However, some examples … like the one written about here … simply are too bad to escape our comment.

DH

Oh, sorry, just the way I read your post. I now see what you mean.

DH

Greg,

As much as I believe someone should discuss the issue with those companies, I am not that person. I do believe that since it reflects poorly on Adweek’s reputation, they should be demanding an explanation. But that’s just my opinion.

David

Sorry for the double-post: The way I knew you reached out to the AE at Rosen is because it’s in your original post.

Hi David -

I’m not with any of those companies so I have no inside knowledge. I actually am not even in the public relations industry. I work for a technology company out of Manhattan and found your post through a Google alert and the topic caught my eye.

If you have the opportunity, I think it would be tremendously interesting to share the post with people at the three organizations and see what their feelings are on the topic.

Hope you’re well -

Greg

Eric,

Really appreciate your comment. Thanks. I am very proud of my accomplishments in the PR business. But, when my youngest daughter was in college, she interned two summers for major PR agencies, and found their obsessive quest for maximum client dollars by delivering the lowest level of work to be so outrageously unethical that she changed her major, and is now in another field.

Perhaps a recession will force the return of more sober minds to the PR industry and make room for the truly outstanding firms to rise to the top.

David

Greg,

Regarding whether I reached out to anyone at Rosen, I think you answered your own question through inside knowledge. There was no response, and that’s a big signal.

Yes, I believe the time has come … perhaps overdue … when the public relations industry is accountable for doing effective work on behalf of clients. The holding company model has corrupted in the industry to focus primarily on generating the most billable hours possible from each client, regardless of whether goals are met or good work is being done.

Thanks for commenting.

David

Regarding David’s posting being a waste of time: David was completely correct in presenting a case study of error, since that is probably how people learn best from case studies. As Wendy Joung reports in Applied Psychology: http://cli.gs/Qbbjga

” The results provide some support for the hypothesis that it is better to learn from other people’s errors than from their successes.”

Furthermore, if public shame will help improve the quality of PR, we definitely need more public shaming.

eric.

Out of curiosity, have you attempted to reach out to any the folks represented here to get their take on it. For example, I know you reached out to the Account Executive at The Rosen Group but what about someone higher up? Is this common practice for their agency? What about the client – who at Adweek approved this tactic? Is this something they’re comfortable with? Finally, the people quoted from The Richards Group and Element 79 can’t be pleased that this is how their comments are being pitched; I wonder if they’re even aware of this.

I agree with you in pointing out bad work and the importance of doing so. I also think there needs to be a sense of accountability in the industry. I can’t imagine that supervisors at The Rosen Group, the client at Adweek or those quoted would be very happy if they were provided a link to this post or shown the way the story (if that’s what’s being pitched) was distributed to the media. And that is when things will change – when clients are shown the poor practices and lack of effort and refuse to stand for it.

Greg

I completely agree with you. Thanks.

David

Agreed, David. I’ve long been an advocate of the value-based pricing model. High cost/low return models are akin to dinosaurs – they just haven’t become fully extinct yet.

Hi Wes. I do highlight great PR – constantly. It’s one of the things that I’ll converse about on Twitter, or my blog, or with colleagues, even families and friends. For example, I just wrote a blog about the 10 PR People to Follow on Twitter – so I do believe in highlighting excellence.

But if we don’t highlight the bad as well, then we’ll never eradicate it. Without deterring it, we’ll be stuck with it.

I also do highlight client bad practices with them – far from taking it as an insult, they genuinely appreciate the openness. After all, if it helps them to improve, won’t that reflect on their own clients?

I think there’s a difference between ignorance (which I would say would be the example you use of the guy at the conference table) and bad (which would be the lacklustre pitch on show here).

I know what you’re saying and I agree we should highlight the good, but not at the expense of overlooking the bad.

Thanks for the discourse,

Danny.