Great lesson from President’s comment that Kanye …is a jack***

PUBLICISTS AND ‘HANDLERS’ ARE DE-HUMANIZING THEIR CLIENTS – I feel really strongly about this. When I heard about the Obama comment I thought to myself “there’s the guy I liked”. Publicists and managers try to control the message (and their clients) so much that we often lose our ability to be fans of those same people. Why do you think we all follow our stars on Twitter? Most likely we’re hearing from THEM. They are humans with whom we can relate. And that relatability creates a bond.

Why publicists should not jump in bed with programmers

All this extra stuff with a press release is just the digital equivalent of sending your press release in a great big box full of loose corn and a music box playing cheesy farmer songs. (Yes, I did this one year, I admit it) It will get attention but it won’t make your story any more interesting.

Your baby is ugly

A product, service or book is probably the greatest thing in the world – to its creator. But when an editor or producers says “pass” it’s the publicist who has to tell the client .Sometimes ZERO media are interested. And for anyone who has written a book, started a business or provided a service, that can be a pretty personally hurtful message no matter how carefully it’s couched. For me, it’s the equivalent of having to tell clients “your baby is ugly” 95% of the time, without hurting their feelings. Nearly impossible.

Marketing blogs I’m reading now

Since I recently listed several of my favorite PR sites – I thought it would be a good idea to post some of my favorite sites on the marketing side here too. I love RSS feeds – not only is it easy to stay up to date it shows me how prolific and smart many of my colleagues are in this business. Here are some of the blogs I’m following right now – and why. If you don’t mind, take a minute and list your own favorites in the comments section.

Spare me the company Facebook fan page

I just got yet another invitation to join a company’s Facebook “fan” page. Heavy sigh. Another company Facebook fan page in which they beat their chest with pride at their AMAZING business accomplishments and expect us all to chuckle with fond affection at photos of their zany antics. (OMG, food fight!)

What we can all learn from Billy Mays

Despite the fact he was always selling someone else’s product, Billy Mays had a strong personal brand. He delivered messages in his own unique style and he never wavered from that style, although I would bet you $100 many marketers tried to change him. His own brand became a kind of credibility stamp for any product.

Tools to measure your digital footprint

We know that creating and managing your personal brand is an important key to professional success. Having a strong digital footprint in the right places is an important part of that brand.

Social Media: All About the Individual …?

When using social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, and the like, business owners should be mindful of the fine line between personable and overly personal. This article outlines five tips for business-oriented social media users on how to walk that line with finesse.

More on social media measurement

Marketing and PR 2.0 are all about integrating messaging channels like social media, traditional print or TV, direct mail and the like. For that reason there’s a huge piece of it that we still aren’t sure how to measure – that’s the SYNERGY between the channels we’re using.