It’s no secret that corporate initiatives lacking management support are destined to flame out. That’s why visibility in the C-suite for public relations activities is so critical. CEO awareness is especially important, since they set the company’s strategic direction and typically work with the CFO to approve the allocation of resources.
Many CEOs view proactive public relations campaigns as “nice to have”, rather than essential to ensure the success of the business. It’s understandable as the ROI can be fuzzy. However, it’s important for CEOs to recognize that the increased awareness and credibility generated from public relations creates an environment in which a company can more successfully execute its plan. Ultimately, people do business with, work for, invest in and partner with companies they know and trust. PR is about building familiarity and trust.
For corporate communications professionals and their agency partners, an ongoing dialogue with the CEO is a must. It ensures the program supports the direction of the business by continually assessing and sharing results and return delivered to the company.
Recently, PR Week magazine, in partnership with Burson Marsteller, polled 144 CEOs on their views about public relations. The results were interesting:
--More than 85 percent believe it is important for the CEO to be perceived as an influencer in their respective industry, as well as with internal audiences.
--Public relations was most often cited by CEOs for its positive impact on: brand awareness, monitoring and enhancing corporate reputation, and increasing sales. Surprisingly, categories rarely identified as benefiting from a PR program were enhancing corporate valuation and attracting talent.
--The PR activities CEOs most often engage in include: speaking at conferences, meeting with industry and financial analysts, conducting media interviews, and authoring op-eds or bylined articles.
--Only 37 percent said writing a blog was a worthwhile PR activity.
--Fortune magazine is the most influential media as its 100 Best Companies to Work For and Most Admired Companies ranked tops on the CEO wish list.
December 2, 2007, 7:09 pm
CEOs Talk PR
Posted by jeffM
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November 1, 2007, 12:24 am
Local Media Sway
Real estate is defined by location. Consider the housing market. While national research and trends may be of interest to you, local property values in your neighborhood likely have the most immediate value.
Like real estate, much news is driven locally. National business, financial and trade journalists maintain their influence (especially in technology and B2B). However, you might be surprised by the sway of your local community newspaper.
At Strategic Communications Group (Strategic), we consistently tap local media to support our clients’ business goals. Here are some best practices we’ve developed during the past decade you may find useful:
1. Target geographies with a high density of customers. When mobile marketing start-up Acuity Mobile began to rev up sales, we took our media outreach to the Big Apple. That’s because New York City is the center of advertising with thousands of ad and interactive agency executives herding each morning into subway cars.
We Know Where You Are, Now Shop
amNY.com
http://www.acuitymobile.com/docs/AMNYAcuity10172007.pdf
2. Enhance the effectiveness of your employee recruitment and retention efforts. Connect with this audience by promoting your culture and growth strategy in the media they and their families turn to for news of the neighborhood. For WAM!NET Government Services, we delivered media results that helped the company bring on board more than 100 Cisco-certified engineers to work at military bases across the country.
Military Subcontractor Adds to Technical Staff
Honolulu Star-Bulletin
http://starbulletin.com/2003/04/24/business/index3.html
3. Speak to your corporate success with local context. Government integrator Stanley (NYSE: SXE) has delivered high quality, professional services in support of the State Department’s Passport program. To continue to demonstrate its qualifications, the company worked with Strategic to tell its story through a grassroots approach.
Officials: New Passport Center Will Ease Backlog
Northwest Arkansas Local News
http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2007/06/14/news/061507arpasspor
t.txt
Like real estate, much news is driven locally. National business, financial and trade journalists maintain their influence (especially in technology and B2B). However, you might be surprised by the sway of your local community newspaper.
At Strategic Communications Group (Strategic), we consistently tap local media to support our clients’ business goals. Here are some best practices we’ve developed during the past decade you may find useful:
1. Target geographies with a high density of customers. When mobile marketing start-up Acuity Mobile began to rev up sales, we took our media outreach to the Big Apple. That’s because New York City is the center of advertising with thousands of ad and interactive agency executives herding each morning into subway cars.
We Know Where You Are, Now Shop
amNY.com
http://www.acuitymobile.com/docs/AMNYAcuity10172007.pdf
2. Enhance the effectiveness of your employee recruitment and retention efforts. Connect with this audience by promoting your culture and growth strategy in the media they and their families turn to for news of the neighborhood. For WAM!NET Government Services, we delivered media results that helped the company bring on board more than 100 Cisco-certified engineers to work at military bases across the country.
Military Subcontractor Adds to Technical Staff
Honolulu Star-Bulletin
http://starbulletin.com/2003/04/24/business/index3.html
3. Speak to your corporate success with local context. Government integrator Stanley (NYSE: SXE) has delivered high quality, professional services in support of the State Department’s Passport program. To continue to demonstrate its qualifications, the company worked with Strategic to tell its story through a grassroots approach.
Officials: New Passport Center Will Ease Backlog
Northwest Arkansas Local News
http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2007/06/14/news/061507arpasspor
t.txt
Posted by jeffM
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October 9, 2007, 8:14 pm
The Errant Dot Com Path
EBay’s write down of its Skype acquisition got me thinking about my 11th grade history class. While I remember little from Mr. Griffin’s lectures, I do vividly recall his poster of 18th century British philosopher Edmund Burke with the quote: “Those who don’t know history are destined to repeat it.”
Strategic Communications Group’s (Strategic) representation of clients in the technology, software, telecom, network, security and systems integration markets now spans more than a decade. In that time, we’ve seen a myriad of trends come, go and re-emerge. With each cycle come the press, pundits, entrepreneurs and investors who proclaim their lessons learned will sharpen future thinking and decision-making.
The dot-com bust of a mere six years ago was particularly painful. Strategic hyped its fair share of companies destined for the scrap heap, including a provider of piano lessons over the Web and a company attempting to turn the computer screen saver into a delivery medium for content. (Yes…a Gartner analyst pointed out during a briefing that the screen saver pops on only when the user is away from the computer.)
It’s comical now. Yet management, employees and investors of those poorly constructed companies spent many an afternoon dreaming of IPO millions. It was argued the rules of business had changed. Revenue was an afterthought. Business benchmarks were defined by attracting eyeballs, building buzz and closing that next round of capital.
EBay’s acknowledgement that it overpaid for Skype to the tune of $1B-plus is reminiscent of those dot-com days gone by. Well-respected analyst Greg Sterling told the NY Times, “Right after the bust, people started focusing on business models and revenue. There has been a little bit of departure on that, with a focus on building the biggest audience and figuring that revenues will follow. That is the attitude that has prevailed over the last couple years, and it may not be sound.”
I do understand the desire to attract eyeballs or build a social community. It’s a lot easier than having to win a customer and run a profitable business. It’s also easy to become enthralled by the reported $10B valuation Facebook will likely secure in its next round of funding.
However, business is ultimately about increasing revenue, profitability and valuation over time. Those benchmarks are intertwined and it takes a proven product, a solid business model and a lot of hard work to achieve them. We’ve been down the errant path of eyeballs and community before. And I bet you Edmund Burke could tell you where it will eventually lead.
Strategic Communications Group’s (Strategic) representation of clients in the technology, software, telecom, network, security and systems integration markets now spans more than a decade. In that time, we’ve seen a myriad of trends come, go and re-emerge. With each cycle come the press, pundits, entrepreneurs and investors who proclaim their lessons learned will sharpen future thinking and decision-making.
The dot-com bust of a mere six years ago was particularly painful. Strategic hyped its fair share of companies destined for the scrap heap, including a provider of piano lessons over the Web and a company attempting to turn the computer screen saver into a delivery medium for content. (Yes…a Gartner analyst pointed out during a briefing that the screen saver pops on only when the user is away from the computer.)
It’s comical now. Yet management, employees and investors of those poorly constructed companies spent many an afternoon dreaming of IPO millions. It was argued the rules of business had changed. Revenue was an afterthought. Business benchmarks were defined by attracting eyeballs, building buzz and closing that next round of capital.
EBay’s acknowledgement that it overpaid for Skype to the tune of $1B-plus is reminiscent of those dot-com days gone by. Well-respected analyst Greg Sterling told the NY Times, “Right after the bust, people started focusing on business models and revenue. There has been a little bit of departure on that, with a focus on building the biggest audience and figuring that revenues will follow. That is the attitude that has prevailed over the last couple years, and it may not be sound.”
I do understand the desire to attract eyeballs or build a social community. It’s a lot easier than having to win a customer and run a profitable business. It’s also easy to become enthralled by the reported $10B valuation Facebook will likely secure in its next round of funding.
However, business is ultimately about increasing revenue, profitability and valuation over time. Those benchmarks are intertwined and it takes a proven product, a solid business model and a lot of hard work to achieve them. We’ve been down the errant path of eyeballs and community before. And I bet you Edmund Burke could tell you where it will eventually lead.
Posted by jeffM
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September 18, 2007, 10:02 pm
The Brand Called You
As the fall season sweeps in, many now turn their focus to football, foliage and budgets. That’s right…it is time to start thinking about 2008 and how to align anticipated public relations and marketing resources with your company’s core business goals.
The next six to eight weeks also present the ideal time to evaluate your own personal brand. How are you perceived by the important audiences with whom you interact professionally? Does it support your career path? Is your personal brand consistent with the image your company is working hard to establish?
I started thinking about personal brands after reading an interesting article from Scott Ginsberg, a professional speaker and author of "HELLO my name is Scott and the Power of Approachability." Several years ago, Scott started wearing a name tag wherever he went in an effort to make people friendlier. He soon became branded in business circles as “Scott, that guy with the name tag” which, he claims, has helped him sell books and land speaking gigs.
I have followed a similar path, minus the name tag. Shortly after launching Strategic Communications Group (Strategic), I began to refer to myself as the “Strategic Guy.” It is a professional brand that captures my belief in the importance of context-based PR/communications that are in-step with the goals of our clients’ business. It’s also a reflection of my personality – passionate and aggressive, while always maintaining a healthy sense of humor.
There are a couple of ways I market my brand. You’ll see it in the subject lines of my Emails. It is the name of my blog. And I often refer to it in presentations and speeches.
Is being the “Strategic Guy” effective? I think so. It sure is unique and memorable, and it reinforces why our PR firm has produced such dramatic results for our clients. That’s the ultimate purpose of marketing, right?
The next six to eight weeks also present the ideal time to evaluate your own personal brand. How are you perceived by the important audiences with whom you interact professionally? Does it support your career path? Is your personal brand consistent with the image your company is working hard to establish?
I started thinking about personal brands after reading an interesting article from Scott Ginsberg, a professional speaker and author of "HELLO my name is Scott and the Power of Approachability." Several years ago, Scott started wearing a name tag wherever he went in an effort to make people friendlier. He soon became branded in business circles as “Scott, that guy with the name tag” which, he claims, has helped him sell books and land speaking gigs.
I have followed a similar path, minus the name tag. Shortly after launching Strategic Communications Group (Strategic), I began to refer to myself as the “Strategic Guy.” It is a professional brand that captures my belief in the importance of context-based PR/communications that are in-step with the goals of our clients’ business. It’s also a reflection of my personality – passionate and aggressive, while always maintaining a healthy sense of humor.
There are a couple of ways I market my brand. You’ll see it in the subject lines of my Emails. It is the name of my blog. And I often refer to it in presentations and speeches.
Is being the “Strategic Guy” effective? I think so. It sure is unique and memorable, and it reinforces why our PR firm has produced such dramatic results for our clients. That’s the ultimate purpose of marketing, right?
Posted by jeffM
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August 10, 2007, 4:25 pm
Blogs and the Power of Personal Connections
Pitney Bowes’ executive chairman believes a parent driving their child to school is wasteful. He also thinks our government is so fixated on current year budget balancing that they mortgage the future. And one of his favorite movies is the Karate Kid because the hero develops a valuable skill without realizing it.
I have never met or spoken with Mike Critelli so how do I know all of this? It’s in his blog , of course.
(Note: Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) has worked for Pitney Bowes Government Solutions. However, we have not consulted the company on, nor been involved in their use of social media.)
There is a change underway in corporate blogging. Initially, most blogs were constructed as an extension of an organization’s marketing, public relations and lead generation program. They were yet another channel to reach target audiences with promotional messaging hyping the company and its wares. Unsurprisingly, readership for most of these online journals was low and the business benefit from blogging was questionable.
Now, an increasing number of executives are reinventing their blogs as a forum for more uncensored commentary, views and interaction on topics that may or may not be related to their company’s business.
Corporate Blogs Take on an Edge
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticl
eBasic&articleId=299122&pageNumber=1
For instance, Pitney Bowes’ Critelli does write on occasion about direct mail in his “Open Mike” blog, yet he devotes more content to topics of personal interest like transportation reform and Alzheimer’s research.
What’s the value in this? Is there a true business ROI from a more widely read blog if the topics have little to do with the company’s products or services?
Absolutely! Ultimately, people do business with companies they know and trust. That’s the power of the personal connection. It is why I share with clients and colleagues the often humorous anecdotes that come from raising two sons under the age of four. It’s why I ask them about their families, vacations and hobbies. I want them to see me as a person, not just as their PR consultant or co-worker.
A corporate blog with a well-defined editorial mission can help your company make a deeper connection with the audiences most important to its success. You want to promote your company, while also identifying ways to engage your key audiences on topics of common interest. Connect with them on that level, and they’ll be more likely to buy from you…partner with you…invest in you…or work for you.
I have never met or spoken with Mike Critelli so how do I know all of this? It’s in his blog , of course.
(Note: Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) has worked for Pitney Bowes Government Solutions. However, we have not consulted the company on, nor been involved in their use of social media.)
There is a change underway in corporate blogging. Initially, most blogs were constructed as an extension of an organization’s marketing, public relations and lead generation program. They were yet another channel to reach target audiences with promotional messaging hyping the company and its wares. Unsurprisingly, readership for most of these online journals was low and the business benefit from blogging was questionable.
Now, an increasing number of executives are reinventing their blogs as a forum for more uncensored commentary, views and interaction on topics that may or may not be related to their company’s business.
Corporate Blogs Take on an Edge
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticl
eBasic&articleId=299122&pageNumber=1
For instance, Pitney Bowes’ Critelli does write on occasion about direct mail in his “Open Mike” blog, yet he devotes more content to topics of personal interest like transportation reform and Alzheimer’s research.
What’s the value in this? Is there a true business ROI from a more widely read blog if the topics have little to do with the company’s products or services?
Absolutely! Ultimately, people do business with companies they know and trust. That’s the power of the personal connection. It is why I share with clients and colleagues the often humorous anecdotes that come from raising two sons under the age of four. It’s why I ask them about their families, vacations and hobbies. I want them to see me as a person, not just as their PR consultant or co-worker.
A corporate blog with a well-defined editorial mission can help your company make a deeper connection with the audiences most important to its success. You want to promote your company, while also identifying ways to engage your key audiences on topics of common interest. Connect with them on that level, and they’ll be more likely to buy from you…partner with you…invest in you…or work for you.
Posted by jeffM
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July 10, 2007, 2:42 pm
Harper's Sparks PR Wild Fire
Harper’s Magazine’s Ken Silverstein sparked a wild fire in the lobbying, public relations and media communities. Ethics have been questioned. Insults have been hurled. And pundits have turned ugly on each other.
Silverstein spent years watching Washington, DC-based lobbying firms represent dictatorial foreign governments on Capitol Hill. What promises do these firms make in pitching their services? What scrutiny do they use to evaluate potential clients? How much of their PR work is visible to Congress and the public?
To answer these questions, Silverstein went undercover as “Kenneth Case,” a consultant for a fictitious London-based firm called “The Maldon Group” that had a financial stake in improving the public image of Turkmenistan. He threw up a rudimentary Web site, printed some business cards and then proceeded to contact several of the top lobby/PR shops in DC.
The resulting article titled “Their Men in Washington: Undercover with DC’s Lobbyists for Hire” is a fascinating read about the strategies and tactics lobbyists employ to enhance the reputation of a foreign entity with questionable beliefs and practices.
Equally intriguing has been the reaction from media pundits who, rather than directing their ire at the lobbying shops in the article, raised concerns about Silverstein’s ethics and credibility.
Washington Post columnist Howard Kurtz wrote “no matter how good the story, lying to get it raises as many questions about journalists as their subjects”. In an op-ed for CBS News Matthew Felling referred to Silverstein’s reporting as “gotcha journalism" .
Harper’s Magazine’s Silverstein was forced to defend his journalistic practices (and the importance of undercover reporting) in a Los Angeles Times op-ed titled “Undercover, Under Fire."
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-silverstein30jun30,0,19
39913.story?coll=la-opinion-center
While I have no standing to participate in that debate, I do believe Silverstein’s article should serve as a call to PR practitioners – both corporate communications professionals and their agency counterparts – to elevate their due diligence. At Strategic Communications Group (Strategic), we do our best to practice honesty and full disclosure in external communications, while always representing the best interests of our clients.
We’re fortunate to work for a group of companies that I believe offer valuable products and services, and are led by ethical management. Can we do more at Strategic to ensure this is always the case? Absolutely…and that’s something I plan to discuss with the team.
While wild fires are destructive and dangerous they have benefits. In time they produce areas of new growth that help wildlife and plant diversity. Let’s hope Silverstein’s article does the same in the PR and lobbying industries.
Silverstein spent years watching Washington, DC-based lobbying firms represent dictatorial foreign governments on Capitol Hill. What promises do these firms make in pitching their services? What scrutiny do they use to evaluate potential clients? How much of their PR work is visible to Congress and the public?
To answer these questions, Silverstein went undercover as “Kenneth Case,” a consultant for a fictitious London-based firm called “The Maldon Group” that had a financial stake in improving the public image of Turkmenistan. He threw up a rudimentary Web site, printed some business cards and then proceeded to contact several of the top lobby/PR shops in DC.
The resulting article titled “Their Men in Washington: Undercover with DC’s Lobbyists for Hire” is a fascinating read about the strategies and tactics lobbyists employ to enhance the reputation of a foreign entity with questionable beliefs and practices.
Equally intriguing has been the reaction from media pundits who, rather than directing their ire at the lobbying shops in the article, raised concerns about Silverstein’s ethics and credibility.
Washington Post columnist Howard Kurtz wrote “no matter how good the story, lying to get it raises as many questions about journalists as their subjects”. In an op-ed for CBS News Matthew Felling referred to Silverstein’s reporting as “gotcha journalism" .
Harper’s Magazine’s Silverstein was forced to defend his journalistic practices (and the importance of undercover reporting) in a Los Angeles Times op-ed titled “Undercover, Under Fire."
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-silverstein30jun30,0,19
39913.story?coll=la-opinion-center
While I have no standing to participate in that debate, I do believe Silverstein’s article should serve as a call to PR practitioners – both corporate communications professionals and their agency counterparts – to elevate their due diligence. At Strategic Communications Group (Strategic), we do our best to practice honesty and full disclosure in external communications, while always representing the best interests of our clients.
We’re fortunate to work for a group of companies that I believe offer valuable products and services, and are led by ethical management. Can we do more at Strategic to ensure this is always the case? Absolutely…and that’s something I plan to discuss with the team.
While wild fires are destructive and dangerous they have benefits. In time they produce areas of new growth that help wildlife and plant diversity. Let’s hope Silverstein’s article does the same in the PR and lobbying industries.
Posted by jeffM
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May 9, 2007, 6:36 pm
Thumbsucking Thought Leadership
As the father of two boys under the age of four I thought I knew a lot about thumbsucking. That is until endpoint security vendor Senforce Technologies selected Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) as its public relations agency of record.
Technology vendors face quite a conundrum when it comes to securing customer references. Journalists and analysts alike love them because they provide insight into the value delivered by a product or service, thereby validating the vendor’s claims.
Yet, customers tend to shy away from participating in promotional activity that doesn’t directly benefit their own business. For security companies it’s nearly impossible because their customers also invite risk by publicizing their technologies and practices.
This issue came up a few weeks ago as we sat in our conference room with a couple of Senforce’s sales executives brainstorming public relations tactics. Could an emphasis on rapid response programs produce a consistent flow of media coverage? How about a co-marketing campaign with one or two select partners? What thought leadership angles could we pursue?
That’s when Senforce’s Bruce Hassett inquired, “What about thumbsucking?” My colleague Shany Seawright and I shared a quizzical look. Bruce explained it’s what he called a new threat to the enterprise: when information is illicitly downloaded from a laptop to a small thumb drive for malicious purposes.
We had our thought leadership topic. Now the challenge became how to incorporate it into Senforce’s PR program to increase the company’s awareness and positioning. Our plan came together quickly:
1. Industry survey to validate the trend: we had already surveyed attendees who visited Senforce’s booth at two recent trade shows about their endpoint security requirements. We merely incorporated thumbsucking messaging into our press release announcing the survey results.
2. New media technologies to provide background: Senforce created a Web site dedicate to this campaign. The branding was purposely kept distinct from Senforce’s corporate site to enhance the perception of credibility. We also contributed a definition of thumbsucking to Wikipedia , a Web-based encyclopedia that serves as an information resource.
3. Aggressive media outreach: a press release is merely a tool to facilitate a direct interaction with a journalist. On behalf of Senforce we worked the phones talking to security and IT trade media about our survey and the thumbsucking threat.
Survey Says 73% of Organizations Store Corporate Information on Removable Devices
Survey Exposes Thumbsucking Threat
Technology vendors face quite a conundrum when it comes to securing customer references. Journalists and analysts alike love them because they provide insight into the value delivered by a product or service, thereby validating the vendor’s claims.
Yet, customers tend to shy away from participating in promotional activity that doesn’t directly benefit their own business. For security companies it’s nearly impossible because their customers also invite risk by publicizing their technologies and practices.
This issue came up a few weeks ago as we sat in our conference room with a couple of Senforce’s sales executives brainstorming public relations tactics. Could an emphasis on rapid response programs produce a consistent flow of media coverage? How about a co-marketing campaign with one or two select partners? What thought leadership angles could we pursue?
That’s when Senforce’s Bruce Hassett inquired, “What about thumbsucking?” My colleague Shany Seawright and I shared a quizzical look. Bruce explained it’s what he called a new threat to the enterprise: when information is illicitly downloaded from a laptop to a small thumb drive for malicious purposes.
We had our thought leadership topic. Now the challenge became how to incorporate it into Senforce’s PR program to increase the company’s awareness and positioning. Our plan came together quickly:
1. Industry survey to validate the trend: we had already surveyed attendees who visited Senforce’s booth at two recent trade shows about their endpoint security requirements. We merely incorporated thumbsucking messaging into our press release announcing the survey results.
2. New media technologies to provide background: Senforce created a Web site dedicate to this campaign. The branding was purposely kept distinct from Senforce’s corporate site to enhance the perception of credibility. We also contributed a definition of thumbsucking to Wikipedia , a Web-based encyclopedia that serves as an information resource.
3. Aggressive media outreach: a press release is merely a tool to facilitate a direct interaction with a journalist. On behalf of Senforce we worked the phones talking to security and IT trade media about our survey and the thumbsucking threat.
Survey Says 73% of Organizations Store Corporate Information on Removable Devices
Survey Exposes Thumbsucking Threat
Posted by jeffM
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April 9, 2007, 11:34 pm
Unexpected PR Targets
Several years ago we helped enterprise application integration vendor SAGA Software launch a new product. Interest from the analyst community was high. The media coverage was excellent. Conferences warmly welcomed the CTO as a speaker.
Yet, the PR placement that resulted in the most positive impact on SAGA’s sales pipeline came from an unexpected place: a vendor produced e-newsletter.
Proactive outreach to the industry analyst and media communities is the staple of most public relations programs. The increased awareness and credibility conferred by these influential audiences creates an environment in which a company can more successfully execute its growth strategy.
Core media and analyst outreach is just the baseline though. Strategic subscribes to a more creative PR approach. We work with our clients to take a deeper look at the possible channels we can tap to communicate with their most important audiences – customers, prospects, investors and employees.
Here are a couple of high-value targets we’ve identified:
1. Vendor-produced publications, e-newsletters and user conferences. Talk to your partners to learn how they market to their customers and prospects. Can you contribute a bylined article to their e-newsletter? Will they include one of your executives on a panel at their user conference?
For SAGA, our coverage in a newsletter Emailed by ERP vendor SAP to 10,000 of their customers – highly qualified, senior IT decision-makers – produced a flurry of leads.
2. Trade associations and industry groups. Many of them publish magazines, newsletters and content on their Web sites. Identify the groups with which your company is affiliated (both at the corporate and individual levels) and ask how you can support their publications with thought leadership content.
For instance, Strategic recently coordinated a Q&A with RFID edgeware provider GlobeRanger’s founder and CTO for AIIM’s series of executive podcasts. GlobeRanger’s VP of Engineering and Chief of Architect has also been centrally involved in EPCglobal’s Software Action Group and, as such, has been a vocal and visible proponent of industry certification efforts in a variety of public forums and related media initiatives.
3. Personalized social networks. Marc Andreessen’s new venture Ning hosts a myriad of user-created communities. Do a quick search to identify issues that are important to your company? And then contribute to the content via blog posts, podcasts and comment. This is a great way to reach targets who have already qualified themselves by shared topics of interest.
Yet, the PR placement that resulted in the most positive impact on SAGA’s sales pipeline came from an unexpected place: a vendor produced e-newsletter.
Proactive outreach to the industry analyst and media communities is the staple of most public relations programs. The increased awareness and credibility conferred by these influential audiences creates an environment in which a company can more successfully execute its growth strategy.
Core media and analyst outreach is just the baseline though. Strategic subscribes to a more creative PR approach. We work with our clients to take a deeper look at the possible channels we can tap to communicate with their most important audiences – customers, prospects, investors and employees.
Here are a couple of high-value targets we’ve identified:
1. Vendor-produced publications, e-newsletters and user conferences. Talk to your partners to learn how they market to their customers and prospects. Can you contribute a bylined article to their e-newsletter? Will they include one of your executives on a panel at their user conference?
For SAGA, our coverage in a newsletter Emailed by ERP vendor SAP to 10,000 of their customers – highly qualified, senior IT decision-makers – produced a flurry of leads.
2. Trade associations and industry groups. Many of them publish magazines, newsletters and content on their Web sites. Identify the groups with which your company is affiliated (both at the corporate and individual levels) and ask how you can support their publications with thought leadership content.
For instance, Strategic recently coordinated a Q&A with RFID edgeware provider GlobeRanger’s founder and CTO for AIIM’s series of executive podcasts. GlobeRanger’s VP of Engineering and Chief of Architect has also been centrally involved in EPCglobal’s Software Action Group and, as such, has been a vocal and visible proponent of industry certification efforts in a variety of public forums and related media initiatives.
3. Personalized social networks. Marc Andreessen’s new venture Ning hosts a myriad of user-created communities. Do a quick search to identify issues that are important to your company? And then contribute to the content via blog posts, podcasts and comment. This is a great way to reach targets who have already qualified themselves by shared topics of interest.
Posted by jeffM
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March 7, 2007, 10:55 pm
One Moment in Time
Last year Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) was hired by a company right after they pulled off a major coup – a big time acquisition that more than doubled their revenue, vaulting them into a new segment of the market. Everything was in place for a successful public relations campaign. Yet, after the M&A transaction was announced the PR effort lost momentum, limped along and was soon shut down by the client.
We are all about great work for great clients. The foundation of this core mission is shared expectations about the success criteria for a PR/communications program. Strategic is responsible for delivering great work, but our clients have an equally important role. It truly is a collaborative effort.
In the case of last year’s short-lived engagement, the company just wanted someone to hype their acquisition. There wasn’t recognition that a public relations campaign is never defined by one moment in time. Sure, you can ratchet up the market awareness around noteworthy corporate events, but true credibility with influential PR targets is better established by demonstrating how a company executes on its strategic growth plan over a sustained period.
It’s like giving a speech: tell the market what you are going to do, do it and then remind them what you have done. It is the hurdles of execution that separate companies destined for market leadership from those that merely have fleeting buzz.
Here is an example of public relations done right. When Tellabs decided to more aggressively pursue federal government business, the company allocated appropriate sales and marketing resources. In partnership with Strategic, positioning and messaging was formulated based on customer and partner requirements, aligned with Tellabs strengths and product differentiation.
A concise, well-defined plan was developed and is now in the process of implementation through a series of market announcements:
New Market Study: Federal Telecom Networks Needs are Carrier Class; Tellabs Launches Federal Group to Address Growing Need
http://www.tellabs.com/news/2007/nr010907.shtml
Government IT Managers Need Carrier-Class Network Reliability, Says New Federal User Survey
http://www.tellabs.com/news/2007/nr022607.shtml
The public relations results (see below) have helped Tellabs increase awareness in a new market, as well as garner critical. There’s a lot of work that still needs to be done, but the company is on a path to achieve its goals.
We encourage our clients to view public relations as an ongoing effort. It’s important to put in place near-term performance benchmarks, but ultimately success is defined by how the public relations work contributes to growth in sales, profitability and valuation. And that is rarely measured at one moment in time.
Tellabs pushes carrier-class networks for feds
Federal Computer Week
http://www.fcw.com/article97301-01-09-07-Web
GSA Prepares to Award Huge Telecom Deals
Associated Press
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070109/apfn_federal_telecom_contracts.html?.v=1
Study: Agencies Need Top-Notch Telecom Networks
Government Executive
http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=35818&dcn=e_gvet
Tellabs Picks Up on Federal Network Needs
Crain’s Chicago Business
http://chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/mag/article.pl?article_id=27292&bt=tellabs&arc=n&searchType=all
We are all about great work for great clients. The foundation of this core mission is shared expectations about the success criteria for a PR/communications program. Strategic is responsible for delivering great work, but our clients have an equally important role. It truly is a collaborative effort.
In the case of last year’s short-lived engagement, the company just wanted someone to hype their acquisition. There wasn’t recognition that a public relations campaign is never defined by one moment in time. Sure, you can ratchet up the market awareness around noteworthy corporate events, but true credibility with influential PR targets is better established by demonstrating how a company executes on its strategic growth plan over a sustained period.
It’s like giving a speech: tell the market what you are going to do, do it and then remind them what you have done. It is the hurdles of execution that separate companies destined for market leadership from those that merely have fleeting buzz.
Here is an example of public relations done right. When Tellabs decided to more aggressively pursue federal government business, the company allocated appropriate sales and marketing resources. In partnership with Strategic, positioning and messaging was formulated based on customer and partner requirements, aligned with Tellabs strengths and product differentiation.
A concise, well-defined plan was developed and is now in the process of implementation through a series of market announcements:
New Market Study: Federal Telecom Networks Needs are Carrier Class; Tellabs Launches Federal Group to Address Growing Need
http://www.tellabs.com/news/2007/nr010907.shtml
Government IT Managers Need Carrier-Class Network Reliability, Says New Federal User Survey
http://www.tellabs.com/news/2007/nr022607.shtml
The public relations results (see below) have helped Tellabs increase awareness in a new market, as well as garner critical. There’s a lot of work that still needs to be done, but the company is on a path to achieve its goals.
We encourage our clients to view public relations as an ongoing effort. It’s important to put in place near-term performance benchmarks, but ultimately success is defined by how the public relations work contributes to growth in sales, profitability and valuation. And that is rarely measured at one moment in time.
Tellabs pushes carrier-class networks for feds
Federal Computer Week
http://www.fcw.com/article97301-01-09-07-Web
GSA Prepares to Award Huge Telecom Deals
Associated Press
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070109/apfn_federal_telecom_contracts.html?.v=1
Study: Agencies Need Top-Notch Telecom Networks
Government Executive
http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=35818&dcn=e_gvet
Tellabs Picks Up on Federal Network Needs
Crain’s Chicago Business
http://chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/mag/article.pl?article_id=27292&bt=tellabs&arc=n&searchType=all
Posted by jeffM
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February 2, 2007, 7:06 pm
Gekko's Power of Information
“Greed is good” may be the signature line from Oliver Stone’s 1987 film Wall Street, but there is another observation from corporate tycoon Gordon Gekko that has more bearing in today’s market.
Michael Douglas’ Gekko explains to Charlie Sheen’s impressionable Bud Fox, “The most valuable commodity I know of is information.”
It’s as true today as it was 20 years ago. The more informed you are about the market, its trends, its players and customer needs the smarter your decision-making. In a world that pushes companies towards commoditization, industry insight and intelligence are the truly defining competitive advantages.
Of course, the fragmentation of information sources has made the process of collecting and evaluating intelligence quite daunting. News media…analyst reports…blog musings…competitor announcements; the one sure bet is that the intensity of information flow will only continue to accelerate.
This month, Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) announced a new partnership with Infoition News Services, a provider of customized media intelligence. Founded by a former Capitol Hill staffer, Infoition tracks real-time media information from thousands of sources and provides an early morning news summary tailored for corporate executives. They leverage advanced tracking technology, backed by an editorial team providing the industry expertise and context for each story inclusion.
Our relationship with Infoition enables us to provide our clients with a more comprehensive set of services and true insight into the business impact of our public relations results. It’s also a great complement to our partnership with creative strategy and design firm AXIS Communications.
Michael Douglas’ Gekko explains to Charlie Sheen’s impressionable Bud Fox, “The most valuable commodity I know of is information.”
It’s as true today as it was 20 years ago. The more informed you are about the market, its trends, its players and customer needs the smarter your decision-making. In a world that pushes companies towards commoditization, industry insight and intelligence are the truly defining competitive advantages.
Of course, the fragmentation of information sources has made the process of collecting and evaluating intelligence quite daunting. News media…analyst reports…blog musings…competitor announcements; the one sure bet is that the intensity of information flow will only continue to accelerate.
This month, Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) announced a new partnership with Infoition News Services, a provider of customized media intelligence. Founded by a former Capitol Hill staffer, Infoition tracks real-time media information from thousands of sources and provides an early morning news summary tailored for corporate executives. They leverage advanced tracking technology, backed by an editorial team providing the industry expertise and context for each story inclusion.
Our relationship with Infoition enables us to provide our clients with a more comprehensive set of services and true insight into the business impact of our public relations results. It’s also a great complement to our partnership with creative strategy and design firm AXIS Communications.
Posted by jeffM
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December 6, 2006, 8:13 pm
Power to the Market Definers
ERP…CRM…SFA…BPM…SaaS…BI…KM…ka-ching!
There’s tremendous equity in being a market definer because your company will grow sales and valuation faster than its competitors. This is especially true if you work for an emerging growth company or if you are launching a product or service for a more established player. The credibility conferred by a market-accepted category builds comfort in the minds of prospects, partners and investors.
Market categories can be product specific – think enterprise resource planning (ERP) or customer relationship management (CRM) – or defined by an attribute of the product. For instance, Salesforce.com delivers its software to customers using a hosted model, thus their leadership in the much touted Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) space.
Branded markets typically share one important characteristic – a following of journalists, analysts and other influencers who track and rate players in the market, identify trends, and promote best practices.
Several years ago Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) was tasked by export/import software vendor Vastera to help define the international trade logistics market. Vastera was the first to introduce a complete, integrated trade solution and, as such, a market creation strategy would differentiate them from a suite of competitors.
Through aggressive industry analyst and trade media outreach, Strategic introduced and defined the market, and then validated its growth and momentum using customer win announcements. True market acceptance was achieved when Vastera’s me-too competitors incorporated international trade logistics into their own marketing and sales efforts.
But for them, it was too late. Vastera had captured leadership in this new segment and, as a result, was the only international trade logistics vendor to successfully tap the public markets.
Category creation in today’s market presents challenges and pitfalls because of media fragmentation and the rise of bloggers. There are simply a greater number of influencers to reach and an overall skepticism to a vendor hawking something all new. Consider the confusion around what some in the industry are trying to brand Web 3.0.
Here are a few suggestions if your company has aspirations to define its market:
--Engage influencers early to make the process collaborative. For one of our top prospects, Strategic has recommended the creation of an open forum to target bloggers, analysts and journalists to both coin a term and demonstrate market acceptance.
--Identify champions to validate your market category. Customers paying for your solution are always best as they have truly bought in.
--Put your category in context by defining how it relates to already accepted and understood markets. Salesforce.com is a perfect example as they gained considerable traction with a CRM solution delivered to customers in a new and innovative way.
--Be aggressive in promoting both your company and its market category, and prepare to defend yourself against naysayers.
There’s tremendous equity in being a market definer because your company will grow sales and valuation faster than its competitors. This is especially true if you work for an emerging growth company or if you are launching a product or service for a more established player. The credibility conferred by a market-accepted category builds comfort in the minds of prospects, partners and investors.
Market categories can be product specific – think enterprise resource planning (ERP) or customer relationship management (CRM) – or defined by an attribute of the product. For instance, Salesforce.com delivers its software to customers using a hosted model, thus their leadership in the much touted Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) space.
Branded markets typically share one important characteristic – a following of journalists, analysts and other influencers who track and rate players in the market, identify trends, and promote best practices.
Several years ago Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) was tasked by export/import software vendor Vastera to help define the international trade logistics market. Vastera was the first to introduce a complete, integrated trade solution and, as such, a market creation strategy would differentiate them from a suite of competitors.
Through aggressive industry analyst and trade media outreach, Strategic introduced and defined the market, and then validated its growth and momentum using customer win announcements. True market acceptance was achieved when Vastera’s me-too competitors incorporated international trade logistics into their own marketing and sales efforts.
But for them, it was too late. Vastera had captured leadership in this new segment and, as a result, was the only international trade logistics vendor to successfully tap the public markets.
Category creation in today’s market presents challenges and pitfalls because of media fragmentation and the rise of bloggers. There are simply a greater number of influencers to reach and an overall skepticism to a vendor hawking something all new. Consider the confusion around what some in the industry are trying to brand Web 3.0.
Here are a few suggestions if your company has aspirations to define its market:
--Engage influencers early to make the process collaborative. For one of our top prospects, Strategic has recommended the creation of an open forum to target bloggers, analysts and journalists to both coin a term and demonstrate market acceptance.
--Identify champions to validate your market category. Customers paying for your solution are always best as they have truly bought in.
--Put your category in context by defining how it relates to already accepted and understood markets. Salesforce.com is a perfect example as they gained considerable traction with a CRM solution delivered to customers in a new and innovative way.
--Be aggressive in promoting both your company and its market category, and prepare to defend yourself against naysayers.
Posted by jeffM
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November 14, 2006, 12:46 am
Siren Song of the Integrated Marketing Firm
Many a corporate executive have been taken in by the siren song of the integrated marketing firm. Unfortunately, the resulting communications program typically crashes into the rocks of waste and mediocrity.
I realize comparing integrated marketing companies to the Seirenes in Greek mythology is a bit extreme. In fact, I buy into the value proposition hyped by these consultancies. By helping a client manage communications across multiple channels – advertising, public relations, graphic design, Web development, etc. – the purveyors of integrated services promote consistency in messaging to improve results.
Moreover, they are more agnostic than specialized firms when it comes to recommendations. Talk business opportunities with an ad agency and the recommendation will be to advertise. The same opportunities presented to a PR firm would no doubt result in a public relations plan of attack.
There is just one fundamental challenge when it comes to delivering integrated marketing services: great in theory, difficult in practice. That’s because most of these consultancies were built on a single core competency as a foundation and then tried to glum on other services through hiring or acquisition. Think of a PR firm that buys its way into advertising. Or, a graphic design shop that hires a creative director and is suddenly transformed into a marketing communications firm.
As a result, integrated marketing companies are typically sound within their core competency, but marginal outside it. And marginal doesn’t cut it for clients in competitive markets.
Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) sticks to its core – public relations and business development services for growth-focused companies that target business-to-business and business-to-government markets. We’ve taken a partnership approach to help our clients execute their communications in other disciplines.
Check out news this month of our relationship with marketing design firm AXIS Communications. Karen Work and Peter Roth of AXIS share our philosophy of focusing on core competencies and, as a result, their firm is exceptional at strategy, branding and design – both traditional and Web.
The synergy between our respective companies has been validated through our collaboration on behalf of clients Techbooks and Trace Systems .
Is there an integrated marketing firm that delivers on the promise? Or are they all merely deceptive sirens?
I realize comparing integrated marketing companies to the Seirenes in Greek mythology is a bit extreme. In fact, I buy into the value proposition hyped by these consultancies. By helping a client manage communications across multiple channels – advertising, public relations, graphic design, Web development, etc. – the purveyors of integrated services promote consistency in messaging to improve results.
Moreover, they are more agnostic than specialized firms when it comes to recommendations. Talk business opportunities with an ad agency and the recommendation will be to advertise. The same opportunities presented to a PR firm would no doubt result in a public relations plan of attack.
There is just one fundamental challenge when it comes to delivering integrated marketing services: great in theory, difficult in practice. That’s because most of these consultancies were built on a single core competency as a foundation and then tried to glum on other services through hiring or acquisition. Think of a PR firm that buys its way into advertising. Or, a graphic design shop that hires a creative director and is suddenly transformed into a marketing communications firm.
As a result, integrated marketing companies are typically sound within their core competency, but marginal outside it. And marginal doesn’t cut it for clients in competitive markets.
Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) sticks to its core – public relations and business development services for growth-focused companies that target business-to-business and business-to-government markets. We’ve taken a partnership approach to help our clients execute their communications in other disciplines.
Check out news this month of our relationship with marketing design firm AXIS Communications. Karen Work and Peter Roth of AXIS share our philosophy of focusing on core competencies and, as a result, their firm is exceptional at strategy, branding and design – both traditional and Web.
The synergy between our respective companies has been validated through our collaboration on behalf of clients Techbooks and Trace Systems .
Is there an integrated marketing firm that delivers on the promise? Or are they all merely deceptive sirens?
Posted by jeffM
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October 17, 2006, 12:30 pm
Oracle's Ellison and Corporate M&A
In 2004, Oracle’s Larry Ellison made headlines when he proclaimed the enterprise software market was primed for massive consolidation. Unlike his errant predictions on technical trends such as his mid-90s boast about the imminent adoption of thin computing, Ellison was spot-on that an M&A rush would soon engulf the software industry.
He should have been right because Oracle has been the industry’s most prolific buyer. PeopleSoft, Siebel Systems, Retek, Oblix, TripleHop, ProfitLogic, Portal Software, 360 Commerce…the list goes on and on. In the past two years, Oracle has amassed an extensive portfolio of offerings and added thousands of new customers to its applications software business.
Other industries have also been defined by acquisitions. Government contractors have been snapping each other up for the better part of five years, much to the delight of regional investment banking firms like BB&T/Windsor Group, Houlihan Lokey and WWC Capital. Most recently, security vendors such as RSA, Internet Security Systems and CipherTrust have elected to sell to companies with more extensive product lines.
The market factors driving M&A are fairly consistent across industries. First, they start with customers who demand easy integration of products, along with a simpler procurement environment.
Secondly, as technology companies mature, it becomes increasingly difficult to achieve growth rates that meet investor expectations. When done correctly, acquisitions add proven products and services to sell, as well as new customers, that beef up the top-line.
And, finally, there’s plenty of capital available for acquisition-minded companies. Whether it’s cash generated from their own operations or ready dollars from private equity firms, companies are able to quickly and rather cheaply fund buy activities.
What does this trend mean for corporate communications and PR professionals? My best advice is to be prepared and stay close to top management. I also suggest you read an article penned by my colleague Brian Muys about best practices to support a corporate M&A program.
M&A Success: Why Communications Need a Seat at the Board Table
By Brian Muys, Strategic Communications Groups
http://navigator.bacons.com/CURRENT/MA_success.asp
He should have been right because Oracle has been the industry’s most prolific buyer. PeopleSoft, Siebel Systems, Retek, Oblix, TripleHop, ProfitLogic, Portal Software, 360 Commerce…the list goes on and on. In the past two years, Oracle has amassed an extensive portfolio of offerings and added thousands of new customers to its applications software business.
Other industries have also been defined by acquisitions. Government contractors have been snapping each other up for the better part of five years, much to the delight of regional investment banking firms like BB&T/Windsor Group, Houlihan Lokey and WWC Capital. Most recently, security vendors such as RSA, Internet Security Systems and CipherTrust have elected to sell to companies with more extensive product lines.
The market factors driving M&A are fairly consistent across industries. First, they start with customers who demand easy integration of products, along with a simpler procurement environment.
Secondly, as technology companies mature, it becomes increasingly difficult to achieve growth rates that meet investor expectations. When done correctly, acquisitions add proven products and services to sell, as well as new customers, that beef up the top-line.
And, finally, there’s plenty of capital available for acquisition-minded companies. Whether it’s cash generated from their own operations or ready dollars from private equity firms, companies are able to quickly and rather cheaply fund buy activities.
What does this trend mean for corporate communications and PR professionals? My best advice is to be prepared and stay close to top management. I also suggest you read an article penned by my colleague Brian Muys about best practices to support a corporate M&A program.
M&A Success: Why Communications Need a Seat at the Board Table
By Brian Muys, Strategic Communications Groups
http://navigator.bacons.com/CURRENT/MA_success.asp
Posted by jeffM
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September 6, 2006, 10:12 pm
Confronting PR Rage
It is no secret that journalists have long been prone to PR Rage.
The feeling is akin to the frustration we have all experienced after being cut-off by some inconsiderate driver hogging the road. Like road rage, anger and a sense of desperation can swell inside a journalist until it shows itself in an often ugly and unfortunate way.
Take my colleague Michelle Schaffer’s work on behalf of Convera Corporation. In pitching respected trade publication KM World about Convera’s Govmine.com initiative , Michelle did her homework. She consistently read the magazine and monitored its Web site. She understood its readership and why news about Govmine.com should appeal to them. And she crafted a well thought pitch that was light on self-promotion and hype.
Michelle then reached out by phone to schedule an interview with Convera and received this response from the editor:
Dear Ms. Schafer,
I am only responding to you out of respect for Convera, a company I know very well.
For the record, I receive from PR people about three dozen e-mails every day—that’s about 180 a week. I guess you can’t imagine how profoundly annoying it is to have a PR person such as yourself calling a few hours after sending one. What a horrible and disrespectful interruption. I gather that you can’t imagine I might have more to do that respond to people such as yourself. I, as editor-in-chief of the magazine, am not just standing by, waiting for yet another e-mail from a PR person. Try to imagine what it’s like sitting on my side of the desk. Never mind. I’m sure that’s not in your job description.
However, out of respect to Convera, a company and team of people I admire very much, I suggest you heed this advice: Do not follow up with a phone call after sending an e-mail. If you continue that practice, I will “go to strategic” remedies by blocking the entire gotostrategic.com domain, as I have with other PR firms whose hubris blinds them to showing professional respect.
I do empathize with the editor. When I registered for the FOSE conference as a journalist because of my column in SmartCEO Magazine, I too was subjected to a water torture-like barrage of Email pitches from public relations hacks .
That doesn’t make what this editor did right though. Journalists and public relations professionals need one another. A high quality PR practitioner who understands the market and its trends can be a wonderful resource, as well as a facilitator of information flow. There should be an expectation of mutual respect and courtesy.
What can you do to help ease PR rage? Demand the highest quality work from your public relations partner. Participate in the development of the media strategy. Ask to review pitches. Query journalists after interviews to make sure your company’s representatives are professional and thorough in their outreach. If a pitch falls flat, ask why.
We’ll continue to reach out to KM World and Michelle will work on her relationship with their editor. Why? Because Michelle is a consummate professional and KM World produces excellent content .
The feeling is akin to the frustration we have all experienced after being cut-off by some inconsiderate driver hogging the road. Like road rage, anger and a sense of desperation can swell inside a journalist until it shows itself in an often ugly and unfortunate way.
Take my colleague Michelle Schaffer’s work on behalf of Convera Corporation. In pitching respected trade publication KM World about Convera’s Govmine.com initiative , Michelle did her homework. She consistently read the magazine and monitored its Web site. She understood its readership and why news about Govmine.com should appeal to them. And she crafted a well thought pitch that was light on self-promotion and hype.
Michelle then reached out by phone to schedule an interview with Convera and received this response from the editor:
Dear Ms. Schafer,
I am only responding to you out of respect for Convera, a company I know very well.
For the record, I receive from PR people about three dozen e-mails every day—that’s about 180 a week. I guess you can’t imagine how profoundly annoying it is to have a PR person such as yourself calling a few hours after sending one. What a horrible and disrespectful interruption. I gather that you can’t imagine I might have more to do that respond to people such as yourself. I, as editor-in-chief of the magazine, am not just standing by, waiting for yet another e-mail from a PR person. Try to imagine what it’s like sitting on my side of the desk. Never mind. I’m sure that’s not in your job description.
However, out of respect to Convera, a company and team of people I admire very much, I suggest you heed this advice: Do not follow up with a phone call after sending an e-mail. If you continue that practice, I will “go to strategic” remedies by blocking the entire gotostrategic.com domain, as I have with other PR firms whose hubris blinds them to showing professional respect.
I do empathize with the editor. When I registered for the FOSE conference as a journalist because of my column in SmartCEO Magazine, I too was subjected to a water torture-like barrage of Email pitches from public relations hacks .
That doesn’t make what this editor did right though. Journalists and public relations professionals need one another. A high quality PR practitioner who understands the market and its trends can be a wonderful resource, as well as a facilitator of information flow. There should be an expectation of mutual respect and courtesy.
What can you do to help ease PR rage? Demand the highest quality work from your public relations partner. Participate in the development of the media strategy. Ask to review pitches. Query journalists after interviews to make sure your company’s representatives are professional and thorough in their outreach. If a pitch falls flat, ask why.
We’ll continue to reach out to KM World and Michelle will work on her relationship with their editor. Why? Because Michelle is a consummate professional and KM World produces excellent content .
Posted by jeffM
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August 14, 2006, 1:38 pm
Bloggers Gone Wild
Have bloggers gone wild?
The blogosphere has never been for the tame. It grows noisier with each passing day as the legions of broadband-empowered seek to voice their opinions about the world around them. Blog search engine company Technorati reports a new blog is created each second and the blogosphere doubles in size every six months. The company now tracks more than 40 million online journals.
Bloggers today can be a surly lot. Some use the Internet as a channel to voice frustrations. Others recognize that to gain any level of readership or following their postings must be provocative and daring. Now consider the lack of peer review that is the staple of credible journalism and the blogosphere becomes wrought with risk for a company seeking to manage its reputation.
Consider Dell and its recent misstep. Well-read technology blogger Jeff Jarvis took issue with Dell’s corporate blogging efforts comparing Direct Conversations with Dell to yelling at a brick wall . “There’s not one link there. It’s filled with promotions for Dell’s wonderfulness,” he complained.
The reaction from Dell was as swift as it was ill-advised. “I’ve been working with Dell the past three weeks researching trashy blogs that worms like you leave all over the frigen blogosphere…,” wrote an unidentified commenter . “Your problem is you have no life.”
After outing the commenter as an intern named Chris from one of Dell’s public relations firms, Jarvis received an apology from a more senior PR executive at the firm. Chris apparently got “caught up in the emotion around your postings,” the executive explained.
That wasn’t good enough for Jarvis who concluded from this experience that Dell as a company must have a culture and management that allows this type of shoddy customer service to occur.
There are a couple of important takeaways from this. For starters, it’s imperative for your company to monitor the blogosphere and put in place a well-defined process to address criticism and concern. Be responsive and sincere in your desire for a dialogue and your company at the very least will earn the respect of bloggers. Dell seems to be on the right track on this front .
Second, use the combative nature of bloggers to your advantage, when appropriate. After being compared by New York Times columnist James Friedman to a “crack dealer” feeding American’s addictions to SUVs, General Motors turned to the blogosphere to win support for its side of the story .
New media channels such as blogs, podcasts and wikis will continue to influence how your customers, prospects, partners and employees find information about your company. It’s important to understand and manage the opportunities and risks.
The blogosphere has never been for the tame. It grows noisier with each passing day as the legions of broadband-empowered seek to voice their opinions about the world around them. Blog search engine company Technorati reports a new blog is created each second and the blogosphere doubles in size every six months. The company now tracks more than 40 million online journals.
Bloggers today can be a surly lot. Some use the Internet as a channel to voice frustrations. Others recognize that to gain any level of readership or following their postings must be provocative and daring. Now consider the lack of peer review that is the staple of credible journalism and the blogosphere becomes wrought with risk for a company seeking to manage its reputation.
Consider Dell and its recent misstep. Well-read technology blogger Jeff Jarvis took issue with Dell’s corporate blogging efforts comparing Direct Conversations with Dell to yelling at a brick wall . “There’s not one link there. It’s filled with promotions for Dell’s wonderfulness,” he complained.
The reaction from Dell was as swift as it was ill-advised. “I’ve been working with Dell the past three weeks researching trashy blogs that worms like you leave all over the frigen blogosphere…,” wrote an unidentified commenter . “Your problem is you have no life.”
After outing the commenter as an intern named Chris from one of Dell’s public relations firms, Jarvis received an apology from a more senior PR executive at the firm. Chris apparently got “caught up in the emotion around your postings,” the executive explained.
That wasn’t good enough for Jarvis who concluded from this experience that Dell as a company must have a culture and management that allows this type of shoddy customer service to occur.
There are a couple of important takeaways from this. For starters, it’s imperative for your company to monitor the blogosphere and put in place a well-defined process to address criticism and concern. Be responsive and sincere in your desire for a dialogue and your company at the very least will earn the respect of bloggers. Dell seems to be on the right track on this front .
Second, use the combative nature of bloggers to your advantage, when appropriate. After being compared by New York Times columnist James Friedman to a “crack dealer” feeding American’s addictions to SUVs, General Motors turned to the blogosphere to win support for its side of the story .
New media channels such as blogs, podcasts and wikis will continue to influence how your customers, prospects, partners and employees find information about your company. It’s important to understand and manage the opportunities and risks.
Posted by jeffM
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July 10, 2006, 1:54 pm
No Longer Just Press
It’s been loaded up with jargon. Weighed down with buzzwords. Scrubbed clean of any meaningful executive quotes. Don’t pity the press release, though. In spite of our best efforts to make it obsolete, its influence and impact on the market continues to grow.
Consider a recent report from market research firm Outsell that found press releases to have surpassed trade journals as the leading source of information for knowledge workers. Outsell VP and analyst Roger Strouse took a half-hearted stab to explain this result when he told Informationweek, “It may be that press releases are easier for people to get their hands on.”
Accessibility is part of it. Press releases are now easily available from the wire services, as well as directly off of a company’s Web site. However, releases also tend to be concise and timely. Our world is about escalating information overload and, as a result, they have emerged as an excellent source of insight for customers, prospects, partners, employees and investors.
That’s right…press releases aren’t solely for the press any longer. They’re a sales tool. They aid recruitment. They stimulate investors. Today’s press release has gone high-impact and to take full advantage many companies need to spend more time and energy crafting a release strategy. Here are a few suggestions:
1. View each release as a chapter in your corporate story. Don’t write them in a vacuum. Rather, weave consistent messaging into all of your press releases and build upon previous announcements.
2. Understand your audience and their information needs. Adhere to the inverted pyramid writing style. Cut out the technical jargon. Clearly explain what has happened, why and provide relevant industry context.
3. Incorporate new media – such as hyperlinks, PDFs and other multimedia elements – to provide quick access to additional background information. Boston-based PR firm SHIFT Communications recently introduced a template for what they call a “Social Media Release” . I do not recommend adopting this format, but the use of new media is rather innovative.
Consider a recent report from market research firm Outsell that found press releases to have surpassed trade journals as the leading source of information for knowledge workers. Outsell VP and analyst Roger Strouse took a half-hearted stab to explain this result when he told Informationweek, “It may be that press releases are easier for people to get their hands on.”
Accessibility is part of it. Press releases are now easily available from the wire services, as well as directly off of a company’s Web site. However, releases also tend to be concise and timely. Our world is about escalating information overload and, as a result, they have emerged as an excellent source of insight for customers, prospects, partners, employees and investors.
That’s right…press releases aren’t solely for the press any longer. They’re a sales tool. They aid recruitment. They stimulate investors. Today’s press release has gone high-impact and to take full advantage many companies need to spend more time and energy crafting a release strategy. Here are a few suggestions:
1. View each release as a chapter in your corporate story. Don’t write them in a vacuum. Rather, weave consistent messaging into all of your press releases and build upon previous announcements.
2. Understand your audience and their information needs. Adhere to the inverted pyramid writing style. Cut out the technical jargon. Clearly explain what has happened, why and provide relevant industry context.
3. Incorporate new media – such as hyperlinks, PDFs and other multimedia elements – to provide quick access to additional background information. Boston-based PR firm SHIFT Communications recently introduced a template for what they call a “Social Media Release” . I do not recommend adopting this format, but the use of new media is rather innovative.
Posted by jeffM
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June 2, 2006, 3:33 pm
The News Avalanche
Tomorrow has two guarantees: 1) the sun will rise and 2) there will be news.
Lots and lots of news – delivered by traditional outlets like broadcast television, cable programming, daily newspapers, wire services and trade journals, as well as emerging media such as podcasts, blogs, e-newsletters and streaming media. We live in a world where there is always someone recording and reporting.
This non-stop news avalanche presents an opportunity for your company. Professional and amateur journalists typically need sources and industry insiders to validate facts, share opinions and provide meaning to what’s happened. The awareness and credibility they confer is paramount to helping your company execute on its growth strategy.
Big budget TV advertisers spin the same 60 and 30 second spots multiple times because it is well understood that a target audience must to be consistently exposed to a brand for its messaging to be retained. In a business-to-business environment, you can achieve a comparable result by positioning your company’s executives as resources and thought leaders to the scores of journalists and other market influencers.
Here are a few suggestions:
1. Invest time in upfront planning to identify the most influential and credible journalists to target. Also carefully select your company’s designated spokespersons and make sure they are trained to stay on message. Finally, pick a set of topics, industries and/or technologies that your company is appropriate to comment on.
2. Be proactive in your outreach and relationship building with your target journalists. Read their articles. Understand their beats. Become a trusted source of information by talking to them about their stories and finding out what they are looking for in a news source. By demonstrating that you are there to help them do their job more effectively (rather than merely hawking your company’s wares), you will find a much more receptive audience.
3. Respond quickly when a story emerges that your company can comment on. Speed is so essential that we actually refer to this at Strategic as a “rapid response” program.
Consider our recent campaign on behalf of long-standing client Kelly FedSecure. When the issue of security clearance backlogs re-emerged as a hot topic in the trade press, our established media relationships and ability to quickly add business context to the story produced big-time results.
Feds May Ask Vendors to Pay for Security Checks
Government Computer News
http://www.gcn.com/online/vol1_no1/40638-1.html
Security Clearance Pause Puts Agencies, Contractors at Risk
Federal Computer Week
http://www.fcw.com/article94304-05-08-06-Print
Biz Hit Hard by Stalled Security Clearances
Washington Business Journal
http://washington.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2006/05/15/s
tory2.html?i=44476
Defense Agency Unsure When Clearance Process will Resume
Government Executive
http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=34077&dcn=todaysne
ws
Lots and lots of news – delivered by traditional outlets like broadcast television, cable programming, daily newspapers, wire services and trade journals, as well as emerging media such as podcasts, blogs, e-newsletters and streaming media. We live in a world where there is always someone recording and reporting.
This non-stop news avalanche presents an opportunity for your company. Professional and amateur journalists typically need sources and industry insiders to validate facts, share opinions and provide meaning to what’s happened. The awareness and credibility they confer is paramount to helping your company execute on its growth strategy.
Big budget TV advertisers spin the same 60 and 30 second spots multiple times because it is well understood that a target audience must to be consistently exposed to a brand for its messaging to be retained. In a business-to-business environment, you can achieve a comparable result by positioning your company’s executives as resources and thought leaders to the scores of journalists and other market influencers.
Here are a few suggestions:
1. Invest time in upfront planning to identify the most influential and credible journalists to target. Also carefully select your company’s designated spokespersons and make sure they are trained to stay on message. Finally, pick a set of topics, industries and/or technologies that your company is appropriate to comment on.
2. Be proactive in your outreach and relationship building with your target journalists. Read their articles. Understand their beats. Become a trusted source of information by talking to them about their stories and finding out what they are looking for in a news source. By demonstrating that you are there to help them do their job more effectively (rather than merely hawking your company’s wares), you will find a much more receptive audience.
3. Respond quickly when a story emerges that your company can comment on. Speed is so essential that we actually refer to this at Strategic as a “rapid response” program.
Consider our recent campaign on behalf of long-standing client Kelly FedSecure. When the issue of security clearance backlogs re-emerged as a hot topic in the trade press, our established media relationships and ability to quickly add business context to the story produced big-time results.
Feds May Ask Vendors to Pay for Security Checks
Government Computer News
http://www.gcn.com/online/vol1_no1/40638-1.html
Security Clearance Pause Puts Agencies, Contractors at Risk
Federal Computer Week
http://www.fcw.com/article94304-05-08-06-Print
Biz Hit Hard by Stalled Security Clearances
Washington Business Journal
http://washington.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2006/05/15/s
tory2.html?i=44476
Defense Agency Unsure When Clearance Process will Resume
Government Executive
http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=34077&dcn=todaysne
ws
Posted by jeffM
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May 10, 2006, 3:32 am
PR's Holy Grail
What is the right amount of media coverage for your company?
It’s an important question for anyone who works in corporate communications, public relations or marketing. That’s because in spite of the acceptance of new technologies such as blogs, podcasts and wikis that help us reach our target markets, editorial coverage remains the holy grail of public relations. Effective messaging through the media increases awareness. It confers credibility. It’s high impact.
In the ten plus years since launching Strategic, I have worked for clients that answered the question about media exposure quite differently. Some were enamored with the homerun placement. They saw their story on page one of the Wall Street Journal’s Marketplace section or their CEO chatting up Joe Kernen on CNBC’s Squawk Box.
Others were focused – dare I write obsessed – with quantity of placements. A former client practically shrugged off a national feature in Leslie Walker’s .com column in the Washington Post where they were positioned as true market innovator because a competitor had more “hits” that month.
The appropriate quality and quantity of media coverage is driven by your company’s business goals mapped against the maturity of your market, sales strategy and competitive environment. If you are planning to create a new market category or if your company is positioning against a market leader, then investing resources going for quantity makes sense. This can be a great way to demonstrate momentum. Vertical trades, online media and relevant blogs are all viable targets.
With a more mature market or a sales strategy focused on C-level executives, then the focus should be on generating visibility in top-flight media outlets like Financial Times, National Public Radio, Chief Executive Magazine and CFO.
Ultimately, there is a fairly straightforward evaluation process. Visit your corporate Web site and click on the “News” section. What impression do you get? Would a customer, prospect, partner or employee candidate want to have a conversation with your company? That’s the benchmark.
It’s an important question for anyone who works in corporate communications, public relations or marketing. That’s because in spite of the acceptance of new technologies such as blogs, podcasts and wikis that help us reach our target markets, editorial coverage remains the holy grail of public relations. Effective messaging through the media increases awareness. It confers credibility. It’s high impact.
In the ten plus years since launching Strategic, I have worked for clients that answered the question about media exposure quite differently. Some were enamored with the homerun placement. They saw their story on page one of the Wall Street Journal’s Marketplace section or their CEO chatting up Joe Kernen on CNBC’s Squawk Box.
Others were focused – dare I write obsessed – with quantity of placements. A former client practically shrugged off a national feature in Leslie Walker’s .com column in the Washington Post where they were positioned as true market innovator because a competitor had more “hits” that month.
The appropriate quality and quantity of media coverage is driven by your company’s business goals mapped against the maturity of your market, sales strategy and competitive environment. If you are planning to create a new market category or if your company is positioning against a market leader, then investing resources going for quantity makes sense. This can be a great way to demonstrate momentum. Vertical trades, online media and relevant blogs are all viable targets.
With a more mature market or a sales strategy focused on C-level executives, then the focus should be on generating visibility in top-flight media outlets like Financial Times, National Public Radio, Chief Executive Magazine and CFO.
Ultimately, there is a fairly straightforward evaluation process. Visit your corporate Web site and click on the “News” section. What impression do you get? Would a customer, prospect, partner or employee candidate want to have a conversation with your company? That’s the benchmark.
Posted by jeffM
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April 10, 2006, 10:24 pm
Integrators Side-Step the Dot Com Bomb
The room at the Ritz Carlton for the ACG National Capital monthly breakfast meeting was filled with the region’s top government contractor dealmakers. Lucy Reilly Fitch, Senior Vice President of Acquisitions and Strategy at BAE Systems, was there. Rick Knop and John Allen of BB&T Windsor Group held court at a front table. And Shiv Krishnan, top executive at INDUS Corporation, warmly greeted colleagues.
These industry players and power brokers were merely the sideshow this morning. Renny DiPentima was the star. The President and CEO of SRA International stepped to the podium with well earned swagger. He prefaced his comments in two ways – first, the standard SEC required, legal mumbo jumbo that all public company chief executives must say prior to comments about the business, and second, he apologized before uttering a single word because he knew he would come across as brash.
DiPentima has reason to boast. Since issuing shares to the public in 2002, SRA has been on a hot streak. The company has delivered annual growth of 36 percent, with more than three quarters of it organic. They win roughly 70 percent of the new business they pitch and sport a stunning 95 percent contract renewal rate. As a result, annual revenue should top $1B this year, with three times that amount in signed and funded contracts already locked in.
Investors wise enough to back SRA should boast as well. The company’s market cap is $1.7B with shares consistently trading for more than $30, well above its $18 IPO price.
SRA’s success is fairly straight forward – excellent execution of a defined strategy in a growth market. The company empowers its employees, provides a supportive work environment, and preaches customer service and value. Fortune magazine has recognized SRA as one of the “100 Best Companies to Work For” for seven years running.
You’d think SRA would serve as a model for other government contractors. Build a sustainable growth business focused on customers and employees and all key audiences will celebrate the return. However, a recent article in the Washington Post by Ellen McCarthy titled “In Business to Get Out” creates quite a different impression. It seems a majority of the executives who run companies that serve federal agencies are merely interested in a quick score.
“In the government contracting industry that drives Washington’s economy, the process and promise of acquisition have become one of the underlying facts of life…”, McCarthy writes. The evidence certainly supports this assertion. Recent mega-deals like General Dynamics proposed $2.1B purchase of Anteon International Corporation, along with more modest transactions such as AVIEL Systems acquisition of OPTIMUS Corporation and Performance Management Consulting, have buy rumors swirling around those companies that remain independent.
The government contracting arena today feels like dot-com start-ups, circa 1999. And it’s dangerous. A business cannot and should not be built with merely an exit intention. Yes, companies exist to make money and government contractors are no different. However, the foundation of a successful enterprise is a value proposition to customers, partners, employees and investors. The get-rich-quick, build to sell model benefits the few who simply time it right. It eventually leaves most everyone else burned and bitter.
SRA’s DiPentima gets that. So does Phil Nolan, president and CEO at mid-size federal IT systems integrator Stanley Associates. Although about a third the size of SRA and still privately held, Stanley’s growth has been equally impressive. Since 1989, the company’s annual revenue has increased an average of 30 percent year-over-year with more than 70 percent of that growth attributable to repeat business from its existing customers. Like SRA, Stanley also promotes a contract renewal rate of roughly 95 percent.
What’s the secret to sustainable growth in today’s government contracting market? It all starts with a well defined value proposition to federal agency customers. This requires the delivery of a comprehensive set of services or, in some cases, specialized competencies that are difficult for competitors in the market to match.
SRA and Stanley both offer a broad suite of services that meet the requirements of customers in multiple segments of the government market – federal civilian, Department of Defense/Intelligence and Department of Homeland Security.
Stanley takes a lifecycle approach which has required the company to develop a broad portfolio of services, including concept definition, systems design, technical implementation and outsourcing.
Going niche is also viable fuel for a growth strategy in the government market as it gives a company a differentiated, high value competency. For instance, professional services firms like Macfadden and Robbins-Gioia specialize in program management.
Integrators can also carve out a technical specialization to compete for government work. Subsystem Technologies in Rosslyn, Virginia has a dedicated radio frequency identification tag (RFID) practice to complement its other technical service offerings. BearingPoint recently selected the company as a teaming partner to pursue RFID-related work with the Army.
Regardless the breadth and depth of service or technical offerings, a government contractor focused on long-term growth has to invest in sales and marketing. There is no substitute for it and the “build it and they will come” mentality puts a company on the road to stagnation.
SRA is organized into customer-facing business units to demonstrate depth of understanding for the federal agency’s business and mission. Stanley also has a customer-centric approach to sales and makes an ongoing investment in employee training to ensure they are in sync with this formal account management process.
Finally, the mantra of government contractors focused on a growth plan is “partner, partner and partner.” That’s how you add competencies and track record to the corporate portfolio, and leverage each other’s sales and marketing resources.
These industry players and power brokers were merely the sideshow this morning. Renny DiPentima was the star. The President and CEO of SRA International stepped to the podium with well earned swagger. He prefaced his comments in two ways – first, the standard SEC required, legal mumbo jumbo that all public company chief executives must say prior to comments about the business, and second, he apologized before uttering a single word because he knew he would come across as brash.
DiPentima has reason to boast. Since issuing shares to the public in 2002, SRA has been on a hot streak. The company has delivered annual growth of 36 percent, with more than three quarters of it organic. They win roughly 70 percent of the new business they pitch and sport a stunning 95 percent contract renewal rate. As a result, annual revenue should top $1B this year, with three times that amount in signed and funded contracts already locked in.
Investors wise enough to back SRA should boast as well. The company’s market cap is $1.7B with shares consistently trading for more than $30, well above its $18 IPO price.
SRA’s success is fairly straight forward – excellent execution of a defined strategy in a growth market. The company empowers its employees, provides a supportive work environment, and preaches customer service and value. Fortune magazine has recognized SRA as one of the “100 Best Companies to Work For” for seven years running.
You’d think SRA would serve as a model for other government contractors. Build a sustainable growth business focused on customers and employees and all key audiences will celebrate the return. However, a recent article in the Washington Post by Ellen McCarthy titled “In Business to Get Out” creates quite a different impression. It seems a majority of the executives who run companies that serve federal agencies are merely interested in a quick score.
“In the government contracting industry that drives Washington’s economy, the process and promise of acquisition have become one of the underlying facts of life…”, McCarthy writes. The evidence certainly supports this assertion. Recent mega-deals like General Dynamics proposed $2.1B purchase of Anteon International Corporation, along with more modest transactions such as AVIEL Systems acquisition of OPTIMUS Corporation and Performance Management Consulting, have buy rumors swirling around those companies that remain independent.
The government contracting arena today feels like dot-com start-ups, circa 1999. And it’s dangerous. A business cannot and should not be built with merely an exit intention. Yes, companies exist to make money and government contractors are no different. However, the foundation of a successful enterprise is a value proposition to customers, partners, employees and investors. The get-rich-quick, build to sell model benefits the few who simply time it right. It eventually leaves most everyone else burned and bitter.
SRA’s DiPentima gets that. So does Phil Nolan, president and CEO at mid-size federal IT systems integrator Stanley Associates. Although about a third the size of SRA and still privately held, Stanley’s growth has been equally impressive. Since 1989, the company’s annual revenue has increased an average of 30 percent year-over-year with more than 70 percent of that growth attributable to repeat business from its existing customers. Like SRA, Stanley also promotes a contract renewal rate of roughly 95 percent.
What’s the secret to sustainable growth in today’s government contracting market? It all starts with a well defined value proposition to federal agency customers. This requires the delivery of a comprehensive set of services or, in some cases, specialized competencies that are difficult for competitors in the market to match.
SRA and Stanley both offer a broad suite of services that meet the requirements of customers in multiple segments of the government market – federal civilian, Department of Defense/Intelligence and Department of Homeland Security.
Stanley takes a lifecycle approach which has required the company to develop a broad portfolio of services, including concept definition, systems design, technical implementation and outsourcing.
Going niche is also viable fuel for a growth strategy in the government market as it gives a company a differentiated, high value competency. For instance, professional services firms like Macfadden and Robbins-Gioia specialize in program management.
Integrators can also carve out a technical specialization to compete for government work. Subsystem Technologies in Rosslyn, Virginia has a dedicated radio frequency identification tag (RFID) practice to complement its other technical service offerings. BearingPoint recently selected the company as a teaming partner to pursue RFID-related work with the Army.
Regardless the breadth and depth of service or technical offerings, a government contractor focused on long-term growth has to invest in sales and marketing. There is no substitute for it and the “build it and they will come” mentality puts a company on the road to stagnation.
SRA is organized into customer-facing business units to demonstrate depth of understanding for the federal agency’s business and mission. Stanley also has a customer-centric approach to sales and makes an ongoing investment in employee training to ensure they are in sync with this formal account management process.
Finally, the mantra of government contractors focused on a growth plan is “partner, partner and partner.” That’s how you add competencies and track record to the corporate portfolio, and leverage each other’s sales and marketing resources.
Posted by jeffM
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April 3, 2006, 8:59 pm
Chorus of Credible Voices
Life in the penthouse is sweet. Your calls get returned. Your opinions are respected. And key audiences are inclined to say “yes.”
Just ask the folks at Cisco…or Microsoft…or SAP. Market leaders set the rules. They know how to leverage their resources, relationships and reputation for competitive advantage. No one ever got fired for hiring IBM, right?
Most of us don’t have that penthouse view. While our companies may be growth-focused with products and services that deliver measurable value, we are challenged to: 1) position ourselves against larger, better funded competitors; and 2) articulate a compelling value proposition with a meaningful differentiation.
This is Strategic Communications Group’s (Strategic) world. Our clients are market leaders and fast-risers in industries as diverse as enterprise software, satellite, telecommunications, information security, systems integration and professional services. Our integrated public relations and business development programs help companies grow sales, profitability and valuation, typically stealing away market share from competitors.
Public relations success is not screaming at the market in an attempt to outgun a rival. Rather, the goal is to create a “chorus of credible voices” to validate your company and increase awareness with the audiences important to your success.
Here are a couple of ideas:
1. Take advantage of PR’s snowball effect. Journalists and analysts pay more attention to companies other journalists and analysts are paying attention to. Make sure the news section on your corporate Web site is updated with relevant releases, articles and analyst comments. You should also proactively push this market coverage to targets on your PR list.
2. Turn your employees into brand ambassadors. They are a high-impact and low cost channel of communication to customers, prospects and partners. Take the time to educate the staff about your company’s positioning, messaging and differentiation. Distribute your public relations coverage internally and ask employees to share it with external targets.
3. Empower your partner ecosystem. Most companies typically place a low priority on supporting a partner in its own marketing and PR activities. Embrace your partners in this area. Participate in their case studies. Provide a quote for their press release. Interview with journalists in business and trade articles about them. You’ll get much needed awareness and validation on their dime.
4. Identify other credible third parties whose interests are aligned with your own. For EF Johnson, we asked the local municipality to declare “EFJ Day” to recognize the company’s 75th anniversary. When introducing WAM!NET Government Services to the federal market, we issued a joint release with Virginia’s then Governor Mark Warner who welcomed the company to the region.
Just ask the folks at Cisco…or Microsoft…or SAP. Market leaders set the rules. They know how to leverage their resources, relationships and reputation for competitive advantage. No one ever got fired for hiring IBM, right?
Most of us don’t have that penthouse view. While our companies may be growth-focused with products and services that deliver measurable value, we are challenged to: 1) position ourselves against larger, better funded competitors; and 2) articulate a compelling value proposition with a meaningful differentiation.
This is Strategic Communications Group’s (Strategic) world. Our clients are market leaders and fast-risers in industries as diverse as enterprise software, satellite, telecommunications, information security, systems integration and professional services. Our integrated public relations and business development programs help companies grow sales, profitability and valuation, typically stealing away market share from competitors.
Public relations success is not screaming at the market in an attempt to outgun a rival. Rather, the goal is to create a “chorus of credible voices” to validate your company and increase awareness with the audiences important to your success.
Here are a couple of ideas:
1. Take advantage of PR’s snowball effect. Journalists and analysts pay more attention to companies other journalists and analysts are paying attention to. Make sure the news section on your corporate Web site is updated with relevant releases, articles and analyst comments. You should also proactively push this market coverage to targets on your PR list.
2. Turn your employees into brand ambassadors. They are a high-impact and low cost channel of communication to customers, prospects and partners. Take the time to educate the staff about your company’s positioning, messaging and differentiation. Distribute your public relations coverage internally and ask employees to share it with external targets.
3. Empower your partner ecosystem. Most companies typically place a low priority on supporting a partner in its own marketing and PR activities. Embrace your partners in this area. Participate in their case studies. Provide a quote for their press release. Interview with journalists in business and trade articles about them. You’ll get much needed awareness and validation on their dime.
4. Identify other credible third parties whose interests are aligned with your own. For EF Johnson, we asked the local municipality to declare “EFJ Day” to recognize the company’s 75th anniversary. When introducing WAM!NET Government Services to the federal market, we issued a joint release with Virginia’s then Governor Mark Warner who welcomed the company to the region.
Posted by jeffM
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March 7, 2006, 2:24 pm
PR Hacks Pitch Media
When it comes to media relations, the world is full of PR hacks. They are lazy, uneducated and useless. They don’t know the market trends. They speak in jargon. And, at best, they are merely glorified schedulers.
I admit this is a harsh assessment from someone who works for a public relations consultancy. However, these past few weeks I have lived the pain journalists say they experience every day.
It all started when I registered for the FOSE trade show as a member of the media because of my technology column in SmartCEO Magazine. The Emails started to fill my Outlook Inbox. Three the first day. More than 10 the second day. And by week’s end I had received close to 50 pitches to meet with executive “so and so” to discuss the next generation (always next generation) version of “such and such.”
Admittedly, there were a couple of gems in the lot that more than likely would pique a journalist’s interest. (I have included two of them below.) Here’s what they had in common:
1. They relate the company’s product or service to a market trend, thereby providing context. Answering the “why” question for a journalist or industry analyst is the foundation of effective public relations.
2. They offer customers or other third parties as a resource to validate claims. I realize you won’t always have a customer who is willing to talk on the record, so identify an analyst, partner or even a prospective user who can share their insight.
3. They have a clear call-to-action. The goal of a media pitch is not to sell the story. Rather, its purpose is to sell the interview. Then it is up to the client (with the PR professional’s counsel) to convince the writer that there’s a story that interests their readers.
If you’re currently working with a PR shop ask to see their most recent pitch on your company’s behalf. You too may feel the journalist’s pain.
FOSE PR Pitches
There are only 21 states with consumer data protection laws, and businesses throughout the country are making headlines with consumer data loss more and more frequently. It’s time for them to start cleaning up their act. FOSE 2006 is a great opportunity to talk with an expert in the field of data security and storage about what it takes to protect our personal information - not while that data is in transit, but at the end-point.
Sam Burton, IONA Public Relations for CRU-Dataport
The looming threat of a bird flu outbreak paired with terror attack concerns such as the use of Anthrax or Mustard Gas have driven global fears and headlines and have also galvanized national funding and counter-measure research initiatives. At this year's FOSE 2006 conference, researchers from East Tennessee State University and biotech company AMAOX will be announcing the start of medical trials for a multi-threat counter-measure treatment that addresses the bird flu, anthrax, and mustard gas. The team responsible for this breakthrough, which received funding from the National Institute of Health, attributes the speed with which they were able to bring their research from the lab to drug trials to collaborative technology software from Mindjet.
Jennifer Sanders, Blanc & Otus for Mindjet
I admit this is a harsh assessment from someone who works for a public relations consultancy. However, these past few weeks I have lived the pain journalists say they experience every day.
It all started when I registered for the FOSE trade show as a member of the media because of my technology column in SmartCEO Magazine. The Emails started to fill my Outlook Inbox. Three the first day. More than 10 the second day. And by week’s end I had received close to 50 pitches to meet with executive “so and so” to discuss the next generation (always next generation) version of “such and such.”
Admittedly, there were a couple of gems in the lot that more than likely would pique a journalist’s interest. (I have included two of them below.) Here’s what they had in common:
1. They relate the company’s product or service to a market trend, thereby providing context. Answering the “why” question for a journalist or industry analyst is the foundation of effective public relations.
2. They offer customers or other third parties as a resource to validate claims. I realize you won’t always have a customer who is willing to talk on the record, so identify an analyst, partner or even a prospective user who can share their insight.
3. They have a clear call-to-action. The goal of a media pitch is not to sell the story. Rather, its purpose is to sell the interview. Then it is up to the client (with the PR professional’s counsel) to convince the writer that there’s a story that interests their readers.
If you’re currently working with a PR shop ask to see their most recent pitch on your company’s behalf. You too may feel the journalist’s pain.
FOSE PR Pitches
There are only 21 states with consumer data protection laws, and businesses throughout the country are making headlines with consumer data loss more and more frequently. It’s time for them to start cleaning up their act. FOSE 2006 is a great opportunity to talk with an expert in the field of data security and storage about what it takes to protect our personal information - not while that data is in transit, but at the end-point.
Sam Burton, IONA Public Relations for CRU-Dataport
The looming threat of a bird flu outbreak paired with terror attack concerns such as the use of Anthrax or Mustard Gas have driven global fears and headlines and have also galvanized national funding and counter-measure research initiatives. At this year's FOSE 2006 conference, researchers from East Tennessee State University and biotech company AMAOX will be announcing the start of medical trials for a multi-threat counter-measure treatment that addresses the bird flu, anthrax, and mustard gas. The team responsible for this breakthrough, which received funding from the National Institute of Health, attributes the speed with which they were able to bring their research from the lab to drug trials to collaborative technology software from Mindjet.
Jennifer Sanders, Blanc & Otus for Mindjet
Posted by jeffM
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February 9, 2006, 4:52 pm
PR & Pending Labor Shortage
There is a pundit prediction about US business that turns my stomach. We’ve all heard it by now, but, like global warming, it is better to just pretend it won’t impact us.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics by 2010 this nation will face a potential labor shortage of more than 10 million skilled workers. How can that be? Thousands of IT, programming and customer services jobs have fled offshore to cities in India, China, Romania and Ukraine. American companies like Ford and United Airlines cannot seem to shed employees fast enough.
There are a couple of market factors at play. For starters, the pending retirement of millions of baby boomers will impact the overall size of the labor force. Then there is the crackdown on H1B Visas by the US government in our post 9/11 world.
The real culprit is a dramatic sea change in the types of skills that will be in high demand. Positions of commodity – those that can be accomplished at an acceptable level for the lowest possible cost – are forever gone from our shores.
Spare me the warm and fuzzy belief that US companies are committed to maintaining jobs in country. Corporate executives are measured on sales, profitability and valuation. If a 20-year-old Sri Lankan can do the job at a fraction of the cost, that’s where it is going.
The story is different for professions that require customer intimacy and deep market knowledge. Strategic planning, sales and business development, financial growth strategies and marketing…these are value jobs. And in a talent-light environment there is going to be quite a battle to recruit and retain high performers.
Public relations should be an integral part of your company’s HR strategy. Trust, credibility and awareness – the product of effective PR – have as much of a positive impact on existing and prospective employees as on a sales lead.
Here are a few ways Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) is helping its clients find, hire and keep high performers:
1. Define a value proposition for your employees. Is it the opportunity to work with cutting edge technologies? Build a market leader? Travel internationally? Have job security?
2. Incorporate this value proposition into the corporate messaging platform. A basic tenet of high powered public relations is consistent delivery of message over time. Get your corporate executives to talk about the value of employees whenever possible.
3. Make your senior HR executive a star. Many influential business and trade publications have “Careers” sections. Position your HR head as a thought leader to comment on industry trends.
4. Promote your corporate culture through awards programs for third-***** validation. The folks at systems integrator SRA International are appropriately boastful about their seven year run on Fortune’s “Best Companies to Work For” list.
At Strategic, we have a commitment to do everything possible to bring on board the highest quality PR professionals. Our business model is a different than most other PR firms so we don’t burn our staff out. And we have made infrastructure investments to provide our team with flexibility and work/life balance.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics by 2010 this nation will face a potential labor shortage of more than 10 million skilled workers. How can that be? Thousands of IT, programming and customer services jobs have fled offshore to cities in India, China, Romania and Ukraine. American companies like Ford and United Airlines cannot seem to shed employees fast enough.
There are a couple of market factors at play. For starters, the pending retirement of millions of baby boomers will impact the overall size of the labor force. Then there is the crackdown on H1B Visas by the US government in our post 9/11 world.
The real culprit is a dramatic sea change in the types of skills that will be in high demand. Positions of commodity – those that can be accomplished at an acceptable level for the lowest possible cost – are forever gone from our shores.
Spare me the warm and fuzzy belief that US companies are committed to maintaining jobs in country. Corporate executives are measured on sales, profitability and valuation. If a 20-year-old Sri Lankan can do the job at a fraction of the cost, that’s where it is going.
The story is different for professions that require customer intimacy and deep market knowledge. Strategic planning, sales and business development, financial growth strategies and marketing…these are value jobs. And in a talent-light environment there is going to be quite a battle to recruit and retain high performers.
Public relations should be an integral part of your company’s HR strategy. Trust, credibility and awareness – the product of effective PR – have as much of a positive impact on existing and prospective employees as on a sales lead.
Here are a few ways Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) is helping its clients find, hire and keep high performers:
1. Define a value proposition for your employees. Is it the opportunity to work with cutting edge technologies? Build a market leader? Travel internationally? Have job security?
2. Incorporate this value proposition into the corporate messaging platform. A basic tenet of high powered public relations is consistent delivery of message over time. Get your corporate executives to talk about the value of employees whenever possible.
3. Make your senior HR executive a star. Many influential business and trade publications have “Careers” sections. Position your HR head as a thought leader to comment on industry trends.
4. Promote your corporate culture through awards programs for third-***** validation. The folks at systems integrator SRA International are appropriately boastful about their seven year run on Fortune’s “Best Companies to Work For” list.
At Strategic, we have a commitment to do everything possible to bring on board the highest quality PR professionals. Our business model is a different than most other PR firms so we don’t burn our staff out. And we have made infrastructure investments to provide our team with flexibility and work/life balance.
Posted by jeffM
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January 3, 2006, 3:22 pm
Hyped about Blogging
I am a year in to blogging and I can confirm one thing for you: the hype about it being over hyped is definitely legit.
Blogs will not transform the business world. They will not change how people find information about products and services. And they won’t dramatically sway how people form opinions and make buy decisions. In public relations and marketing, the business and trade media along with industry analysts are still where it’s at. They are the high impact market influencers. They are the ones who can propel a company’s visibility and credibility.
However, in no way am I prepared to brand blogging a big waste of time. On the contrary, there is value to be found in the blogosphere as long as your expectations are modest.
Here are a couple of the lessons learned we have picked up at Strategic since we formally introduced our blog practice this time last year:
1. Monitor the blogosphere on a weekly basis. Search engines like Technorati give you a good snapshot of the chatter and can also keep you in the know if anyone is writing about your company. At Strategic, we also have a list of must-read industry and technical blogs that a staffer reviews each week and distributes content of relevance to our senior staff.
2. Post comments as a means of increasing executive visibility. As a professional services firm, our strength is the quality of our executives. To validate their industry expertise, our vice presidents consistently share their views via blog comments. IIt lacks the impact of the media, but results can be produced more rapidly.
3. If you are going to blog, clearly define a mission and purpose. I quickly realized I did not have a lot of time to devote to the “Strategic Guy” blog. As such, I use it as a vehicle to promote Strategic’s thought leadership, rather than to provide daily comment on industry news or trends.
4. Merchandise your blogging as actionable sales content. This is a must-do for all public relations activities. Provide access to your blog(s) from the corporate Web site. Ask your sales team to forward blog comments to customers and prospects. I speak from experience on the value this can deliver. The “Strategic Guy” blog helped me land a position as the technology columnist for SmartCEO magazine.
Blogs will not transform the business world. They will not change how people find information about products and services. And they won’t dramatically sway how people form opinions and make buy decisions. In public relations and marketing, the business and trade media along with industry analysts are still where it’s at. They are the high impact market influencers. They are the ones who can propel a company’s visibility and credibility.
However, in no way am I prepared to brand blogging a big waste of time. On the contrary, there is value to be found in the blogosphere as long as your expectations are modest.
Here are a couple of the lessons learned we have picked up at Strategic since we formally introduced our blog practice this time last year:
1. Monitor the blogosphere on a weekly basis. Search engines like Technorati give you a good snapshot of the chatter and can also keep you in the know if anyone is writing about your company. At Strategic, we also have a list of must-read industry and technical blogs that a staffer reviews each week and distributes content of relevance to our senior staff.
2. Post comments as a means of increasing executive visibility. As a professional services firm, our strength is the quality of our executives. To validate their industry expertise, our vice presidents consistently share their views via blog comments. IIt lacks the impact of the media, but results can be produced more rapidly.
3. If you are going to blog, clearly define a mission and purpose. I quickly realized I did not have a lot of time to devote to the “Strategic Guy” blog. As such, I use it as a vehicle to promote Strategic’s thought leadership, rather than to provide daily comment on industry news or trends.
4. Merchandise your blogging as actionable sales content. This is a must-do for all public relations activities. Provide access to your blog(s) from the corporate Web site. Ask your sales team to forward blog comments to customers and prospects. I speak from experience on the value this can deliver. The “Strategic Guy” blog helped me land a position as the technology columnist for SmartCEO magazine.
Posted by jeffM
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November 7, 2005, 4:34 pm
Changing Markets and a NYC Burial
If you plan on dying in New York City you better pack a bag. Cemeteries have filled up and the precious few remaining lots are priced out of reach for most. New Yorkers headed for the great beyond now must literally make a trip across the river to New Jersey.
The situation is just as dire for the cemetery operators because they make their money from lot sales and burial fees. Once the no vacancy sign goes up the revenue dries, but the cost to maintain the grounds remains.
One entrepreneurial cemetery in Brooklyn has taken to hosting concerts, lectures and history tours to generate revenue. Their president/CEO told National Public Radio the goal is to reposition the cemetery as a tourist destination – a combination park, museum and sculpture garden.
Changing market conditions force companies to adapt, regardless of the industry. On November 1st Microsoft introduced hosted Web service offerings called Windows Live and Office Live in an effort to stay in step with a market embracing the “software as a service” model.
Bill Gates candidly explained to John Markoff of the New York Times, “Every five years or so we look at our strategy and make these big bets.”
Assessing the impact of a changing market environment is typically the domain of C-level executives. But, it doesn’t (and shouldn’t) have to be. Corporate communications, marketing, PR, sales and channel pros are on the front lines. We are intimately involved with customers, prospects, partners, investors, analysts and media. We often see the warnings of a new competitor, a disruptive technology or evolving customer preferences.
Let’s act on that market insight. At Strategic Communications Group (Strategic), we make it a practice of constantly evaluating our clients’ industry, their competitors and the trends shaping customer buy decisions. It’s a big part of our context-based approach to public relations and business development.
By aligning PR/communications, sales and channel development with corporate strategy (rather than merely execution of the growth plan), we position ourselves as mission-critical to the long-term success of the business. And that will keep us from making that trip across the river when budgets get tight.
The situation is just as dire for the cemetery operators because they make their money from lot sales and burial fees. Once the no vacancy sign goes up the revenue dries, but the cost to maintain the grounds remains.
One entrepreneurial cemetery in Brooklyn has taken to hosting concerts, lectures and history tours to generate revenue. Their president/CEO told National Public Radio the goal is to reposition the cemetery as a tourist destination – a combination park, museum and sculpture garden.
Changing market conditions force companies to adapt, regardless of the industry. On November 1st Microsoft introduced hosted Web service offerings called Windows Live and Office Live in an effort to stay in step with a market embracing the “software as a service” model.
Bill Gates candidly explained to John Markoff of the New York Times, “Every five years or so we look at our strategy and make these big bets.”
Assessing the impact of a changing market environment is typically the domain of C-level executives. But, it doesn’t (and shouldn’t) have to be. Corporate communications, marketing, PR, sales and channel pros are on the front lines. We are intimately involved with customers, prospects, partners, investors, analysts and media. We often see the warnings of a new competitor, a disruptive technology or evolving customer preferences.
Let’s act on that market insight. At Strategic Communications Group (Strategic), we make it a practice of constantly evaluating our clients’ industry, their competitors and the trends shaping customer buy decisions. It’s a big part of our context-based approach to public relations and business development.
By aligning PR/communications, sales and channel development with corporate strategy (rather than merely execution of the growth plan), we position ourselves as mission-critical to the long-term success of the business. And that will keep us from making that trip across the river when budgets get tight.
Posted by jeffM
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October 10, 2005, 12:52 pm
Barriers to Entry
Stretching 4,000 miles and constructed over three centuries, the Great Wall of China is considered a marvel of engineering and determination. Yet, its mission was relatively mundane: it served as a barrier to entry that prevented the semi-nomadic people on the outside of the Wall from crossing with their horses or easily returning with stolen property.
Although your company doesn’t need to defend itself against hordes of raiding nomads, it is important to incorporate barriers to entry in your business and growth strategy, and then proactively communicate those barriers to the market. Fail to do so and you’ll possibly sacrifice sales, profitability, and corporate and/or product valuation.
We all exist in competitive environments. In fact, Strategic typically refrains from representing a client that believes it has no challengers. You can’t be a leader in a market of one, right?
An important goal we share is to rise above the competition and, when possible, block new entrants from staking a claim in our markets of focus. That’s where barriers to entry come into play. When effectively communicated through public relations, advertising and other promotional activities, they motivate someone to think twice before developing a competitive offering. The risk and prospects for failure outweigh the return.
Moreover, well-defined and validated barriers to entry positively contribute to valuation. When you make it more difficult for others to compete, your company will find an easier path to achieve its growth goals.
Here are a few common barriers to entry that Strategic has incorporated in PR/communications programs:
1. Intellectual property, and investments in technical and product development. Make sure key PR targets are familiar with your company’s patents. Even if you don’t have a patent on your technology, be sure to communicate how long (and how much money) your company invested in its development.
2. Distribution strategy that delivers tremendous reach. Strategic client Apptix has developed an innovative software platform. However, their barrier to entry is a series of teaming partnerships with HP, IBM, Bell Canada and others that extend Apptix’s ability to sell its product without the expense of building an international sales team.
3. Executive leadership. This is perhaps the toughest to validate as most companies promote the quality of their employees. Plus, you run the risk of losing the barrier because of turnover. But, if you have a true industry visionary you’ll want to factor their thought leadership into your communications. For instance, Rodney Joffe, UltraDNS Corporation’s Chairman and CTO, is a heavyweight in the managed DNS industry. Strategic would be foolish not to leverage his rock star standing in our promotional activities on UltraDNS’ behalf.
4. Deep industry affiliations. Access to Strategic’s Network of Relationships® provides measurable value for our clients and is an important differentiator from other PR consultancies. Is it a barrier though? When you consider that the foundation of the Network of Relationships are affiliations with influential trade groups like the AeA, Association for Corporate Growth, and Government Electronics & Information Technology Association it becomes an offering that is difficult for others to match.
Although your company doesn’t need to defend itself against hordes of raiding nomads, it is important to incorporate barriers to entry in your business and growth strategy, and then proactively communicate those barriers to the market. Fail to do so and you’ll possibly sacrifice sales, profitability, and corporate and/or product valuation.
We all exist in competitive environments. In fact, Strategic typically refrains from representing a client that believes it has no challengers. You can’t be a leader in a market of one, right?
An important goal we share is to rise above the competition and, when possible, block new entrants from staking a claim in our markets of focus. That’s where barriers to entry come into play. When effectively communicated through public relations, advertising and other promotional activities, they motivate someone to think twice before developing a competitive offering. The risk and prospects for failure outweigh the return.
Moreover, well-defined and validated barriers to entry positively contribute to valuation. When you make it more difficult for others to compete, your company will find an easier path to achieve its growth goals.
Here are a few common barriers to entry that Strategic has incorporated in PR/communications programs:
1. Intellectual property, and investments in technical and product development. Make sure key PR targets are familiar with your company’s patents. Even if you don’t have a patent on your technology, be sure to communicate how long (and how much money) your company invested in its development.
2. Distribution strategy that delivers tremendous reach. Strategic client Apptix has developed an innovative software platform. However, their barrier to entry is a series of teaming partnerships with HP, IBM, Bell Canada and others that extend Apptix’s ability to sell its product without the expense of building an international sales team.
3. Executive leadership. This is perhaps the toughest to validate as most companies promote the quality of their employees. Plus, you run the risk of losing the barrier because of turnover. But, if you have a true industry visionary you’ll want to factor their thought leadership into your communications. For instance, Rodney Joffe, UltraDNS Corporation’s Chairman and CTO, is a heavyweight in the managed DNS industry. Strategic would be foolish not to leverage his rock star standing in our promotional activities on UltraDNS’ behalf.
4. Deep industry affiliations. Access to Strategic’s Network of Relationships® provides measurable value for our clients and is an important differentiator from other PR consultancies. Is it a barrier though? When you consider that the foundation of the Network of Relationships are affiliations with influential trade groups like the AeA, Association for Corporate Growth, and Government Electronics & Information Technology Association it becomes an offering that is difficult for others to match.
Posted by jeffM
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September 11, 2005, 8:10 pm
The Point of Interview
When Naveen Jain, CEO of a start-up data brokerage company called Intelius, Inc., wrapped up his interview with Leslie Walker of the Washington Post I suspect he felt pretty good. He most likely hit on all of company’s key messages. He was probably engaging and dynamic. And I suspect he told a big story that positioned Intelius as a leader in the growing identify theft protection market.
What went wrong? Intelius was burned in the article with Walker pointing out the company promised more than it could deliver and Jain himself lacked credibility.
Every step in the media relations process is critical to achieve the desired result – high impact editorial coverage that is accurate, timely and in-strategy. There are no short cuts. You have to read the publications, know the journalists and their coverage area, understand the market trends, and craft a compelling, timely pitch.
However, it’s at the point of interview that the media campaign either comes together, or falls flat. This is the time to convince the journalist that their readers would find value in an article which follows a specific editorial path. Quality journalists need lots of convincing.
Here are a few suggestions:
--Have a well defined and concise corporate positioning and set of key messages. Simplicity is the key. Clearly articulate what your company does, the market you compete in and your points of credibility.
--Identify “power statements” that bring life to your key messages. I recently met with a company that says it designs and manufactures state-of-the-art proprietary hardware solutions (DC to 40 GHz) to facilitate broadband RF signal management for complex cable networks. What’s their power statement? As it turns out, if you’re watching cable television in North America the signal is directed by this company’s product.
--Validate, validate, validate! Why is your company a proven player in the market? Is it your customer list and track record of performance? Your teaming partners and distribution strategy? You’ll need to provide specifics and, whenever possible, have customers, partners and/or analysts willing to talk on the record.
--Come prepared. Think through the tough questions a reporter may ask and define how you will answer those questions. Evaluate your company’s weaknesses and be prepared to explain how you’re addressing them as part of the growth strategy.
At Strategic, we conduct a call with our clients just prior to each interview, regardless of how much preparation and planning has been invested in the media campaign. It’s our job to ensure everything is set for success and that our client delivers at the point of interview.
What went wrong? Intelius was burned in the article with Walker pointing out the company promised more than it could deliver and Jain himself lacked credibility.
Every step in the media relations process is critical to achieve the desired result – high impact editorial coverage that is accurate, timely and in-strategy. There are no short cuts. You have to read the publications, know the journalists and their coverage area, understand the market trends, and craft a compelling, timely pitch.
However, it’s at the point of interview that the media campaign either comes together, or falls flat. This is the time to convince the journalist that their readers would find value in an article which follows a specific editorial path. Quality journalists need lots of convincing.
Here are a few suggestions:
--Have a well defined and concise corporate positioning and set of key messages. Simplicity is the key. Clearly articulate what your company does, the market you compete in and your points of credibility.
--Identify “power statements” that bring life to your key messages. I recently met with a company that says it designs and manufactures state-of-the-art proprietary hardware solutions (DC to 40 GHz) to facilitate broadband RF signal management for complex cable networks. What’s their power statement? As it turns out, if you’re watching cable television in North America the signal is directed by this company’s product.
--Validate, validate, validate! Why is your company a proven player in the market? Is it your customer list and track record of performance? Your teaming partners and distribution strategy? You’ll need to provide specifics and, whenever possible, have customers, partners and/or analysts willing to talk on the record.
--Come prepared. Think through the tough questions a reporter may ask and define how you will answer those questions. Evaluate your company’s weaknesses and be prepared to explain how you’re addressing them as part of the growth strategy.
At Strategic, we conduct a call with our clients just prior to each interview, regardless of how much preparation and planning has been invested in the media campaign. It’s our job to ensure everything is set for success and that our client delivers at the point of interview.
Posted by jeffM
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August 1, 2005, 2:47 pm
Creativity in Communications
The late 1990s were about the two Bs – buzz and branding. Post market correction, our clients talked about sales-focused public relations.
The PR pendulum is swinging back as companies recognize that public relations more effectively increases awareness, establishes positioning and confers credibility than other marketing tactics. To invest in a public relations campaign, corporate leadership buys into the notion that people do business with companies they know and trust.
The good news is there are a lot of management teams now funding investments in public relations to drive their corporate growth strategy. Strategic Communications Group’s (Strategic) clients have allocated larger budgets. There are a myriad of new business opportunities in our pipeline. And we have received more RFPs in the past few weeks than in the previous two quarters.
However, rarely do we hear the “two Bs” bantered around in a client or prospect meeting. Rather, companies are challenging their PR agency to deliver a higher level of creativity in communications. To achieve its objectives, a company can no longer wait for its next product launch, contract win or customer success story. There’s a real demand to proactively drive on-target visibility in unique and unexpected ways.
Let’s first briefly explore what is not creative in tactical public relations execution. In a business-to-business or business-to-government environment, creativity is not outlandish promotions, cutesy give-aways, or brash and unsubstantiated statements. Journalists, industry analysts and market influencers have all been burned by companies with plenty of hype, but little substance.
In today’s market, PR targets demand credibility in their information sources, and look for companies to deliver on their promise to the market through performance and professionalism. As such, creativity is about providing information of value that supports and validates a company’s positioning, while helping the journalist or analyst more effectively fulfill their mission.
Thought leadership is an ideal means of delivering creativity in communications. It can be driven by views on technology, trends shaping the market and/or policy issues. What is most important to ensure public relations success is the willingness to share an opinion – even if it is somewhat controversial.
In the case of AMERICOM GOVERNMENT SERVICES (AGS) , it was imperative for the company to have a voice in the debate of how military organizations can most effectively procure satellite bandwidth. As their public relations agency of record, we launched a media campaign that leveraged a presentation AGS’ president had given at a Washington Space Business Roundtable event.
The results included feature editorial coverage in influential trade publications such as Federal Computer Week , Military Information Technology , Space News and Defense News.
As a creatively-focused public relations firm, Strategic’s challenge now is how to best extend the momentum generated by this thought leadership campaign to deliver continued measurable results.
The PR pendulum is swinging back as companies recognize that public relations more effectively increases awareness, establishes positioning and confers credibility than other marketing tactics. To invest in a public relations campaign, corporate leadership buys into the notion that people do business with companies they know and trust.
The good news is there are a lot of management teams now funding investments in public relations to drive their corporate growth strategy. Strategic Communications Group’s (Strategic) clients have allocated larger budgets. There are a myriad of new business opportunities in our pipeline. And we have received more RFPs in the past few weeks than in the previous two quarters.
However, rarely do we hear the “two Bs” bantered around in a client or prospect meeting. Rather, companies are challenging their PR agency to deliver a higher level of creativity in communications. To achieve its objectives, a company can no longer wait for its next product launch, contract win or customer success story. There’s a real demand to proactively drive on-target visibility in unique and unexpected ways.
Let’s first briefly explore what is not creative in tactical public relations execution. In a business-to-business or business-to-government environment, creativity is not outlandish promotions, cutesy give-aways, or brash and unsubstantiated statements. Journalists, industry analysts and market influencers have all been burned by companies with plenty of hype, but little substance.
In today’s market, PR targets demand credibility in their information sources, and look for companies to deliver on their promise to the market through performance and professionalism. As such, creativity is about providing information of value that supports and validates a company’s positioning, while helping the journalist or analyst more effectively fulfill their mission.
Thought leadership is an ideal means of delivering creativity in communications. It can be driven by views on technology, trends shaping the market and/or policy issues. What is most important to ensure public relations success is the willingness to share an opinion – even if it is somewhat controversial.
In the case of AMERICOM GOVERNMENT SERVICES (AGS) , it was imperative for the company to have a voice in the debate of how military organizations can most effectively procure satellite bandwidth. As their public relations agency of record, we launched a media campaign that leveraged a presentation AGS’ president had given at a Washington Space Business Roundtable event.
The results included feature editorial coverage in influential trade publications such as Federal Computer Week , Military Information Technology , Space News and Defense News.
As a creatively-focused public relations firm, Strategic’s challenge now is how to best extend the momentum generated by this thought leadership campaign to deliver continued measurable results.
Posted by jeffM
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July 6, 2005, 3:06 pm
Lessons from Storm King Mountain
Eleven years ago on a scorched Storm King Mountain in central Colorado Don Mackey made a series of decisions that cost the lives of a dozen firefighters, including his own.
In the Heat of the Moment by Michael Useem
Fortune Magazine
http://www.fortune.com/fortune/fortune75/articles/0,15114,1071660
,00.html
This tragedy ultimately changed how wild-land firefighters are trained to battle blazes. No longer is technical equipment training and the study of fire behavior enough. Today, firefighters are also schooled in how to make timely decisions under complex and stressful conditions.
Thankfully, lives are not on the line in corporate decision-making. Yet, the choices we make every day in business can have a profound impact on profit and loss, valuation and job stability – all of which can create a high-stress work environment.
It was faulty decision-making that helped crash Enron, Worldcom and Adelphia, resulting in thousands of share****ers and employees losing their life savings. In the Washington, DC area, a poorly timed decision to expand to Boston by respected business magazine Washington Business Forward forced the publication to shutter operations.
Along with hard work, timing and a bit of luck, good decision-making is a key ingredient to corporate success. And it’s up to a company’s management team to create a system and environment that produces and rewards quality decision-makers.
During the past ten years, Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) has had the good fortune of working with a tier one group of clients with diverse product and service offerings, different markets of focus and unique challenges. We’ve seen lots of good decision-making during times of stress.
Here are a few ideas we have picked up along the way:
1. Focus on customer needs rather than engineering. It’s only a solution when a product or service helps someone more quickly or efficiently address a problem.
2. Gather intelligence, heed warnings. Talk to as many people as you can – customers, partners, competitors, colleagues, investors, etc. The more informed you are the better your instincts and the easier it will be to spot signs of trouble.
3. Test your assumptions. Formally and informally...it will help prevent a misstep from turning into a decision with major consequences.
4. Temper your optimism. A positive outlook is essential for a healthy, productive environment, but it’s critical to be a bit paranoid about obstacles and challenges. Surprises are rarely pleasant in business.
5. Clarify authority. While collaboration is an essential part of decision-making, there has to be a single person with the responsibility for making the final call and the willingness to accept the accountability.
In the Heat of the Moment by Michael Useem
Fortune Magazine
http://www.fortune.com/fortune/fortune75/articles/0,15114,1071660
,00.html
This tragedy ultimately changed how wild-land firefighters are trained to battle blazes. No longer is technical equipment training and the study of fire behavior enough. Today, firefighters are also schooled in how to make timely decisions under complex and stressful conditions.
Thankfully, lives are not on the line in corporate decision-making. Yet, the choices we make every day in business can have a profound impact on profit and loss, valuation and job stability – all of which can create a high-stress work environment.
It was faulty decision-making that helped crash Enron, Worldcom and Adelphia, resulting in thousands of share****ers and employees losing their life savings. In the Washington, DC area, a poorly timed decision to expand to Boston by respected business magazine Washington Business Forward forced the publication to shutter operations.
Along with hard work, timing and a bit of luck, good decision-making is a key ingredient to corporate success. And it’s up to a company’s management team to create a system and environment that produces and rewards quality decision-makers.
During the past ten years, Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) has had the good fortune of working with a tier one group of clients with diverse product and service offerings, different markets of focus and unique challenges. We’ve seen lots of good decision-making during times of stress.
Here are a few ideas we have picked up along the way:
1. Focus on customer needs rather than engineering. It’s only a solution when a product or service helps someone more quickly or efficiently address a problem.
2. Gather intelligence, heed warnings. Talk to as many people as you can – customers, partners, competitors, colleagues, investors, etc. The more informed you are the better your instincts and the easier it will be to spot signs of trouble.
3. Test your assumptions. Formally and informally...it will help prevent a misstep from turning into a decision with major consequences.
4. Temper your optimism. A positive outlook is essential for a healthy, productive environment, but it’s critical to be a bit paranoid about obstacles and challenges. Surprises are rarely pleasant in business.
5. Clarify authority. While collaboration is an essential part of decision-making, there has to be a single person with the responsibility for making the final call and the willingness to accept the accountability.
Posted by jeffM
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June 13, 2005, 4:59 pm
Not Right for Rock Stars
Rock stars are rarely right for global organizations.
When Anne Mulcahy stepped to the podium last week to deliver the key note address at the 400+ corporate executives and government officials at the AeA Annual High-Tech Dinner she certainly brought presence and poise. But, you sure didn’t get the feel she viewed herself as the most influential, high-impact female technology CEO in North America. And I suspect that’s just the way Anne wants it.
Rather than hyping her own agenda and applauding her accomplishments like so many successful (Oracle’s Larry Ellison and GE’s Jack Welch) and unsuccessful (HP’s Carly Fiorina) technology CEOs, Mulcahy works hard to focus the attention on the two audiences who most greatly steer her company’s success – customers and employees. In fact, her first comment on the podium was to thank the members of the audience who are Xerox customers for their support. “We will continue to work hard to earn your business,” Mulcahy promised.
Since rising to the president/COO position in May 2000, Anne has made tough decisions about Xerox’s focus in the market, its staff levels, cost cutting and its areas of investment. Those decisions have paid off. Xerox's profits are up, thanks to rising sales of color printers and copiers, as well as a new focus on services, which now account for 20% of revenue.
A few other observations from Mulcahy’s key note worth noting:
1. Nearly 60 percent of Xerox’s $16B in worldwide revenue is derived from products introduced in the past two years. Mulcahy stressed the importance of R&D and innovation in helping a company retain its leadership, while giving its employees interesting and exciting new initiatives to tackle. Equally important, Xerox is validating the positive impact of its investment in R&D through their PR/promotional activities.
2. Mulcahy’s first corporate position at Xerox was VP, Human Resources from 1992 to 1995. This is quite a surprise when you consider that most executives rise to the CEO position through finance and sales/marketing.
Long after Mulcahy’s specific comments have faded from memory, I will retain the impression she truly loves Xerox and is committed to the company’s success. That means serving customers and employees, often at the expense of her ego and reputation.
When Anne Mulcahy stepped to the podium last week to deliver the key note address at the 400+ corporate executives and government officials at the AeA Annual High-Tech Dinner she certainly brought presence and poise. But, you sure didn’t get the feel she viewed herself as the most influential, high-impact female technology CEO in North America. And I suspect that’s just the way Anne wants it.
Rather than hyping her own agenda and applauding her accomplishments like so many successful (Oracle’s Larry Ellison and GE’s Jack Welch) and unsuccessful (HP’s Carly Fiorina) technology CEOs, Mulcahy works hard to focus the attention on the two audiences who most greatly steer her company’s success – customers and employees. In fact, her first comment on the podium was to thank the members of the audience who are Xerox customers for their support. “We will continue to work hard to earn your business,” Mulcahy promised.
Since rising to the president/COO position in May 2000, Anne has made tough decisions about Xerox’s focus in the market, its staff levels, cost cutting and its areas of investment. Those decisions have paid off. Xerox's profits are up, thanks to rising sales of color printers and copiers, as well as a new focus on services, which now account for 20% of revenue.
A few other observations from Mulcahy’s key note worth noting:
1. Nearly 60 percent of Xerox’s $16B in worldwide revenue is derived from products introduced in the past two years. Mulcahy stressed the importance of R&D and innovation in helping a company retain its leadership, while giving its employees interesting and exciting new initiatives to tackle. Equally important, Xerox is validating the positive impact of its investment in R&D through their PR/promotional activities.
2. Mulcahy’s first corporate position at Xerox was VP, Human Resources from 1992 to 1995. This is quite a surprise when you consider that most executives rise to the CEO position through finance and sales/marketing.
Long after Mulcahy’s specific comments have faded from memory, I will retain the impression she truly loves Xerox and is committed to the company’s success. That means serving customers and employees, often at the expense of her ego and reputation.
Posted by jeffM
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May 31, 2005, 12:34 pm
Always Someone to Fight
Business is filled with competitors…some real, some imagined.
This was my initial reaction after reading the Fortune cover story titled "Gates vs. Google: Search and Destroy." Senior writer Fred Vogelstein provides an interesting narrative of Microsoft’s realization that Google has emerged as more than a worthy competitor in the search market, but as a potential threat to their dominance of the desktop.
From Bill Gates rooting around Google’s Web site studying the technical qualifications of job specs to a host of their executives acknowledging that Google’s success is causing a corporate identity crisis in Redmond, it’s apparent that Microsoft has grown fanatical about knocking Google off.
“Google is interesting not just because of Web search, but because they’re going to try to take that and use it to get into other parts of software,” Gates tells Fortune’s Vogelstein. “They are more like us than anyone else we have ever competed with.”
Let’s be realistic about this. Microsoft should certainly have a healthy paranoia about Google, but what is with this obsession? With nearly $40B in annual revenue, Microsoft is ten times Google’s size. And let’s not forget about the $34B in cash Microsoft has on hand.
Even Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, and CEO Eric Schmidt acknowledge to Fortune that any talk of them unseating Microsoft is Harry Potter-like fantasy.
The typical market leader stance is to avoid acknowledging competitors by name as that merely validates their credibility and positioning. Cisco’s John Chambers has that strategy down pat. When asked by Network Computing magazine about the company he perceives to be their most formidable competitor, Chambers responded, “We track a lot (of companies). But the last thing I’m going to do is give them any credit.”
I suspect Microsoft’s leadership has concluded the internal energy and momentum generated by rallying against a perceived foe outweighs the validation they are conferring to Google.
It reminds me of a scene from the film Gladiator starring Russell Crowe. After finally crushing the Barbarian tribes in Germania, Maximus stands before Emperor Marcus Aurelius and says, “There is no one left to fight, Sire.”
To this, Marcus replies, “There is always someone left to fight.”
This was my initial reaction after reading the Fortune cover story titled "Gates vs. Google: Search and Destroy." Senior writer Fred Vogelstein provides an interesting narrative of Microsoft’s realization that Google has emerged as more than a worthy competitor in the search market, but as a potential threat to their dominance of the desktop.
From Bill Gates rooting around Google’s Web site studying the technical qualifications of job specs to a host of their executives acknowledging that Google’s success is causing a corporate identity crisis in Redmond, it’s apparent that Microsoft has grown fanatical about knocking Google off.
“Google is interesting not just because of Web search, but because they’re going to try to take that and use it to get into other parts of software,” Gates tells Fortune’s Vogelstein. “They are more like us than anyone else we have ever competed with.”
Let’s be realistic about this. Microsoft should certainly have a healthy paranoia about Google, but what is with this obsession? With nearly $40B in annual revenue, Microsoft is ten times Google’s size. And let’s not forget about the $34B in cash Microsoft has on hand.
Even Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, and CEO Eric Schmidt acknowledge to Fortune that any talk of them unseating Microsoft is Harry Potter-like fantasy.
The typical market leader stance is to avoid acknowledging competitors by name as that merely validates their credibility and positioning. Cisco’s John Chambers has that strategy down pat. When asked by Network Computing magazine about the company he perceives to be their most formidable competitor, Chambers responded, “We track a lot (of companies). But the last thing I’m going to do is give them any credit.”
I suspect Microsoft’s leadership has concluded the internal energy and momentum generated by rallying against a perceived foe outweighs the validation they are conferring to Google.
It reminds me of a scene from the film Gladiator starring Russell Crowe. After finally crushing the Barbarian tribes in Germania, Maximus stands before Emperor Marcus Aurelius and says, “There is no one left to fight, Sire.”
To this, Marcus replies, “There is always someone left to fight.”
Posted by jeffM
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May 2, 2005, 2:46 pm
High Impact of Word-of-Mouth
Case studies are a staple of how companies market themselves because a customer success story is often the next best thing to a personal referral. Convincing customers to participate in a case study though can be quite the challenge and, in certain markets, near impossible.
What if you could motivate your customers to spread the good word about your products and services without constant prodding? Is it even possible to create an environment in which positive word-of-mouth about your company’s performance lessens the case study requirement?
Word-of-mouth has big time impact on sales, profitability and corporate valuation. Boston-based marketing firm BzzAgent recently reported that 27 percent of all conversations include a personal recommendation. While consultants at McKinsey & Company believe two-thirds of all economic activity is influenced by shared opinions about a product, brand or service.
Advocates of this type of viral marketing even have their own trade group – the Word-of-Mouth Marketing Association or WOMMA. Although more consumer oriented, this Chicago-based industry advocate has attracted tier-one business-to-business marketers like Dell and Motorola.
Logic demands that customers reticent about participating in a case study would not be inclined to talk up your company and its solutions. However, with a creative approach and a gentle nudge you may be able to motivate some word-of-mouth buzz:
1. Excite your customers with the thrill of trying out new marketing-related technologies. Don’t underestimate the “cool” factor. Blogs are mainstream, so how about partnering with your customers to set up a wiki on a topic relevant to your products.
2. Make your customer user group a high prestige organization by promoting it through your company’s traditional marketing, advertising and public relations programs. As its reputation expands, encourage user group members to proactively discuss the company and issues of importance.
3. Introduce “Tryvertising” to your marketing mix. If possible, offer up a trial run of your product or service as a means of converting prospects to customers and, equally important, sparking discussion in the market.
What if you could motivate your customers to spread the good word about your products and services without constant prodding? Is it even possible to create an environment in which positive word-of-mouth about your company’s performance lessens the case study requirement?
Word-of-mouth has big time impact on sales, profitability and corporate valuation. Boston-based marketing firm BzzAgent recently reported that 27 percent of all conversations include a personal recommendation. While consultants at McKinsey & Company believe two-thirds of all economic activity is influenced by shared opinions about a product, brand or service.
Advocates of this type of viral marketing even have their own trade group – the Word-of-Mouth Marketing Association or WOMMA. Although more consumer oriented, this Chicago-based industry advocate has attracted tier-one business-to-business marketers like Dell and Motorola.
Logic demands that customers reticent about participating in a case study would not be inclined to talk up your company and its solutions. However, with a creative approach and a gentle nudge you may be able to motivate some word-of-mouth buzz:
1. Excite your customers with the thrill of trying out new marketing-related technologies. Don’t underestimate the “cool” factor. Blogs are mainstream, so how about partnering with your customers to set up a wiki on a topic relevant to your products.
2. Make your customer user group a high prestige organization by promoting it through your company’s traditional marketing, advertising and public relations programs. As its reputation expands, encourage user group members to proactively discuss the company and issues of importance.
3. Introduce “Tryvertising” to your marketing mix. If possible, offer up a trial run of your product or service as a means of converting prospects to customers and, equally important, sparking discussion in the market.
Posted by jeffM
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April 11, 2005, 1:39 am
It's Good to be the King
The FOSE trade show rolled into Washington, DC this past week. Among its rows of 10x10’ booths and crowds of government administrative personnel shoving free pens into their CDWG-branded bags, was an excellent group of key note speakers.
Speakers may be the most valuable aspect of the super-sized industry conferences because of the insight they share about their company’s positioning, messaging, thought leadership and to-market strategy. It is often more than what you find in press releases with their sterilized quotes. It’s also interesting to hear the companies a speaker acknowledges as competitors and who gets dismissed as an afterthought.
My schedule prevented me from catching Paul Otellini of INTEL or Kevin Rollins of Dell, but I was there 30 minutes early to hear what Bill McDermott of SAP America had to say about the enterprise applications market in government.
I can sum up Bill’s presentation in a single sentence: it’s good to be the king.
While the Oracle/Peoplesoft/JD Edwards/Retek combination company poses a legitimate number two in the market, they’ll be sending much of the next few years figuring out how to integrate their products while maintaining their existing customer set. Yes…greater market share is primed for SAP’s taking. Bill knows it. SAP’s competitors know it. And the FOSE audience last Thursday knew it.
What did Bill do? He got on the offensive in his presentation…big time. Here are a few of Bill’s suggestions to the senior government executives in the audience:
“It’s too risky and too hard to have too many vendors providing complex technology. It is critical for customers to focus on working only with the market leaders.”
“The best of breed strategy has failed and will never succeed again. Supply chain companies like i2 and Manugistics, and pure play CRM vendors are irrelevant.”
“Open systems are critical, but the focus of interoperability has to be on the market leaders, like SAP and Microsoft.”
“The next 9 to 12 months will determine the future of the enterprise applications business.”
“SAP has 10,000 developers working every day to improve SAP products. That’s a tremendous investment in R&D and the traits of a market leader.”
Bill is a bit arrogant. And I don’t believe its curtains just yet for best of breed because true innovation is rarely delivered by a company as large as SAP. When you are a market leader though you are suppose to act like one. That means creating fear and doubt in the minds of customers about any company not on the top of the hill.
Speakers may be the most valuable aspect of the super-sized industry conferences because of the insight they share about their company’s positioning, messaging, thought leadership and to-market strategy. It is often more than what you find in press releases with their sterilized quotes. It’s also interesting to hear the companies a speaker acknowledges as competitors and who gets dismissed as an afterthought.
My schedule prevented me from catching Paul Otellini of INTEL or Kevin Rollins of Dell, but I was there 30 minutes early to hear what Bill McDermott of SAP America had to say about the enterprise applications market in government.
I can sum up Bill’s presentation in a single sentence: it’s good to be the king.
While the Oracle/Peoplesoft/JD Edwards/Retek combination company poses a legitimate number two in the market, they’ll be sending much of the next few years figuring out how to integrate their products while maintaining their existing customer set. Yes…greater market share is primed for SAP’s taking. Bill knows it. SAP’s competitors know it. And the FOSE audience last Thursday knew it.
What did Bill do? He got on the offensive in his presentation…big time. Here are a few of Bill’s suggestions to the senior government executives in the audience:
“It’s too risky and too hard to have too many vendors providing complex technology. It is critical for customers to focus on working only with the market leaders.”
“The best of breed strategy has failed and will never succeed again. Supply chain companies like i2 and Manugistics, and pure play CRM vendors are irrelevant.”
“Open systems are critical, but the focus of interoperability has to be on the market leaders, like SAP and Microsoft.”
“The next 9 to 12 months will determine the future of the enterprise applications business.”
“SAP has 10,000 developers working every day to improve SAP products. That’s a tremendous investment in R&D and the traits of a market leader.”
Bill is a bit arrogant. And I don’t believe its curtains just yet for best of breed because true innovation is rarely delivered by a company as large as SAP. When you are a market leader though you are suppose to act like one. That means creating fear and doubt in the minds of customers about any company not on the top of the hill.
Posted by jeffM
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April 4, 2005, 8:02 pm
Online Referral Networks Go B2B
Toss the brand. Throw out operational efficiency. Do away with HR and employee relations. The driver of business is sales. Without revenue, everything else is irrelevant.
Implementing effective sales programs are the bane of most companies. Selling is hard and often unpleasant. No one likes the rejection that comes with lead generation or, worse, the silent void of no response from targeted prospects.
That’s why sales executives constantly scour the market for new strategies and tools to improve their success. This ongoing quest gave rise to the corporate social networking market, comprised of vendors like LinkedIn , Ryze and Knowmentum . These sites allow professionals to increase a company’s circle of contacts while providing the ability to view contacts in their network at various degrees of separation.
A relatively new market entry is Jigsaw Data which, unlike other online referral networks, is dedicated to serving the sales professional. Jigsaw helps its 5,000 members short-cut the amount of time it takes to identify the right target at a company to contact with a sales pitch.
Jigsaw has an interesting business model as the company taps into the collective contacts of its membership to populate its database. It is an impressive database that includes more than 440,000 contacts at 45,000 companies.
Admittedly, I am suspect of any attempt to automate the relationship-building process. Meaningful business relationships are forged over time on a foundation of mutual value.
As such, Strategic’s team invests a tremendous amount of time and energy managing the agency’s Network of Relationships® to deliver measurable business development results for our clients. We facilitate one-on-one connections with “dealmakers” based on our client’s business goals, and then provide a level of intelligence (along with the supporting credibility garnered through public relations) to ensure the introduction leads to a productive dialogue.
Jigsaw is worth checking out though and at $25 per month the fee is in line with the value proposition. Just keep in mind that in a business-to-business or business-to-government sales environment identifying the right contact is just the first part of a multi-step process.
Implementing effective sales programs are the bane of most companies. Selling is hard and often unpleasant. No one likes the rejection that comes with lead generation or, worse, the silent void of no response from targeted prospects.
That’s why sales executives constantly scour the market for new strategies and tools to improve their success. This ongoing quest gave rise to the corporate social networking market, comprised of vendors like LinkedIn , Ryze and Knowmentum . These sites allow professionals to increase a company’s circle of contacts while providing the ability to view contacts in their network at various degrees of separation.
A relatively new market entry is Jigsaw Data which, unlike other online referral networks, is dedicated to serving the sales professional. Jigsaw helps its 5,000 members short-cut the amount of time it takes to identify the right target at a company to contact with a sales pitch.
Jigsaw has an interesting business model as the company taps into the collective contacts of its membership to populate its database. It is an impressive database that includes more than 440,000 contacts at 45,000 companies.
Admittedly, I am suspect of any attempt to automate the relationship-building process. Meaningful business relationships are forged over time on a foundation of mutual value.
As such, Strategic’s team invests a tremendous amount of time and energy managing the agency’s Network of Relationships® to deliver measurable business development results for our clients. We facilitate one-on-one connections with “dealmakers” based on our client’s business goals, and then provide a level of intelligence (along with the supporting credibility garnered through public relations) to ensure the introduction leads to a productive dialogue.
Jigsaw is worth checking out though and at $25 per month the fee is in line with the value proposition. Just keep in mind that in a business-to-business or business-to-government sales environment identifying the right contact is just the first part of a multi-step process.
Posted by jeffM
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March 21, 2005, 4:01 pm
India's Lost Groove
It looks like India’s outsourcing market may have lost a bit of its groove.
It was bound to happen. Exploding growth during the past few years combined with a defined pool of talent has resulted in mounting salary costs, high staff turnover rates and poorer delivery of service. As a result, many North American and European-based companies are now evaluating other emerging markets, such as Vietnam, China and Philippines, for their IT, customer service and call center, and administrative support requirements.
This is distressing news for Indian-based offshore market leaders like Tata , Wipro and HCL Technologies . That’s because they have established low price as the foundation of their value proposition, without significant brand investments to build trust and confidence in the minds of their key audiences (customers, partners, employees and investors).
When a company makes doing business about price, it run the risk of customers finding someone willing to provide a comparable product or service for less. And that is a no win market environment defined by eroding margins and customer churn. (Just ask the folks still providing long distance telecommunications service.)
The Indian IT community should take a lesson from Dell. Yes…they sell on price competitiveness, but they clearly explain to the market through advertising, public relations and other promotional activities how they are able to deliver a high-quality, performance machine for less. (They have one heck of an efficient supply chain .)
At the end of the day, people do business with companies they know and trust. As a business owner and buyer of technology products, I trust Dell. Wipro…Tata…HCL…I’m not so sure.
It was bound to happen. Exploding growth during the past few years combined with a defined pool of talent has resulted in mounting salary costs, high staff turnover rates and poorer delivery of service. As a result, many North American and European-based companies are now evaluating other emerging markets, such as Vietnam, China and Philippines, for their IT, customer service and call center, and administrative support requirements.
This is distressing news for Indian-based offshore market leaders like Tata , Wipro and HCL Technologies . That’s because they have established low price as the foundation of their value proposition, without significant brand investments to build trust and confidence in the minds of their key audiences (customers, partners, employees and investors).
When a company makes doing business about price, it run the risk of customers finding someone willing to provide a comparable product or service for less. And that is a no win market environment defined by eroding margins and customer churn. (Just ask the folks still providing long distance telecommunications service.)
The Indian IT community should take a lesson from Dell. Yes…they sell on price competitiveness, but they clearly explain to the market through advertising, public relations and other promotional activities how they are able to deliver a high-quality, performance machine for less. (They have one heck of an efficient supply chain .)
At the end of the day, people do business with companies they know and trust. As a business owner and buyer of technology products, I trust Dell. Wipro…Tata…HCL…I’m not so sure.
Posted by jeffM
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March 7, 2005, 2:07 pm
US Slips in Technology
There’s nothing subtle about Bill Archey. The President and CEO of the AeA – the largest technology association in the country with more than 3,000 member companies – delivers a message with the not-so-gentle “WAP” of a sledgehammer.
The AeA’s new cry of alarm is about the shrinking gap in technology innovation and competitiveness between the United States and the rest of the world, particularly China, India and Eastern Europe. And after hearing a presentation from Archey and reading the AeA’s new report on the topic, I think a ***** on the head is exactly what we need.
Simply put, America is losing its science and technical leadership and without significant action may one day be relegated to a me-too standing in the world economy. Consider the following:
--According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, graduating high school seniors in the United States tested 19 out of 21 countries in math and science proficiency.
--China now graduates four times as many engineers as the US while India awards roughly 20,000 more engineering degrees a year than we do.
--The National Science Foundation reports that federal funding of R&D as a percent of GDP has slipped from 1.25 percent in 1985 to .75 percent in 2002.
--Nearly seven out of 100 people in the US have broadband access. Compare that to South Korea with more than 20 percent broadband penetration, Hong Kong with 15 percent and Taiwan with 10 percent.
No other industry has more of an impact on our lives than technology. At Strategic Communications Group (Strategic), we represent a group of companies in innovative markets like Voice over IP (VoIP), global satellite telecommunications, broadband content delivery search, smart card biometrics and RFID. This is the reason why I truly enjoy what I do for a living and why the AeA report is so startling.
We need to recognize that future science and technology leadership is not predetermined to occur in the United States. Technology, software and telecommunications companies are built on innovation, access to capital, effective marketing and sales, and a whole lot of hard work.
Bill, thanks for the “WAP.”
The AeA’s new cry of alarm is about the shrinking gap in technology innovation and competitiveness between the United States and the rest of the world, particularly China, India and Eastern Europe. And after hearing a presentation from Archey and reading the AeA’s new report on the topic, I think a ***** on the head is exactly what we need.
Simply put, America is losing its science and technical leadership and without significant action may one day be relegated to a me-too standing in the world economy. Consider the following:
--According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, graduating high school seniors in the United States tested 19 out of 21 countries in math and science proficiency.
--China now graduates four times as many engineers as the US while India awards roughly 20,000 more engineering degrees a year than we do.
--The National Science Foundation reports that federal funding of R&D as a percent of GDP has slipped from 1.25 percent in 1985 to .75 percent in 2002.
--Nearly seven out of 100 people in the US have broadband access. Compare that to South Korea with more than 20 percent broadband penetration, Hong Kong with 15 percent and Taiwan with 10 percent.
No other industry has more of an impact on our lives than technology. At Strategic Communications Group (Strategic), we represent a group of companies in innovative markets like Voice over IP (VoIP), global satellite telecommunications, broadband content delivery search, smart card biometrics and RFID. This is the reason why I truly enjoy what I do for a living and why the AeA report is so startling.
We need to recognize that future science and technology leadership is not predetermined to occur in the United States. Technology, software and telecommunications companies are built on innovation, access to capital, effective marketing and sales, and a whole lot of hard work.
Bill, thanks for the “WAP.”
Posted by jeffM
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February 21, 2005, 2:02 pm
Our Own Private Peer Review
With the level of business and trade media exposure Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) generates for its clients, it is inevitable that from time to time an executive we represent will feel slighted by the press. Whether it is a misquote, a comment taken out of context or inaccurate information, publications typically have a process to address these issues.
The foundation of quality and accurate reporting is the editorial review process most news sources adhere to. A reporter can’t simply write content and post it online or forward it to the production department for inclusion in the print edition. Rather, there are copyeditors, editors and (for the mainstream business press) fact checkers who pour over each word to ensure accuracy.
Granted, many publications lean to the political left or the right in their editorial and analysis, but any journalist of merit subscribes to the importance of peer review. This is why a break down in this system – such as the editorial fraud committed by the New York Times’ Jayson Blair – is so devastating to the reputation of the journalist and the publication.
In the blogosphere, however, there is no peer review. Five minutes after downloading blog-enabling software , a writer can take aim at anyone they choose without the requirement for fact or validity. Worse yet, a blogger can hide behind a pseudonym, essentially ducking any blowback that might come their way for making dubious comments.
The recent resignation of CNN news executive Eason Jordan is a recent example of what’s bad about blogging. Regardless of the true nature Jordan’s comments at the World Economic Forum, his 23-year career at CNN was snuffed out by an online community turned rabid by emotion.
Steve Lovelady, managing editor of CJR Daily (the Web site of The Columbia Journalism Review), got it right when he told the New York Times, “The salivating morons who make up the lynch mob prevail.”
As a blogger, I believe it’s my responsibility to be passionate, opinionated and (when appropriate) controversial. But, I do my best to research and review from credible sources before posting content. And I always identify who I am and my motivations.
Use these evaluation criteria when reviewing blogs and assessing their credibility. And always remember: don’t believe everything you read.
The foundation of quality and accurate reporting is the editorial review process most news sources adhere to. A reporter can’t simply write content and post it online or forward it to the production department for inclusion in the print edition. Rather, there are copyeditors, editors and (for the mainstream business press) fact checkers who pour over each word to ensure accuracy.
Granted, many publications lean to the political left or the right in their editorial and analysis, but any journalist of merit subscribes to the importance of peer review. This is why a break down in this system – such as the editorial fraud committed by the New York Times’ Jayson Blair – is so devastating to the reputation of the journalist and the publication.
In the blogosphere, however, there is no peer review. Five minutes after downloading blog-enabling software , a writer can take aim at anyone they choose without the requirement for fact or validity. Worse yet, a blogger can hide behind a pseudonym, essentially ducking any blowback that might come their way for making dubious comments.
The recent resignation of CNN news executive Eason Jordan is a recent example of what’s bad about blogging. Regardless of the true nature Jordan’s comments at the World Economic Forum, his 23-year career at CNN was snuffed out by an online community turned rabid by emotion.
Steve Lovelady, managing editor of CJR Daily (the Web site of The Columbia Journalism Review), got it right when he told the New York Times, “The salivating morons who make up the lynch mob prevail.”
As a blogger, I believe it’s my responsibility to be passionate, opinionated and (when appropriate) controversial. But, I do my best to research and review from credible sources before posting content. And I always identify who I am and my motivations.
Use these evaluation criteria when reviewing blogs and assessing their credibility. And always remember: don’t believe everything you read.
Posted by jeffM
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February 14, 2005, 4:05 pm
What’s the story?
Grasping at straws…searching for an angle…a big so what?
That was my reaction to an article titled “For Insider Player, DC Contacts Pay Off” written by Serge Kovaleski in the Metro section of the Washington Post on Sunday, February 13th.
Kovaleski writes about Max Brown, former legal counsel and deputy chief of staff to DC mayor Anthony Williams, who now runs a lobbying and public relations firm called Group 360. Not surprising (except to Kovaleski and the editors at the Washington Post) is the fact the Group 360’s client base consists of companies that have business interests with the District government and the DC government itself, specifically its Office of the Chief Technology Officer and Department of Consumer & Regulatory Affairs.
In an attempt to caste a shadow of impropriety on Brown and the District of Columbia, the articles wanders through a series of corporate contracts Group 360 ****s for lobbying services, as well as the fees the firm has been paid by the DC government for marketing/public relations work.
To Kovaleski’s credit to provide a fair and balanced article he does include a couple of relevant facts in the article that discount the validity of his reporting. For instance, Kovaleski acknowledges that “District law does not prohibit individuals from lobbying the DC government while also receiving contracts from the city…”
In regard to a DC government contract Group 360 received that prequalifies the firm to bid on a list of projects without having to go through the usual bureaucratic procedures, Kovaleski reports that 11 other companies also received a similar prequalification.
My takeaway from this article is that Max Brown is someone who successfully built deep, long-standing relationships with decision-makers in the DC government and is now leveraging those connections in a legal, appropriate way in his consulting practice.
Don’t we all do this to some extent? Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) certainly does. In fact, we’ve productized the value of our market connections via the Strategic Network of Relationships®.
I believe in two things: 1) the world works on relationships; and 2) people do business with companies they know and trust. Our mission at Strategic – like Max Brown’s at Group 360 – is to help our clients promote their interests through PR/communications counsel and access to our industry connections.
That was my reaction to an article titled “For Insider Player, DC Contacts Pay Off” written by Serge Kovaleski in the Metro section of the Washington Post on Sunday, February 13th.
Kovaleski writes about Max Brown, former legal counsel and deputy chief of staff to DC mayor Anthony Williams, who now runs a lobbying and public relations firm called Group 360. Not surprising (except to Kovaleski and the editors at the Washington Post) is the fact the Group 360’s client base consists of companies that have business interests with the District government and the DC government itself, specifically its Office of the Chief Technology Officer and Department of Consumer & Regulatory Affairs.
In an attempt to caste a shadow of impropriety on Brown and the District of Columbia, the articles wanders through a series of corporate contracts Group 360 ****s for lobbying services, as well as the fees the firm has been paid by the DC government for marketing/public relations work.
To Kovaleski’s credit to provide a fair and balanced article he does include a couple of relevant facts in the article that discount the validity of his reporting. For instance, Kovaleski acknowledges that “District law does not prohibit individuals from lobbying the DC government while also receiving contracts from the city…”
In regard to a DC government contract Group 360 received that prequalifies the firm to bid on a list of projects without having to go through the usual bureaucratic procedures, Kovaleski reports that 11 other companies also received a similar prequalification.
My takeaway from this article is that Max Brown is someone who successfully built deep, long-standing relationships with decision-makers in the DC government and is now leveraging those connections in a legal, appropriate way in his consulting practice.
Don’t we all do this to some extent? Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) certainly does. In fact, we’ve productized the value of our market connections via the Strategic Network of Relationships®.
I believe in two things: 1) the world works on relationships; and 2) people do business with companies they know and trust. Our mission at Strategic – like Max Brown’s at Group 360 – is to help our clients promote their interests through PR/communications counsel and access to our industry connections.
Posted by jeffM
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February 7, 2005, 2:14 pm
Edelman Speaks
Do you remember when it was all the rage to be a first mover?
Most companies soon learned that while a first mover advantage can help build market awareness, it rarely translates into sales. It’s the market followers that typically benefit from the path blazed by an industry pioneer.
Consider Google. They didn’t invent the online advertising market. Rather, they perfected the technology and the business model at just the right time, based on lessons learned from the industry’s first movers. Google recently reported quarterly revenue of $1.032 billion with income topping $300 million.
Four years ago Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) became the first public relations firm to productize its full suite of industry connections to provide measurable value to its clients. Branded the Strategic Network of Relationships®, it is the foundation of the agency’s business development offering and helps us more directly contribute to our clients’ sales, profitability, and corporate and/or product valuation goals.
And it’s more than a six degrees of Kevin Bacon type offering like LinkedIn and Friendster. In addition to facilitating one-on-one introductions with executives who can make a buy from, partner with, work for or invest in decision, we provide market intelligence and counsel designed to make the connection result in business value and return.
We have felt first mover pains. It took longer than expected to convince our clients to view us as more than their PR service provider. We’ve come up short on new business pitches even though Strategic’s Network of Relationships gave us a compelling differentiation. And I’ve had many respected business executives tell me that what companies want is someone to help them with their PR.
Most recently, Richard Edelman, president and CEO of the world’s largest independent public relations firm, sent me an Email explaining the right model for a PR agency is to be “of counsel, not middle men.”
That may work for Edelman as they manage communications globally for their Fortune 500 clients. But, the clients we are most successful representing demand more from their communications partner.
A firm that merely provides counsel and tactical execution is a public relations service provider. Contribute to your client’s sales, profitability and valuation in a measurable way and you are a true business partner.
Most companies soon learned that while a first mover advantage can help build market awareness, it rarely translates into sales. It’s the market followers that typically benefit from the path blazed by an industry pioneer.
Consider Google. They didn’t invent the online advertising market. Rather, they perfected the technology and the business model at just the right time, based on lessons learned from the industry’s first movers. Google recently reported quarterly revenue of $1.032 billion with income topping $300 million.
Four years ago Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) became the first public relations firm to productize its full suite of industry connections to provide measurable value to its clients. Branded the Strategic Network of Relationships®, it is the foundation of the agency’s business development offering and helps us more directly contribute to our clients’ sales, profitability, and corporate and/or product valuation goals.
And it’s more than a six degrees of Kevin Bacon type offering like LinkedIn and Friendster. In addition to facilitating one-on-one introductions with executives who can make a buy from, partner with, work for or invest in decision, we provide market intelligence and counsel designed to make the connection result in business value and return.
We have felt first mover pains. It took longer than expected to convince our clients to view us as more than their PR service provider. We’ve come up short on new business pitches even though Strategic’s Network of Relationships gave us a compelling differentiation. And I’ve had many respected business executives tell me that what companies want is someone to help them with their PR.
Most recently, Richard Edelman, president and CEO of the world’s largest independent public relations firm, sent me an Email explaining the right model for a PR agency is to be “of counsel, not middle men.”
That may work for Edelman as they manage communications globally for their Fortune 500 clients. But, the clients we are most successful representing demand more from their communications partner.
A firm that merely provides counsel and tactical execution is a public relations service provider. Contribute to your client’s sales, profitability and valuation in a measurable way and you are a true business partner.
Posted by jeffM
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January 31, 2005, 3:07 pm
Bush's PR Spend Unjustly Criticized
A new report by the minority staff of the House Government Reform Committee criticized the Bush Administration for spending more than $88M in government-funded public relations contracts in 2004, a 128 percent increase from 2000.
The authors of the report wrote, "This rapid rise in public relations spending at a time of growing budget deficits raises questions about the priorities of the administration.”
The report was requested by Henry Waxman (D-California), Nancy Pelosi (D-California), among others. Waxman has also commissioned the Government Accountability Office to further investigate public relations contracts.
There is no doubt much needs to be corrected about how government agencies utilize public relations to communicate, educate and inform key constituents. For instance, the recent controversy surrounding the Department of Education’s payments to pundit Armstrong Williams through PR consultancy Ketchum has reinforced the bitter reaction that results from a lack of disclosure of the source of information.
However, the House Government Reform Committee gets it way wrong by suggesting PR spending is not a good investment by our government. At a time when the current Administration has implemented new foreign policies resulting in ongoing military conflict in the Middle East, as well as introducing goals for a dramatic overhaul to Social Security more communications is needed, not less.
Yes…the messaging and communications by our government must be accurate, fair and comprehensive -- even when the news isn’t so great. These are the foundation principles of ethical public relations and put into action will stimulate debate in the US and abroad.
(Please note, Strategic does not currently provide public relations services to any government agency, but has done so in the past.)
The authors of the report wrote, "This rapid rise in public relations spending at a time of growing budget deficits raises questions about the priorities of the administration.”
The report was requested by Henry Waxman (D-California), Nancy Pelosi (D-California), among others. Waxman has also commissioned the Government Accountability Office to further investigate public relations contracts.
There is no doubt much needs to be corrected about how government agencies utilize public relations to communicate, educate and inform key constituents. For instance, the recent controversy surrounding the Department of Education’s payments to pundit Armstrong Williams through PR consultancy Ketchum has reinforced the bitter reaction that results from a lack of disclosure of the source of information.
However, the House Government Reform Committee gets it way wrong by suggesting PR spending is not a good investment by our government. At a time when the current Administration has implemented new foreign policies resulting in ongoing military conflict in the Middle East, as well as introducing goals for a dramatic overhaul to Social Security more communications is needed, not less.
Yes…the messaging and communications by our government must be accurate, fair and comprehensive -- even when the news isn’t so great. These are the foundation principles of ethical public relations and put into action will stimulate debate in the US and abroad.
(Please note, Strategic does not currently provide public relations services to any government agency, but has done so in the past.)
Posted by jeffM
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January 24, 2005, 2:22 pm
Good Buzz for Buzzwords
Every couple of months there is a journalist gone bleary eyed from reading one too many press releases that believes it is original to weigh in about how buzzwords have overrun communications from technology companies.
A recent example is the Associated Press whose January 17th article “Defining tongue-twisting tech buzzwords” was picked up by CNN.com. An unidentified writer cites a number of expert resources who criticize technology companies for their use of words like “solutions”, “enterprise” and “scalable” in marketing materials.
I am the first to admit most technology companies (and their public relations agencies) need to simplify messaging to the market. Admittedly, this is one of the things we struggle with at times at Strategic Communications Group (Strategic).
However, most so-called technology buzzwords are 100 percent appropriate to use in communications because they mean something relevant to a company’s key audiences – customers, prospects, share****ers and employees.
Let’s take “solutions” as an example. Corporate and government buyers of information technology and telecommunications consistently tell vendors this is what they want, rather than products or services. Make it easy for me to use, give me a competitive advantage and make sure the return on investment is measurable, they say.
How about “enterprise?” Again, this is the word customers use to define something that will be implemented throughout their company. Vendors are merely using the language that establishes comfort with the customer.
Sports are another industry overrun with buzz words. It is where players take it “one game at a time” and “give 110 percent.” Yet, no one seems to have a problem with phrases like “double play” or “slam dunk.” Why? Because they mean something relevant to the audience.
A recent example is the Associated Press whose January 17th article “Defining tongue-twisting tech buzzwords” was picked up by CNN.com. An unidentified writer cites a number of expert resources who criticize technology companies for their use of words like “solutions”, “enterprise” and “scalable” in marketing materials.
I am the first to admit most technology companies (and their public relations agencies) need to simplify messaging to the market. Admittedly, this is one of the things we struggle with at times at Strategic Communications Group (Strategic).
However, most so-called technology buzzwords are 100 percent appropriate to use in communications because they mean something relevant to a company’s key audiences – customers, prospects, share****ers and employees.
Let’s take “solutions” as an example. Corporate and government buyers of information technology and telecommunications consistently tell vendors this is what they want, rather than products or services. Make it easy for me to use, give me a competitive advantage and make sure the return on investment is measurable, they say.
How about “enterprise?” Again, this is the word customers use to define something that will be implemented throughout their company. Vendors are merely using the language that establishes comfort with the customer.
Sports are another industry overrun with buzz words. It is where players take it “one game at a time” and “give 110 percent.” Yet, no one seems to have a problem with phrases like “double play” or “slam dunk.” Why? Because they mean something relevant to the audience.
Posted by jeffM
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January 17, 2005, 8:01 pm
Sincerity in Business
I’ve had two guiding beliefs in my professional career: 1) the world works on relationships and 2) people do business with companies (and people) they know and trust.
The lines of service that Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) provides to its clients – public relations and business development – have these principles as their foundation. In fact, we productized and then branded our suite of industry connections as the Strategic Network of Relationships®.
Much of establishing a meaningful business relationship is connecting with someone on a personal level. Getting to know who they are and learning what’s important to them in life (family, sports, where they grew up, etc.) and, conversely, sharing what’s important to you.
I am always quick to talk about my wife and son because they are such wonderful influences on who I am as a person. I also hope it helps people see me as a husband and father, not merely a service provider, business partner or employer.
Timing and sincerity makes this all work. For instance, I would probably **** off on the “warm and fuzzies” during a first call with a new business prospect. There just hasn’t been enough connection yet.
That’s why I was a bit surprised when Ken deLaski offered up the following during his 30 minute presentation at last Friday’s ACG National Capital monthly breakfast meeting: he’s the father of two daughters, he went through tremendous personal discovery in taking his company Deltek private in 2002, and his wife is winning her battle with lung cancer. All of this shared to a room of 125 senior corporate executives, most of whom have no relationship with Ken.
Deltek is a former client and I had lunch with Ken a couple years back. He is as professional as they come and a CPA by training. Not really someone who wears his heart on his sleeve.
However, his personal and professional experiences these past few years have certainly changed him. This is what I’ll remember from his presentation.
Deltek has fine products and it’s the 800 pound gorilla in a niche market – ERP software for project-based business. Equally important, I get the sense Deltek respects its employees and customers, and is sincere in its business dealings. And that starts at the top with Ken.
The lines of service that Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) provides to its clients – public relations and business development – have these principles as their foundation. In fact, we productized and then branded our suite of industry connections as the Strategic Network of Relationships®.
Much of establishing a meaningful business relationship is connecting with someone on a personal level. Getting to know who they are and learning what’s important to them in life (family, sports, where they grew up, etc.) and, conversely, sharing what’s important to you.
I am always quick to talk about my wife and son because they are such wonderful influences on who I am as a person. I also hope it helps people see me as a husband and father, not merely a service provider, business partner or employer.
Timing and sincerity makes this all work. For instance, I would probably **** off on the “warm and fuzzies” during a first call with a new business prospect. There just hasn’t been enough connection yet.
That’s why I was a bit surprised when Ken deLaski offered up the following during his 30 minute presentation at last Friday’s ACG National Capital monthly breakfast meeting: he’s the father of two daughters, he went through tremendous personal discovery in taking his company Deltek private in 2002, and his wife is winning her battle with lung cancer. All of this shared to a room of 125 senior corporate executives, most of whom have no relationship with Ken.
Deltek is a former client and I had lunch with Ken a couple years back. He is as professional as they come and a CPA by training. Not really someone who wears his heart on his sleeve.
However, his personal and professional experiences these past few years have certainly changed him. This is what I’ll remember from his presentation.
Deltek has fine products and it’s the 800 pound gorilla in a niche market – ERP software for project-based business. Equally important, I get the sense Deltek respects its employees and customers, and is sincere in its business dealings. And that starts at the top with Ken.
Posted by jeffM
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January 9, 2005, 5:00 am
Eliot Spitzer is a scary guy
Granted, he has done a lot of good to clean up business. Spitzer transformed the New York Attorney General’s office into a catalyst for change and has successfully taken on long-entrenched, powerful and bureaucratic industries such as investment banking and mutual funds. His ability to rapidly affect change is stunning.
However, Spitzer’s motivations have nothing to do with being a so-called champion for the people. He is all about Spitzer and his own personal interests – whether it is his political aspirations or the power showdowns he relishes with the business elite.
Consider his suit against former NYSE-board member Kenneth Langone for signing off on a $187.5 million pay package for Richard Grasso, former head of the exchange. According to Newsweek, Spitzer delivered a message to Langone by having a mutual acquaintance tell him that he intended to “put a spike through (his) heart.”
Is that someone we want serving as governor of New York? Or, even worse, on a national stage one day? Business and politics are not personal. There are times to be forceful, but actions should always be motivated by what is best for the constituents a person serves.
Now Spitzer and his band of legal crusaders are occupied with Marsh & McLennan and the insurance industry. The kick-back scheme and rigged bidding that apparently was an accepted industry practice is deplorable. Yes, it needs to be changed and there must be accountability for it.
But, (again) Spitzer made his vendetta against now former Marsh & McLennan CEO Jeffrey Greenberg part of the motivation for a threat of a criminal indictment against the company. The impact of an indictment would have been devastating for thousands of the company’s employees – most of whom had nothing to do with the questionable actions of their employer.
What Spitzer does know is how to leverage the media. He is a master public relations practitioner and does an excellent job of presenting complex information in a clear, concise manner with consistent messaging. Make no mistake, his position of strength and the power is office yields is PR-driven.
Spitzer just landed the cover of the January 10th issue New York Magazine. The photograph is par for the course with this guy. Spitzer stands, arms crossed, glaring at the camera. In the background are a group of lawyers from his office shrouded in the shadows.
It’s all about Spitzer. And he is a scary guy.
However, Spitzer’s motivations have nothing to do with being a so-called champion for the people. He is all about Spitzer and his own personal interests – whether it is his political aspirations or the power showdowns he relishes with the business elite.
Consider his suit against former NYSE-board member Kenneth Langone for signing off on a $187.5 million pay package for Richard Grasso, former head of the exchange. According to Newsweek, Spitzer delivered a message to Langone by having a mutual acquaintance tell him that he intended to “put a spike through (his) heart.”
Is that someone we want serving as governor of New York? Or, even worse, on a national stage one day? Business and politics are not personal. There are times to be forceful, but actions should always be motivated by what is best for the constituents a person serves.
Now Spitzer and his band of legal crusaders are occupied with Marsh & McLennan and the insurance industry. The kick-back scheme and rigged bidding that apparently was an accepted industry practice is deplorable. Yes, it needs to be changed and there must be accountability for it.
But, (again) Spitzer made his vendetta against now former Marsh & McLennan CEO Jeffrey Greenberg part of the motivation for a threat of a criminal indictment against the company. The impact of an indictment would have been devastating for thousands of the company’s employees – most of whom had nothing to do with the questionable actions of their employer.
What Spitzer does know is how to leverage the media. He is a master public relations practitioner and does an excellent job of presenting complex information in a clear, concise manner with consistent messaging. Make no mistake, his position of strength and the power is office yields is PR-driven.
Spitzer just landed the cover of the January 10th issue New York Magazine. The photograph is par for the course with this guy. Spitzer stands, arms crossed, glaring at the camera. In the background are a group of lawyers from his office shrouded in the shadows.
It’s all about Spitzer. And he is a scary guy.
Posted by jeffM
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December 26, 2004, 5:00 am
"Marketers to stress customer acquisition in 2005."
That was the headline in the lead article in the December 13th issue of BtoB Magazine. Senior writer Kate Maddox reported quite a non-shocker from a survey of more than 300 marketing executives: business-to-business marketers will continue to increase spending in 2005 with the purpose of customer acquisition and sales, over brand awareness.
I’m a public relations person by training. No one needs to convince me about the value of the brand. It is a truism that people do business with companies that they know and trust.
But, I also believe the rule of business that drives most corporate decision-making is the demand for return on investment. The “return” a company is seeking varies, but can typically be attached to one or more of three benchmarks: 1) sales, 2) profitability, and 3) corporate and/or product valuation.
That’s it! The companies that achieve market leadership are the ones that figure out how to grow those three things more quickly and efficiently than their competition. Everything else across the enterprise is a “cost” that can one day be cut. (Just ask all of those IT staffers and call center reps who have seen their jobs sent offshore.)
Are corporate marketers and their agencies getting hip to this? It appears so. BtoB’s survey found that 71% of respondents cited customer acquisition, sales and lead generation as their primary goals for 2005. Brand awareness tallied 17%. (Surprisingly, that increased slightly from fewer than 16% in the 2004 survey.)
My view is that lead generation and sales focused communications activities also positively contribute to overall brand awareness and reputation. You don’t have to sacrifice brand in a sales-focused campaign.
For instance, an article in a trade journal about a company enhances awareness, confers third ***** credibility and, when merchandised by the sales team, serves as collateral directly supporting the sales cycle. The same thing goes for a positive comment from an industry analyst.
Marketers who don’t use the “big 3” (sales, profitability and valuation) as their evaluation criteria will forever be just a cost.
I’m a public relations person by training. No one needs to convince me about the value of the brand. It is a truism that people do business with companies that they know and trust.
But, I also believe the rule of business that drives most corporate decision-making is the demand for return on investment. The “return” a company is seeking varies, but can typically be attached to one or more of three benchmarks: 1) sales, 2) profitability, and 3) corporate and/or product valuation.
That’s it! The companies that achieve market leadership are the ones that figure out how to grow those three things more quickly and efficiently than their competition. Everything else across the enterprise is a “cost” that can one day be cut. (Just ask all of those IT staffers and call center reps who have seen their jobs sent offshore.)
Are corporate marketers and their agencies getting hip to this? It appears so. BtoB’s survey found that 71% of respondents cited customer acquisition, sales and lead generation as their primary goals for 2005. Brand awareness tallied 17%. (Surprisingly, that increased slightly from fewer than 16% in the 2004 survey.)
My view is that lead generation and sales focused communications activities also positively contribute to overall brand awareness and reputation. You don’t have to sacrifice brand in a sales-focused campaign.
For instance, an article in a trade journal about a company enhances awareness, confers third ***** credibility and, when merchandised by the sales team, serves as collateral directly supporting the sales cycle. The same thing goes for a positive comment from an industry analyst.
Marketers who don’t use the “big 3” (sales, profitability and valuation) as their evaluation criteria will forever be just a cost.
Posted by jeffM
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December 17, 2004, 5:00 am
What a week for acquisitions in the enterprise software market!
First up, Oracle finally pulls off its acquisition of fellow business software maker Peoplesoft for $10B, one of the largest software acquisitions in history.
That deal was trumpeted a few days later by enterprise security provider Symantec’s buy of storage software vendor Veritas for more than $13B. The combined company will boast about $5B in annual revenue, making it the fourth largest software firm in the world behind Microsoft, SAP and Oracle. (Computer Associates – once John Swainson gets settled in as CEO I suspect it will be your turn.)
It’s clear this generation of the enterprise software market born in the 1990s has reached maturity. The double whammy of Y2K and the Internet led global 2000 companies to invest millions automating their business operations.
There are few new deals to come by for enterprise software developers so the only way to boost revenue (and market share) is via acquisition. You have to sell more licenses and services to the customers you have to grow the top line.
Second, integration of technologies across the organization is a pain in the backside for customers. And they’re not going to do it any more. The vendor community will have to take ownership of integration of technologies before a sales person comes a calling about adding new licenses or modules.
The New York Times published an excellent article on macro trends in the enterprise software industry that’s worth the read.
Software Sector Finally Enters a Merger Phase
There is an aspect of all of this that I haven’t seen much comment on in the media or analyst communities. What about innovation?
Let’s face it, the bigger the company the less technology and product innovation. (Kudos to Cisco for figuring this out as the goal of many of their acquisitions is to enhance their own R&D activities.)
Innovation typically occurs at smaller, more entrepreneurial companies where risk is an accepted part of everyday business. I believe we’ll see in 18 months the birth of the next generation of the enterprise software market.
All of those soon-to-laid off engineers, sales executives and marketers from Peoplesoft, Veritas and others will go the route of the start-up. There’s a lot of venture capital on the sidelines looking for good deals.
Available capital…experienced technical talent…and a maturing set of industry leaders lean on innovation. This is the environment that creates great, new companies.
That deal was trumpeted a few days later by enterprise security provider Symantec’s buy of storage software vendor Veritas for more than $13B. The combined company will boast about $5B in annual revenue, making it the fourth largest software firm in the world behind Microsoft, SAP and Oracle. (Computer Associates – once John Swainson gets settled in as CEO I suspect it will be your turn.)
It’s clear this generation of the enterprise software market born in the 1990s has reached maturity. The double whammy of Y2K and the Internet led global 2000 companies to invest millions automating their business operations.
There are few new deals to come by for enterprise software developers so the only way to boost revenue (and market share) is via acquisition. You have to sell more licenses and services to the customers you have to grow the top line.
Second, integration of technologies across the organization is a pain in the backside for customers. And they’re not going to do it any more. The vendor community will have to take ownership of integration of technologies before a sales person comes a calling about adding new licenses or modules.
The New York Times published an excellent article on macro trends in the enterprise software industry that’s worth the read.
Software Sector Finally Enters a Merger Phase
There is an aspect of all of this that I haven’t seen much comment on in the media or analyst communities. What about innovation?
Let’s face it, the bigger the company the less technology and product innovation. (Kudos to Cisco for figuring this out as the goal of many of their acquisitions is to enhance their own R&D activities.)
Innovation typically occurs at smaller, more entrepreneurial companies where risk is an accepted part of everyday business. I believe we’ll see in 18 months the birth of the next generation of the enterprise software market.
All of those soon-to-laid off engineers, sales executives and marketers from Peoplesoft, Veritas and others will go the route of the start-up. There’s a lot of venture capital on the sidelines looking for good deals.
Available capital…experienced technical talent…and a maturing set of industry leaders lean on innovation. This is the environment that creates great, new companies.
Posted by jeffM
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December 4, 2004, 5:00 am
It has been so 1999 this past week.
I am flipping through the November 15th issue of Fortune Magazine when I come across an interesting side bar about whether Google’s current valuation is deserved. David Garrity, a financial analyst with research boutique Caris & Company, says in the article, “Until you fully define the end markets Google is pursuing, you can’t value it.”
Uh oh. I’ve heard this before. The rules of business don’t apply. You have to think about this company (or this market) in a whole new way. The CEOs who spewed this stuff several years back most likely watched the rules of business drive their company into non-existence.
Fortune smelled something not so Kosher in this comment as well. Writers Adam Lashinsky and Fred Vogelstein concluded that with Google trading for 56 times projected 2005 profits “you’re gambling, not investing.”
Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) represented its share of dot com duds. We promoted a start-up hyping piano lessons over the Web as well as a company that was trying to turn the computer screen saver into a delivery medium for content. (The problem with that business model is that when a screen saver pops on the person is not sitting at the screen.)
All of these clients went away in 2001 taking with them about $300,000 in fees we couldn’t collect.
We swore off early stage companies, putting our focus on more mature clients with things like products in market, customers, sales strategies, etc. Companies that adhere and respect the rules of business.
However, during the past few weeks we have entered into contract discussions with two potential clients that are a bit atypical for us. Both have annual revenue of less than $10M. Both were founded during the late 1990s and received venture capital backing. And both probably have no business being in business.
Each company is still in the game and once again thinking about growth because of the discipline of their respective management teams. They made tough decisions that meant layoffs and cost-cutting across the organization. Their focus has been on customers, revenue and service/support -- the basics that make for a foundation of a strong company.
So, it looks like Strategic will be taking a bit of flyer on a couple of earlier stage companies. It is a chance we are willing to take because we believe in each company’s solution, track record and management. Unlike the person willing to plop down $160 for a share of Google, I think we are investing rather than gambling.
Uh oh. I’ve heard this before. The rules of business don’t apply. You have to think about this company (or this market) in a whole new way. The CEOs who spewed this stuff several years back most likely watched the rules of business drive their company into non-existence.
Fortune smelled something not so Kosher in this comment as well. Writers Adam Lashinsky and Fred Vogelstein concluded that with Google trading for 56 times projected 2005 profits “you’re gambling, not investing.”
Strategic Communications Group (Strategic) represented its share of dot com duds. We promoted a start-up hyping piano lessons over the Web as well as a company that was trying to turn the computer screen saver into a delivery medium for content. (The problem with that business model is that when a screen saver pops on the person is not sitting at the screen.)
All of these clients went away in 2001 taking with them about $300,000 in fees we couldn’t collect.
We swore off early stage companies, putting our focus on more mature clients with things like products in market, customers, sales strategies, etc. Companies that adhere and respect the rules of business.
However, during the past few weeks we have entered into contract discussions with two potential clients that are a bit atypical for us. Both have annual revenue of less than $10M. Both were founded during the late 1990s and received venture capital backing. And both probably have no business being in business.
Each company is still in the game and once again thinking about growth because of the discipline of their respective management teams. They made tough decisions that meant layoffs and cost-cutting across the organization. Their focus has been on customers, revenue and service/support -- the basics that make for a foundation of a strong company.
So, it looks like Strategic will be taking a bit of flyer on a couple of earlier stage companies. It is a chance we are willing to take because we believe in each company’s solution, track record and management. Unlike the person willing to plop down $160 for a share of Google, I think we are investing rather than gambling.
Posted by jeffM
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November 26, 2004, 5:00 am
Strategic has been pitching a regional accounting firm...
Strategic has been pitching a regional accounting firm for the past few months and this past week their director of marketing phoned to inform me they’ve decided to retain a “traditional” public relations firm, rather than us. They just need an agency that provides public relations services, not all of that business development stuff we do through Strategic’s Network of Relationships®.
People who meet me are quick to figure out that I’m a bit competitive, so coming up short on a new business pitch always burns. This is especially true when I haven’t been successful convincing a prospective client that Strategic’s integrated public relations/business development model delivers value and return significantly greater than a campaign that relies solely on the improved awareness and third ***** credibility generated from PR.
Two days later I’m flipping through the November 8th issue of B2B Magazine when I come across an article headlined “Marketing accountability demands increase.” Kate Maddox writes about a recent survey conducted by Patrick Marketing Group that found that 81 percent of the 75 senior marketing executives questioned acknowledged that there are now increased demands of accountability by C-level executives. Fifty-nine percent of those surveyed went so far as to report that their company has established increased revenue as the return on the investment from marketing and PR expenditures.
At times, I find the amount of moaning marketing executives do about their lack of respect from the CEO to be incredibly grating. The Patrick Marketing Group survey reported that 43% of those surveyed cited lack of management support as their greatest frustration.
Get with the program. CEOs are held accountable for sales, profitability and valuation. Until marketing folks can point to how they directly support one or more of those three things than all we will ever be is a cost to be slashed.
In the same B2B issue, GE CMO Beth Comstock explains, “Part of the challenge when you want the seat at the table is that you have to be willing to step forward and be held accountable. You need to align your processes with the way the business is going.”
Back to the Strategic-less accounting firm. Here’s my prediction: they’ll spend six months executing their first-ever public relations program with some tactical success, see no measurable return and kill the program all together – convincing themselves that working with a PR firm ****s no value to their business. Maybe I have a case of sour grapes. But, I’ll bet you I turn out right.
People who meet me are quick to figure out that I’m a bit competitive, so coming up short on a new business pitch always burns. This is especially true when I haven’t been successful convincing a prospective client that Strategic’s integrated public relations/business development model delivers value and return significantly greater than a campaign that relies solely on the improved awareness and third ***** credibility generated from PR.
Two days later I’m flipping through the November 8th issue of B2B Magazine when I come across an article headlined “Marketing accountability demands increase.” Kate Maddox writes about a recent survey conducted by Patrick Marketing Group that found that 81 percent of the 75 senior marketing executives questioned acknowledged that there are now increased demands of accountability by C-level executives. Fifty-nine percent of those surveyed went so far as to report that their company has established increased revenue as the return on the investment from marketing and PR expenditures.
At times, I find the amount of moaning marketing executives do about their lack of respect from the CEO to be incredibly grating. The Patrick Marketing Group survey reported that 43% of those surveyed cited lack of management support as their greatest frustration.
Get with the program. CEOs are held accountable for sales, profitability and valuation. Until marketing folks can point to how they directly support one or more of those three things than all we will ever be is a cost to be slashed.
In the same B2B issue, GE CMO Beth Comstock explains, “Part of the challenge when you want the seat at the table is that you have to be willing to step forward and be held accountable. You need to align your processes with the way the business is going.”
Back to the Strategic-less accounting firm. Here’s my prediction: they’ll spend six months executing their first-ever public relations program with some tactical success, see no measurable return and kill the program all together – convincing themselves that working with a PR firm ****s no value to their business. Maybe I have a case of sour grapes. But, I’ll bet you I turn out right.
Posted by jeffM
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November 21, 2004, 5:00 am
Day Trip
I just returned from a day trip to New York City to visit with a global software company that is interested in accelerating its business in the government markets.
Unlike many of the vendors selling to government agencies, the corporate communications director at this company quickly grasped the fact that government is not just another vertical. She also gets that trudging up to Capitol Hill with lobbyists and lawyers isn’t the way to influence purchasing decisions at the federal agency and department level.
Product positioning, messaging and communications all must be tailored to the unique requirements of the audience for marketing and public relations to have a true impact.
Appropriately, she compared communications to the government markets with the path this company follows when marketing in specific regions in Europe and Asia. We’ll see how this plays out.
The other part of my travel to NYC that was interesting was the cab ride from Penn Station to the software company’s office on Broadway. After an uneventful and quiet ride on Amtrak, I arrived in Manhattan about an hour before the meeting was scheduled to start.
As I hopped in the cab I told the driver where I was headed and that I had plenty of time. (My wife is from New York and I know how she tends to drive.) The 15 minute ride was similar to the car chase seen in the Matt Damon movie Bourne Identity. The cabbie was actually talking on his cell phone as he weaved in and out of traffic to avoid delivery trucks blocking lanes, with the occasional acceleration to make it through a yellow light.
I was at my sarcastic best when I thanked the driver for taking it easy. He said no problem and started driving off the moment I was out of the car.
After relaying the story to my wife of this harrowing experience her view was that the cabbie probably did take it easy during the ride. That’s how people drive in New York. You just need to expect it and you’ll be fine, she said.
Unlike many of the vendors selling to government agencies, the corporate communications director at this company quickly grasped the fact that government is not just another vertical. She also gets that trudging up to Capitol Hill with lobbyists and lawyers isn’t the way to influence purchasing decisions at the federal agency and department level.
Product positioning, messaging and communications all must be tailored to the unique requirements of the audience for marketing and public relations to have a true impact.
Appropriately, she compared communications to the government markets with the path this company follows when marketing in specific regions in Europe and Asia. We’ll see how this plays out.
The other part of my travel to NYC that was interesting was the cab ride from Penn Station to the software company’s office on Broadway. After an uneventful and quiet ride on Amtrak, I arrived in Manhattan about an hour before the meeting was scheduled to start.
As I hopped in the cab I told the driver where I was headed and that I had plenty of time. (My wife is from New York and I know how she tends to drive.) The 15 minute ride was similar to the car chase seen in the Matt Damon movie Bourne Identity. The cabbie was actually talking on his cell phone as he weaved in and out of traffic to avoid delivery trucks blocking lanes, with the occasional acceleration to make it through a yellow light.
I was at my sarcastic best when I thanked the driver for taking it easy. He said no problem and started driving off the moment I was out of the car.
After relaying the story to my wife of this harrowing experience her view was that the cabbie probably did take it easy during the ride. That’s how people drive in New York. You just need to expect it and you’ll be fine, she said.
