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Archives for March 2011

Momaraderie is Homeschooling, Grantwriting Canadian

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Momaraderie is an occasional feature I write about professional moms I meet, engage with and want to learn more about. I first was introduced to the inquisitive Dawn Comber via a Headway Theme Twitter chat. We got to exchanging tweets, and she seemed to pop in to lend her thoughts on a regular basis.

Dawn Comber (@DawnComber on Twitter) is a keen lifelong learner with a passion for building communities both on and offline. She hails from Oakville, Ontario, where she manages her small business, volunteers for a housing charity, and raises her youngest child, who is 13. The other four of her five children were homeschooled for nine years while she managed a grassroots not-for-profit.

Dawn began juggling her own education along with that of her kids, heading back to school part-time and emerging with a Master of Arts in Leadership. Grant writing for a single organization morphed into consulting to a variety of nonprofits, eventually leading Dawn to focus on helping clients articulate who they are and what they do online. She now specializes in rewriting offline materials for Web publication.

Speaking with Dawn, it’s immediately clear she’s serious about making genuine connections via social media and the small business community; here’s Dawn:

Thanks so much for asking me to contribute to your Momaraderie series.

One of my bigger goals for social media has been to really contribute to community, or find a sense of community with a few people online around me. You kindly reached out to me and that was encouraging. I want to contribute to other people’s blogs and business life in a genuine way — not with a goal to increase my presence, so to speak. I want to make genuine/real connections online; you know, the “social” in social media. (I blogged about it here.)

Participating in your blog is a creative way to get some peer-to-peer support virtually. I am also building offline learning partnerships and working partnerships with women! I meet monthly with two colleagues to discuss new business tools – online or otherwise. I also work closely with 2 colleagues (who are also good friends) on web development (me on the word side) and marketing for start-ups. I try to attend a monthly WP meetup — another place to learn and make connections.

For now, I’ll leave you with a final thought from Dawn, on how she stays centered:

My partner/husband laughed out loud when he saw that question. I’m not really very good at taking care of myself (a downfall of many a woman I am afraid) — but a glass of wine and a hot bath helps sometimes. Mothering keeps me from obsessing on business and vice versa. And friends really help a lot – I have a nice circle of people that I care about and who care for me.

To learn more about Dawn we couldn’t squeeze in here, visit Dawncomber.com. And, please share your suggestions for a Momaraderie feature!

A PR Recap With Thanks

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I had no idea this conversation would explode as it has. Without each of you commenting, RT’ing and Facebooking the like out of it, no way could we engage on a global scale about how to define public relations.

Thanks for the invite by Sharon Cain (@sharoncain) of Quest Public Relations in the UK where I’m a guest blogger today, “PR Is Taking A Beating; Why is That?” This post was written in the heat of the moment last Friday, March 4, when this blog blew up and my IT guy checked in to ensure the server was not on fire.

As a result of last week’s festivities (for those of you just checking in, the previous posts are still alive and kicking), the industry has united all in the name of positioning public relations to loftier status. As promised, I’ll be continuing this exploration here, and I’ll recognize my peers’ comments and definitions of PR so we can hone a digitally updated definition for the profession.

Meanwhile, I need to call out the amazing blog post written by Heidi Cohen “31 Definitions of PR”  on March 8; amazing compilation, and she’s received mass amounts of attention for it, too. Congrats, on that, Heidi!

The comments on these posts are inspiring; the healthiest conversation I’ve ever seen and highly in-depth with intense debate at times, too. I encourage you to take a look at some during which PRSA stopped in and others offered suggestions about why/why not issues.

So, this has been a wild ride for me and a very stimulating and exciting one, too. I had not met 80 percent of you until the last week (that’s what’s so cool), and we’ll get some global perspective coming soon, too. I’ve exchanged a few invitations with some PR peeps in India who are interested in sharing some thoughts here.

So, thank you, ALL, for the …raderie. I bow to you.

Help PRSA Define Public Relations

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Anyone in public relations knows the recent events of the last several weeks where a restaurateur in the Hamptons incited our entire industry to unite in force to uphold our professional standards. As one of the bloggers who posted a series of articles on this debacle and its fall out (assisted with a guest post by the lovely and talented writer Jenn Whinnem), the theme for me awhile is going to be about public relations.

I promised to keep it alive because many who commented are counting on me/us for …raderie (my latest coined term). If per chance you’ve moved on with this issue (I can see why one be tired of it), then please be forewarned!

A post I wrote last week What is PR? was intended to help define our ever-changing profession. Prior to the ability to launch into a global, crowdsourcing message mapping session to define public relations, I must first turn to one of our accrediting bodies to hear its definition.

Sadly, the current Public Relations Society of America website adopted a definition of PR in 1982, and it has never changed! (Do you realize this definition below pre-dates the fax machine?) In my post, I called upon PRSA to update the definition (others agreed), and here’s what the highly confusing explanation states:

“Public relations helps an organization and its publics adapt mutually to each other.”

“Organization” is denoted in this context, as opposed to the more limiting “company” or “business,” to stress public relations’ use by businesses, trade unions, government agencies, voluntary associations, foundations, hospitals, schools, colleges, religious groups and other societal institutions.

“Publics” recognizes the need to understand the attitudes and values of — and to develop effective relationships with — many different stakeholders, such as employees, members, customers, local communities, shareholders and other institutions,and with society at large.

In answer to the call for modernity Keith Trivitt, associate director of PRSA, said they were open to suggestions from the field. He also pointed to an excellent jump-start comment by Rosanna M. Fiske, APR, Chair and CEO of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA).

In response to the New York Times Small Business guest blogger who skewered the entire industry so unabashedly (I am no longer linking to that series of posts), Rosanna eloquently published a newer definition of public relations, and I call upon her to use this as the basis for revising the 30-year-old archaic definition of public relations on the PRSA website:

…publicity/promotion and public relations… The two are not synonymous. Promotional work is not necessarily part of public relations firms’ services, and “buzz” is greatly identified as an advertising and word-of-mouth tactic that found some support through publicity.
Public relations is a profession that has as its base high ethical standards, as set by the Public Relations Society of America’s Code of Ethics (https://ow.ly/41htJ). While we may use elements of persuasion, as do many other disciplines, a core component of those ethical standards is the adherence to the highest standards of accuracy and truth in advancing the interests of those we represent and in communicating with the public. This couldn’t be more important if you’re trying to build long-term credibility and reputation equity for a company.

Watch this space for more input from my peers in public relations. It’s going to take a bit to cull through everything, as at last count I had 43 pages of cut and pasted comments to sort and put into a semblance of a blog. Meanwhile, will you keep giving this some thought and be ready to chime in this week once the series continues?

On a final note as to why I feel compelled to do this…my entire career I’ve felt the need to give back. I have hired interns, recent graduates, and freelancers in my businesses. I teach public relations to anyone who’ll listen, and I’m a guest lecturer on many occasions to students in business courses, and others. My desire is to uphold our profession with high-level standards. When I see, feel and hear the youth of my profession running away from it due the bad reputation we have, it pains me. This is why I’m sticking with it for awhile and we’ll see where it goes. Join me?

(Image: CafePress.com)

Open PR Pitch to NY Times Small Biz Editor

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This is a media pitch I delivered by email at 4 p.m. ET March 3, 2011. If you’re on board and support the public relations profession fighting back with a balanced and positive blog post of its own on the New York Times small-business blog, then please indicate  yes in the comments section. If you’re wondering whether Gini Dietrich knows about this; she has been forewarned! (For those just tuning in, search on the NYX for “P.R., restaurateur, Hamptons.”)

credit: businesspundit

Mr. Loren Feldman, Small Business Editor

You’re The Boss Small-Business Blog; The New York Times

Hi, Loren:

The pulse on You’re The Boss in several columns has been lacking in, shall we say, balanced professionalism, and I’d like to suggest your consideration of a perspective written by a public relations agency CEO, Gini Dietrich. In every profession there will be those who do not uphold standards, ethics, civility, respect, and the like; we agree there are those in public relations giving others a bad name. I’d like the opportunity to lend perspective to what is highly disturbing to me and many of my colleagues – the one-sided bashing of a profession at large for the behavior of a few.

Gini makes an effort via her blog, Spin Sucks, and as a guest author on many other blogs to set the record straight against shoddy public relations and clients, as well.

The post she’d write, however, would not be a point-counterpoint; it would instead communicate the value of public relations, the strength of relationship necessary between client and firm, and the factors that weigh in that relationship to be successful. In this era of instant communication, the relationship between client and agency is precarious and thoughtful strategy is required.

Gini has a strong influencer presence in North America; she is a natural educator in our profession, and as a thought leader, small business owner, and CEO of her firm, she absolutely knows what it takes to service clients. Please consider a guest post from her (short bio below), and we can provide more in-depth info should you need it.

Thanks for your consideration,

Jayme

What is PR?

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It’s come to my attention with the recent and ongoing anti-PR sentiment criss-crossing the country that people are confused about the . In fact, there are people who purposely define themselves as other than public relations when in fact they are in our discipline.

I’d like to begin to rectify this situation with the launch of a “What is PR?” blog series. I’m seeking public relations practitioners of any number of years in the profession and with all skill sets to help me sink in and define the very crux of what we do every day.

I was jolted into this idea based on the highly emotional blogs I’ve been reading about the , the debacle via blog , and numerous other rants against me and my peers indirectly and generally (many on blog).

To join me on this regular feature I’ll unfold over time, please watch for tweets, an email invite, or please send me a note right here, below. I’m highly accessible; it’s part of being in public relations.

Let me share my broad definition of public relations and begin to shed light. It’s not the only definition, I’m sure, and it can be enhanced with your help; here goes:

There are so many descriptions and titles of what people do in public relations it has become confusing. I’ve heard mass communications, marketing communications, corporate communications, marketing public relations, and other descriptors. In fact, a recent Ohio State University graduate insisted he was not in public relations, but everything down to the press release he was doing was exactly PR.

You can be an agency person (my background), work in a corporate setting, get a job at a not-for-profit, in the government sector, or with a non-governmental organization, for example.

Stepping in deeper, a public relations practitioner can become a specialist in a vertical market which defines expertise as health care, medical, pharmaceuticals, financial, publishing, fashion, food/hospitality, manufacturing, utilities, professional services, academia, and the like. Or, he or she can remain a generalist and tap many verticals and industries.

Within these specialties represented by boutique agencies or in-house teams, there are skill sets and competencies defined by editorial/publications, employee relations/ internal communications, financial/investor relations, media relations, industry analyst relations, special events, and more.

Not everyone in the profession has skill sets across the board. The biggest area for argument is media relations; people think just because they don’t know how to pitch media and don’t like it it means they’re not in public relations. I’ve heard folks tell me because they’re in a corporate setting working with internal communications they are not in public relations. This couldn’t be farther from the truth; on both accounts.

As said, public relations as a discipline (in addition to marketing and advertising as disciplines) is broad; many competencies exist within public relations, and I’ve just touched the tip of the berg for you. Where I wish to set the record straight is for the people who don’t realize they are smack in public relations, and for the people who are happy to label themselves something other than PR when in fact they’re delivering this service every day and thinking they’re not. (Why is that, by the way?)

Is anyone else game to help further define public relations and help educate just about everyone? I’ve been told we’re the best-kept secret and our sisters don’t even understand what we do or how we integrate with their disciplines. Heck, it took my parents 20 years to understand I wasn’t doing free advertising. It’s time to alter negative perception right now because there’s a professional crisis of education right now.

(Image: toughsledding.wordpress.com)