Beaver Man–Newsworthy or Not?

There’s a gentleman I’d like to tell you about. Let’s protect his right to privacy and call him Beaver Man. This particular guy has a goal: to make it into the pages of his local weekly newspaper–one way or another.

My husband is the editor of this local weekly newspaper. And he has rejected Beaver Man at least three–maybe even four–times. Beaver Man is getting frustrated. All the guy wants is a photo in the paper.

The problem? He keeps bringing in roadkill specimens he claims to have “found” to pose with him.

I wish I were making this up. However, I think there’s something we can learn from Beaver Man. There’s a lot of individuals and companies out there who want to generate press for themselves. Hey–that’s part of my job. Packaging information into news nuggets so that communication happens. Public relations–don’t you just love it?

Back to Beaver Man. He’s persistent. He started out with a beaver, then brought in a coyote and came back a third time with another beaver. All in various stages of decomp. “Have you ever seen such a large beaver in your life?” Ok, he’s attempting to find a news angle here–man finds record-setting beaver on roadside. He’s even offered the journalist a bribe: “I’d be willing to come in and buy five or six newspapers if my picture is in the paper.”

The result? Nada, zip, zilch. Veteran Journalist/husband is unmoved by Beaver Man’s quest for immortality in newsprint. He comes home muttering about Beaver Man and the kinds of people you sometimes encounter in small, Southern towns. (Note to readers: I am from a small, Southern town. He mutters about me and my “kin” a lot, too.)

I believe there is probably a way Beaver Man could have taken out the “ewww” factor of his gruesome discoveries and found a way to accomplish his dream of press coverage. Sometimes all it takes is a bit of ingenuity, a creative twist on the ordinary (what you found on the roadside) versus what you create.

I’m just throwing out some options here (Beaver Man is NOT a client). He could have figured out a way to partner with the science labs in the schools for potential dissection. Forget the frogs and cats–this guy can deliver beavers and coyotes and goodness-knows-what-else. Maybe a call to the Department of Natural Resources to find out if something peculiar is happening to the local population of beavers. Another thought: he could make a monetary donation to animal conservation based on his experience, and take that “story” to the newspaper. Even going to the library and creating a Facebook page to discuss local wildlife and conservation–ANIMAL LOVERS UNITE!

Beaver Man has the same goal that a lot of people do: create an opportunity for his 15 minutes of fame. We just all take a different approach and often achieve different results or reaction.

Which leads me to this….wonder what type of animal will be coming into the newspaper office next week?

False Prophets, et al

I got a Blackberry Messenger text this morning from a friend. She had seen a Twitter post that said something to the effect, “If you need some marketing expertise, you should really talk to me.”

Hmmmm. If you’re tweeting to lure new clients by saying how great you are, how great are you? And therein lies the problem. There are a lot of False Prophets out there just waiting to share their marketing “expertise” with you.

Can you imagine another professional–say a neurologist, for example–sending out random tweets like “best brain surgeon–RIGHT HERE,” or “Brains are my business.” You get the idea.

But just about anyone can hang out a shingle and claim to be a “marketing” expert or a “public relations” expert. After 15 years of working inside advertising agencies and corporate environments, I’ve seen a lot of people who have exaggerated their skills or overpromised results. As my PR mentor once said (in a rather colorful fashion), “They p*ss in the well and ruin it for the rest of us.”

Indeed, Lei, they do. Before you hire someone, be sure to check them out thoroughly. If they promise you the sun, moon and the stars, you’re in the presence of a great salesperson. Keep that in mind and don’t agree to a long-term contract. Turn on your PI skills and check out their LinkedIn profile. Google them. Talk to their references. Find out if they’re accredited. You don’t want–nor do you have to be–the latest victim of a false prophet.

It’s called Facebook, NOT Bragbook, people

I’m afraid this is a bit of a rant.

I am getting so frustrated with people using Facebook as a Bragbook. You know the type of person I’m talking about. Their posts are all about the new client they’ve landed, the great work they’ve done, the publicity they’ve generated for themselves. Brag, brag, brag.

I’m in a profession–public relations–where public perception is important. But if all you do with a social media forum is talk, talk, talk about yourself, you have to realize that people are going to turn you “off.”

Social media, like other forms of communication, has to be a two-way exchange to be truly effective. You need to post things that are interesting and have application for others. If you don’t, you will lose your audience. Ultimately, you may lose something even more important–your credibility.

That’s it for today’s rant. Remember: It’s Facebook,  not Bragbook. Same goes for Twitter.

Capable Hands…

…are you in them?

I had an epiphany the other day—one of those times when a clique actually becomes real and has meaning.

In talking with a client during a strategy session, we were discussing personality types. As I looked down as my client is gesturing to make a point, I saw something familiar. Capable hands.

It wasn’t something I had ever noticed before, even though we’ve known each other for a while. But her hands looked like they were capable of…digging in the dirt…wiping away a client’s insecurity…swimming several miles in the pool. And her hands are capable of all those things, and much more.

Those are the type of hands you want to trust. Hands that aren’t afraid to get dirty, or climb down into a pit with you. This client is a minister as well as a life coach. She understands the boundaries of confidentiality, the fears and insecurities that can come from impending change or disaster. When you work with her, you are in very capable hands.

I can identify with those hands because I too have capable hands. They’re not going to be picked for hand modeling, and I could certainly use a manicure. However, my hands are strong. Able to dig in and hold on to the twists and turns of life. Definitely substance over style.

Realizing the shared bond with my client gave me the chance to look down and my hands and give them a different label. Capable hands. I’ll take it.