May 16, 2012 in Brand Strategy, Media Orchard by Reg Rowe
ADVICE: Go Ahead, Share Generously — Even Your Flaws Are Beautiful

Trendwatching.com’s April 2012 Trend Briefing covered the consumer trend of transparency or companies being “flawsome.” Flawsome is the name for brands that are still brilliant despite having flaws. Even being flawed can be awesome. Therefore, flawsome.

Dallas Marketing and Dallas Web Design picture of BrandFlaws1

Everything from disgust at business practices to the influence of online culture is driving consumers away from boring brands in favor of brands with some personality. And consumers are benefitting from increased brand transparency.

This isn’t a new theme. Back in 2008, Shel Israel coined the phrase “Lethal Generosity” — the idea that companies that are more generous with information are more credible and influential and as such, can devastate their competition in the marketplace. Lethal generosity results in rising to the top not just in followers and engagement, but in search results as well. Sharing information freely means sharing the flaws along with the good stuff – usually counterintuitive to corporate lawyers.

Let’s be real: things go wrong all the time. Brands that open their kimono, admit fault and work to fix the problem will engender good will and trust among consumers. Why? Human nature dictates that people have a hard time genuinely connecting with, being close to, or really trusting other humans who appear to have no weaknesses, flaws or mistakes – and the same holds for brands.

Letting the Goodness Shine Through

Those brands that work at sharing information and giving back to their communities – even if they have a flaw or two – are most likely to succeed in earning the trust of consumers. Take TangoTab, a Dallas-based startup that enables consumers to find and redeem specials, events, and exclusive offers at their favorite restaurants.

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May 14, 2012 in Brand Strategy, Media, Media Orchard, PR and Pop Culture by Clay Zeigler
RANT: Shock Value and Why Time Magazine Got it Wrong

Last week we got two reminders about going too far: the one you heard about and one you probably didn’t. But they prove the same point: If you’re going to go too far to call attention to something, you had better have a good reason and you had better deliver.

Dallas Marketing and Dallas Web Design picture of ShockValueTextGraphicBy now more than enough people have weighed in on the Time magazine cover that shows a Los Angeles woman breastfeeding her nearly 4-year-old son. The reaction was predictably mixed, but let’s focus instead on motivations. The stated reason for the photo was to illustrate a story on attachment parenting, which advocates extended breast-feeding, sleeping in the same bed with children, and carrying them in slings. Another reason for the photo could have been the slow decline of American news magazines. But is either an adequate reason to go too far?

Courage and ‘Emblematic Images’

The other reminder about going too far came with the death on Thursday of Horst Faas, who won two Pulitzer Prizes for his photographs of wars in Vietnam and Bangladesh. Let’s let his New York Times obituary take it from there:

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May 10, 2012 in Media Orchard, Media Relations, Public Relations by Clay Zeigler
ADVICE: The Phone Interview Lives, and Why That’s a Good Thing

“Is the phone interview dead?” asked a recent PRDaily post that declared, “reporters hardly pick up the phone to talk to sources, let alone cover stories by face-to-face meetings. Interviews are now done via email, Facebook, Twitter and Skype.”

Dallas Marketing and Dallas Web Design picture of PhoneInterviewGraphic1That can’t be true, I thought. Newsrooms couldn’t have changed that much since I left them in September after 26 years. But just to make sure, I asked a dozen working journalists for their thoughts. Their responses make clear the phone interview is not dead, and why that’s a good thing for good journalism as well as good public relations.

Like an in-person interview, a telephone conversation offers an immediate exchange of information, and, more importantly, understanding. A reporter can ask questions and the interviewee can respond. Ideally they can continue until they understand one another’s positions. The telephone allows for a level of detail, clarification and nuance not possible with other electronic methods.

That’s vitally important for PR people, who want reporters to have the best possible understanding of their position. They want to be able to steer the discussion toward the stronger aspects of their story and away from the weaker ones. That’s possible on the telephone, which has other benefits: It can be used to provide very basic background, and both sides can better tell when they’re being deceived.

Of the dozen journalists I reached out to, all but one who responded did so in enthusiastic defense of the phone interview. And while most feel it’s in fine health, a couple worried about its future.

‘Everything’s Scripted’

“In Washington, you get people in person or you get them by email,” said Jessica Meyers, the new transportation reporter at Politico. “There’s not much of a conversation where you call up and chat.” The capital’s pace is a factor, according to Jessica, who also observed that younger journalists may not be as comfortable using the telephone.

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May 3, 2012 in Media Orchard by Scott Baradell
HEADS UP: Pick of the Orchard

Social media are on our minds again this week, but as usual, we always come back to content marketing.

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April 30, 2012 in Media Relations, Public Relations by Clay Zeigler
ADVICE: Lead Writing and The ‘Hey, Mike’ Rule

The hardest part of any writing assignment is the first part. That first sentence is where most writers struggle, whether it’s a news release or a news story, a memo to a client or a note to the boss. It’s the first thing out of your mouth; and it has to be good. It’s also where people will lose interest if you fail to grab their attention. So, what do you do?

Dallas Marketing and Dallas Web Design picture of HeyMikeGraphic1First, use The “Hey, Mike” Rule. It’s named for Mike Simmons, my right-hand man when I found myself running a newsroom at 27. Mike worked a lot with young reporters who were covering nighttime meetings of city councils and school boards. They’d come back to the paper and find Mike to tell him what happened. While their explanations to Mike were clear and concise, they wrote some of the most convoluted leads imaginable.

These were sharp guys who worked hard, but the problem persisted. So I made a rule, The “Hey, Mike” Rule. Every lead in the newspaper had to read like it could be preceded by the words, “Hey, Mike… .” And it worked. Following is a re-creation that will help you get the idea.

BEFORE: The Pasadena City Council voted Monday night to continue to explore with a consulting firm the benefits of converting the 6.2-acre site of the defunct Gilley’s honkytonk on Spencer Highway into a retail space for a major tenant.

AFTER: City officials are still trying to take Walmart to Gilley’s.

Leads Should Grab Attention and Focus It

Great leads aren’t just about brevity. Sometimes the most memorable thing about a situation is a detail. If it’s truly compelling, don’t be afraid to use it in a lead. Look at this gem from Scott Goldstein of The Dallas Morning News:

A 12-year-old boy barely as tall as the judge’s bench pleaded guilty Tuesday to aggravated robbery in exchange for up to seven years in juvenile prison in connection with the killing of a man pushed into a moving DART train last year.

You can just see that kid, can’t you? I only wish the lead was shorter so the reader could focus longer on that image. That’s because (ultimately) what we want from leads is focus. Give the reader something to focus on and make it something they care about. A great reporter once told me any great story is about money, sex or power. If you’ve got one of those cards, play it.

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