Monthly Archives: January 2010

Jan 28 2010

The Pay Model Can Work … If You Are The New York Times

Just like Bluto stated in in this famous scene (1:24) from “Animal House,”When the going get tough, the tough get going.” This is exactly what The New York Times is about to do.

In order to combat the downturn in circulation over the past several years, newspapers are doing everything they can to stay afloat. Reporters are being laid off and sections of the paper have been eliminated in efforts to save money, but yet publications are still shutting down. However, the world’s most respected daily isn’t giving up just yet in its effort to generate new revenue streams.

With more than 17 million visitors per month, nytimes.com is taking a major risk in January 2011 when it starts charging flat fees for full access to its site. Since this news came out last week, PR pros have passionately weighed in on whether or not this strategy can be a successful one. I think it can, but it’s not for everyone.

What happens when a country, business, or any other entity needs help? More times than not, the big boys come in and try to rescue them out of crisis, right? Or at the very least they will lead the discussion on how to reverse the situation. This is what I believe The New York Times (NYT) is doing, and rightly so. You can’t expect a smaller newspaper to go out on a limb and take this sort of measure. This isn’t to say that smaller outlets don’t have the creativity to come up with a solution such as this. The fact of the matter is that NYT has many elements already in place that can make this change in philosophy a success:

  • A worldwide audience
  • It is largely considered the best source for news
  • Some of the most talented reporters in the world call it home
  • Steps have been taken towards integrating with social media networks (2.3 million subscribers on Twitter)
  • And most importantly to PR pros, NYT is still the no. 1 newspaper outlet that clients want to be in.

While it may be more challenging to attract the average person to subscribe, NYT has a lot going in its favor – mainly that it provides content that you can’t find anywhere else. And if subscribing to the site helps publicists share content and new pitch angles, then don’t you think clients will be willing to spend a few extra bucks for that type of insight? I do. And there is certainly no shortage of clients.

As I discussed a few paragraphs back, there are smaller newspapers that have tried similar approaches and have failed. Take Newsday for example. With a circulation greater than 400,000, this Long Island (NY) newspaper began a pay model in October 2009 with similar hopes as NYT. But after just three months, only 35 subscribers have signed-up to pay $5 per week for Newsday.com, which averages 2 million visitors per month. Is this because they are charging too much? Did they not put together a campaign to build enthusiasm internally and externally for this? Did they launch this prematurely? Many questions are left to be answered, and both Newsday and NYT’s approach will make for interesting case studies.

So what do you think? Will newspapers like The New York Times succeed with this pay model? Do regional and local outlets have the same opportunities? Please vote in the poll below and lets find out!

 

Jan 25 2010

Would Team USA’s Marketers Earn a Medal? Not Likely

If you believe in miracles, then over the next three weeks leading up to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, Team USA will turnaround its weak marketing efforts and prove that not only does the U.S. have the best athletes in the world, but they have the smartest marketers as well. Right now, I’m not so sure. Here are some of my observations:, as well as the medal (if any) ‘grade’ they would earn:

1. US Olympic Team Facebook Page – Lets start with a positive. More than 89,000 people have joined this fan page dedicated to the U.S. team. Would like to see this number higher, especially since there is so much time to actually build this page up leading to the event, but overall I’d call this a success. Grade: Silver medal

2. @NBCOlympics on Twitter - While I’m predominantly discussing Team USA’s efforts, I thought I had to include one of the elements that NBC (official network of the Olympics) is including in its efforts to promote the Games. With more than 35,000 followers, Twitter’s community is ‘following’ this handle’s updates and interested in hearing more. However, the NBC execs (or interns) that are in charge of its Twitter efforts clearly do not want to interact with anyone. They are using this page specifically to promote news and updates, which isn’t a bad thing, but a little interaction cowith fans would be nice. Also, why not mention this handle in advertisements? Seems like a no-brainer, but maybe if NBC had better execution of its tactics than maybe it wouldn’t stand to lose $250 million covering the Olympics? Grade: In contention for a medal.

3. @USOlympic on Twitter - Now, if you thought NBC could be doing better on Twitter, then wait until you checkout what Team USA is doing. With less than 4,600 followers, the USOC has failed at its attempt to involve the Twittersphere in its attempt to generate buzz.  Yes, they are responding to a few of their followers, but far and away I don’t think people know that this handle even exists. Grade: Wouldn’t qualify for medal rounds.

4. U.S. Olympic Blogs - This is a disaster. A majority of the individual sports blogs have not been updated since November. Not much more to say other than what a poor, disappointing effort this has been. Grade: Wouldn’t qualify for Olympics.

These are just four channels that I’ve looked into, but what do YOU think about Team USA/USOC’s PR efforts?

Jan 21 2010

How Social Media Made PR Fun Again

Remember the first time you got an e-mail response from a reporter at The New York Times? Or the first time your phone rang and it was a producer wanting your client to appear on a show that week? It was the best feeling in the world. And as you matured and gained more experience, you eventually got responses from major news outlets on a frequent basis, and you were now expected to get these types of opportunities. But at some point that initial enthusiasm you once had began to slowly fade away, and you were searching for something new to help bring that excitement back into your work. Does any of this sound familiar? Because this is exactly what happened to me. It wasn’t until I became engaged in social media that things slowly started to turn around.

Ever since I began in PR in 2006, I always had a knack for getting media opportunities. I thought it was luck, and to some degree still do, but nonetheless whatever agency I worked at I was tagged as the media star. But the funny thing about it was that pitching was never my passion. Learning was. And no matter how much success I had at landing client placements, I felt unfulfilled, and knew that I was hardly the only publicist that could do this type of work. So I wanted to add a unique skill that would benefit myself, and my agency, in order to continue along the fast track. This is where social media came into play.

In the Spring of ’08, I started exploring social networks beyond Facebook and MySpace. At the urging of a friend (@C_Hayes), I joined Twitter and started reading as many books as I could on the PR landscape and new social media tools. Shortly thereafter, I started applying what I was learning to my everyday worklife. Whether in client brainstorms, on a weekly call, or during my agency’s internal meeting, I found myself bringing new ideas to the table. Sure, people knew about podcasts and blogging, but only on the surface. I was actually engaged on Twitter, reading about new trends in social media, and offering real counsel to clients. Being able to reverse-mentor veteran publicists gave me that adrenaline rush I had been missing.

Let me take a step back. You have to understand that I was working at very traditional PR agencies. Some would even call them ‘hit’ shops. But that didn’t take away from the fact that I was learning something new, building up my resume, and actually having fun again. Two years since becoming involed in social media, I created a PR networking group for Big East Conference alumni on LinkedIn, gave lectures to students at West Virginia University, I’m writing an industry blog, developing social media plans for clients, and I’m striving towards 1,000 followers on Twitter. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that I’m the only publicist doing things such as this or that I’m going to be president of an agency tomorrow just because I’ve read books on social media. I’m just saying that PR doesn’t get much better than this.

Has anyone else experienced this same type of enthusastic rejuvenation? It’s a great feeling.

Jan 18 2010

Amazin’ PR Mess

Carlos Beltran and Jay Horwitz

 I don’t know what’s been the bigger trend lately, the New York Mets losing or its PR department getting embarrassed? From Willie Randolph being fired in the middle of the night to the recent public debacle concerning Carlos Beltran’s surgery, it’s long overdue that the Mets evaluate their communications strategy.

After reading comments from blogger Matthew Cerrone (@matthewcerrone) of MetsBlog.com regarding the Mets PR department, it’s abundantly clear that not only do the Mets not understand how to handle internal and external issues, but the people that report on this team don’t get it either. For the record, I love Matt’s blog and generally agree with his views, but he’s in the wrong here. In responding to a post by Anthony De Rosa of Hot Foot, Cerrone takes the point of view that Mets PR Director, Jay Horwitz, is one of the best in the business and that he’s not the one entirely to blame for all of the Mets PR issues. I’m here to counter that point.

When any sports team fails to perform to its capabilities, what happens? The general manager and/or head coach get their walking papers. So why is it any different when a PR department consistently fails to do its job? I’m not necessarily calling for the Mets to replace Horwitz and throw all the blame his way, but enough is enough. Make him a consultant or give him a ‘ceremonial’ goodbye like the one Florida State gave Bobby Bowden. I think every Mets fan would agree with me that they are tired of being the laughingstock of baseball and that it’s time for a change.  Bottomline, it’s time for a new communications strategy, better tactical execution, and a change in leadership.

Jan 14 2010

The TSA Needs a PR Campaign

Where is the one place kids and adults whining and crying about everything and everyone in sight? That’s right, at the airport.

Whether it’s passing through security at Newark Airport (NJ … but really NYC) this morning or reading Tweets about the nerve of the TSA (Transportation Security Administration) to make the security line 10min longer so they can take extra security measures, people do not like being inconvenienced. Let me state for the record that the TSA can scan my bags, make me walk through an X-ray machine, and even force me to show up a few minutes earlier if it means I’m going to be just a little bit safer in the air.

This is an issue that millions of Americans have been vocal about and the TSA would be wise to spend a couple dollars (we know the airlines have it thanks to those checked baggage fees) towards a short-term PR campaign to turn a negative situation into, at the very least, a neutral one. @TSABlogTeam – Do the right thing. Issue an RFP.

Here Are My Top Four Things the TSA Should Do Immediately:

  1. Stop sending canned messages on Twitter. Customize. Personalize. Incentivize.
  2. Create video’s that inspire us, not ones that put us to sleep: http://www.youtube.com/user/TSAHQpublicaffairs
  3. Put faces to go with the names on your blog (tsa.gov/blog). I want to know exactly who is communicating the messages you put out there. Ditto Twitter.
  4. Clean up your Web site. Way too many links and tabs. One word. Simplify.

What would you add to this list? Would love to hear your thoughts!