Archive for January, 2009
Bring Authenticity/Audience Perception to Social Media
Even though we only have 140 characters on Twitter to express ourselves, I’ve always been impressed by Mary Cullen’s mini-blogs. As a leadership professional, she expresses herself clearly. I listen, and I know where she stands. So, I asked Mary – President of Princeton-based Instructional Solutions – to be a guest blogger here: We have [...]
Social Media’s Extraordinary Leaders
One of the magical things about the explosion in popularity of online social media, including such places at Twitter and Facebook, is that it is being defined by a number of incredibly visionary professionals with extraordinary communication skills. Each day, for example, I check in with several blogs, and nearly always find myself learning even [...]
Jump-Start Your Twitter
Get into a conversation these days with just about anyone – client, journalist, talk show host and friends – and the topic inevitably turns to Twitter. Leave MySpace to kids; Twitter is appealing to grown-ups, many of whom are seeking to expand their network of contacts in challenging economic times. I am asked – as [...]
The Brandeis Ripple Effect
The headline in The Boston Globe online boldly told the story – “Crisis raises questions on Brandeis campus.” The recession and the depth of America’s financial is clobbering universities, which seemingly are unprepared for a crisis on every front. Were it not for the famous and respected name of Brandeis, this story may be replicated [...]
New Free ebook
Trying to figure out the new online world? Web 2.0, blogs, social media, Twitter? What’s the value, and where’s it all headed? I’ve just written a new and free ebook that delivers valuable perspective and helpful guidance, and you can download the new ebook here, and share with friends and colleagues. It’s free. This link [...]
Social Media Crisis Continues, Unabated
The Ketchum Public Relations/FedEx “Twitter issue” continues to spread on the Internet through blogs and online social media sites, like wildfire. My initial posting on the story – which I believe is the first example of crisis communications in the social media environment – is now appearing in numerous member blogs of the IABC (International [...]
How to Produce an ebook
Among the nice compliments for my new ebook, “[download#1#nohits]” (which are greatly appreciated), several people have asked who created my ebook, what’s the cost, and what’s the process. My ebook was created by TM Design, a design firm in Maryland owned by a good friend, Tina Cardosi. So, in order to answer questions on how-to [...]
The Price of Reputation
In today’s instant, interactive and impulsive online environment, perhaps as never before in communications, these words ultimately define the destiny of an organization as well as an individual: Protecting a reputation begins with understanding the implications and potential cost of not protecting a reputation. Roughly 82 percent of an organization’s shareholder value is intangible, according [...]
The Last Black Man in Town
Let me begin by reaching out – I would welcome your ideas, suggestions, connections to get a film/television documentary project into high gear. Let me share something about it. It’s a true story of an intellectual, self-taught scholar and quiet man who made his living as a barber in a tiny Illinois farm community just [...]
The Take-Away
Clearly, my posts on this blog over the last couple of days have drawn a lot of attention and comment. Let me today express my perspective and opinion. We have just entered a new era in the United States where a leader, our new President, has called for principled behavior, and an end to the [...]
The Ketchum-FedEx-Twitter Saga Continues
The purpose of this posting is to pull back the veil, and attempt to get added perspective on what may have developed as one of the first, if not the first, examples of crisis communications in today’s new and evolving online Web 2.0 social media world. Last evening, there were so many visitors to this [...]
How Not to be a Key Online Influencer
[UPDATE] A friend initially shared this story with me recently, and I have delayed posting it until confirmation. It’s a story about a PR account executive/vice president named James Andrews from Ketchum in Atlanta who flew to Memphis to visit FedEx, one of the agency’s biggest clients. Andrews’ mission was to — now, this is important [...]
5 Tips for Business in a Down Economy
I liked this commonsense checklist from Jamie Turner’s blog - The 60 Second Marketer – for anyone seeking a competitive edge in these challenging times that I asked Jamie for permission to repost it here: Here are the key things you’ll learn in this article: That you don’t need big budgets to make a big impact [...]
Mr. Obama’s “We the People”
Barack Obama speaks as a natural leader. He inspires by talking inclusively about, “we.” That’s you and me and him. It’s us. Mr. Obama demonstrates authentic leadership. He defers talking about himself because, in the end, we don’t want to hear him talk about himself but rather what he’s going to do to help rebuild [...]
We are What We Eat
Every time I travel abroad, I am reminded that we, in America, are eating under an illusion … that all the corn in our diets is good for us. It is not. I, personally, believe we have been sold an unhealthy bill of goods for years – dishonest advertising and promotion – just to enable [...]
Are You a Media Savvy Leader?
An interview I recently gave to the Council of Public Relations Firms is now online. The title is, “Are You a Media Savvy Leader? How Agency Heads Can Boost Results in a Tight Economy,” and delivers tips on boosting competitive leadership in the PR industry. Here is the interview, with special thanks to reporter/editor Brian [...]
