Peter Shankman Speaks at NC PRSA Banquet - Video

The first few minutes they're trying to get his microphone and the projector to work, but bare with it, Peter Shankman has great social media experience and insights.

Wayne Sutton TV streamed the presentation live. The video is archived here:

Public Relations Blunders - 2008 Edition

As we ring in 2009, rest assure that the best, er, worst, public relations projects of 2008 continue to resonate loud and clear. Here are some of my favorites from the annual Fineman PR list:

1. After the $85 billion federal bailout package was approved, AIG partied like college students when they receive their financial aid checks. The AP reports that AIG executives spent more than half a million dollars on golf trips, spa packages, banquets and a New England hunting trip. Nice.

Now where do you suppose we get some of those stereotypes involving corporate execs?

4. John McCain cancels on David Letterman. Oops. As a public relations professional this one really tickles me. To think that John Weaver, the Maverick's chief strategist, didn't see a red flag in cancelling on Letterman at the last minute only to have McCain interview with Katie Couric, also of CBS, just down the street is comical. Supposedly McCain was catching a plane to deal with the financial crisis...

That's the political equivalent of cancelling a date with a woman then showing up with her sister at the Applebee's where you two had planned to meet. Nice cover.

5. "Nike Just Blew It." Good headline Fineman, really.

Nike sponsored a women's marathon in San Francisco only to disregard the winner's time, a personal record by school teacher Arien O'Connell. Nike only monitored times of those in the "elite" leader pack, or in layman's terms, those athletes who Nike thought stood a chance. Really, the headline is good.

11. "The boobs have it, the biggest PR blunder since New Coke." OK, it's only a top 10 list, but this one involving UPS, Hooters, and a thoroughbred horse came darn close. Check it out.

Complete 2008 list with explanations is on Bulldog Reporter here.

I link to Bulldog Reporter because I've always found them to be a great source of information relating to the public relations field - check out the list and spend some time on their site. No, I'm not working for them. It's honestly good information for PR pros, firms, freelancers, students, professors, and anyone interested in managing your messsages in today's world.

You might also want to see the biggest PR Blunders of 2007.

New Year, New Hope

Happy New Year!

Or in my case, Hopeful New Year.

The Chinese Year of the Ox. I'm not sure what the Chinese horoscope for "Ox"alleges, but I hope that "resilient, strong and proud" are adjectives involved. Those words describe my wife and I and the type of year we need.

I've been unemployed for two months now. The holidays may have been jolly and bright, but finances are getting scary and tight.

Somewhat to my relief (I'm still unemployed so I ain't counting any chickens), my efforts may be beginning to pay dividends. I have a nice part-time prospect in the works with a Hickory, NC marketing firm. Offering your services on a part-time basis is not a step down, but rather a form of compromise that meets mutual business needs. You need your foot in the door to get a seat at the table...

I'm also exploring freelance writing opportunities on Guru.com. I think the Guru.com service has good potential for freelance writers (work in creative writing, web copywriting, blogging, editing, articles and brochures are all posted frequently), but it's highly competitive and is limited as a free service. Naturally more money yields more options.

Finally, I'm constantly networking in Charlotte, working my way around the PR and marketing circles, scheduling networking lunches and calls to the best of my ability. It never hurts to introduce yourself and ask for advice from someone with more experience. Networking is a tree: Start with a seed and branch out, eventually it will bloom.

Parting piece of advice from the guy with no job: Persist, persist, persist! Not to be confused with "don't take 'no' for an answer." If a company tells you they're not interested, thank them for their time and get back with them later. However, if an email or voice mail goes unanswered, you'd better send another...and another.

Don't send the contact(s) the same thing each time though. It's like pitching in public relations. Introduce yourself and the reason you're contacting them first, then follow-up with a different piece of information (resume, experience highlights, tie-in with recent event of relevance).

Also, take the lead and suggest times to meet or talk versus asking the contact to do so. It's easier for them to say "OK" then "How about 2:00 Wednesday at T.G.I.F.'s on Charlotte Ave.?"

My wealth of advice and knowledge will hopefully translate into financial wealth in 2009, but until then, the journey continues...

Buh Bye "Bud?"

Former U.S.-based beer maker (they still make beer here, but now their Belgian) Anheuser-Busch InBev is struggling to acquire trademark rights to "Bud" in Europe. According to the Forbes article reporting the story, AB InBev is likely to win this battle in the courts. BUT. What if they didn't?

Marketing repurcussions of a "Bud"-less European Budweiser:

• A European "Budweiser Light" is introduced. Weird.
• Tagline: "The Difference is Drinkability. Seriously."
• The baritone "Bud" frog joins the growing U.S. unemployment market.
• European paparazzi snap pics of the Ferret at AB InBev headquarters in Leuven.
• Google search for "Bud" returns 71+ million pages; more than half of them are marijuana related. Back to the marketing drawing board...
• "This Beck's for you." Sadly it's a time of change. Remember "Anheuser World Select?" Exactly.

I'm young, professionally available and love your products - call me anytime, AB InBev. Anheuser-Busch.com.

In other related news: Europeans love Budwesier. AB InBev "announces workforce reductions in the U.S." (pdf)

The Networking Lunch

Having a difficult time finding employment around the holidays? Potential employers saying "thanks, but no thanks" to your resume (via email or phone)? One piece of advice: Request a networking lunch.

A networking lunch is just as it sounds. It's a lunch where you network with someone or someones in your field. It allows you to get in front of someone that (hopefully) is established and knowledgeable of the business environment in your area. They know people who know people. They work directly with your ideal future boss. They have contact info for folks you never knew would be interested in what you do. They may not have the answer, but they can help you ask the right questions.

The economy is down, unemployment and job scarcity are up, and businesses are stuck in the middle fielding an onslaught of resumes on a daily basis. That can't be easy. Think of it like newspaper advertisements (no offense ad agencies) and how the print ads often disappear when you're reading like invisible ink. Don't let that be your resume. Make it easier on potential employers by having a chicken salad pita with the head of PR and asking them what they need, how they prefer to receive it, whether they know anybody that can benefit from your skills, and drop off a resume or two to pass along. It can't hurt.

This networking lunch can be mutually beneficial as well. You have the opportunity to sell yourself in a casual setting (rather than an oak desk, perfectly parallel pens and dust-free pictures of family; think bar table, random poppy seed crumbs and ketchup stained menus). Just a wee bit easier to be yourself, right? The individual across the table is a human being too; they appreciate relaxed atmospheres as much as you. It's a chance for them to scout talent for colleagues and friends, establish a freelance contact, and/or promote the local business environment.

Not everyone is going to schedule a lunch with a stranger during their busy work week. However, if you put yourself out there as a professional, you might be surprised at how many people will carve out an hour to chat with you. I've had a couple of these network lunches over the past month. Many thanks to Gotham, LLC and X-Factor Marketing in Hickory, NC, Mark Brock of Wray Ward and Bert Woodard of Next Level Communications in Charlotte. No, I'm not hired yet; I'm hopefully making it on some "to consider in '09" lists though. It really is about who you know these days.

Best of luck, I know I need it too.

Recession "PR"oof

The Berlin Wall falls. Five U.S. presidents in the Oval Office. U.S. national debt ratio more than doubles. Microwaves outsale range ovens. Heath Ledger is born and dies. Watergate scandal and fallout. Hank Aaron breaks Babe Ruth's home run record. More than a billion people gain access to the world wide web.

What do all of these events have in common? They all have taken place since the last time U.S. unemployment claims were as high as they are today. The economic crisis worsened further this past month as employers cut more than 500,000 jobs in November, the largest one month decline since 1974. More than a million jobs have been lost since September. With a president-elect waiting to take the nation's reigns and the government acknowleding that the country has been in a recession since late 2007, hope may still be on the horizon.

One industry's gloom can be another's gold. The Association of National Advertisers (ANA) held its 2008 Annual “Masters of Marketing” Conference in October, where attendees including client-side marketers, media and creative agencies and others were polled about their marketing and media budgets, plans and tactics going forward. The findings are encouraging for those in marketing communications. Following is a sample of the results:

• 67 percent reported they "will spend more" or "spending will be constant/no changes"
• Of that 67 percent, 26 percent plan to increase spending by more than 10 percent

Public relations in particular is and will continue to be an essential piece of the fiscal pie. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (U.S. Department of Labor) estimates that the number of "public relations specialists" will increase to nearly 300,000 by 2016, an increase of roughly 18 percent. The forecast for public relations practitioners is mirrored internally.

• Social media integration was selected as the "marketing discipline" most likely to promote growth, with 28 percent of respondents choosing it as their top choice
• Next most important: Grassroots/viral public relations (19 percent)

Chuck Werle, an Asheville, NC-based public relations professional, gives a synopsis of the difference between advertising and public relations. "Advertising is what you tell others about yourself, your products or your services. Public relations is what others tell about you."

That definition in mind, it's easy to understand the pending marriage of social media and public relations. It's as natural and fitting a match as cereal and milk. One is seemingly incomplete without the other. Sure, businesses can still post online ads on Facebook or create pop up videos where you catch the monkey and win, but as with traditional media PR has always been superior in credibility.

The opportunity is ripe for public relations professionals to integrate with social media; post podcasts, build blogs, tweet on Twitter, mingle on MySpace. Create relationships and authenticity. Help others to tell about you, your products or your services (or your clients').

The reason social media still feels refreshing and new despite its age is that the message pipeline, although growing more narrow, is nowhere near as clogged in social media as with other media. For now it's "real," and a real opportunity for PR departments and businesses.

If your business hasn't caught the wave yet, it's not too late to grab a board and get your feet wet. Social media is growing. Approximately 25 percent of the Inc. 500 reported that "social media was very important to their business/marketing strategy" in 2007, reports The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Center for Marketing Research. That number increased to 44 percent in 2008. The growth is staggering even on a global scale. According to Comscore, "social networking use grew 25 percent year over year worldwide."

Think social media like Facebook and MySpace are for teens and twenty-somethings? Think again. Rapleaf report on the gender and age of social media users.

- Justin Moore

...........................

The emergence of Web 3.0 ("Semantic Web"). The electric car is revived. U.S. economic debt eliminated. Abagail Breslin wins an Oscar. Carolina Panthers win the Super Bowl. U.S. national unemployment rate dips below 3 percent. First female U.S. President.

All events transpiring during the next 34 years(?)

Plugging the Portfolio

My professional experience and responsibilites in a communications capacity have included,

• public relations
• marketing
• market research
• brand positioning
• relationship building with local and national clients from multiple industries.

I've regularly developed...

• media relations strategies
• key contact databases and execution plans
• key messages
• positioning strategies
• online content (web editing)
• creative client materials
• internal communication documents
• unique public relations campaigns and initiatives
• wide variety of written materials, including editorials, press releases, newsletters, reports, training manuals, brochures, web copy and ad-based copy.

I've also supervised multiple interns while working on and leading professional and diverse account teams representing major brands.

Whew! Say that three times fast...

After all, career seeking is one giant self promotion, right?
(Try clicking on the drawing board looking icon at the bottom right of the presentation for a "full screen" view if your browser cuts off the right edge.)

"To establish oneself in the world, one does all one can to seem established there already." - François, Duc De La Rochefoucauld (1613–1680), French writer, moralist

Day 7 - Rolling with a Routine

When I say Day 7, I mean the seventh "business day" of searching - I took off the weekend for an early Thanksgiving. I'll work weekends. Try me.

I've developed a routine out of this job hunt. Don't worry, no play by play of my mornings in this post. I feel more productive and on top of things having developed a new routine, albeit one I'm not planning on making permanent. The first few days of unemployment were uncomfortable and foreign having not dealt with this "condition" since first departing my alma mater, East Carolina University, more than two years ago.

This is not to imply that I'm growing complacent; I'm not. Not even close. But my most recent mini-luminal moment in my journey to employment is that a job hunt routine is essential. Essential not only to finding a job (yes, I'm unemployed, but convinced it's temporary) but also to retaining a sense of sanity and satisfaction with one's status. Alliteration not intended.

That said, I recommend using your email calendar/organizer (Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, or Outlook if you use it, mostly businesses I suspect) to the full extent - even if it's "Call Tim with VMS at 3 p.m." because he was out yesterday at 10 a.m.

Organize your day to include:
- Market research (not consumer surveys, but potential job markets and the businesses within)
- Company profiling (identify those businesses with which you would most like to work in a given market and learn about them!)
- New contacts (set a goal for a number of new companies/individuals to contact each day and meet it)
- Keep doing what you did - stay sharp (blog, watch the news, write, research, dance, draw, crunch numbers, build something, photograph, play basketball)
- Be your own brand ambassador (constantly update and target your resume, cover letter, portfolio samples, etc. to be most relevant to companies you're targeting)

Much of this is known, but it bears repeating. I'll always say that patience and perseverance are the two most underrated qualities an individual can posess - so try hard, and then try, try again. Best of luck to us all.

Gum Galore

Week after week as I stand in line at the grocery store to buy my milk, beer and bread (the essentials), perusing over the tabloids and Altoids, I'm struck by the countless number of confectionery treats that line the aisle. I think more gum and candy brands exist today than ever before (tempting to insert an aside here on America's obesity issues, but I'll pass).

The number of brands is matched only by the variety in which they're promoted at retail. By "at retail," I mean the packaging and branding that takes place in the store. This includes the pretty colors, fonts and designs they use to catch your eye in the aisle. Ever wonder why gum and candy are always in the check-out aisle? Look at me. Or your kids. Inundate the consumer with your eye-catching products at eye-level (or at least for someone a little shorter, um, like a kid) in a narrow passageway through which they must pass to exit the premises. It's effective. They know.

"Funny though," I always thought. "Gum is gum." Don't tell that to the manufacturers.

"Wrigley" could conjure up two images depending on where you're located geographically. Fabled Wrigley Field and the Cubbies, bless their hearts, or Wrigley gum. Chances are if you're in Chicago, you know them both.

Headquarterd in the famous, you guessed it, Wrigley Building in Chicago, the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company is the world's largest manufacturer and marketer of chewing gum, with global sales of $5.4 billion. That's a lot of gum. From Wrigley's Spearmint (I can't even say "Spearmint" alone, it has to be "Wrigley's Spearmint" - darn effective branding) to 5, there's seemingly a stick for everyone.

Some gum packages look like mini-laundry detergent tablets (health conscious, hard working middle-somethings?) while others look like iPhones (club-hopping hipsters with their fresh breath and, well, iPhones?).

Yes, it would appear that Wrigley has created (or acquired through major mergers and acquisitions) a bubble-gum brand for nerly every person and every occassion...

You know, like if you want to view an "Eclipse" (a phenomenon caused by the "Orbit" of the moon and Earth, not "Mars") in the "Winterfresh" air with your "Hubba Bubba" at "5" before you catch the "Big League Chew." Just make sure there's an "Extra" piece handy; it's a "LifeSaver." I tried.

Lest you think I'm jabbing the gum giant here; I'm not (hard). I raise Wrigley and the gum/confectionery marketing topic to demonstrate how a seemingly archaic industry has used effective marketing and public relations to earn more than $5 billion annually. It's not always who you are; it's who the consumer thinks you are.

For more examples, see Blue Rhino, Repreve and Vespa.

Day 1 - Optimism

The morning is bright, the air is fresh and the carpet is vaccumed. Perfect start to my first day of nitty gritty job hunting! I've spent nearly two weeks just updating my resume/portfolio and getting samples and the like together - not to mention kicking off a certain blog. I highly recommend the occasional 30,000 foot view of your accomplishments. It's almost certainly better than you think. It's getting others to take notice that is the challenge!

So where does a public relations and marketing professional begin their job search? Perhaps through a previous work contact? Monster.com? A friend of their mother's neighbor's babysitter? Nope. Try Craig's List. I admit I have about as much experience with Craig's List as the Detroit Lions do with winning football games (oh! that's a good one). But I figure this could be my gold mine - I may spend hours panning for precious stones and end up with mud and rocks. BUT, I could hit it big. Don't know unless you try, right?

I'll give the 'ol Charlotte Chamber of Commerce site and the local business directories a good looking over as well - and here's to hoping there are plenty of potential businesses! I need all the odds on my side. And hey, if my career's yellow brick road doesn't inersect with Craig's List, well, there's always that friend of my mother's neighbor's babysitter :)

....................................

On a side note, I came across RealPeopleRealStuff.com earlier today (not a job site, but kinda cool). This site is meant to be a Craig's List/YouTube hybrid. At the very least it's another good example of how social media continues to merge and evolve. Admittedly I haven't gone through the site completely, but it has potential and relates to Craig's List - so there you have it.

Help a Reporter Out

Prior to my current state of unemployment (not a big fan, feel free to rescue me :), I worked with Quixote Group, a PR, marketing and market research agency in Greensboro. The folks at QG can do great things, sort of like Ghostbusters - "no job is too big, no fee is too big!" ~ End ex-employer plug ~

During my time with QG, I did my fair share of media relations. You name it - email pitches, cold calls (hate that), mailings, desksides, gifts, tours and all the like while establishing relationships with more than a few media contacts along the way. The one gripe they all have with PR folks is that many of us spam the hell out of them with off-target pitches (in general, this obviously doesn't apply to everyone in the profession). "Why don't more of you take the time to learn about our publication and pitch the appropriate editor?" they would ask me. "Well, I thought that's what we did..." (Insert naivity comment)

As simple a concept as this may appear, I'm still surprised to hear how many PR people fail to pitch on-target and seemingly refuse to do so despite clear and concise feedback from the media. Alas, my griping about the obvious has a point to it today!

There is a young "CEO, Entrepreneur and Adventurist" named Peter Shankman who developed a newsletter (more of a service really), called Help a Reporter Out (HARO). Nuts and bolts: media from across the country send story requests to Shankman who then emails them to PR and marketing pros so that both parties can get what they want (you can sign up here). Media get expert sources and relevant story content, and PR people get their clients in front of media that actually want to cover their product, idea, story, etc. It's a win-win situation. The network is well over 30,000 strong now with regular inquiries from the likes of USA Today, NY Times and many regional, industry, consumer and other media across the country. Tip: Don't think you can sign up and then blast irrelevant pitches to these media - Shankman will out you in front of the entire group; I've seen it happen (pretty funny actually :)

So basic. So genius. So check it out!

Adventures in Social Media

Free Social Media Tip of the Day: Including funny pictures of cats in your post/story helps lead to increased popularity on Digg. Seriously.

Having worked professionally in the public relations and marketing field over the past few years (and maintaining my own blog now - whoot!), I've witnessed first hand the rise of social media as both a means of personal expression and, well, socializing, as well as a business tool.

I think everyone involved with social media these days realizes its importance and that it has been around longer than most people think; some folks just didn't catch the early flight. But fret not, this is one delay that can work to your benefit. To continue with the airlines metaphor (hadn't planned to go that route, but it seems to be working); imagine going to the airport with no luggage, no tickets and no destination in hopes of embarking on a fantastic worry-free vacation. Riiiight.

Well social media is a bit like that too. There's so much out there now with sites like MySpace, Facebook, Second Life, YouTube, Slashdot, Flickr, Digg, Twitter, Youmeo, my blog, his blog, your dog's blog, etc. They all fit under the social media umbrella but with distinctly different services and personalities. That said, you can't expect your marketing campaigns, new product discussions, blog popularity and whathaveyou to "take off" unless you're on the right flight - this also means you need to pack accordingly and embark at the right time!
(Need a travel planner? I'm available :)

Here's an example: A major consumer product company, which will remain anonymous, wanted to increase their presence in the social media world during peak season, thus reaching their target audience on a deeper, more personal level. Their initial thinking was that by creating a page on MySpace and/or Facebook where they could bring their character logo to life and interact with potential customers they would increase brand awareness and reach more potential customers. Sounded plausible until I did some basic internet surfing research for them and discovered that the vast majority of popular branded characters (Ronald McDonald, Wendy, Mr. Clean, etc.) have dozens of imposter pages, most of which contain vulgar and otherwise non-brand friendly content. Needless to say, I helped them go in another, more relevant direction...

Moral of the story: Don't be the Clark Griswold of marketing, take time to plan your and/or your clients' social media trip(s) accordingly!

Allo, allo!

Good morning, good day and good night - in case you stop here. For those brave souls that care to venture on, my name is Justin Moore and I am an unemployed public relations and marketing professional living outside Charlotte, NC. Intriguing, I know. If you're reading this, I either referred you here to see what a diligent and skilled worker I am (how'm I doing?), or your search engine made a mistake :) I kid. Never can get enough of that Google juice though, that's part of what I do!

I've carved out this little knook of the internet as a place to show some of my work and offer more info about myself for those select businesses and individuals that may be in a position to hire someone with exemplary communications skills (it's my blog, I'll endulge if I want). Feel free to check out some work samples on the right menu bar or contact me for more specific stuff - I've worked in many areas of the biz and have tried to categorize on this blog for convenience and viewing sake, but I'm happy to oblige requests. But lest I appear too greedy or self serving with my online abode, I feel that there's potential for an interesting sub-plot here...

We all know of the country's economic woes and unemployment issues (look Ma, I'm a statistic!) So I wonder if my adventure, as I optimistically refer to it, could be a micro-case study of sorts. Charlotte is considered one of the few shining markets (even if faint) in a tarnished economy - so how hard could it be for a college grad with professional experience to get a job in the Queen City? We'll find out! And personally, I'm rooting for the guy... stay tuned.

But why should you care? You don't know me on a personal level and have no reason to feel for or relate to my situation. Lets fix that :) You can find out all all kinds of things "about me" to the right. The elevator speech version - I graduated from ECU (go Pirates!) with a Comm. degree and worked in Greensboro as an account executive at a public relations and marketing firm for a couple years. We were small in staff but big in clients. I did it all - media relations, market research, tours, brand positioning, corporate communications and writing, creative design, web editing, media training, event management - really, the list goes on. I'm a newlywed to my best friend of more than six years. We're such good friends that when she was offered a good paying job doing what she loves (textiles design, and lets face it, you can't be picky here), your's truly made the move with no resistance. We found out about the job/move just as we were getting married (mid-October) and had all of three weeks to get married, plan and execute a move and bravely enter the unemployment market during arguably the worst economic crisis of this lifetime (well, I did). Stress has no meaning to me anymore, throw me in the deep end!

I got a lot going for me though - I write (and actually enjoy it), I'm good with people in many different situations and environments, I'm resourceful (sounds basic, but some folks still can't attach files to emails) and I commit and see things through to completion - remember the 6+ years stat prior to my marriage? I get the job done. Whatcha got?

That's me in a 10-story ride to the lobby. Feel free to stick around, I think it'll get better. Oh, did I mention I'm open to criticism and actually learn from it? Drop me a line anytime. There is no set framework for this blog, only to plant myself out there in this crazy social media world and see what grows. Add water at will.