A PR Case Study: How Not to Announce Your Blog’s First Anniversary
Do you know how many conversations we’ve had with execs, discussing just the right timing for the release of an announcement?
About a million.
If you’re in public relations, you’ve had them, too. For example, you might want to reveal your news to the analysts first, and then the trades, and finally the business media — timing it so everyone’s story comes out on the same day. Because if you’re not careful, you might let the story trickle out, and once a media outlet has seen a competitor cover it, it’s not interested anymore.
Coordination is key.
So Media Orchard is proud to announce that we completely botched our first-anniversary announcement post.
Yep. We kind of half-announced it yesterday, getting some half-congratulations, and now we’re kind of officially announcing it today (March 21 is our actual anniversary date) — no doubt to a collective yawn from the PR blogging community.
Oh well. As Donald Rumsfeld would say: Stuff happens.
All we really want to say is thank you. You’re the reason we write this blog; you’ve made it fun for us.
In particular, we’d like to thank Jeremy Pepper and Steve Rubel for their support. We’d also like to thank Kevin Dugan, Andrea Weckerle, Kami Huyse, Hans Kullin, John Wagner, Mason Cole, Ike Pigott, Tim Jackson, Mike Driehorst, Brian Oberkirch, Phil Gomes, Jim Romenesko, Jessica Coen, Mike Orren, Peter Himler, Paul Holmes, Mack Collier, Mike Krempasky, Constantin Basturea, Eric Eggertson, Susan Getgood, Robert Ricci, Bill Green, Gary Goldhammer, Shel Israel, Alice Marshall, Ryan Lack, Todd Defren, Michael Wagner, Alan Weinkrantz, Mike Sansone, Giovanni Rodriguez, and all the rest of you who’ve taken a moment to comment from time to time.
Thanks for hanging out in the Orchard.
Technorati tags: PR, Public Relations, Marketing
Hey, you’ve always marched to a different drummer
Maybe this will be the NEW trend in PR.
Happy anniversary anyway.
Congratulations, Scott - keep up the good work!
Hey fellow Texan, Scott…. what happens to us when we hit Blogging Puberty?
The highest praise I can offer is that I’ve made Media Orchard my homepage for the last week or so. 1) Because you make me laugh and 2) To give me ideas to steal.
But with all your posting - when do you find time to do any PR, fer crissakes?
‘Gratz, Scott!
Congratulations! I always value the fun and thoughtfulness of the Media Orchard. And the shade is pretty good too on a sunny day.
Todd: I’ll tell you a secret — when it comes to writing projects, I can be a bit of a procrastinator. So the days you see, say, eight posts — like yesterday — I’m usually holed up working on some big writing project (like an annual report, corporate presentation, etc.), and when I take a break, I blog. The result is that I often ending up finishing these projects at 3 a.m., and ticking off my wife/business partner.
But again…shhh. Don’t tell anyone.
Scott, a whole year has passed and where did it go? Since you are being totally transparent, I will admit that sometimes I too am a little bit of a procrastinator. For instance, I am buried in projects and yet, here I am. I like your style, you put the PR in Texas PR Blogger.
Kami: Get back to work!
Scott,
I have something to say that a few of those million clients probably never said: Thanks. Thanks for a great, orginal, entertaining and provocatve blog.
Well, I’ll add my congrats. You do have a good mixture of real PR-related insight, plus off-the-wall (Crash?) nonsense.
But, what’s been the payback for a year of blogging? What quantifiable results have there been?
Actually, Scott, you sneaky devil, what better way to draw traffic than linking to a bunch of other bloggers!
Mike
Mike, you cynical sob…what better way to share my love than through links??
Funny, I like to think the PR insights are nonsense, and that the Crash posts are the substance.
Payback? Hmmm….
1. Improved mental health.
2. Right now, on my other screen, I’m working on a blog for a client — a job I wouldn’t have gotten or been able to do before I started Media Orchard.
3. The chicks, of course!
4. Just kidding, honey.
Happy anniversary, Scott. And - what Shel said
Happy anniversary, Scott. I have to concur with a few - always funny, always interestings and original. Keep it up!
Scott, in keeping with the movie theme, you had me at “PR”.
Jeez, I came to the dance a little late on this post and now I have to tuck my comments down here at the bottom of the ohter insightful thoughts. DANG!
Not to beat a dead horse, but yes- the content here is frequently intelligent and relevant and also entertaining. Both traits I try so hard to utilize in my own work. Maybe that is one of the reasons why I stop by a dozen times a day. I’m an Orchard junky. (I wish I would have made the shade comment before Michael Wagner did it…)
Scott,
I’ll give way to your movie knowledge expertise since the last movie I saw in a theater was the Incredibles with my two sons.
Though I was being a bit rhetorical and a bit of a jerk with the results question, I do like your answer. You can’t advise clients on new techs/comms like blogging if you have no experience.
I seem to sense a Media Orchard Fan Club starting to sprout. . . . who’ll be the first president?
– Mike
Scott, as my people say, you are a real mench — I’m kvelling over you and the Orchard’s success. One request though — for all us American Idol fans out there, can you start a campaign to get Taylor Hicks voted in as the next American Idol? Or maybe a campaign to get Simon to start wearing a bra. Or to make Randy give money to charity every time he says the word “dawg.” I’m open to suggestions
Thanks for kvelling … I think most of my favorite bloggers are members of your tribe.
I believe it’s Randy who needs the bra.
I have to throw in my congrats from this side of the pond. Terrific job Scott. It must have taken you what, 20 minutes, to get ahead of me in the pr blogosphere.
Cheers / Hans
Cheers! Thanks for being such a noteworthy and provocative addition to our little online community/
Happy anniversary, Scott! You are providing a great service for this tough little community.
g
Two names most people wouldn’t think would be together.
Hmmm, I don’t think I got this many comments when I did an anniversary post. Then again, I probably didn’t do one because I am bad with dates. Yah, I suck without Plaxo and Outlook for dates.
Congrats!