and turning those ideas into key placements if you take some time to apply the advice above.

Connect with Siobhan:

Phone: 212.840.1661
Email: siobhan@blisspr.com
Twitter: @shiv245
LinkedIn: Siobhan Ford

A TV producer friend clued me in on a very simple model that when followed results in the ideal broadcast business news segment. In effect, it’s the checklist that gives producers what they want. You might think it almost elementary. Yet, so many producers accuse PR professionals of pitching sources and ideas that don’t gel with their show’s format. It makes sense. We sometimes become so consumed with what we want, pitching the clients’ products and ideas, we don’t consider what works for the medium.

These are the three questions to address when developing a pitch for almost all financial news TV interviews.

1. What’s the news hook?

Finding the news hook is simple. Ask yourself – what is everyone talking about and how can I relate it to the client’s business? It’s obvious, but often overlooked. Financial services PR pros are essentially idea brokers. Aside from say, a mutual fund, we are all peddling a point of view, not a product. It’s in packaging those ideas a certain way that makes it palatable for a TV producer, who wants an idea driven by the news of the day. Now this is where your training comes into play. Align the headline with your client’s business strategy and investment philosophy and you’ve markedly increased your chances of securing the hit.

2. Who’s the face?

Once the producers have the news hook, they’ll tap into their stable of on-air talent and assign the story for reporting. Since we’re on the other side of this process, let’s consider who at our client firm is the best spokesperson on the topic. With that decision comes a few preparatory questions:

-          Is our expert media trained?

-          What are his or her talking points?

-          Is the perspective bullish or bearish?

-          Who is conducting the interview?

-          Is he the only guest or is he being pitted against contrarian voices?

-          What are our responses to questions about issues sensitive to our business?

3. What is the actionable investment advice?

If you’re a PR professional who represents money managers then you’ve heard the phrase: “We’re not stock pickers. We love all our kids.” Well, 10 times out of 10, that won’t fly with a TV producer. There are ways around it sometimes, but viewers want a takeaway. In lieu of straight stock tips, talk about a sector play based on a theme that ties back to the firm’s investment philosophy. The approach will vary by show. You might get away with this on a format driven more by big picture news, but certainly not on CNBC’s Fast Money, which covers stock stories almost on a tick-by-tick basis.

Before pitching a broadcast interview to any producer, shape the interview using these rules for the road. It may not guarantee a spot on the network that day, but it will most definitely call attention to your client in a smart way and while it’s incumbent upon you to stay in front of the producer, it’s likely they will seek your clients out when they want an expert.

Connect with Matthew:

Email: matthew@blisspr.com
Twitter: @kirdahy
LinkedIn: Matthew Kirdahy