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N o v e m b e r 2 0 1 0 | w w w . o d w y e r p r . c o m

Communications & new media Nov. 2010 I Vol. 24 No. 11

PR firmspushing pot?

Pg. 9Firm held liable foriTunes reviews

Pg. 21A peek inside NYC’stech start-up scene

Pg. 14

GADGETSHOW PERSONALIZED TECH DEVICES AREAFFECTING CONTENT, AUDIENCES ANDPR STRATEGIES

THE DEATH OF GREENWASH?FEDERAL REGULATORS CRACK DOWNON “GREEN” ADVERTISING

O’DWYER’S RANKINGS OF TOP HIGH-TECHAND TECHNOLOGY PR FIRMS

The technology issue

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January: Crisis Comms. / Buyer’s GuideFebruary: Environmental & P.A.

March: Food & BeverageApril: Broadcast & Social Media

May: PR Firm RankingsJune: Global & Multicultural

July: Travel & TourismAugust: Financial/I.R.

September: Beauty & FashionOctober: Healthcare & Medical

November: High-TechDecember: Entertainment & Sports

Vol. 24, No. 11Nov. 2010

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PPRROOFFEESSSSIIOONNAALL DDEEVVEELLOOPPMMEENNTTFraser Seitel

FFIINNAANNCCIIAALL MMAANNAAGGEEMMEENNTTRichard Goldstein

GGUUEESSTT CCOOLLUUMMNNArthur Solomon

GGUUEESSTT CCOOLLUUMMNNRon Levy

OOPPIINNIIOONNJack O’Dwyer

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Antenna Group...............................15Atomic PR........................................7Carabiner Communications..............9Catapult PR-IR.............................17Coyne PR........................................5Fleishman-Hillard........BACK COVERINK Public Relations.......................11KEF...................................................3Log-On...........................................31

Lois Paul & Partners.......................23Matter Communications.................13MerrittGroup...................................21NAPS........................INSIDE COVEROmega Travel.................................33Ruder Finn......................................27TV Access......................................41VMS...............................................19

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MMIINNDDIINNGG TTHHEE SSTTOORREE:: YYOOUURRCCEEOO’’SS FFAACCEE HHEERREEHow the “face” of a company can do

wonders for public perception.

20EEDDIITTOORRIIAALLPRSA delegates divided on the futurerole of PR.

6GGRROOUUPPSS PPEETTIITTIIOONN FFCCCC TTOOIINNVVEESSTTIIGGAATTEE ““FFAAKKEE”” NNEEWWSSMedia watchdog groups have filed acomplaint with the FCC to crack down onundisclosed advertisements on TV.

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DDEENNVVEERR FFIIRRMM FFOORRMMSS MMAARRIIJJUUAANNAA PPRR UUNNIITTVolume PR sets up a shop dedicatedto the burgeoning medical marijuana sector.

9IINNNNOOVVAATTIIOONN AABBOOUUNNDDSS IINNNNYYCC TTEECCHH SSCCEENNEEMonthly events hosted by NYTMshowcase some of New York’s hottest andmost talented start-ups.

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FFTTCC CCRRAACCKKSS DDOOWWNN OONN””GGRREEEENN”” AADD CCLLAAIIMMSSThe Federal Trade Commission hasproposed redefining what it means to be a“green” product.

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TTEECCHH IIMMPPRROOVVEEMMEENNTTSS AANNDDMMOONNIITTOORRIINNGG CCAAPPAABBIILLIITTIIEESS How new technologies havesparked advancements in monitor-ing capabilities.

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SSOOCCIIAALL MMEEDDIIAA AANNDD YYOOUURRBBEESSTT FFOOOOTT FFOORRWWAARRDD New opportunities and tech-niques, for tech companies to communi-cate using social media.

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PPEERRSSOONNAALLIIZZAATTIIOONN:: NNEEWWAAUUDDIIEENNCCEESS,, CCOONNTTEENNTT,, PPRRHow the increasingly subjectiveuse of mobile tech devices is affecting con-tent, use and communications strategies.

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EENNGGAAGGEEMMEENNTT MMEEEETTSSCCOOMMMMUUNNIICCAATTIIOONNSSIn today’s media environment,just having a communicationsplan isn’t enough.

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SSOOCCIIAALL MMEEDDIIAA NNOOTT JJUUSSTT AASSAALLEESS CCHHAANNNNEELLA Press Club panel discusses how PR

can integrate social media as a communicationstool and not just a sales pitch.

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PPRR FFIIRRMM HHEELLDD LLIIAABBLLEE FFOORRIITTUUNNEESS RREEVVIIEEWWSSThe FCC takes a PR firm to task for a

client’s positive product reviews.

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CCRROOWWDDSS,, IIDDEEAASS FFLLOOUURRIISSHHAATT BBLLOOGGWWOORRLLDDO’Dwyer’s reports from the 2010

BlogWorld & New Media Expo in Las Vegas.

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WWHHEENN TTRRAANNSSPPAARREENNCCYYIISSNN’’TT AANN OOPPTTIIOONNHow to engage effectively whencommunications faces a veil of restriction.

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NOVEMBER 2010 � WWW.ODWYERPR.COM6

EDITORIAL

PRSA Delegates divided on PR’s future role

EEDDIITTOORR--IINN--CCHHIIEEFFJack O’[email protected]

AASSSSOOCCIIAATTEE PPUUBBLLIISSHHEERRKevin [email protected]

EEDDIITTOORRJon [email protected]

SSEENNIIOORR EEDDIITTOORRGreg [email protected]

CCOONNTTRRIIBBUUTTIINNGG EEDDIITTOORRSSFraser SeitelRichard GoldsteinChristine O’Dwyer

AADDVVEERRTTIISSIINNGG SSAALLEESS

John O’DwyerAdvertising Sales [email protected]

Jack FogartyNational Advertising [email protected]

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The more than 250 delegates at the PRSA Assembly Oct. 16 were deeply divided aboutwhat PR’s role will be in 2015. The split mirrored the divide among delegates about theworth of the APR program.

A move to let non-APRs on the board for the first time in 30 years was defeated but wasargued long and hard in a Society e-group. The vote was 173 against the change, with 104 infavor of it. Delegates, who were given the entire afternoon of the Assembly to discuss thefuture of PR, were split about the importance or non-importance of the press.A large majority saw a decline in press size and credibility and some suggested the press is

destroying itself because of lack of “fairness and objectivity.”Role of press argued A slide summed up this view:“News is no longer vetted [meaning subjected to thorough and diligent review] and gate-

keepers increasingly are being eliminated. The concept of ‘news’ and its corresponding ‘newsvalues’ as they have evolved over the course of nearly two centuries is being diluted if not dis-solved. Much, if not most, of the content in the new media has become once again ideologicalwith no attempt at fairness and objectivity according to the traditional concept of news and itsnews values.”The slide also says the new media are “creating a healthy skepticism about the truthfulness

of media, refocusing responsibility on the consumers of these media.” Another slide talkedabout the “deprofessionalization of traditional media and arguably, PR.”Several delegates objected to minimizing the role of the press and to the view expressed in

another slide that said PR people must “Embrace IMC (integrated marketing communications)to reach highly distracted publics in a competitive communications environment.”The slide urged PR people to work with traditional and new media but also work with adver-

tising and marketing to achieve “strategic goals.” “Reporters are now living in different worldswhere they continue to serve as experts and they represent a voice that we desperately need,”said one delegate.Another said reporters and editors are losing their jobs for one reason or another but they are

learning to adapt to the new economics and technology and “will be back stronger than ever.”Mike Cherenson, 2009 Society Chair, said the New Jersey chapter held a meeting that fea-

tured an international speaker and only eight people showed up. But a session featuringreporters drew 80, he said.Bleak job market paintedProfessor Donald Wright of Boston University said the PR job market is “saturated” and that

beginners are lucky to get $35K in New York. PR people have to move around a lot to makemore money, he said, because the conglomerate-owned agencies limit raises to 3% every 15months.A delegate said information technology was not only supplying the hardware but “taking

control of content.”Another delegate said “the words public relations can’t be expanded to include communi-

cations and we must deal with that.”A professor complained that college PR courses are often years behind what is happening

in the markeplace because “it takes a long time to change a curriculum … by the time thechanges are made, they’re outdated.”A delegate said the Society “led the way” in offering seminars and webinars on social media

but that such courses now flood the internet, providing stiff competition.Where are we now?A delegate wanted to know how the PR study groups could talk so much about where PR

will be in five years when there is no description of where PR is now. His question went unan-swered.PR pros had a firm grip on what their job was in the 1960s, 70s and part of the 80s: make

as many press friends as possible and boost the image of employers and their products byobtaining “third party endorsements.” Also, pick up any “skinny” the reporters might have.Socializing by PR pros and their spouses with reporters and their spouses was the norm. Big

companies had outreach programs that sent PR staffers to the desksides of editors. We wereguests at more than 30 homes of PR pros and reciprocated. There was a parade of lunches andpress happenings and “nights on the town.”If PR people are going to predict where PR is headed, they first must know where it has been

and where it is now. Is the current model of PR better or worse than the model that was extantin the 1960s, 70s and part of the 80s? The reasons for the changes should be explored. �

— Jack O’Dwyer


Media watchdogs and nonprofitorganizations are asking theFederal Communications

Commission to take action against a newcrop of reported instances of “fake”news, a practice some claim is gettingworse despite ongoing Federal actions tocurb it.A series of September Los Angeles

Times reports brought to light recentinstances of spokespersons advertisingproducts during national and regionalTV broadcasts that appeared to benews. National toy manufacturersallegedly forked over as much as$11,000 to be part of a series of back-to-school news features that aired intelevision markets in 10 major U.S.cities. The segments featured a “toyexpert” who was actually a spokesper-son paid to promote the toys. Many ofthe stations that aired the segments alsoallegedly failed to identify the seg-ments as paid promotions.In another case, a Los Angeles CBS

affiliate aired a “Healthwatch” segmentthat was ostensibly a profile of areahospitals. It was later revealed that atleast one of the spots was paid for by a

Los Angeles area hospital.In response, the Free Press in late

September filed a complaint with theFCC, asking the commission to takeaction against broadcasters that appearto be in violation of pre-existingFederal sponsorship laws. The organi-zation also asked the commission towrite new rules that would enforcestricter regulations and to create moreprominent disclosure guidelines forpaid segments.The problem, some say, is getting

worse. Corie Wright, Policy Counselfor the Free Press, said recent inves-tigative reports and monitoring onbehalf of consumer groups like the FreePress show that pay-for-play in newsand entertainment programming is onthe rise, and there’s a number of rea-sons for the phenomenon. For one, TV stations are under

increasing pressure in terms of bothbudget and a 24-hour news cycle, andwill gladly take stories that come fromPR shops that can fill time slots and, insome cases, supply revenue. “The problem is, it’s not fair to con-

sumers,” Wright said. “TV viewerswant to see more reporting. When whatappears to be bona fide news is actual-ly a paid segment, when it’s quid pro

quo and that’s not disclosed, there’s aconflict of interest.”Wright also noted that marketers and

ad companies realize the efficacy ofadvertising during regularly scheduledprogramming. The advent of DVRs hasmade it possible for many viewers toskip commercials altogether, so inte-grating messages into popular pro-grams is seen as a viable alternative.“When you’re watching a commer-

cial there’s also a certain level of skep-ticism, but when you’re watching a TVshow and advertisements are imbeddedin the plotline your guard is down andthat skepticism is gone. It has a certaincognitive effect,” she said.Finally, Wright said the use of legal,

disclosed product placement is also onthe rise. However, even when broad-casters abide by the rules it’s commonfor disclosure to be delivered in theform of a very brief message at the endof the program, sometimes in illegiblysmall typefaces.‘Old news’ to the FCC The Federal laws that govern disclo-

sure of paid programming have beenaround since the 1960s. Known asSponsorship Identification Rules, itstates that broadcast and cablecastersmust disclose when they’ve aired con-tent in exchange for money.The problem, Wright said, is the laws

are seldom enforced. In perhaps the lastwell-publicized instance, the FCC in2007 fined Comcast $4,000 for airingsegments on a sleep aid without disclos-ing that the slot was paid for by its man-ufacturer. The same year the commission issued

a clarification on their preexisting rulesgoverning sponsored video content, inan attempt heighten disclosure for theincreasingly popular use of video newsreleases and B-Roll. The FCC in 2008held a series of hearings and took publicstatements regarding the matter, butappeared to drop the issue after severalmonths. The Free Press has asked thecommission to revisit these proceed-ings. “If the FCC’s investigation of new

instances do prove to find violations,there needs to be swift enforcement andfurther action. We also want the FCC torevisit proceedings and to promulgatebetter, clear and more prominent spon-sorship identification rules so the publicknows when they’re watching bona fidenews content or a commercial.” �


MEDIA NOTES

Groups ask FCC to investigate “fake” newsBy Jon Gingerich

PN cleared of ‘propaganda’ charges

The General Accountability Officeruled Oct 19 that three 30-secondads created by Porter Novelli for

the Dept. of Health and Human Servicesto promote President Obama’s healthcarelaw were not propaganda. Darrell Issa, top Republican

Congressman on the Committee onOversight and Government, and DavidCamp, ranking member of the Ways andMeans Committee, demanded a probe tosee if PN’s ads featuring 84-year-old actorAndy Griffith “violated the prohibition onpublicity or propaganda.” In the ad, Griffith says “Our new

healthcare law sure sounds good for all ofus on Medicare … we’ll get free check-ups, cancer screenings, lower prescriptioncosts. And better ways to protect us andMedicare from fraud.” In another ad, Griffith predicts changes

in healthcare law are “worth lookinginto.” HHS paid $3.3M for the production

and airing of the ads. HHS placed the firstad on the main page of Medicare’s web-site. The three ads ran on YouTube. The GAO ruling, written by acting gen-

eral counsel Lynn Gibson, says “commu-nications are purely partisan, if they arecompletely devoid of any connectionwith official functions and are completelypartisan in nature.” In the ads, HHS “has established a con-

nection to official functions, that is, itsresponsibility to provide Medicare bene-ficiaries information about the program.” Gibson concludes: “Because nothing in

the advertisements constitutes communi-cations that are purely partisan, self-aggrandizing, or covert, we conclude thatthe advertisements did not violate thepublicity or propaganda prohibition.” Griffith volunteered his services for the

ads. �

By Kevin McCauley


Denver-based Volume PR has set up adivision focused on the medicalmarijuana sector, a burgeoning

industry pegged as high as $14 billion.Volume, a nine-year-old firm headed by

Elizabeth Robinson, has dubbed its newoffshoot Grow Room Communications.Robinson told O’Dwyer’s the entity was

formed because the medical marijuana sec-tor deserves the focus and attention of aseparate firm, and also that the workrequires comprehensive communications,from advertising and media buys to digital,where Volume has always been solelyfocused on PR mainly in the tech and tele-com sectors. “I felt it was most appropriate for both

brands to stand apart,” she said of Volumeand Grow Room.Robinson, a former Ogilvy PR and

Boeing corporate communications hand,also said she didn’t want to make anyVolume clients “uncomfortable” with themedical marijuana side of the business,which, she noted, carries significant public“misunderstanding.”Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter signed two new

laws in June to essentially codify and regu-

late a flurry of marijuana dispensariesaround the state. The laws stipulate thatonly doctors in good standing can prescribethe drug, while outlining rules for sellersand growers. The state’s move reined in a freewheeling

industry that has spawned businesses fromresearch and medical clinics to so-called potstores which have questionable medicalmerits.“There are some businesses that are oper-

ating with the highest level of integrity andlegitimacy with a focus on regulation and onwanting to do things right,” said Robinson.“but I also see the news constantly and howmany people are denigrating the industry byhaving these horrible little shops with atro-cious names practicing in an atrocious way.”Robinson said because the industry is at

such an early stage, an opportunity exists tocreate a climate and environment to providepatient care for people that are sick.According to Robinson, it’s “not just tryingto be a pot shop.”Among Grow Room’s clients is

Greenway University, a vocational schoolthat trains people to work in the medicalmarijuana sector. Robinson said Colorado’sDept. of Education approached the schoolabout becoming a licensed vocational insti-tution after seeing its positive media expo-

sure.“This is not just about people getting

high, that’s what is key. So much researchand study in science is starting to be done.We’re doing work with health centers withgeneticists, botanists, and other serious peo-ple doing research on all of the data comingout of these clinics and centers,” she said.“A lot of the public perception is that [sci-entific basis] doesn’t exist and that’s under-standable because who’s picking up themicrophone to tell the story correctly?” �

NOVEMBER 2010 � WWW.ODWYERPR.COM 9

The Progress & Freedom Foundation, a market-oriented think tank that analyzed digital media andits impacts, has closed its doors. The Washington,D.C. organization was founded in 1993.

Operations for the organization ceased October 1.In an online forum, one employee cited decliningfinancial support as a reason for the closure. PFF wasonce funded by major media and telecom companiessuch as AT&T, Comcast, Sony, Verizon, and Vivendi.

“PFF will be remembered by its scores of scholarsand the hundreds of participants in its programs overthe years as a cutting-edge research institution thatgenerated exciting ideas,” said PFF President AdamThierer.

PFF’s mission was to educate policymakers, opin-ion leaders and the public on digital media and thechanges associated with it, with a founding philoso-phy of limited government and free markets. It wasthe only market-oriented think tank focused on digi-tal media when it was formed.

Media Briefs

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By Greg Hazley

Denver firm forms marijuana PR unit



REPORT

Few can dispute the vitality and prom-ise of New York’s tech communityafter attending one of these monthly

showcase events. For October’s event, theenergy was palpable among the sold-outaudience of 900 who successfully nabbeda coveted ticket to catch an early glimpseof the next Twitter or FourSquare. Theywere not disappointed.The first time I attended a New York

Tech Meet-up was in April 2009, where Iwas both a presenter and an observer. I hadthe good fortune of crossing online pathswith Charlie O’Donnell who was interest-ed in the new PR search engine I helpeddevelop. Three days later I found myselfon the stage of FIT’s Haft Auditorium star-ing out at an audience of 600 (mostly)young men whose hearts and minds myco-developer and I needed to capture.In 2009, the event had a more of a

“Hell’s Kitchen” feel to it, with the moder-ator doing his best to emulate GordonRamsay (I exaggerate). It was a toughcrowd; there were a few presenters whowere literally told to go back to the draw-ing board. Fortunately, our search app waswell received, maybe because it did whatit said it would within the allotted time.In comparison, this month’s moderator

Nate Westheimer handled his duties withaplomb and compassion. When one pre-senter lost her Internet connect midstream,Nate assuaged the terror she no doubt wasfeeling with a few reassuring words and anextension of her time on stage. I supposehe also could have reminded her of howSteve Jobs lost his Internet connect duringthe first public demo of the iPhone4.Much of the growth of New York’s tech

community has to do with the commit-ment the city’s universities, and by exten-sion its graduates, have made to exploringand expanding digital’s impact on society.Considerable credit also must go theBloomberg Administration, which had theforesight to support and bolster NewYork’s vibrant tech community all alongthe way.At this week’s meet-up, Robert Steel,

the city’s new Deputy Mayor forEconomic Development (and the only onein the house wearing a suit and tie), took

the podium to kick-off thesecond year of NYCBigApps2.0 whereby thecity will reward $20,000to “the developers of themost creative, best imple-mented, and impactfulapplications for deliver-ing information from theCity of New York’sNYC.gov Data Mine tointerested users.”As for the applications

and social media-fueledservices presentedTuesday evening, therewere several that struck aresonant chord with thisPR blogger. The first wasIntrospectr, a searchengine, which “makes iteasy to find messages,documents, and linksfrom every part of youronline life.” The engineindexes everything inone’s Facebook andTwitter streams, as wellas one’s Gmail (attach-ments too) to allow thoseforgetful users among usto find even the mostvague recollections fromyour digital travels.There’s also Solvate,

an on-demand sourcingsolution for companiesseeking qualified free-lancers. It had kind of an elitist Doostangfeel to it, i.e., no slouches need apply, butthe site is clean and matching mechanismefficient. For the volunteers among us,the team at CatchaFire created a smartway to put one’s skills to work for goodcauses, and in so doing quantify the valueof the work to the organization.Finally, there’s Amie Street, whose Co-

Founders Elliot, Eli and Josh I first metduring their senior year at Brown. AmieStreet developed an idea for a music e-commerce site exclusively for independ-ent artists that had a novel sales model:the community determined the price ofthe tune, i.e., the song prices rose based

on popularity.Amie Street in September was

acquired by Amazon, which shuttered thesite, but allowed its founders to applytheir considerable energy and talents toSongza, an easy way to create and sharewith friends your own Internet radio sta-tion. According to Elliot, Songza hasmore than 8.5 million songs in its data-base.Peter Himler is Principal of Flatiron

Communications LLC in New York, andPresident of the Publicity Club of NewYork. He is author of the blog The Flack,which can be found at:http://theflack.blogspot.com. �

Innovation, competition abounds in NYC tech sceneOne of the most popular and exciting groups in the tech scene today is the community-led NYTech Meetup. In addition to an active and resourceful bulletin board, the NYTM each monthdraws more than 800 to a large theatre in downtown Manhattan (lately it’s been held at NYU’sSkirball Center) to observe demos of up-and-coming technology from a select handful of someof the city’s most aspiring digital start-ups.

A local start-up demos its newest technological offering at theOctober 12 New York Tech Meet-Up.

Photos by Peter Himler

The October Meet-Up at NYU drew a packed house.

By Peter Himler



The FTC in October produced anupdated draft of its GreenMarketing Guides, which affect

product claims, as well as packagingdesign, seals and certifications that purportan environmentally-friendly product. Therevised Guides — updated for the firsttime since 1998 — are intended to helpmarketers “avoid making misleading envi-ronmental claims,” according to a pressrelease issued by the FTC. By establishing a universal, industry-

standard language for “green” terms, andby eliminating blanket, often unsubstanti-ated claims commonly used by manufac-turers and advertisers, the new rules aim toweed out much confusion for consumersand marketers regarding products thatallege specific environmental benefits.Especially taken to task are ambiguous

terms such as “eco-friendly” and “renew-able.” According to the FTC release: “Veryfew products, if any, have all the attributesconsumers seem to perceive from suchclaims, making these claims nearly impos-sible to substantiate.”The changes also include new guidance

on marketers’ use of product certificationsand seals, common packaging emblemsthat promise a “renewable” product or onethat aids in “carbon offsetting.” The pro-posed updates state that products promis-ing to be “green” cannot use seals and cer-tifications on packaging unless thoseclaims are substantiated. The Guides sug-gest that manufacturers not display seals atall unless they belong to a qualified certifi-cation. Finally, the proposed Guides serve as a

yardstick for marketers on how consumersare likely to comprehend common “green”terms. Consumers purchase products withpreexisting expectations in words like“renewable,” according to the FTC, somarketers should be clear to tell consumersexactly how the product is thus. If the prod-uct or its parts were manufactured usingfossil fuels, the FTC advises the product todrop any “renewable” claims. If a productis listed as “degradable” for example, itmust decompose under natural conditions

in a year.Similarly, if a product promises “carbon

offsetting,” the new Guides suggest mar-keters disclose if the offsetting will occurwithin the next two years, and not to adver-tise any alleged offset if the law alreadyrequires the manufacturer to do so.Ad industry respondsThe FTC is currently seeking public

comment on the proposed changes to theGuides, which will continue untilDecember. If adopted, the Guides will bejust that; they will not be Federal law.However, the FTC can enforce the Guidesand fine violators under Section 5 of theFTC act.The FTC first began its regulatory

review of the Guides in early 2008. Theybegan with a series of workshops to discussrenewable energy credits, to look at popu-lar “green” packaging design and to dis-cuss how its terminology had changed overthe years.Consumer rights groups have been push-

ing the FTC to update its Green MarketingGuides for years. They hope the proposedupdates will curb potentially deceptivemarketing tactics, practices that amount to“greenwashing,” or the art of touting prod-ucts or public policy that deceptively poseas environmentally-friendly for theirdemand among consumers.The ad industry however, hasn’t been as

cooperative. Ad agencies went on recordin 2008 stating they didn’t want the FTC toupdate the Guides. A 10-page commentaryjointly submitted to the FTC by theAmerican Advertising Federation, theAmerican Association of AdvertisingAgencies and the Association of NationalAdvertisers made the industry’s feelingsclear:“Any significant changes to these well-

accepted Guides … would be impractical,if not impossible to implement and couldhave a chilling effect on advertisers’ abilityto communicate important and valuableinformation to consumers.”But not everyone in the industry agrees. “It’s disappointing,” said Valerie Davis,

Co-Founder and CEO of EnviroMedia, anAustin, TX-based advertising and PR

agency that specializes in green marketingand social marketing campaigns toimprove the environment and publichealth. “I don’t understand why my indus-try would not want to update the Guides,just for the simple fact that they couldavoid any future mishaps. If I was a green-washer, I’d like to know how far I couldpush things.”Davis said the new updates are a good

first step in curbing deceptive advertisingpractices, but it also protects the industry.To date, the FTC has taken legal actionagainst at least six companies that havemade false “green” claims. “We’ve seen an explosion of green mar-

keting since ’07, and it’s a great businessbut so much of it is a crock,” Davis said. “Ithink the updates will make great referencetools because the truth has been stretchedway too far. They have to wonder: how farcan they ethically or legally take it?”Consumers must educate themselvesIn a joint collaboration with the Oregon

School of Journalism and Communication,EnviroMedia in 2007 launched theGreenwashing Index (greenwashingin-dex.com), an online tool that educates con-sumers on the veracity of an ostensibly“green” products’ claims.Users can submit advertisements with

environmental claims and then rank them,lauding honest products and deriding mis-leading ones on a “greenwashing scale” ofone (authentic) to five (bogus). The sitealso educates consumers on what to lookfor in “green” product claims. In 2008 environmental group

Greenpeace launched a similar site, StopGreenwash (www.stopgreenwash.org), toeducate consumers on possibly deceptivegreenwashing campaigns.In a 2009 study, EnviroMedia found that

one in three consumers admitted theycouldn’t tell if a purportedly “green” prod-uct’s claims are true, roughly a quarter ofconsumers judge a product’s claims solelyby reading its packaging and one in 10admitted to “blindly trusting” a product’senvironmental claims. Perhaps most telling, the EnviroMedia

study found that in spite of the economy,consumers continue to buy roughly thesame amount of allegedly “green” prod-ucts. The conclusion? Advertisers and mar-keters know how their products are made,but they also know how important a“green” designator can be.“It seems to matter that much to many

consumers,” Davis said. �

FTC cracks down on “green” advertising claimsAdvertisers and marketers that boast the environmentally-friendly aspects of their products can expect to be held to astricter standard on what words and images they’ll be allowedto use, if recent changes proposed by the Federal TradeCommission become policy. By Jon Gingerich

FEATURE


As technology improves, the scopeand volume of content that monitor-ing services can process is rising

exponentially, in some cases to staggeringnumbers.In the case of traditional outlets like

broadcast TV or radio, the speed of searchresults and depth of tracking have greatlyincreased, while the rapidly expandingocean of content in social media has forcedmonitoring companies to retool infrastruc-ture and keep pace with the flood. In either case, the tech-wrought versatili-

ty has opened up new markets for PR serv-ices providers that invested in infrastructureand, in the case of social media, saw theboom coming. Broadcasting monitoring company

Critical Mention, in October, released amajor upgrade to its CriticalTV monitoringplatform, 4.0, which tracks television con-tent in the top markets across the country. Itscapabilities are now such that it ingests 27hours of media every 60 seconds. That’smore media per minute than YouTube is get-ting uploads per minute, which is close to 24hours per minute, noted CEO Sean Morgan.“We are getting much deeper with clients

than was typical,” said Morgan. “They aretracking their management, boards, prod-ucts, competitors, but also their legal issues,lobbying, human resource issues.”Technological improvements are meeting

client demand, meaning more data can besearched more rapidly. In addition to thespeed of queries, key additions to the newplatform from CM are the ability to vary thescope of a search from a single TV marketto a global search, on-the-fly editing ofvideo clips which lets users choose the startand finish of a clip based on the transcripttext of what’s being said, as well as emailand RSS alerts for mentions.Allowing users to vary the scope by mar-

ket also allows Critical Mention to open awider pool of potential clients beyond its600-plus client base. Such a strategy hasfueled growth of tech-savvy PR servicesstart-ups like Vocus, which have used thesmall business market as a vast opportunityto gain customers overlooked (and pricedout) by rivals.“Because we have this capability of real-

ly ‘narrowscoping’ results, we’re also ableto accommodate any entity’s budget andneeds,” said Morgan. A small non-profit inHawaii, for example, could subscribe tocontent only in the Hawaii DMA. A politi-cian could buy a package from his local

markets and, perhaps, adjacent states. Morgan said the versatility has opened up

its services to regionally focused, boutiquePR firms as well, where in the past, onlylarger agencies could afford the services ofbig monitoring shops. Social media at an inflection pointThe spike in volume of data is attributable

both to increased adoption by the public, aswell as the transition from companies andbrands from a listening pattern to moreengagement. “We started to realize that the application

we have was not going to be able to scalewith that,” said Geoff Farris, Executive VPof Visible Technologies, a social mediamonitoring and consulting company. “As allof this data started coming in, we realizedthat we were at this inflection point and a lotof the applications that are out there aregoing to hit a wall. We decided we need tobuild something that would take on thischallenge.”Farris said there were three key chal-

lenges to building a new platform essential-ly from the ground up.First, the global nature of communica-

tions today makes multiple language trans-lation necessary. “It’s a global problem thatpeople are trying to solve, not just a local,

traditional problem,” said Farris.Second, a monitoring platform has to be

scalable to the huge volumes of data. “Tenbillion posts for Twitter this year, Facebookcreating this massive amount of data — wehad to be able to make sure we could scale,”he said.Finally, tracking the data alone is no

longer the end of expectations for monitor-ing platforms. Clients, whether it’s a PRdepartment or a sales division, are lookingfor specific information and tone. Sentimentis now key. “We built the application to sur-face things so that you’re not just staring ata screen and the data is just flying by you ina river,” he said. “That’s not acceptable.”Technology was key to incorporating sen-

timent into Visible’s new platform. Thecompany has used five years of data whichhad been manually scored by staffers to“teach” its computer models to gauge senti-ment, a move which takes the human ele-ment out of the process and provides a moreautomated and accurate method.Farris added that the other key to adding

value to monitoring data is allowing it to beintegrated into other data sources, essential-ly letting a client take its social media dataand plug it into other information like salesoutcomes. �


Tech improvements spark monitoring advancementsBy Greg Hazley



FEATURE

The stakes of the game have certainlychanged in recent years, with the useof social media and digital channels

like blogs, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedInbecoming core elements of most communi-cations programs in this market segment. Itbecame clear in early 2010 that regardlessof how extensively you plan to use thesechannels and other social technologies,every company needs to be at the very leastmonitoring and actively listening to the dis-cussions. Many organizations are now tak-ing the next step by acting on what theyhear to create true two-way engagement. The curve ball being thrown at PR is the

fact the B2B buying public relies less on themedia translators — traditional or other-wise — for information that helps with pur-chasing decisions. The trade and businessmedia are still important audiences for allcompanies selling into the B2B market, butare no longer the primary channels. The shrinking number of media outlets

and technology-focused reporters hasaccelerated the replacement of externalmedia as the preferred communication andpublicity channel for companies. Buyersincreasingly seek and expect in-depth,unbiased peer reviews and lab tests of prod-ucts and technologies, particularly sincemany B2B products and services are bigbudget items requiring major investmentand change within their companies. Thethirst for more intricate product informationand reviews is a direct result of the pressurebeing placed on decision makers who needto rapidly deliver a clear and measurablereturn on the investments they recommend. Take the B2B technology market. The

power of online information and productreviews when it comes to technology deci-sions means IT buyers are approachingpurchasing decisions like everyday con-sumers, who have become quite comfort-able checking peer review sites likeTripAdvisor and Yelp — or their ownFacebook news feeds — before booking ahotel or making a restaurant reservation.Big technology investments have a hugeimpact on corporate budgets and compa-nies’ ability to meet strategic goals — not tomention the ability to make or break the

career of the IT executive writing the check.It is critical to these executives to feel con-fident they are obtaining objective, reliablereviews and pertinent information frompeers about the products or services theyare considering. PR as trusted navigatorThis opens up a great opportunity for

tech companies to communicate directlywith current and prospective customersusing social media channels. The challengefor these companies is selecting the rightcommunications partner to help them effec-tively navigate this change. There are twoextremes that seem to be vying for this role.The first are the tools and services beingheavily promoted by self-professed digitalexperts — whether they are the solo practi-tioners who promote themselves on Twitter24/7, or the self-branded digital agenciesthat are offshoots of advertising, PR firmsor independent boutiques. Recently, some nontraditional providers

have entered the fray, including technologyindustry analyst groups, who increasinglyare offering social media seminars andservices. Even traditional managementconsulting firms have jumped on the socialmedia/social technology bandwagon,including Booz Allen Hamilton, who co-sponsored the recent PRSA internationalconference to help market and highlight itsown social media/government 2.0 andhealthcare engagement practice areas andservices. It’s certainly important to understand

how to use social media tools, but what ismost important before using technology toengage with information-hungry customersis to establish goals that align with overallbusiness objectives and create a strategybased on your current reputation within theindustry. Then, determine how to fully inte-grate your social media efforts with theother marketing efforts — both outboundand inbound — that are driving your leads,Web traffic and sales. Animated Facebook Pages and flashy

microsites are nice, but companies need todevelop credibility by telling their storyboth in an authentic way and via the appro-priate social channels. And, these effortsshould appeal to the buying public and

influencers so they ultimately want to notonly subscribe to and receive your socialmedia content on a regular basis, but alsocomment upon and share your content withothers.Before being dazzled — or frightened —

by consulting groups or digital toolsexperts offering conflicting views aboutwhat you need to do in the brave newworld of social media technology, compa-nies should start with their existing publicrelations teams. Why? PR professionalscontinue to prove they are the bestequipped to manage the strategic and tacti-cal demands of social media. PR teams arealso adept at ensuring these programs arefully integrated with your firm’s market-ing, external and internal communicationsefforts.After all, PR currently serves as the

voice of the company and the group thatshapes, presents and guards the corporatereputation in the market. Public relationsby definition should have the most holisticview of the company and its constituents,and therefore represents the safest route toselecting, managing and deploying a fullyintegrated, effective social media program. More importantly, the best PR profes-

sionals counsel company executives onwhat not to do and where not to invest asmuch as they recommend courses of actionand expenditures of resources. They don’thave a new agenda here. Managing com-munications strategy and channels are sim-ply an extension of PR’s current goals andtraditional role.As business to business companies rec-

ognize this new and valuable opportunityto engage directly with their customers —and the need ensure their audience doesn’tbecome frustrated by their efforts — it’salso important to avoid the marketing hypeand education fatigue created by the end-less stream of free Webcasts, seminars andstrategic plans emanating from everyonebut their current PR counsel. Look first tothe communications professionals in PRwho are already guiding and protectingyour reputation today rather than risk wast-ing time and money by bolting on anothersiloed program or adopting an unprovenapproach that will never integrate and onlydistract from your overall PR and market-ing programs. This will ensure that youavoid those wild pitches and errors likeyou’d expect from a championship-caliberteam.Lois Paul is President and Founder of

Lois Paul & Partners in Woburn, MA. �

Putting your best foot forward with social mediaThe evolution of public relations in the business-to-businessmarket has taken more interesting curves this year thanmany of the pitches thrown during the baseball season.

By Lois Paul


Take a moment to look around youand think about the technologythat’s touching your life. There’s

the device you’re using to read the news:a desktop computer or (increasingly morelikely) a laptop or a smartphone. Thereare probably messages, tweets and emailalerts popping up on your screen. Theremay be windows running in the back-ground with a half-written blog post, aweb page for your favorite shopping site,your Facebook page or a YouTube videosent by a colleague.Some in tech PR might recall the days

when technologies we were asked to pub-licize were far from our reach — massivecomputers used only by technical profes-sionals, software used by database spe-cialists and design engineers. Those tech-nologies haven’t disappeared, but fortech PR folks there’s a much broaderlandscape with more technology we, asbusiness and personal consumers, canrelate to. Around the time of the iPadlaunch, one telco industry watcher talkedabout the “15 screens” in the averagehome — PCs, TVs, phones, gameplayers,iPods, etc. — and opined that there’s stillan opportunity for more (how about ahybrid PC/TV/entertainment device forthe kitchen?).This personalization of technology has

had significant implications on the prac-tice of tech PR, opening new doors interms of the audiences we target, the con-tent we develop and the channels we use. Here’s a review of some of the changes

we’re seeing:Less technical content. Because tech-

nology has more impact on mainstreamusers, we’re adapting and extending ourmessage — writing news releases andpitching media with less-technical read-ers in mind. For example, there’s theprovider of Internet security solutionswho began crafting releases and pitchesfor gamers, parents and seniors.Issues-driven PR. Increasingly, we’re

looking beyond technology topics andfinding ways to connect tech productswith mainstream trends and news devel-

opments. Consider one developer of full body scanners speaking out on safety andprivacy concerns around these devicesduring the summer travel season.Data-driven PR. With a more main-

stream focus on technology, PR peopleare finding more opportunities to lever-age consumer surveys and user data tocreate visibility and thought leadership.An example: a provider of mobile dataservices releasing findings on how con-sumers feel about mobile broadband.Mainstream PR strategies. In the

past, most tech PR was relegated tolengthy news releases, pitches to technol-ogy trade publications and the placementof technical articles. Today, we’re takingour lead from PR professionals in areaslike public affairs (a maker of powersemiconductors speaking out on environ-mental issues) and consumer products (aprovider of local online coupons goinginto local communities to focus onrestaurant and shopping deals). These arestrategies that were unheard of in tech PRa generation ago.Technology in the mass media.

Increasingly, we’re seeing technology onthe front pages of newspapers (the fewthat still print pages), discussed in radiotalk shows and featured on television pro-grams. A few months ago, Pew researchreleased findings of a report that showedtechnology second only to crime as mostreported news items — surpassing topicslike religion and immigration (the biggestsingle tech storyline: texting while driv-ing). Not that many years ago, youwouldn’t see this kind of interest in tech-nology companies and topics. Proliferation of mobile devices. At a

recent industry event, I heard some sur-prising mobile market figures: every 30minutes nearly 23,000 mobile subscribersare added, and more than 73,000 cellphones are shipped (14,000 of themsmartphones). Over the next five years,we can expect to see a 4000% increase indata traffic. Mobile devices, applicationsand data are not only technologies the PRis being called on to promote — it’s alsoproviding new channels to do our jobs.

During the hour-long presentation I wasable to use my Blackberry to check email,text a team member and browse the net toget info on one of the speakers. At arecent trade show, I’ve been able toaccess photos of the editor I was planningto meet, text my client when the editorarrived and later check for coverage.Media consolidation. While not

directly impacted by the personalizationof technology. The consolidation of techmedia is creating new opportunities for aform of personalization — citizen jour-nalism, with PR people often playing therole of the citizen. It’s no secret that PR istransforming in the age of media consoli-dation, and the movement in tech PR isclearly toward content PR. Increasingly,tech PR professionals are supplementingtraditional media relations — or sidestep-ping it altogether — and developingblogs, podcast, tweets and other forms ofself-published content.Social Media. A fitting final note deals

with the topic just touched on: the adop-tion of social media. By now we shouldall be using forms of social media —blogs, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn —but the personalization of technology hascreated an even great need to incorporatethese channels into our PR strategies, asthey are often the most effective way toreach a mainstream audience. And, it’snot just PR people using social media —yet another example of the personaliza-tion of technology was a news report ear-lier this year when the Pope went publicto encourage priests to use social mediato reach the masses.While there’s been this unprecedented

evolution in technology personalization,one characteristic of this market hasn’tchanged — the incredible pace of newdevelopments in technology markets.This has always made the tech space astandout for the PR profession, whichthrives on change. In fact, the pace of change in technolo-

gy has accelerated dramatically in recentyears, giving PR people not only newareas to focus their energies, contacts andexperiences, but new tools to tell ourstory. And with the personalization of tech-

nology, putting those tools, energies, con-tacts and insights to work makes lifemuch more interesting for tech PR pro-fessionals.Tony Sapienza is Principal and Partner

of Topaz Partners in Woburn, MA. �

Personalization: new content, audiences, strategies


FEATURE

Technology PR has undergone dramatic changes in the pastdecade, but arguably the biggest shift affecting consumers,clients and communicators today is its increasingly subjec-tive and mobile use.

By Tony Sapienza


Social media engagement is challeng-ing enough in today’s 24/7, always-on environment. But what if you

faced added restrictions on what you couldsay and how open you could be? Howwould you gain an edge? How would youeffectively engage your customer? Theanswer is integration and alignment. Consider, for example, what PR and

marketing professionals in the pharmaceu-tical, healthcare or biotech (PHB) industryare doing to address the issue of trans-parency.Collaborating to address regulatory lim-

itations, marketing goals and the public’sgrowing expectation for open conversa-tions is invaluable for any professionalmanaging a social media engagement strat-egy. Granted, the PHB field is unique. FDA

and privacy advocates severely limit whatPHB companies can communicate aboutclinical trial subjects, safety, and drug, bio-logical or medical device manufacturingdata via social media.Ignoring restrictions is not an option.

Nor is disengaging when 61% of Americanadults look online for medical information,according to a 2009 report by Pew Internetand the American Life Project.And as Social Media Practice Lead for

Accenture Interactive, Jason Breed pointsout, “Consumers are not bound by regula-tions in the way they communicate. Theyare free to discuss their healthcare issueswith anyone they want.”That’s the experience of blogger Allison

Blass in writing about her life with Type 1diabetes: “Information from pharmaceuti-cal companies is very dry and very clean. Ideal with these restrictions by relying onfirst-hand accounts, so I link to otherpatient blogs or posts on forums.”Carly Kuper, Director of

Communications at Digitas Health,acknowledges that social media can beproblematic for marketing and PR profes-sionals.“With social media, we have more tools

at our fingertips, there also are more waysto screw up. Social media makes us allmore accountable,” she said.Collaboration, alignment, integrationMost marketing and PR professionals

don’t face these same challenges, but allcompanies confront the issue of trans-parency at one time or another. So whatcan PR and marketing professionals learn

from companies in the PHB industry aboutengagement? That’s where collaborationand integration comes in.AstraZeneca Associate Director of

Interactive Media Gigi Peterkin says it best:you must “first align internally to executeexternally.” In tapping Facebook, YouTube,Twitter and blogs as AstraZeneca does toreach patients and the caregiver communi-ty, “you need to recognize the need forquick turnarounds, identify the ‘voices’ ofyou company, tailor communications, andregularly update policies.”The collaboration process often involves

working with software tools. There areplenty out there. AstraZeneca uses anemployee Yammer network. As the“Twitter for businesses,” Yammer, an enter-prise microblogging tool, allows real-timeemployee engagement in a secure environ-ment involving information systems, secu-rity, legal, communications departments inkey areas of compliance.The tools themselves are only part of the

equation. You need an overall strategy inmanaging online properties. The followingconsiderations have helped guideAstraZeneca’s collaboration efforts.• Determine who in your organization

drives the strategy and build a network of

SMEs to implement it.• Establish a detailed approval process

for content development and informationsharing.• Be open on social media sites about the

approvals process.• Use approved language where possible,

securing legal approval as needed to expe-dite content development.• In a 24-hour news cycle, speed is

important and an approvals protocol is keyto ensuring efficient content generation.These considerations, combined with the

right tools, will help balance competinginterests of government, customer and mar-keting. It can minimize the risks of engage-ment and maximize your impact.Your company’s approval process may

be less restrictive, but that doesn’t meanyou can’t benefit from looking at the stepsyour organization should take to betterengage with external audiences. Being pre-pared can only help you benefit from bothexpected and unexpected challenges oftoday’s social media environment. Dan Greenfield is a media consultant

and Producer of PR+MKTG Camp, aninteractive conferences focused on helpingPR and marketing professionals integratesocial media engagement strategies. �

Being social, when transparency isn’t an optionBy Dan Greenfield

With Catapult, you can kick the learning curve.

Since its inception, Catapult has focused exclusively on high-techcompanies. This focus and specialization gives us deep expertise andunderstanding of the key issues driving your industry, and minimizes thelearning curve companies typically experience when engaging with anew PR firm. It also means we usually already have relationships with theeditors and analysts who cover your space, so you can expect results faster.And results are what we’re all about.Call or visit www.catapultpr-ir.com today to learn more:866-700-7760 or 303-581-7760.

Celebrating 10 years of proven PR results for high-tech companies!




FEATURE

It’s Monday morning. You’re on the wayto work — checking emails, voicemailsand keeping track of today’s “new” pri-

orities. Sound familiar? This phenomenonof shifting priorities due to crises, unfore-seen events, or even the boss’ whims, canderail the best laid plans and limit ourproactive contribution to business objec-tives.According to a Towers Watson

Communication ROI Study, high-perform-ing organizations are 2-3 times more likelyto have a documented communicationstrategy than low-performing organiza-tions. In today’s competitive business envi-ronment however, having “a plan” is notenough. It must be a dynamic platform thatdelivers measurable business results underany circumstances.While we’re busy putting out fires, the

organizational landscape continues to shiftaround us. Baby Boomers are retiring andincoming Millennials will comprise nearly50 percent of the workforce by 2014,according to Harvard Business Review.This new class of employee has very dif-ferent communication preferences andintrinsic motivators than its predecessors.Today’s workforce is also more-mobileand harder to reach, influenced by a 75%increase in flexible work arrangementssince 2005.Additionally, the prolonged recession

has put new pressure on corporate over-head functions to contribute directly tobusiness performance. “CEOs and busi-ness leaders increasingly see all functionswithin an organization through an ROIlens. As they allocate precious resources inresponse to funding requests, they arethinking about bottom-line impact, not feelgood programs” says Jim Ivey, an internalcommunication executive in the financialservices sector.What does all of this mean for commu-

nicators?First, we should consider why organiza-

tions invest in internal communicationsand determine where we can have thegreatest impact. We can start by looking atfunctions that directly contribute to busi-ness results, like sales. Or support roles,such as customer service, that are held

accountable for “hard” metrics like cus-tomer satisfaction. As communicators, wetoo need to create a similar link with busi-ness success.We can start by re-adjusting our focus

toward influencing employee actions.Traditional communication objectives likeincreasing awareness, knowledge andcommitment, while important, stop shortof action. I recall a situation within a largefinancial services enterprise, where we cre-ated metrics related to increasing employ-ee traffic to the Intranet. When asked by asenior executive how that supported busi-ness growth, we said it would improveemployee understanding of the company’sstrategies. He then asked, “And what willthat cause them to do?”Most companies view employee engage-

ment as the embodiment of focusedemployee action in support of businessobjectives. According to global consultingfirm BlessingWhite, “Engaged employeesare more productive, profitable, and cus-tomer-focused. They have a line-of-sighton their own future and on the organiza-tion’s mission and goals. They are‘enthused’ and ‘in gear’ using their talentsand discretionary effort to make a differ-ence in their employer’s quest for sustain-able business success.”It’s not the mere existence of a world-

class “rewards and recognition” programthat engages employees. Rather, it’s thetargeting and customization of the contentthrough various forms of communicationthat activates and strengthens engagement.By fully integrating engagement into

communication planning, strategy, tactics,content, delivery and measurement can beshaped by an engagement lens to moredirectly influence employee productivity.This strategic linkage creates an excitingopportunity for communicators to connecttheir activities to business performance.And by driving employee action, the effec-tiveness of communication is increasedsubstantially. Consider this checklist to determine if

your communication plan is optimized todrive employee action, engagement andbusiness results:Have you reviewed your current com-

munication goals? Are they focused onfacilitating behaviors or actions that helpachieve company strategy, or on increasingemployee knowledge of the strategy? Forexample, are your metrics for measuringemployee contributions based on improv-ing knowledge scores from an employeesurvey? Or, are you measuring progress onspecific behaviors?Have you identified your “drivers” of

effective communication (timeliness, rel-evance, etc.)? Do you know how they areweighted by different groups such as cor-porate staff versus a call center? At a lead-ing discount brokerage, a targeted focus onthe drivers yielded a 41% increase in satis-faction with communication and a nearly20% increase in employee engagement.Have you segmented your workforce

functionally and by demographic pro-file? Do you understand their communica-tion preferences and key motivational fac-tors, i.e. how different segments prefer toreceive information and what engagesemployees in each group?Are you delivering targeted and cus-

tomized communication based onemployee preferences and motivationalfactors? For an issue like increasing cus-tomer fees, are sales and customer servicestaff treated as priority audiences? Do theyreceive exactly what they need to operateeffectively?How connected is your communica-

tion plan to employee engagement? Areyou still “promoting” the engagement con-cept and tactical initiatives related to anengagement survey? Or, have you mappedcommunication activities to motivationalfactors and found a way to influence con-tent? Creating communication plans and pro-

grams that reach, motivate and engagetoday’s workforce is increasingly challeng-ing. But, the stakes are high for communi-cators to deliver more relevant and measur-able results to their organizations. For com-munication to directly impact business suc-cess, it must be adapted to changingemployee preferences and motivationalfactors, and linked with engagement. So,remember what time management expert,Alan Lakein says: “Planning is bringingthe future into the present so you can dosomething about it now.” And, there’s notime like the present to build an action-ori-entation into your communication strategyand begin reaping the rewards.Douglas Rozman is Founder and

Managing Principal at CommunivationConsulting. �

In today’s competitive business environment, just having acommunications plan isn’t enough. More companies are relyingon dynamic platforms that deliver measurable results under anycircumstance.

By Douglas Rozman

The difference between communication and engagement


Minding the store: your CEO’s face here


FEATURE

In 1971 an iconic ad campaign debutedfeaturing Frank Perdue as the CEO andSpokesperson for the Perdue chicken

brand. The ads included the legendaryline, “It takes a tough man to make a ten-der chicken.” Though a shy man bynature, Frank appeared in about 200 adsand signaled his personal involvementwith the company by the phrase, “Saywhatever you have to say, I can take it.”So, what convinced Frank to be the pub-lic face of his brand and business?Perdue was clearly committed to the

success of his business and determinedthat the public know about his personalaccountability for the product it deliv-ered. His acceptance of responsibility is a

valuable lesson for the modern CEO andcorporation. It’s widely accepted that the strength of

relationship between a person and abrand or business is influenced by manyfactors, including planned communica-tions such as advertising. Other factorssuch as consumption experience, inciden-tal communication and competitor activi-ty also play their part.Within this mix of influences, some

believe that the role of the CEO or otherleaders can be pivotal. Synovate recentlyconducted a quantitative study with 100adults in the US looking at this veryissue.Fine to be faceless?When people rated the overall perform-

ance of a company, they said the mostimportant factors are their recent experi-ence (83%) and the company’s servicereputation (80%). Only 15% think thecompany CEO is important in this overallrating. Similarly, most people don’t evenknow the CEO of their favorite company This lack of familiarity is not surprising.In an equivalent qualitative exercise con-ducted simultaneously in the US and theUK, Synovate observed that few CEOshave broken into the public conscious-ness. US CEOs like Jobs, Murdoch,Gates, Trump and Welch are the excep-tions rather than the norm.There was one exception in the UK.

Richard Branson and the Virgin brandappear to be inextricably linked in thepublic conscious. The narrative aroundBranson is positive and image buildingfor Virgin. An often quoted story is oneconcerning a passenger on a Virgin flightwho apparently had a bad meal experi-ence. Branson apparently personallyintervened and it resulted in a meal in aone London’s finest restaurants for theaggrieved passenger. The need to be seenThe recent Toyota incident was also

much talked about in some recent focusgroups Synovate conducted. In thesegroups, Synovate used a spontaneousassociation research technique calledMind Clouds to establish the currentimages and associations that dominatethe brand.The maps of the brand show a marked

contrast between the U.S. and U.K. Inboth markets the positive attributes thatthe brand has built over many years wereregularly discussed: innovative, environ-mental, green, quality and reliability. Ofcourse, considering recent events, there

was some mention of the nature of therecall. Two important points: First, in both

countries it seemed people felt sorry forthe company, indicating that Toyota is agood company that has suffered an unfor-tunate production problem. This senti-ment is testimony to the goodwill built bythe brand over many years. Secondly, inthe U.S., Toyota’s CEO Mr. Toyoda wasspontaneously discussed as part of thebrand.Considering that familiarity with CEOs

appears to be limited, it’s interesting thatthere’s a direct relationship betweenpeaks in mentions and public appear-ances that Mr. Toyoda made to issuestatements, deal with Congress and so on.Clearly there are moments when the pub-lic do care about the CEO and relate theCEO with the brand performance.What the public wantsIt’s evident that people have very clear

expectations at certain times. The surveyshowed that in response to what the CEOshould be committed to, the majority stat-ed customer service (81%) and the samenumber (81%) stated doing the rightthing. Indeed, it’s evident that the majority

want a CEO who’s committed to cus-tomer service, and 66% want the CEO topersonally answer for the company prod-uct or service problems in public, whileonly 20% want the CEO to be faceless sothat the company speaks for itself.It’s clear that consumer confidence

comes from knowing that someone is‘minding the store’ and has ultimate over-sight on what happens. For most peoplethis confidence translates to “guaranteesme the best service and experience whenthings go right and, more importantly,gives me the right response/approachwhen something goes wrong.”Personal responsibility The need for personal ownership of

service and delivery by the CEO is signif-icant. It is fine to be anonymous for muchof the time. Most people don’t mind.However, particularly at times of crisis,the CEO needs to be front and center, sig-nalling his or her personal involvementand commitment.As one respondent put it in the context

of how Virgin would have reacted to theToyota situation: “He (Branson) wouldhave run down the stairs himself to turnoff the conveyor belt.”Ged Parton is CEO of Global

Practices & Capabilities for Synovate. �

By Ged Parton

Tennessee frozen vegetable marketerPictsweet has brought in Prism PublicAffairs to handle PR for the recall of 24,000pounds of frozen peas recalled Oct. 15because packages may contain glass frag-ments.The voluntary recall includes 12-ounce

packages of frozen peas and mixed vegeta-bles distributed only to Kroger stores in theSoutheast and to Wal-Mart stores through-out the country. No injuries have been reported.Anne Tyrrell, a senior VP at D.C.-based

Prism who was previously with Blackwaterand Shirley & Banister PA, and Prism part-ner Richard Ades, a Powell Tate alum, arehandling communications for Pictsweetinvolving the recall.Tyrell told O'Dwyer's that Prism was

brought inspecifically tohandle therecall.The call-

back followsthe recall lastweek of eightlots of bread-ed okra pro-duced by Bells, Tenn.-based Pictsweetbecause the product contains milk not listedon the label. An omission during theredesign of its packaging was blamed forthe error, which raised concerns becausesome people have dairy allergies.

PR news briefs

PPRRIISSMM AAIIDDSS PPEEAASS RREECCAALLLL


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At Merritt, we combine the right mix of communications channels—whether it’s PR, marketing strategy, creative design or social media—to ensure that your messages resonate with the audiences that matter most.

We have dedicated practices in Government, Enterprise Technology, Communications & Networking, Security, Healthcare and Clean Tech.

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Reston, VA | San Francisco, CA


The Federal Trade Commissionenforced its new guidelines onendorsements and testimonials

directly against a PR agency, and its soleowner, for posting positive reviews of itsclient’s products on iTunes. This is thefirst time that the FTC has enforced theseguidelines.Reverb Communications, Inc., a pub-

lic relations, marketing and sales servic-es agency that represents video gamedevelopers. The agency is solely ownedby Tracie Snitker. Between November2008 and May 2009, Reverb and Snitkerposted positive reviews about theirclients’ games at the iTunes Store usingaccount names that gave readers theimpression the reviews were written bydisinterested consumers. The posts didnot disclose that the authors were con-nected to the producer of the videogames, that they were hired to promotethe games or that they often received apercentage of the sales of the games. In December 2009, the FTC updated

its Endorsement and Testimonial

Guidelines. Among other changes, theFTC’s updated guidelines provided thatbloggers who endorse a product or serv-ice must disclose any material connec-tions they have with the seller of theproduct or service. In other words, ablogger who makes an endorsementmust clearly and prominently disclosewhether he/she receives cash, free prod-ucts or other in-kind payments to reviewthe product or service. If these disclo-sures are not made, the post is consideredto be deceptive and false or misleading.In addition, the FTC specified that itsguidelines apply not only to the providerof the products or services that are thesubject of the endorsement, but also tothe advertising or PR agency that wasresponsible for the endorsement, and theemployees of both the agency and theprovider. On September 2, the FTC announced

that it entered into a Consent Order withReverb and its owner, Snitker. The Orderprovided that Reverb and Snitker wererequired to remove any previously post-ed endorsements that misrepresented theauthors as independent users or ordinaryconsumers, and that failed to disclose aconnection between Reverb and Snitker

and the seller of a product or service. TheOrder also prohibited Reverb and Snitkerfrom misrepresenting that the user orendorser is an independent, ordinaryconsumer, and from making endorse-ment or user claims about a product orservice unless they clearly and promi-nently disclose any material connectionsthat they have with the seller of the prod-uct or service. Violations of a ConsentOrder may result in a penalty of up to$16,000 per instance.The FTC’s message here is clear: any

advertisement or communications mes-sages, including blogs or other onlineposts, that endorse a product or servicemust clearly and prominently disclosewhether the endorser was hired by orreceived any payment, free products orother consideration from the provider ofthe product or service. If these disclo-sures are not made, the provider of theproduct or service and/or the PR oradvertising agency responsible for theendorsements, and their owners or prin-cipals, may be held liable for deceptiveand false or misleading advertising. Andrew Goldstein is a Partner at the

law firm Freeborn & Peters LLP, inChicago. �

PR firm held liable for iTunes product reviewsBy Andrew L. Goldstein



You can’t have your entire view ofsocial media as a place for marketingand one-off campaigns,” warned

Peter Waldheim, Senior Strategist for TheSocial Media Business Council.“It’s not just an alternative channel, but a

whole new way of engaging with peopleand organizations that don’t get that willfail and fail spectacularly because thewhole thing about getting involved in socialmedia is you need to develop an army ofadvocates, can’t just view it as a sellingchannel even though that’s good and can bea part of it,” Waldheim said.BP was presented as a case study of a

company that suffered considerablybecause of a lack of involvement in socialmedia prior to the April 20 Gulf oil spill.Allyson Toolan, Account Executive from

Adfero Group, noted how BP tried to jumpin during the middle of the crisis by startingup Facebook and Twitter accounts, butunfortunately found parody Twitteraccounts running in full force with three-times the following of BP’s feed. BP’s Facebook strategy mirrored their

traditional media efforts: they were simplypushing information out instead of interact-ing with followers, Toolan explained.Not just delivering, listeningAn important thing to consider is that not

all social media tools work in every situa-tion, according to Toolan. She said that youhave to figure out where people are talkingabout you and then try to engage that audi-ence. James Sneeringer, director of web con-

tent for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce,added a “forward to a friend” feature forarticles on the Chamber’s site along with a“reader comment” function. By doing thishe was able to track which articles werebeing shared and see what the audienceagreed and disagreed with.“We were being social but not using

Facebook or Twitter,” Sneeringer said.Sneeringer waited months to start using

the Chamber’s Facebook and Twitteraccounts, preferring to spend some timejoining other Facebook pages and follow-ing Twitter feeds before engaging. Heexplained that he wanted to get a handle onwhat was going on and being said in social

media before pushing out his own informa-tion.“Often the focus is on how to deliver a

message, but you must also be prepared tolisten to what is going on in social media,”Sneerinerg said.Sneeringer has used ads on Facebook

itself to build up followers for the Chamber.“It’s an easier way to get people’s contact

info and then you can communicate withthem rather than running a typical web ban-ner which directs a person to your websitebut then you still have to get them to giveyou their e-mail address,” Sneeringer said.Handling critics, rumorsThe panelists acknowledged that social

media is a breeding ground for critics aswell as fans.Sneeringer said the Chamber was

attacked on its Facebook page, but apartfrom removing profane comments the con-versation was allowed to proceed betweenlegitimate posters and those simply lam-basting the Chamber.Toolan noted that it’s better to have these

conversations happen on your own blog orFacebook page because then you can takepart. “If you’ve built up a good community, let

it police itself, “ said Alan Rosenblatt, asso-ciate director for online advocacy at theCenter for American Progress Action Fund. If you need to push back, the focus

should not be on convincing the attackerbut convincing the unbiased trying to par-ticipate in the discussion, Rosenblattexplained. “You want to show logically that the

argument is factually incorrect or unsoundand promote the work or research you’vedone that counters the charges or what’sbeing said,” Rosenblatt said.Mark Drapeau, director of innovative

social engagement for Microsoft, admittedthat sometimes there are issues that aren’tworth engaging. He continued that becauseMicrosoft is so well known and manyalready have a preconceived notion of whatthe company is all about such as Applefans, there’s no need to get into the trench-es even with influential bloggers. “People say the cold war is done, but not

when it comes to Apple vs. PC,” Drapeausaid.

Rosenblatt stressed that you must engagethose where they choose to engage youwhether it’s on a blog or Facebook or youwon’t be effective and you’ll encouragebacklash.“Consumers determine the channels of

distribution, not the producers,” he said.David Faggard, Executive Officer to the

Director of the U.S. Air Force Office ofPublic Affairs, has dealt with the rash ofmisinformation that often pervades theweb. He told of an incident where someone

tweeted that an Air Force C17 cargo planethe length of a football field had crashedwhen in reality it was just doing low-leveltraining. CNN picked up the story and ranwith it on air without contacting the AirForce. The Air Force then tweeted a denialof the rumor but had to wait half a day forCNN to issue a retraction.“Things happen so quickly in the world

of social media, you don’t have a whole lotof time to make a decision and implementit,” Faggard said.Faggard explained that the Air Force has

acknowledged the importance of educatingthe lowest common denominator engagingin social media within an organization andhow valuable the local perspective can be.“You can trust an 18-year-old with the

power of a nuclear weapon but you can’ttrust them to use Twitter or Facebook?”Faggard said.“Ambient intimacy”Darren Krape, Senior New Media

Specialist in the Office of InnovativeEngagement at the State Department, usedthe term “ambient intimacy” to describehow a State Department staffer connectedwith the students she was going to visitthrough Twitter prior to her trip so thatwhen she met them in person they all feltlike they knew her already.“It was an enhanced relationship,” Krape

noted.“Social media is defined as the interac-

tion among people, not between businesses,robots, etc. It is essential that your Twitterfeed has a human element,” Rosenblattsaid.People will follow what you’re sending

out in the world of social media if it’s valu-able, but they’ll remember it only if it’sinteresting and each organization approach-es this differently, Faggard noted.The event was part of a series of half-day

conferences and seminars sponsored byWashington, D.C.-based Adfero Group. Aseminar focusing on the new age of mediamonitoring is planned for late October. �

Social media not just a sales channelREPORT

An Oct. 1 National Press Club panel in Washington, D.C.discussed how PR pros can integrate tools like Facebook,Twitter, YouTube and blogs into their communicationsstrategies.

By John O’Dwyer

“



The 2010 BlogWorld & New MediaExpo (www.blogworldexpo.com), thefirst and only industry-wide confer-

ence, tradeshow and media event for newmedia, was the site of big crowds and biggerideas on October 14-16 at the MandalayBay Convention Center in Las Vegas. The world’s largest social media confer-

ence, the three-day event kicked off with anexclusive Social Media Business Summit.The full conference continued, with morethan 200 conference presenters leading ses-sions and conducting workshops on topicsincluding podcast production, online mar-keting, how to create and improve content,how to hone writing skills, site monetiza-tion, distribution techniques and searchengine optimization. An industry-wide new media marketplace

and exhibition hall hosted an extensive arrayof companies, products and services includ-ing publishing platforms, hosting compa-nies, advertising networks, computer hard-ware and software, search engines, wirelessservices, aggregators, and affiliate market-ing programs. In all, the conference brought more than

3,200 attendees together to gain insightsfrom social media thought leaders on how togain exposure, engage with customers andgrow their businesses using the latest newmedia technology, tools and methods and tonetwork and connect face-to-face withpotential clients and customers. More thanfour dozen corporations sponsored theevent. Attendees included bloggers and web-

masters, online entrepreneurs, new mediaand communications experts, marketingdirectors and executives of companies rang-ing from small start-ups to Fortune 500 cor-porations and major networks like Google,Apple, Microsoft, Yahoo, CNN, and FoxNews. Keynote speakers included esteemed

experts from various fields including EmmyAward winning producer Mark Burnett(“Survivor” and “The Apprentice”); AdamCarolla, host of “The Adam Carolla Show”;Penn Jillette, of Penn & Teller; and MarkPenn and Karen Hughes of Burson-Marsteller fame, who were the chief mes-sage architects for Presidents Clinton andBush, respectively. One memorable speech during the 2010

BlogWorld Expo was the work of openingkeynote speaker Scott Stratten, author of thepopular 2010 marketing book“UnMarketing.”

Stratten reminded attendees to blog asoften as they can. However, a blog shouldalways contain passionate posts that delivermaximum, emotive impact. If the writerisn’t feeling particularly inspired, it’s best toturn off the computer and wait for anotherday, lest you damage the reputation of yoursite. In Stratten’s own words, bloggersshouldn’t “spread meh,” they should“spread awesome.”Stratten also noted that social media sites

should be seen as an embassy of any prod-ucts they’re selling or promoting. If theproduct is no good, all the social mediafinesse in the world won’t save it“If your product sucks, social media

makes it suck harder,” he said.Beyond basic bloggingCo-Founders Rick Calvert, CEO and

Dave Cynkin, CMO, first launched theBlogWorld & New Media Expo in 2007when they realized the industry needed ablogging tradeshow. Today, while there are numerous confer-

ences and events devoted to blogs and socialmedia, the BlogWorld Expo is still the onlyconference, tradeshow and media event ofits kind dedicated solely to promoting theblogging and new media industries.“Our attendees and our exhibitors are all

telling us this is the best show we have everhad,” Calvert told O’Dwyer’s. “We are veryproud that our hard work has paid off andwe were able to produce a quality eventworthy of our community.”As always, marketing, social media and

site monetization were key topics at the2010 BlogWorld Expo. This year, many ofthe sessions also focused on technologiesand platforms that go beyond basic bloggingand online networking, such as mobileapplications, podcasts and video. �

By Abby Rose Dalto

CCrroowwddss,, iiddeeaass fflloouurriisshh aatt BBllooggWWoorrlldd EExxppoo

Rick Calvert, CEO and Co-Founder of BlogWorld,speaks Oct. 16 at the BlogWorld & New MediaExpo in Las Vegas.

Photo by Kenneth Yeung, snapfoc.us


AFFECT STRATEGIES

60 W. 38th St., 4th FloorNew York, NY 10018212/398-9680www.affectstrategies.com Blog: www.techaffect.com Twitter: @teamaffect

Sandra Fathi, President &Founder Leslie Campisi, Vice President &Partner

Affect Strategies is an award-winning public relations, marketingand social media agency specializ-ing in business-to-business tech-nology companies. Located in NewYork City, we combine smart peo-ple, creative ideas and hard work toachieve stellar results for ourclients.Our team of quick thinkers,

engaging writers, fearless mediarelations specialists and marketersare passionate about what they doand are unafraid to pop open thehood to learn how our clients’ tech-

nology works. We’re early adoptersand apply our insatiable curiosity toevery assignment. Everyone on ourteam brings technical expertise anda certain level of geekiness to thetable, both professionally and per-sonally. We constantly push our-selves to raise the bar, come upwith new ideas, and flexiblychange and shift our priorities asthe client demands. For more information, visit our

website www.affectstrategies, blogwww.techaffect.com, or follow uson Twitter @teamaffect.

AIRFOIL PUBLICRELATIONS

1000 Town Center, Suite 600Southfield, MI 48075248/304-1400866/[email protected]

Lisa Vallee-Smith, CEO

Airfoil Public Relations is anindependent firm that identifiesand creatively communicates itsclients’ unique differentiation,helping them to compete and suc-ceed. Airfoil’s research team andsophisticated measurement andevaluation methodology help todeliver informed marketing com-munications, digital, social mediaand brand strategy programs toclients in a multitude of technolo-gy segments, including consumer,enterprise, healthcare, advancedmanufacturing/cleantech andautomotive. Airfoil has beennamed Technology Agency of theYear by the Holmes Report andrecognized as a top firm innumerous industry rankings.

ALLISON & PARTNERS

505 Sansome StreetSan Francisco, CA [email protected]

Jonathan Heit, Partner, Head ofDigital Media and Technology

Allison & Partners has theexperience and know-how to

deliver big results for the invest-ments technology companiesmake in public relations. We’reknown for our ability to drivepositive change, making newproducts, services and technologyinnovations “catch fire.” We dif-ferentiate brands through inte-grated communications cam-paigns, strategic media relations,analyst relations, identification ofthird party partnerships andreview and endorsement pro-grams. In addition, the firm stayson the leading edge of digitalmedia and social networkingstrategies, having launchedMySpace, served as YouTube’sAOR and representing some ofthe leading names in the space. Our technology clients include:

Samsung’s InformationTechnology Division, Parallels,Sony Professional, Sprint (BoostMobile, Virgin Mobile, AssuranceWireless and Common CentsMobile), Redpoint Ventures,Meltwater, eLoyalty, .ORG,Gowalla, Ning, Scribd, Magtek,comScore, fitforcommerce andmore.

ANTENNA GROUP

A Beckerman Company135 Main Street, Suite 800San Francisco, CA 94105-8110415/896-1800

One University Plaza, Suite 507Hackensack, NJ 07601201/[email protected]

Keith Zakheim, President,BeckermanCaroline Venza, SVP & GM,Antenna Group

Antenna Group, the largest andmost experienced clean technolo-gy public relations firm in theUnited States, provides strategiccommunications for more than 40clients in clean technology,renewable energy and sustain-ability. We help companiesenhance market visibility, estab-lish industry leadership and com-municate with stakeholders. Noother firm has as much experi-ence in clean tech, including:

energy efficiency, smart grid,energy storage and management,transportation, biofuels, solar,wind, geothermal, fuel cell,chemistry, lighting, water andgreen building. We employ our extensive

media and industry expertise toadvance your message throughcompelling media relations cam-paigns, media events, strategicmedia placements and straight-forward communications withboth the public and industry lead-ers. Headquartered in San

Francisco, Antenna also main-tains offices in New York,Washington and Hackensack,N.J., with the deepest talent pool,expertise and relationships in thissector.Clients include: 3M, Atlantic

Green Power, Bluefire, CalCEF,Carbon Sciences, ECOtality,EnergyConnect, Intematix,Lumenergi, Mainstream Energy,NanoH2O, Originoil, Spride,Tantalus, UpSolar, XsunX,Xtreme Power, and Xzeres Wind.

Profiles

HIGH-TECH AND TECHNOLOGY PR11.10

O’Dwyer’sGuide to:


Sandra Fathi, President ofAffect Strategies.

The December issue of O’Dwyer’s willfeature a company profiles section onentertainment and sports PR firms.

If you would like your firm to be listed,contact Editor Jon Gingerich at 646/843-2080 or [email protected]

Airfoil Public Relations CEOLisa Vallee-Smith.


PROFILES OF HIGH-TECH & TECHNOLOGY PR FIRMS


ATOMIC PR

735 Market St., 4th Floor San Francisco, CA 94103 415/593-1400www.atomicpr.comwww.linkedin.com/in/andygetsey

SF | LA | NYC | London | Munich

Andy Getsey, Co-Founder &CEO

Atomic PR mixes classicalPR with digital/social media,video and search optimization,enhanced with the sophisticateduse of data and analytics forstrategy building, creative plan-ning and detailed program meas-urement.Many Atomic clients achieve

increases of 100% or more acrossnumerous measures of PR programyield when compared to pre-Atomic baselines, often on lowerbudgets than before(www.atomicpr.com/results). Atomic PR has powered numerousbreakthrough campaigns for pro-gressive technology brands frompublicly traded companies likeVerizon, ArcSight, NETGEAR andIMAX, to fast growing mid-sizedcompanies such as Linkedin,RealtyTrac and Ingres, as wellas high profile start-ups likeMint.com, Smule, ShopKickand many others. Atomic hasoffices in San Francisco, LosAngeles, New York, London andMunich, and is closely affiliated

with the Huntsworth agency net-work for global assignments. More information can be found at:www.atomicpr.com.

BATEMAN GROUP

1550 Bryant St., Suite 770San Francisco, CA 94103415/503-1818Fax: 415/503-1880www.bateman-group.comBlog: [email protected]

Fred Bateman, CEOBill Bourdon, SVPTyler L. Perry, VPLisa Melsted, Dir.Shannon Walsh, Acct Mgr.Carolina Grimm, Acct Mgr.

Bateman Group, a Californiacorporation, is a full-servicepublic relations and socialmedia communications firmfocused on disruptive compa-nies re-shaping the way wework, live and play.Differentiated by genuine con-tent expertise, exceptional writ-ing skills and a senior-levelstaffing model, BatemanGroup’s objective is to make abigger market impact for asmaller, more select group ofcompanies. Bateman Group wasamong the first to architect atruly integrated service offeringcombining traditional PR bestpractices with the latest tech-niques in social media market-ing. Clients turn to BatemanGroup to improve customer con-nectivity, corporate reputationand sales lead generation as wellas nurture individual opinionsand attitudes about their brands.The firm is headquartered in SanFrancisco with additional con-sultants in New York City andBoston.Clients include: Baynote,

BrightEdge, CoreMedia,Guardian Analytics, JerichoForum, Kapow Technologies,Little Kids Rock, The OpenGroup, OPENLANE, PandaSecurity, Passenger, PlatformComputing, Protegrity andRecycleBank.

CARABINER COMMUNICATIONS

4372 Misty Morning LaneLilburn, GA 30047770/923-8332www.carabinerpr.com [email protected]

Peter Baron, Principal, Founder

Carabiner Communications isa public relations agency thatwas founded with a desire tohelp start-up and fast-growthtechnology and life sciencescompanies grow and thrive. Wedeliver a range of communica-tions programs that help clientsconnect with customers, ana-lysts, media and other core audi-ences. From strategy develop-ment and messaging to PR,social media and content mar-keting, we drive comprehensivecampaigns that support yourbusiness objectives.Our teams are comprised of

industry veterans who havehands-on experience with arange of industries includingenterprise software applications,green IT, mobile and telecom-munications, social media plat-forms, IT security, physicalsecurity equipment, e-com-merce, business process integra-tion, professional services, envi-ronmental health, medicaldevices and healthcare IT. With 80-plus years of PR and

marketing experience and over500 product and companylaunches under our belt, we areable to hook directly into thecore of your business withoutthe learning curve of other agen-cies.

CATAPULT PR-IR

6560 Gunpark Dr., Suite CBoulder, CO 80301303/581-7760Fax: 303/[email protected]

Ranked the leading technolo-gy PR agency in Colorado,Catapult PR-IR offers the entirespectrum of strategic public andinvestor relations services exclu-sively for high-technology com-panies. Services include posi-tioning and messaging; writing,aggressive media and industryanalyst relations, and socialmedia and community building.In addition, Catapult offers

automated Rich MediaWebcasting services that helpcompanies transcend their com-munications beyond the writtenword to Web-based multi-mediathat includes audio, video andgraphic content. Catapult canquickly and easily capture pre-sentations, including productlaunches, employee communica-tions, executive briefings and

virtual press tours. Catapult’srich media services offer anotherdimension of “humanized” com-munications to the traditionalPR/IR mix. Catapult’s personal and pro-

fessional service, along withpartner-level account engage-ment and strategy, makes it thepreferred agency for technologycompanies looking to establishand build a market-leadingpotion.

Principal and Founder ofCarabiner CommunicationsPeter Baron.

Terri Douglas, Co-founder andPrincipal of Catapult PR-IR.

The Bateman Group CEOand Founder Fred Bateman.




COOPERKATZ &COMPANY

205 Lexington Avenue, 5th FloorNew York, NY 10016www.cooperkatz.com

Andy Cooper, PrincipalRalph Katz, PrincipalAnne Green, President, COO

CooperKatz & Company has a14-year track record of develop-ing creative, high-impact market-ing and public relations programsfor national technology clientssuch as AWS Weatherbug,Capgemini, Collective Media,Corvil, FiberNet, Invest NorthernIreland, S1 Enterprise, TelcordiaTechnologies, Teliris, TowerGroup,MSN, Virgin Mobile USA,Windows Phone and Ziff Davis.Founded in 1996, the firm serves arange of needs including brand

positioning, media relations, ana-lyst relations, social media / digitalstrategy and execution (through ourdedicated digital practice,Cogence®), editorial services, newproduct introductions, meetingplanning and execution, specialevents, advertising, video produc-tion and collateral materials design.Find us on the Web, on Facebook(facebook.com/cooperkatz) and onYouTube(youtube.com/cooperkatzandco).

COYNE PUBLICRELATIONS

14 Walsh DriveParsippany, NJ 07054973/316-1665www.coynepr.com

1065 Ave. of the Americas, 28th Flr.New York, NY 10018212/938-0166

Thomas F. Coyne, CEODr. Norman Booth, VP, Businessand Technology Practice

Coyne Public Relations hasestablished itself as one of theleading independent full-servicepublic relations firms in the coun-try representing an impressivecollection of international corpo-rations, top national brands andfirst-class organizations. Noagency possesses a better combi-nation of strategic perspective,business and technology experi-ence, unbridled creativity, andclient-centered service than ournationally recognized firm.Coyne’s Business andTechnology group has extensiveexperience representing clients ina variety of sectors, including:business and financial communi-cations, technology infrastructureand applications, professional andconsulting services, health careinformation technology, mobilityand consumer electronics. Fromcreating momentum in advanceof a new mobile applicationlaunch to promoting break-through technology for Casio atCES, our team possesses a wealthof business and technology expe-rience, which connects key influ-encers and audiences across theentire business and technologyspectrum.

EDELMAN

250 Hudson Street, 16th FloorNew York, NY 10013212/768-0550www.edelman.com

Pete Pedersen, GlobalTechnology Chair

Edelman’s Global Technologypractice takes a holistic approachto PR by integrating closely witheach client’s strategic businessobjectives, building and growingbrands credibly and measuringresults in terms of sales, reputa-tion, and sustainable competitiveadvantage.As the news media is rede-

fined in the age of citizen jour-nalism, social media, peer-to-peer networks, and other emerg-ing forms of communication, ourworldwide staff of technologyprofessionals work to keepclients center-stage in the myriadof new conversations as well asmore traditional media types.With more than 20 years of

experience in the technologyindustry, Edelman’s GlobalTechnology practice brings

depth of expertise and passion toposition clients on the forefrontof their respective markets. Thepractice counts top brands asclients as well as dynamic start-ups serving wireless and mobilecomputing, technology basedconsumer products, protectionand sustainability of the environ-ment, and streamlining businessexcellence through innovation.

EDGE COMMUNICATIONS17328 Ventura Blvd., Suite 324Encino, CA 91316818/990-5001Fax: 818/990-5016www.edgecommunicationsinc.com

Kenneth Greenberg, PresidentSara Flint, Vice President

Established in 1996, EdgeCommunications, Inc. is aninnovative all-star team of sen-ior-level communications pro-fessionals, unified by a no-non-sense approach that builds com-panies, brands and reputations.Through “better thinking andrelentless execution,” weexpress our work ethic and ourcore values of quality and pre-mium, personal service. We’re ahybrid organization — virtualfor professional services, tradi-tional for administrative sup-port. We’re equally at homewith B2C, B2B and corporatework; our clients range fromstartups to members of theFortune 500 — in technology,professional services, emergingmedia and healthcare/life sci-ences.

FEINTUCH COMMUNICATIONS

245 Park Ave., 39th FloorNew York, NY 10167212/808-4901Fax: 212/808-4915www.feintuchcommunications.comwww.ecpglobal.com [email protected]

Henry Feintuch, President

The recipe for smart andimpactful technology public rela-tions isn’t complex — develop aclear and concise message, targetit carefully, tell a story andengage with your audience.At Feintuch Communications,

we have specialized in tech PR

T h e A m e r i c a s • E u r o p e • A s i a P a c i f i c • M i d d l e E a s t w w w . r u d e r f i n n . c o m

rfrelate@ruderfi nn.com

socialstorytelling

socialnetworking

socialactivation

Henry Feintuch offering market entry tips to Singapore technologycompanies hoping to enter the U.S. The conference was sponsoredby IE Singapore.

Coyne PR Powers Up Casio’s GREEN SLIM Line of Mercury-FreeProjectors through a large-screen, life-size gaming experience atE3, in partnership with EA Sports.

�Continued on page 28


T h e A m e r i c a s • E u r o p e • A s i a P a c i f i c • M i d d l e E a s t w w w . r u d e r f i n n . c o m

rfrelate@ruderfi nn.com

socialstorytelling

socialnetworking

socialactivation




for nearly three decades — fromyesterday’s bag phones, room-sized supercomputers and main-frame voice response systems totoday’s cutting edge mobile apps,security solutions, ad tech,biotech and green tech.We are a strategic relations

firm which delivers an integratedset of public relations, investorrelations, business start-up andmarketing/creative services. Wecall it “integrated thinkingTM”because every assignment doesn’talways fit neatly into a plainvanilla RFP.Our team enjoys helping our

clients think through their busi-ness challenges and developingsmart solutions that impact theirbusiness. We welcome the oppor-tunity to think through yourneeds.

FLEISHMAN-HILLARD

200 N. BroadwaySt. Louis, MO 63102314/982-1700Fax: 314/982-8642www.fleishmanhillard.com

Dave Senay, President & CEORobert Winslow, EVP, Sr.Partner & Managing Dir., FHTech. Group

Fleishman-Hillard’s Technologypractice is one of the industry’sleading agencies. We work withthe world’s most innovative,evolving brands and organiza-tions across an unrivaled global

network of wholly owned andaligned offices and partners. Weapply a collaborative, analyticaland insights-driven approach,along with an unrelenting com-mitment to client service andclient success, across strategy andprogram execution that delivervalue and results. In many instances, we work

with clients as the “integrator,”across Paid, Earned, Shared andOwned (PESO) marketing com-munication channels, as we areexperts in elevating brand aware-ness and creating impactful con-sumer and influencer engage-ment. We are called upon to drivemeaning, motivate engagementand persuade action. Our global work for brands

such as AT&T, Philips, Microsoft,Avaya, Lenovo, Huawei, Phonak,LG, Electronic Arts, Tata, HP,Visa and Xerox is focused on get-ting stakeholders to join brandedinitiatives, create advocacy forthe brand, increase the relation-ship with the brand, and stay loyalto the brand, including increasingproduct consumption.We deliver through our bench

of experienced consultants acrosscorporate communications, gov-ernment relations and publicaffairs, media relations, socialmedia, crisis and issues manage-ment, executive communications,financial and analyst relations,mobile marketing, M&A, litiga-tion, CSR, and measurement.

GIBBS & SOELL

60 E. 42nd St., 44th FloorNew York, NY 10165212/697-2600Fax: 212/697-2646www.gibbs-soell.com

Blog: [email protected]

Cos Mallozzi, CEOLuke Lambert, President, NewYork

Gibbs & Soell, an independentpublic relations firm since 1971,has experience in a wide spec-trum of technology and industrialmarkets ranging from consumerelectronics, integrated facilitycontrols and telecommunicationsproducts, networks and services,to e-business/new media models,software, scientific instrumenta-tion and industrial automationequipment. Gibbs & Soell also offers its

PR counsel to businesses deliver-ing greentech solutions whichleverage technology to achievesustainability.Public relations services

include corporate communica-tions, marketing communica-tions, event marketing, employeecommunications, leadership posi-tioning, social networking/digitalmedia outreach, communicationsresearch and evaluation, andcommunications training includ-ing I Power™ , a proven, dynamicprocess for creating and deliver-ing clear, concise and compellingcommunications. Gibbs & Soell is a leading B2B

voice online with The G&S Spark(http://spark.gibbs-soell.com), theagency’s blog for advanced man-ufacturing and energy communi-cators. Client Experience: ACC/

Cybersecurity Program, ChemicalInformation Technology Council,Molex, Nitech Corporation, PNYTechnologies, Sage Software,Tridion Corporation, U.S.Robotics.

THE HOFFMANAGENCY

70 North Second StreetSan Jose, CA 95113408/286-2611www.hoffman.com

Lou Hoffman, CEO

The Hoffman Agency is anindependent technology PR firm— defining technology broadly toinclude everything from semicon-ductors to software to Web 2.0applications for consumers —with a global footprint spanningthe United States, Asia andEurope. All of the Agency’soffices are wholly owned andorganically grown. Hoffman

excels at managing multi-countryPR programs thanks to a uniqueinfrastructure and culture thatperpetuates collaboration. Towardthis end, the firm leverages boththinking and content across geog-raphies, which brings greater con-sistency to the program regardlessof where it is initiated.

HUNTER PUBLICRELATIONS

41 Madison Avenue, 5th FloorNew York, NY 10010-2202212/[email protected]

Grace Leong, Jason Winocour,Jonathan Lyon, Claire Burke,Mark Newman, Donetta Allenand Gigi Russo, Partners

Hunter Public Relations is anaward-winning consumer productspublic relations agency with deepexperience in the consumer tech-nology sector. In business for 21years, the 75-person, independent-ly owned and operated agencyoffers strategic marketing PR serv-ices including creative brainstorm-ing and facilitation, traditional andsocial media relations, specialevent production, new productintroductions, local market events,spokesperson tours and crisiscounseling. Hunter PR’s experience in the

tech sector has been driven by pub-lic relations campaigns as innova-tive as the products we represent. Astrong foundation in traditionalmedia layered with the viral powerof social platforms delivers clientswith the kind of hard-hitting, buzz-building placements that moveproduct, build brands and redefinecategories. In launching theworld’s first pocket projector for3M and Motorola’s state-of-the-artline of walkie-talkies, Hunter PRhas been on the ground floor forsome of the biggest developmentsin consumer electronics.

INK PUBLIC RELATIONS

7719 Wood Hollow Dr., Suite 155Austin, TX, 78731512/382-8982www.ink-pr.com

Starr Million Baker, Co-founder,PresidentKari Hernandez, Co-founder,Vice President

INK PR is the boutiqueagency of choice for brands big

Hunter PR’s Toby Nelson demonstrates new pocket projectors from3M at CES in Las Vegas.

FFEEIINNTTUUCCHH CCOOMMMMSS..�Continued from page 26




and small in the technology andclean energy industries. INK’sPR specialists bring energy, effi-ciency and effectiveness toevery campaign, along with adeep understanding of ourclients’ businesses, goals andcompetitive environments. INK is savvy and extremely

authentic with the media and forthat the press value and respectus. As a result, more than 800tech journalists recently votedINK the best small tech agencyin the U.S. in PRSourceCode’sTop Tech Communicators sur-vey. Our big difference is we go

the extra mile for our clients,always. On average, our currentclient base has been with us for3+ years. They come to us andstay with us — or come back tous again from a different compa-ny — because we’re smart, cre-ative problem solvers who lovewhat we do and it shows.

KAPLOW

19 West 44th Street, 6th FloorNew York, NY 10036212/221-1713

Kaplow West795 Folsom Street, 1st FloorSan Francisco, CA 94107415/291-2937www.kaplowpr.com

Liz Kaplow, CEO

Kaplow is an award-winning,full-service agency with deepexpertise in consumer technolo-gy, mobile and Internet commu-nications, e-commerce, soft-ware, and media.Kaplow continues to build

best-in-class technology brandssuch as Skype, Netflix, GSICommerce, Coupons.com,HauteLook, CafePress, Neroand MaxPoint Interactive.Kaplow’s Kdrive social

media strategies and Kstudiovideo production divisionswork together to strategicallyextend client stories directly toconsumers, building word ofmouth and fueling conversa-tions via social networks andother online channels.After launching its

Technology and EmergingMedia practice last year,

Kaplow further bolstered itstechnology PR capabilities withthe opening of its SanFrancisco office. Kaplow isnow engaging offices on bothcoasts to take brands frominteresting tech stories to main-stream consumer conversa-tions.

K/F COMMUNICATIONS

601 Fourth St., Suite 204San Francisco, CA 94107415/255-6510www.kfcomm.com

Julie Karbo & DaveFonkalsrud, Partners

K/F Communications is arespected, award-winning PRfirm specializing in technology,with an exceptional track recordof establishing clients as marketleaders.From consumer products to

networking and enterprise soft-ware, K/F has consistentlyhelped to drive many of the toptech trends.Client experience includes

Digg, TwitVid, SimpleGeo,Flock, Equinix, CompositeSoftware, Oracle, Anagran,Billeo, Covia Labs, Adility,Alacritech, Talari Networks, andthe Peninsula Traffic CongestionRelief Alliance.Senior staff personally lead

each account’s day-to-dayefforts in collaboration withclient teams. K/F employs a proprietary

methodology that results in adifferentiated market positioningand strategic, well executed pro-grams that focus on our clients’specific business goals, such asincreasing revenues, maximizingvaluation, creating industry-leading stature for the companyand executives, and attractingemployees, partners and fund-ing.

LAUNCHSQUAD

116 New Montgomery St., Ste. 620San Francisco, CA 94105415/[email protected]

Gavin Skillman, SVP1375 Broadway, 27th FloorNew York, NY 10018212/564-3665

Mike Farber, General Manager

222 Third Street, Suite 1321Cambridge, MA 02141617/945-1915

Jason Mandell, Co-Founder andPartnerJesse Odell, Co-Founder andPartnerJason Throckmorton, Co-Founder & PartnerBrett Weiner, Partner

LaunchSquad helps emergingand fast-growing companiesmake a name for themselves,grow their businesses andbecome market leaders. The firmhas 50 professionals in SanFrancisco, New York and Boston,and provides a suite of both tradi-tional and digital PR services,

including video and content pro-duction. Founded in 2000,LaunchSquad was named the2009 Boutique PR Agency of theYear and has been listed as a TopTech Communicator numeroustimes by PRSourceCode.LaunchSquad works with a widevariety of innovators in software,consumer technology, media,entertainment, clean tech, mobileand infrastructure, including:3VR, Brightroll, ClairMail,EcoFactor, Epix HD, Evernote,i365, Mochi Media, Quidsi (par-ent of Diapers.com andSoap.com), SCVNGR,ShareThis, Savings.com,SuccessFactors and Village VoiceMedia.

Led by founders Starr Million Baker (right) and Kari Hernandez (left),INK PR has flourished over the last two years with a 60% growth instaff, near perfect client retention and the addition of a clean energypractice.

Kaplow hosted a Skype Media Day Showcase in June 2010. Duringthe event, Brianna Reynaud of Skype’s PR team demonstrated Skypevideo calling on a Panasonic HDTV to Mark Spoonauer, Editor-in-Chief of LAPTOP magazine.

View and download profiles of hundredsof PR firms specializing in more than adozen industry areas at:

www.odwyerpr.com




LOIS PAUL &PARTNERS

150 Presidential WayWoburn, MA 01801781/782-5851Fax: 781/[email protected]

Richard Wadsworth, VicePresident, Business Development

Lois Paul & Partners (LP&P)is a leading, national strategiccommunications agency that pro-vides a wide range of public rela-tions services to technology, lifesciences, and clean energy com-panies. For 25 years, LP&P hashelped small, emerging andlarge, established companiesmeet their business goals throughstrategic and creative PR pro-grams, specifically tuned to eachclient’s business goals. With avalue-focused, integrity-basedapproach, LP&P proactively pur-sues opportunities that producecoverage, promote thought lead-ership, and disperse compellingmessages to the right audiences,helping clients differentiatethemselves from competitors andgain visibility and credibility incrowded markets. As a leader insocial media services, LP&P alsodesigns and maintains successfuldigital communications pro-grams to help clients engage newcommunities of influencers. Formore information, and to viewcurrent and past client lists,please visit our Website.

MAKOVSKY +COMPANY

16 East 34th StreetNew York, NY 10016212/508-9600www.makovsky.com

Kenneth Makovsky, PresidentRobbin Goodman, EVP, Partner

A top independent public rela-tions consultancy, Makovsky +Company has an award-winningreputation for its work with tech-nology and business servicescompanies throughout its 30years. Services include premierbusiness and trade media rela-tions, digital marketing/BtoBsocial media programs, eventsand award programs, industryanalyst relations, investor rela-tions, branding and positioning.Makovsky + Company develops

strategic programs that deliverbusiness value. Whether thefocus is reputation or productdriven, the firm’s experiencedteam understands how to articu-late messages and move thechannels of influence, frominternal committees to importantexternal audiences. Makovsky’scommitment to client delight isexemplified in its QualityCommitment Program.Measurement and accountabilityare integral values. Based inNew York, the firm has partnersin 27 countries and 37 U.S.cities. Clients include Booz &Company, Dice Holdings, AriseVirtual Solutions, Itron, ArrowElectronics, AeroCityWindpower and TransitCenter.

MATTER COMMUNICATIONS

50 Water StreetMill #3, The TanneryNewburyport, MA 01950978/499-9250www.matternow.com

Scott Signore, Principal & CEOPatty Barry, Principal

Matter Communications, anaward-winning full-servicepublic relations agency special-izing in consumer and high-technology markets, workswith clients across the U.S. andEurope to deliver creative andeffective programs that gener-ate business. Matter’s servicesinclude company/productlaunches, product reviews, ana-lyst and media relations, onlinemedia outreach, social media,crisis communications andthought leadership campaigns.Matter Communications, head-quartered north of Boston inhistoric Newburyport, MA andoffices in Providence, RI andNew York, prides itself onbeing a results-focused publicrelations organization. Amongmany others, clients include:ATG, CVS/pharmacy, HarrisCommunications, Lexar andVerizon Wireless. For moreinformation please visitwww.matternow.com.

M BOOTH & ASSOCIATES

300 Park Ave. SouthNew York, NY 10010212/481-7000www.mbooth.com

Matt Hantz, Vice President

The technology practice at MBooth & Associates partners withcategory leaders in a wide range ofindustries and disciplines, includ-ing services firms, consultancies,software developers, systems inte-grators and research analysts.The firm brings a core compe-

tence in brand strategy and posi-tioning to every campaign target-ed at business-to-business audi-ences. M Booth works with clientsto position their products and serv-ices as solutions to business needs,because IT purchasing decisionsare no longer made by technologymanagers only. In most instances,this requires a deep understandingof the vertical industries where atechnology adds value. A primeexample of this is the firm’s workwith multiple clients in IT health-care — in health delivery, pharma-ceuticals and health plans —where the firm has been at theforefront of the discussion aroundelectronic health records.The practice’s PR efforts were

responsible for 50 percent of newbusiness and tripling of brandawareness for a technology con-sulting client, as measured by abenchmarking survey of decision-making executives.

MERRITT GROUP

11600 Sunrise Valley Dr., Ste. 320Reston, VA 20191703/390-1500www.merrittgrp.com

Ben Merritt, CEOAlisa Valudes, EVP, Partner

With offices in Reston,Virginia and San Francisco,Merritt Group helps create andmove markets for forward think-ing companies. Merritt Groupdetermines the right mix of com-munications channels — PR,marketing, digital, social media,Web — and implements strategiccampaigns to make our clients’messages resonate in the market-place. Bringing innovation andcreativity to our client engage-ments, Merritt Group places apremium on building long-stand-ing relationships with our clients.Our expertise is focused in six

practice areas — EnterpriseTechnology, Security,Communications & Networking,Government, Healthcare, andEnergy / Green IT. Some of ourclients include Verizon Business,Microsoft Public Sector, BoozAllen Hamilton, PGP, U.S.

Pharmacopeia, and Teradata.

RF | BINDER

950 Third Avenue, 7th FloorNew York, NY 10022212/994-7600www.rfbinder.comTwitter: @RFBinder

Amy Binder, CEONancy Moss, ExecutiveManaging Director, Boston Gerald Kimber White, SeniorManaging Director, Boston

RF|Binder stands at the fore-front of the increasingly dynamicdiscipline of communications.The art and practice of publicrelations continues to evolve inthe wake of the democratizationof information, and we are bothstudents and practitioners of thesenew strategies and tactics whileremaining committed to the time-less principles of effective com-munication.RF|Binder’s technology prac-

tice, based in our Boston office,combines technology expertise,business acumen and communica-tions excellence, to deliver pro-grams that significantly impactconsumer and business-buyerbeliefs and behavior. We workclosely with our technologyclients to effectively communi-cate their messages throughwords, images, sounds and expe-riences. We help technology com-panies transcend traditional prod-uct-centric messages in a way thatbuilds lasting market value.Our clients run the gamut —

from the world’s leading multina-tionals to emerging venture-backed start-ups. But no matterthe size of the organization,RF|Binder works with our clientsto develop communications pro-grams tailored to meet their busi-ness goals and reach their targetaudiences.

ROGERS & COWAN

PACIFIC DESIGN CENTER8687 Melrose Ave., 7th FloorLos Angeles, CA 90069310/854-8117Fax: 310/854-8106www.rogersandcowan.com

Tom Tardio, CEOSallie Olmsted, Exec. VP

Rogers & Cowan specializesin working with emerging andestablished technology brandswhose products and services are



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RUDER FINN

301 East 57th StreetNew York, NY 10022212/593-6303212/593-6343www.ruderfinn.com

Richard Funess, President,Ruder Finn Americas

Ruder Finn prides itself on along standing tradition of gener-ating visibility and industrybuzz for its diverse client basein the technology sector.Through integrated campaigns

that combine the best of tradi-tional media expertise and for-ward-looking social media pro-grams, Ruder Finn helps itsclients expertly navigate the24/7 media landscape and drivepositive outcomes that are trulytied to a company’s businessobjectives.With a national team of sea-

soned professionals and aproven record of maintainingthe top business and technologymedia and industry analyst con-tacts, plus a finger-on-the-pulsementality, Ruder Finn has estab-lished successful partnershipswith ambitious start-ups toglobal enterprises across a widevariety of enterprise and con-sumer technology companies.Ruder Finn’s expertise spans

the full spectrum of enterprise,networking, mobile and con-sumer technologies, with spe-cialized capabilities in verticalmarkets like Consumer,Healthcare, Financial Services,Manufacturing, andTelecommunications. Ruder Finn partners with

clients as strategic counselorsand executional teams. Servicesinclude: CEO positioning,thought-leadership programs,executive platform develop-ment, new product and servicelaunches, industry analyst rela-tions, social media programdevelopment and execution,trade show and special eventsupport, competitive monitoringand analysis, and issues man-agement. Programs are oftenaugmented with support forinvestor relations, internal com-munications, government rela-tions, social responsibility ini-tiatives and creative design.Current clients worldwide

include: Allied Telesis,Bill.com, Buddy Media,EB/Elektrobit, IEEE,Hotels.com, Kyocera MitaAmerica, Logitech, MarvellTechnology, Microsoft verticalmarkets, NEC Corporation ofAmerica, Radware, StubHub!,SunGard Data Systems Inc.,Teradata and Women inTechnology International(WITI).

SAGE COMMUNICATIONS

8229 Boone Blvd., Suite 410Vienna, VA [email protected]: @sagecomm

Larry Rosenfeld, CEODavid Gorodetski, COO &Executive Creative DirectorJulie Murphy, SVP, PublicRelations

Sage Communications is a full-service, integrated marketing firmlocated in Northern Virginia justminutes from downtownWashington, D.C. Sage’s publicrelations, new media and market-ing programs support public sec-tor and business telecommunica-tions, information technology,and healthcare IT organizations,government agencies and non-profit organizations. Using ourSage approach and provenmethodologies, we find the mostintelligent, influential and meas-urable ways to help our clientsgrow, persuade, educate, brand,raise awareness, generate leads,recruit, and ignite action to fur-ther their business and missionobjectives. Sage specializes in B2B, B2G,

G2G and G2C communications.Our PR and marketing servicesrange from message and branddevelopment, marketing strategy,social media, mobile campaigns,thought leadership campaigns,crisis communications, and merg-er and acquisition programs totraditional advertising, marketresearch, guerilla marketing andinteractive communications,among others. We help our clientsbreak through the noise and standout in an overly saturated technol-ogy marketplace.

SPEAKERBOX

7900 Westpark Drive, Ste. T-410 McLean, VA 22101 703/287-7800 www.speakerboxpr.com www.twitter.com/speakerbox sounding-board.speakerboxpr.com

Elizabeth Shea, President & CEO

SpeakerBox is celebrating 13years as a top technology publicrelations firm. We are a forward-thinking firm that blends the bestof traditional PR strategies withthe creative insight into proventactics that drive business results.As a trusted strategic communica-tions partner, we understand howcommunication investments candrive top line and bottom line per-formance and help clients achievetheir business goals. While mediaplacements might garner high-fives, clients beating their quar-terly forecast drive the most cov-

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eted kudos.We break new ground for our

clients in vertical industries andbusiness marketplaces; we launchnew products in the categories ofIT operations, mobility solutions,enterprise software, security andsurveillance and more. We do itall backed by a history of com-

mitment to excellence, honestconversations, integrity and clientteamwork.More than half of our clients

have been recognized by industryaccolades such as the Inc 500,Deloitte and Touche Fast50 andthe SmartCEO Future 50 andCircle of Excellence. Our clientswin technology-focused awardssuch as the eWEEK Labs “Top 25Technologies That Changed theDecade,” Best of Interop,Network World’s HottestCompanies to Watch and the CESInnovation Award.

TEXT 100

352 Park Ave. South, 7th FloorNew York, NY 10010www.text100.com

Aedhmar Hynes, CEO

Text 100 is a 500-personstrong global public relationsconsultancy with a presence in29 cities worldwide. We workwith many of the world’s leadingtechnology, internet and digitallifestyle brands including IBM,Cisco, Lenovo, MTV, SanDisk,and Skype. We are recognized asan innovator in the field of pub-lic relations, from traditionalmedia relations to social media,and for leading the PR industryin staff development.Our strong culture has consis-

tently been praised globally, andwe have been recognized as theBest Midsize Agency in Asia2009, as a 2010 BulldogReporter — Midsize Agency ofthe Year, and one of the UK’sBest Small Companies in 2009.Additionally, Text 100 ranked

no. 4 in O’Dwyer’s 2009 rankingof Top Independent PR Firms,no. 8 on the PRWeek AgencyBusiness Report 2009 and wasnamed among PR News’ 2009Best Places to Work in PR.

TREVELINO/KELLER

949 W. Marietta St., Ste. X-106 Atlanta, GA 30318 404/214-0722www.trevelinokeller.comwww.wheelhousetk.comwww.prstarbase.com

Dean Trevelino & Genna Keller,Principals

Trevelino/Keller, a full-serv-ice public relations, social mediaand brand communications firm,features one of the Southeast’s

largest technology practices. Itworks with established andemerging brands on a regional,national and international level.Client experience includestelecommunications, wireless,manufacturing, network securi-ty, software, SaSS, SAP, retailtechnology, business intelli-gence, ecommerce, online appli-cations, fintech and consumerelectronics. Services includemedia relations, analyst rela-tions, executive visibility, crisispreparedness, award programsand trade show representation,social media, mobile applica-tions, online communities, SEO,brand identity, marketing collat-eral and interactive. As an independent PR firm,

Trevelino/Keller is recognizedfor proprietary methodologiesand partnerships. In 2005, it cre-ated the Atlas Alliance, a groupof like-minded boutique firmsthat deliver integrated marketingand public relations servicesdomestically and in Europe,Asia-Pacific and the MiddleEast. In 2006, it created theStart-Up Council, focused onsupporting start-up companiesby delivering multi-disciplinedcounsel in a gratis environment.In 2010, it launchedWheelhouse, its social market-ing brand designed to deliverweb 2.0 and beyond services inpartnership with traditional pub-lic relations and brand commu-nications.

TRYLON SMR

41 East 11th Street, Suite 1100New York, NY 10003212/[email protected]

Lloyd P. Trufelman, President

Since 1990 Trylon SMR hasbeen an innovator in developingand implementing successfulstrategic media relations cam-paigns specifically for clients inthe technology, media, telecomand related industries, utilizing awide portfolio of integrated new,social, digital and mainstreammedia strategies. Trylon SMRdevelops and implements indi-vidually designed, cost-effectivecommunications campaignsbased on precise strategic plan-ning and tactical execution thatconsistently produce tangibleresults. The agency’s process isbased on a proprietary “reversereporting” model. Trylon SMR

serves domestic and internation-al clients from its headquartersin New York City, leveraging itsknowledge of, and relationshipswith, top national, consumer,business and trade media/blogs,all without strict billable hoursor long term contracts.

VMS

1500 BroadwayNew York, NY 10036212/329-5623www.vmsinfo.com

David Stephens, PresidentDarren Drevik, Director ofMarketing

Trying to make sense of therapidly fracturing media land-scape? VMS — the worldwideleader in Integrated MediaIntelligence solutions — moni-tors and digitally captures mediaand advertising content in moremarkets than any other compa-ny.Combining best-of-breed

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WEBER SHANDWICK

600 Battery StreetSan Francisco, CA 94111415/262-5981www.webershandwick.com

Robert Dowling, North AmericanTechnology Practice leader

Weber Shandwick’s global tech-nology practice combines PR inno-vation and global firepower forclients – fusing deep expertise inkey technology segments. Thepractice provides insight on theshifting marketplace, evolvingbusiness needs and knows how toengage and mobilize key commu-nities.The practice’s connected net-

works of technology professionals– among them trained engineers,journalists, respected bloggers andthought-leaders – deliver best-in-class public relations, digital, socialand mobile marketing, contentdevelopment and strategy and rep-utation management services toleading and emerging companies innearly every sector of the industry. The agency is a recognized

leader in consumer technology,cleantech, media and entertain-ment, ad/marketing, enterprise,healthcare IT, security, semicon-ductor, storage, telecommunica-tions and mobile. The group’s reach extends from

the C-suite to the digital native,from engineers to IT professionals,from grass-roots activists to fami-lies. The mission remains clear:building and catalyzing advocatesfor clients, their products, servicesand ideas. Weber Shandwick clients

include Amazon.com, Amdocs,

Best Buy, Boston Scientific,Capgemini, Concur, Hitachi,Honeywell, Iron Mountain,Juniper, Marvell, Mashable,Microsoft, Motorola, MySpace,PetroAlgae, Polaroid, Powermat,PTC, Samsung, StumbleUpon,Symantec, Unisys, VeriSign andVerizon.

ZEPPOS & ASSOCIATES

INCORPORATED

400 East Mason Street, Suite 200Milwaukee, WI 53202-3703414/276-6237Fax: 414/276-2322www.zeppos.com

Zeppos & Associates, an inde-pendent PR firm, has successfullyrepresented a number of manufac-turers, trade associa-tions, technology businesses andothers in a varietyof assignments related to new tech-nology and high-tech products andissues. From product launches andchallenging industry top-ics, to public affairs matters andacquisitions, the team at Zeppos &Associates has effectively trans-formed technical issues and com-plex language into messages thatspeak clearly to a variety of audi-ences. The firm’s workhas successfully targeted trade- andconsumer-focused reporters, editorsand bloggers and communicatedwith other stakeholders, includinggovernment leaders, investors, safe-ty officials, regulators and others.Zeppos & Associates has theexpertise and background to under-stand technical concepts and applyvalue-added strategies to helpclients reach and engage importantaudiences and customers. �

The Technology PR team at Zeppos & Associates includes BrianKnox, Vice President; Mikaela Balfany, Account Executive; and JohnGardner, Senior Account Executive.

Log on to odwyerpr.com, unequalled for itssavvy, daily coverage of PR and media

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© Copyright 2010 The J.R. O'Dwyer Co.

Edelman New York

Text 100 New York

Ruder Finn New York

APCO Worldwide Wash., D.C.

Schwartz Comms. Waltham, MA

Sparkpr San Francisco

Atomic PR San Francisco

Horn Group San Francisco

Merritt Group Reston, VA

Airfoil PR Detroit

Matter Communications Boston

Allison & Partners San Francisco

Jackson Spalding Atlanta

Coyne PR Parsippany, NJ

SS | PR Glenview, IL

Shelton Group Dallas

Pierpont Communications Houston

Gibbs & Soell New York

Kaplow New York

RF|Binder Partners New York

Cubitt, Jacobs & Prosek New York

Trylon SMR New York

Spring O'Brien New York

Makovsky + Co. New York

Bateman Group San Francisco

Gregory FCA Comms. Ardmore, PA

Affect Strategies New York

Gibralter Assocs. Wash., D.C.

M/C/C Dallas

Lambert, Edwards& Assocs. Grand Rapids

K/F Comms. San Francisco

Levick Strategic Comms. Wash., D.C.

Borders + Gratehouse San Francisco

Catapult PR-IR Boulder, CO

Schneider Associates Boston

Middleberg Comms. New York

11..

22..

33..

44..

55..

66..

77..

88..

99..

1100..

1111..

1122..

1133..

1144..

1155..

1166..

1177..

1188..

1199..

2200..

2211..

2222..

2233..

2244..

2255..

2266..

2277..

2288..

2299..

3300..

3311..

3322..

3333..

3344..

3355..

3366..

3377..

3388..

3399..

4400..

4411..

4422..

4433..

4444..

4455..

4466..

4477..

4488..

4499..

5500..

5511..

5522..

5533..

5544..

5555..

5566..

5577..

5588..

5599..

6600..

6611..

6622..

6633..

6644..

6655..

6666..

6677..

6688..

6699..

7700..

7711..

7722..

$88,597,961

48,600,000

20,500,000

16,059,511

10,824,392

7,280,656

6,474,095

6,100,000

5,604,630

4,853,225

4,100,000

4,020,579

3,385,321

3,130,000

3,000,000

2,799,731

2,500,000

2,347,883

2,300,000

1,800,000

1,800,000

1,537,249

1,500,000

1,500,000

1,479,209

1,311,500

1,296,525

1,116,255

1,000,000

964,663

893,301

875,495

856,495

834,397

829,250

800,000

Dye, Van Mol & Lawrence Nashville

Dawson + Murray + Teague Dallas

The Rogers Group Los Angeles

Trevelino/Keller Atlanta

Vollmer PR Houston

Edge Comms. Encino, CA

Kwittken & Co. New York

Winning Strategies PR Newark

Seigenthaler PR Nashville

Dukas Public Relations New York

Ron Sachs Communications Tallahassee

Feintuch Comms. New York

Linhart Public Relations Denver

CooperKatz & Co. New York

5W Public Relations New York

Hunter PR New York

Lane PR Portland, OR

Nyhus Communications Seattle

Zeno Group New York

L.C. Williams & Assocs. Chicago

Moore Consulting Group Tallahassee

New West Louisville

Guthrie/Mayes & Associates Louisville

Zeppos & Associates Milwaukee

Landis Comms. San Francisco

McNeely Pigott & Fox Nashville

Rosica Strategic PR Paramus, NJ

The Kotchen Group W. Hartford, CT

Bridge Global Strategies New York

Maccabee Group Minneapolis

TransMedia Group Boca Raton, FL

Rasky Baerlein Boston

Public Communications Chicago

O’Malley Hansen Comms. Chicago

Boardroom Communications Plantation, FL

Red Sky Public Relations Boise

708,579

680,659

637,738

630,000

611,432

600,924

585,471

566,206

547,307

527,000

515,830

502,555

501,693

492,080

474,014

436,921

409,710

391,495

372,947

322,136

321,317

249,000

248,621

232,375

187,200

170,102

133,192

110,466

92,890

87,771

85,000

80,226

76,803

60,000

50,000

34,122

O’DWYER’S 2010 RANKINGS OFHIGH-TECH & TECHNOLOGY PR FIRMS



Normally, I agree with JackO’Dwyer (Don’t shoot me!). Itgenerally makes sense to be

candid with and available to reporters.The key to media

relations, even inthe day of Facebookand Twitter andYouTube, is stillbuilding relation-ships. The closeryour relationshipwith a reporter, themore he or she“trusts” you, thebetter it will provefor your client. Themore solid mediarelationships youenjoy, the morevaluable you will be

as a PR practitioner. So a front-line responsibility of PR

people is to treat journalists amicably. And then there are bloggers. And

that’s where the time-honored advice ofgetting along with reporters must bemodified. For bloggers are, indeed, adifferent breed.Bloggers are journalists with less pay,

less credibility, and occasionally, moreclout than traditional journalists. In some industries, like fashion, blog-

gers rule the roost, especially at the var-ious “Fashion Weeks,” where such newmedia personages as The Sartorialistand Fashion Toast blogs receive covetedfront-row runway seats. As important as some bloggers are

getting to be, public relations peoplestill must approach them with greatcare. Sometimes, that means avoidingthem completely.Indeed, the watchword in dealing with

bloggers is, “Cuidado.” Here’s why:Speed over accuracy.There are 126 million blogs on the

Internet, and 99.99% are virtuallymeaningless, read by few people andpicked up by no news services. Butthere are a handful – TMZ.com,Gawker, TechCrunch, among them onthe national level – which are followedreligiously by lots of people, includingthe national media. Why?

They often “scoop” the general press. How?They care less about “accuracy” than

they do about “speed.” That’s why TMZ is there at midnight

when Lindsay Lohan gets sprung onbail, or TechCrunch rushes to print withthe news that Twitter is looking for larg-er office space. It makes no matter whether these

reports are based on rumor or fact.Speed is what counts, whether right orwrong. And that spells “trouble” to pub-lic relations people concerned aboutgetting the story correct.No respect for nuance.To a blogger, there are no shades of

grey. You either did it or you didn’t.Blogs are breathless and categorical.Nuance has no place.That’s why Baptist preacher Eddie

Long, accused of sexual improprietieswith male parishioners, is alreadyreferred to as “homophobic” on theblogs.Or why Facebook founder Marc

Zuckerberg’s $100 million donation toNewark schools is blasted as a “PRmove to counteract” a nasty film abouthim.Or why a Nicaraguan diplomat found

with his throat slashed “may have killedhimself because of a recent AIDS diagnosis.” Unlike newspaper gossip columnists

who must show concern for libel andslander, bloggers display little suchcompunction. Occasionally, a runamuck blogger’s feet will be held to thefire, such as last week’s takedown byCitigroup attorneys of a left wing blog’spublication of a confidential Citi report. But generally, blogs know no middle

ground. They blast and burn, and if theyturn out to be wrong … so be it.Little formal training plus no super-

vision.Newspaper, magazines, television and

radio station news units generally insistthat recruits have journalism experienceor education. Newspaper commentary isno place for a raw rookie.Conversely, what is the requisite to

become a qualified blogger?One must have access to a computer. That’s it. No degree. No experience.

You don’t even need pants!Many bloggers, in fact, sit around in

their pj’s, typing away in their base-ments, hoping somebody, somewherewill read their pronouncements. The danger, of course, is that a blog

reader, learning of the latest scandal ormistake or crime or faux pas, reportedlycommitted by a celebrity or company orcause, isn’t aware that the writer of theexposé in question has little experience,training, or supervision and probablyhas little clue of the veracity of what hehas just reported as gospel. The point is that an awful lot of blog-

gers ought to be ignored by PR people,because to answer their questions is toempower them with a credibility theydon’t deserve.You become the story.And there’s another reason to think

twice before speaking with a gardenvariety blogger.Like Rodney Dangerfield, bloggers

get no respect. Most of the time, theytoil anonymously in their dark rooms,with few outsiders paying attention totheir ramblings.Until somebody talks to them.When a PR person speaks to a blog-

ger, he or she not only gets quoted –often verbatim, to fill space – but alsobecomes a vital part of the story. That’s why when Goldman Sachs

became the blogosphere’s favorite villain, Goldman’s acerbic PR chiefLucas Van Praag became a frequentblog target. Traditionally, effective PR has operat-

ed behind-the-scenes. More often thannot with the blogs, when a PR profes-sional speaks to a blogger, the storybecomes more prominent, and PR ispushed out front to center stage. That’s another reason to think twice

before speaking with your neighbor-hood blogger. �

Fraser P. Seitel hasbeen a communicationsconsultant, author andteacher for 30 years. Heis the author of thePrentice-Hall text, ThePractice of PublicRelations.

Beware of the blogBy Fraser Seitel

Professional DevelopmentOPINION

Blogs often scoop the regular press, favoring“speed” over “accuracy.”



My last column discussed finan-cial analysis for PR firms. Thismonth was expected to be a

follow-up. That planchanged withPresident Obamasigning the SmallBusiness Jobs Act of2010 on Sept. 27.The new lawincludes a number ofimportant tax provi-sions for businesseslarge and small(especially PRfirms), and changesfor individuals aswell.

Increase in expensing deduction Section 179 of the Internal Revenue

Code allows certain taxpayers to elect toimmediately expense certain depreciableproperty placed in service during the yearrather than depreciate the property overseveral tax years. For tax years beginning in 2003, the

maximum allowable expense deductionincreased to $100,000 and was adjustedannually for inflation from 2004 to 2009.Congress subsequently raised this dollarlimitation for 2008 and 2009 to $250,000.In 2010, the pre tax law deduction wasscheduled to revert back to the pre 2003amount of $25,000. The 2010 Jobs Act again changes the

tax law for tax years beginning in 2010 or2011 allowing a deduction of $500,000. For tax years that began in 2009, the tax

law prevented taxpayers that placed prop-erty in service from benefiting fromSection 179 if more than $1,050,000 ofqualified property was placed in serviceduring a tax year. The Jobs Act howeverchanges this from $1,050,000 to$2,500,000. This change will definitelybenefit larger PR firms to expense moreproperty in 2010 or 2011. Note, that fortax years beginning after 2011, there is a$25,000 dollar limit and a $200,000beginning of the phase out amount.Property subject to section 179Under pre-Act law, property that quali-

fied for the Section 179 expensing elec-tion was limited to depreciable tangibleproperty purchased for use in an activetrade or business, including “off-the-shelf” computer software (tax yearsbeginning before 2011).

The Jobs Act changes the above for anytax year beginning in 2010 or 2011 toelect up to $250,000 of qualified realproperty as Section 179 property.Qualified real property can include cer-tain leasehold improvements. The prop-erty must be depreciable propertyacquired for use in a trade or businessand is subject to certain exclusionsincluding air conditioners or heatingunits. By way of example, assume in 2011

that ABC PR placed in service $600,000of qualified leasehold improvementproperty and $300,000 of other Section179 property. For 2011, ABC canexpense no more than $250,000 of thecost of the leasehold improvements andno more than $250,000 of the cost of theother Section 179 property.While the unused portion of the

Section 179 can be carried over to a sub-sequent year, no amount attributable toqualified real property can be carriedover to a tax year beginning after 2011.Accordingly, if your agency is contem-plating placing real property in service in2010 or 2011 and you are concerned thatthe expensing deduction will be subjectto carry over due to the “taxable incomelimitation” (not discussed in this col-umn), consider placing the property inservice in 2010 to allow for a carryoverof the unused deduction to 2011.Bonus first year depreciationA taxpayer may claim a 50% bonus

depreciation allowance in the year qualified property is placed in service.Generally, the new tax law extends the50% first year depreciation for one year making it available for qualifyingproperty placed in service in 2010 as well as 2011 for certain long-livedproperty.Depreciation of automobilesA depreciation deduction can be

claimed for passenger autos subject tocertain dollar limits that are adjusted forinflation. (Note, so called closed endauto leases do not qualify since the autois not purchased.) For an auto placed inservice in 2010, the limit is $3,060 (lighttrucks and vans $3,160). The Jobs Actgenerally increases this amount by (notto) $8,000. By way of example, assume a taxpayer

places in service a new $40,000 passen-ger vehicle. The taxpayer is allowed a

first year (2010) depreciation allowanceof $11,060 ($8,000 + $3,060). Health insurance costs and self-

employment taxA self-employed individual can deduct

as a business expense the amount paidduring the tax year for health insurancefor the taxpayer; the taxpayer’s spouse;the taxpayer’s dependents; and, effectiveMarch 30,2010, any child of the taxpay-er who hasn’t attained age 27 as of theend of the tax year.Prior to the law change, a self-

employed individual’s health insurancecosts were not deductible in determiningnet earnings from self-employment. Netearnings from self-employment are gen-erally trade or business earnings, lessdeductions permitted by the InternalRevenue Code that are attributable to thetrade or business, plus the individual’sdistributive share of partnership incomeor loss. The deduction is limited toearned income from the trade or businessfor which the health insurance was estab-lished. Accordingly, you may recall thatthat the deduction is claimed on page 1of form 1040 as an adjustment for adjust-ed gross income. Under the new law, for tax years begin-

ning after December 31, 2010, theincome tax deduction allowed to self-employed individuals for the cost of health insurance is allowed in calculating net earnings from self-employment for purposes of the self-employment tax. By way of example, assume Mary is

self-employed and paid $13,770 forhealth insurance coverage. Mary candeduct $13,770 in computing her netearnings form self-employment. The 15.3% self employment tax rate

applied to the premiums is $2,107.Mary’s savings will actually be less.Assume Mary’s self-employment earn-ings are at least $120,570 ($106,800OADSDI (social security) plus $13,770 deduction). Mary will see no reduction in the 12.4% OASDI tax.Only the 2.9% HI tax (Medicare) whichhas no ceiling will be reduced. In addi-tion, because the above-the-line deduc-tion allowed for one-half of the self-employment tax is reduced; the Act willcause an increase in income tax. A tech-nical correction may be needed to fix thisproblem. In the interim, there is no greatsavings here. �

Impact of ‘Small Business Jobs Act’Financial Management

Richard Goldsteinis a partner atBuchbinder Tunick &Company LLP, NewYork, Certified PublicAccountants.

By Richard Goldstein



The old BP monarch is now officiallyin exile, banished to a lucrativeposition in oil-rich Russia. The new

BP monarch, as of October 1, now pre-sides over an era ofgood feeling, or soBP hopes. By now, we must

have heard and readmillions of wordsfrom local andnational governmentofficials, BP spokes-people, hard newsreporters, featurereporters and pun-dits. And we havebeen subjected to a

barrage of TV commercials portraying thegood work that BP says it is doing to rightthe wrong. But what are the PR Lessons Learned, to

date, from the oil spill disaster thatoccurred under the benign neglect era?During a self-inflicted crisis situation

there is little sympathy for the companyand skepticism of statements by corporatespokespeople.

The more corporate officials play themedia game and make themselves avail-able to the media on a continuing basis, themore they will be criticized for what is said. The new head honcho at BP, Robert

Dudley, read from the same script asdethroned CEO Tony Hayward, when he saidthat the company had not been negligent. CEOs are not a good choice to be the

spokesperson during a crisis situation.They’re used to asking questions, notanswering them. The PR ploy of continually using a CEO

to apologize for a crisis situation, may beplaced on the back shelve, as it shouldhave been years ago; doesn’t have thebelievability factor (if it ever did). Acknowledging that using corporate

spokespersons to defend the BP remedialefforts after the spill might not be the mostbelievable tactic, BP began using spokes-men with roots from the Gulf in its TVcommercials; also not believable consider-ing who they worked for.Because of their propensity to talk to the

media too much without having the sci-ence and facts to back up their words, theBP situation, a major environmental disas-ter, is now also a “Pinocchio-like no onebelieves what you say crises,” where everystatement a BP spokesperson says is greet-ed with skepticism.Anew corporate public face has no effect

on the negative press coverage of the crisis.During continuing news coverage of a

major disaster, PR crisis specialists arelargely irrelevant. (But didn’t we learn thatfrom the Tiger Woods, Goldman Sachs,Toyota situations?)A company in a major crisis situation is

helpless to limit the scope of an investiga-tion or limit it to its current problem.It’s best to wait until a problem is solved

before embarking on a PR and advertisingcampaign. All the money spent trying torefurbish BP’s image might have well beenthrown into the Gulf because of the contin-uous flow of media reporting on past andpresent BP safety problems. BP’s TV ad campaign during the disaster

— we’re here until the situation is madegood — in many ways echoes the cam-paigns of U.S. automakers of the past fewdecades.Regardless of the continuing abundance

of stories about how bad their cars per-formed, the automakers bombarded thenetworks with commercials saying theircars were great. Like saying, “don’t

believe what you are told by impartialsources: trust us,” (also the theme of ciga-rette ads with actors in white coats, prior toCongressional action). The truthfulness of the TV/P.R. ad cam-

paign suffered a cataract-like condition,when a September 3 New York Times story,reported that BP warned Congress that itmay not have sufficient money to pay for allthe damages if it is prohibited from gettingnew drilling permits in the Gulf.The best that companies in a media news

crisis can hope for (see Goldman Sachs,Toyota), is that a more schmaltzy crisis willoccur that will provide a new target for themedia line of fire.Congressmen feigned surprise before the

camera when Tony Hayward gave whatwere most likely pre-packaged answers totheir questions. Did they really expect himto incriminate himself and his company?Perhaps remembering the picture of the

cigarette executives raising their handsand trying to bamboozle Congress and theAmerican public during the tobacco hear-ings, Big Oil execs effectively preventedthe BP crisis from engulfing their compa-nies by not playing “band of brothers” anddistancing themselves from BP. This wasaccentuated when several companies saidthey would create a rapid-response systemfor deep water oil spills in the Gulf.Never letting a good crises go unused

politically, national Republican spokesper-sons, when being interviewed by themedia, tried to make the Gulf disaster“Obama’s Katrina” by continually sayingObama’s response was too little, too late. Regardless of the severity of a disaster,

the politician’s blame game never stops(and the cable media doesn’t mind rehash-ing the carbon copy complaints).For many PR firms, advertising agen-

cies, news people, TV commercials mak-ers and the stations that use them, badnews is often good news. BP has spentmore than $100-million dollars on adver-tising thus far, to show that they are a goodcorporate citizen. The BP response to the oil spill can be

published, as is, and used as a guide ofhow not to act during a crisis. But best topublish it to fit into a loose leaf binder. Asequel may be needed. But the most important Lesson Learned

is that the BP story will be with us foryears and all the advice given by PR crisesspecialists can’t make it go away until itruns its natural course. �

OPINION Guest Column

Lessons learned (to date) from BP’s PR disaster

Arthur Solomon isa former VP forBurson-Marsteller.

By Arthur Solomon

Omnicom has acquired a majority stakein Moscow’s Maslov PR, which wasKetchum’s partner on work for theRussian Federation. Ketchum received$7M from Russia and its Gazprom energyoperation during the year ended May 30.Maslov now becomes Ketchum Maslov,

led by Michael Maslov and SergueyChumin, his business partner.The Moscow deal is joined by another

OMC PR move: acquisition ofAmsterdam’s Excerpta Medica, the phar-maceutical communications division ofpublisher Reed Elsevier Group.Excerpta Medica (events, education,

customized publishing) becomes part ofAdelphi, a unit of OMC’s diversifiedagency services operation. Meanwhile, OMC CEO John Wren

reported today that PR revenues rose 5.1percent to $280M during the third-quar-ter. The ad/PR combine registered a 5.4rise in Q3 net to $174.6M. Revenues rose5.5 percent to $3B. �

News Briefs

OOMMNNIICCOOMM MMAAKKEESS MMOOVVEEOONN MMAASSLLOOVV



The PR lesson learned from now ex-CNNer Rick Sanchez is that brightpeople can say stupid things to jour-

nalists, so PR prosmust be ready if aclient mouths off. The time to pre-

pare is now, notwhen your phonesare ringing for com-ment and lawyersorder you to keepmum. The PR need to pre-

pare is urgent becausebad press can lead tonot just embarrass-

ment but (a) lawsuits from many claiminghundreds of millions in damages, (b) lostsales to customers and dealers annoyed withthe company, (c) loss of legislative supportfrom legislators with a big minority popula-tion in their districts, and (d) hastily con-ceived and expensive “good deed” projectsto show that “we love these people.” The obvious way to prepare is by assem-

bling numbers on how many minoritymembers a client employs, bios/photos ofminority executives, causes supported andawards earned from minority groups. (It’snot hard to get some accolades read intothe Congressional Record.)A low-cost way to deter high-cost lawsuits

is by doing a mailing to employees and hav-ing the general counsel talk to senior corpo-rate executives about how the companytotally backs compliance, not only becauseit’s the law but the right thing to do.If trouble comes up, an internal investi-

gation must be conducted by the corporatelawyer, not a PR person. That’s becausenon-lawyers can be subpoenaed by anyonesuing the company and made to tell whatthey know — everything they heard, trueor not, even speculation no matter howextremely unlikely and damaging. Neither lawyers nor their investigators

can be subpoenaed because their informa-tion is a “privileged work product.” Thelawyers can say “we are investigating thissituation very carefully and not takinganything for granted because we want toconsider all sides.”If media pick up the “all sides” com-

ment, the public will get the message thatthere’s more than one side, and hold off ondeciding who’s right and wrong. It’s important to understand what’s okay

and what isn’t. A brilliant young executivein her mid-20s once came to me in tearswith this complaint about an accountsupervisor: “He hates me because I’m alesbian.”I took her to lunch and told her: “He has

every right to hate you. He also has theright to hate Jews, Catholics, straights oranyone else. If he says or does anythingimproper, I’ll fire his ass on the spot, buthe has a right to think what he wants.” A year or two later the young exec left to

complete her PhD in English and todayshe is a professor at a top university. Theaccount guy was fired instantly someweeks later after he said the wrong thing toanother woman. Why was he against women? I didn’t

know or care. Why do smart corporateexecutive sometimes say stupid things? Idon’t know that either. Some learn preju-dice from their parents just as people getreligion and values or lack of them fromparents. But your phone will ring if a remark is

made like that of Rick Sanchez. Be prepared for the call. �

Sanchez debacle is teachable moment for PR

Ron Levy, founderof NAPS, is researchdirector at the PRservices company.

By Ron Levy

Guest Column

Although most CEOs are quoted in the newsand use speaking engagements to reach audi-ences, most are not using social media andthe Internet for that purpose, according to aWeber Shandwick study.64% of that top group of CEOs are not

engaged digitally with external audiences,compared with 93 percent that used a moretraditional route — quotes in major publica-tions — and 40% who booked speakingengagements to non-investor audiences.Weber Shandwick found that most CEO

online visibility is limited to what’s said aboutthe executives on Wikipedia. Only 36% makeappearances in social media channels or ontheir company’s website, which most oftencomes in the form of a letter or “message fromthe CEO” -type posting. Beside letters or CEO messages on compa-

ny websites, which are utilized by 28% of theso-called “socialized” CEOs, some haveturned to video or podcasts (18%), whilefewer than 10% use Twitter, Facebook orexternal blogs. �

News Briefs

SSttuuddyy:: CCEEOOss nnoott ‘‘ssoocciiaall’’



Derek DeVries, PRSA Assemblydelegate who spearheaded a “pengifting” gag on us at the Assembly

Oct. 16, says wehave “completelymissed the mark” incovering it.DeVries, who teach-es at Grand RapidsCommunity Collegeand has his own firm,said there are a lotmore angles to thepen-gifting than wehave indicated.

“Jack O’Dwyer Misunderstands PRSA2010 Assembly Flash Mob,” was theheadline of his Oct. 17 blog after he sawour story. We interpreted the pen-givingby about 20 delegates as some sort ofrecognition which would be the worstnightmare of VP-PR Arthur Yann whohas made clear his dissatisfaction withour coverage of the Society.We were denied press passes to the

annual conference of the Society whileother trade reporters got them.The Society’s official stance is that we

don’t exist, a message carried to ouroffice by chair Gary McCormick andCOO Bill Murray in March. But thevideotape is proof that we do.DeVries et al have no idea how serious-

ly they have dented the “PR” aimed at usby Society leaders and staff.We are goofballsThe pen-gifting was not confined to the

Assembly.The “flash mob,” said DeVries, was

extended to the entire 2010conference, “so if you seeJack O’Dwyer in the hall,take a moment to presenthim with the ‘tribute,’ of adisposable pen.”DeVries is now doing seri-

ous back-pedaling. He saidin his blog that the pens weregiven by “a bunch of goof-balls like me who happenedto be delegates.”Society delegates are

“goofballs?” This will not sitwell with the Society PR staff or board.We thought the delegates were the crèmede la crème of the Society.The DeVries blog also slings a number

of darts at us including we’re a “curmud-geon,” that like John Nash, our “versionof reality” does not match what is experi-enced by others (i.e., we’re nuts), that ourdescription of the pen-giving was “lessthan accurate,” and that such inaccuracywill be no surprise to “a lot of PRSAmembers.”The pens recognized our “tenacious, if

occasionally misguided work to cover theSociety,” he also said.Society can’t show any inaccuracyWe challenge DeVries or anyone con-

nected with the Society to show us any-thing inaccurate in any of our coverage.What Society leaders and staff engage inis a smear campaign that lacks details.Our opinions that they don’t like arebased on facts.DeVries says Society members “occa-

sionally disagree” with our “interpreta-tion of the conference/Society happen-ings.”They never disagree. When we bring

up criticisms such as withholding tran-scripts of the Assembly for the past fiveyears, withholding names of delegates, orrefusing to discuss making a PDF of themembers‚ directory, leaders just don’trespond.We publish fully documented criticisms

of the Society but the leaders only respondwith silence or undefined attacks such aswe’re just “too negative.” They refuse tomeet with us or even talk to us on the tele-phone.DeVries: that “wasn’t really me”Back-pedaling even more, DeVries tries

to distance this gift-giving from any offi-cial act of the Society.“The Society had nothing to do with the

flash mob,” he said on his blog.This reminded us of AnneDubois, chair of the UniversalAccreditation Board, sayingshe was not in that role whenshe made a comment on theSociety e-group about non-APRs on the board.UAB policy forbids it from

interfering in the governance ofmember organizations. Shesaid she was there as AnneDubois the Assembly delegateand not as Anne Dubois the

UAB chair.DeVries is now giving us the same argu-

ment that he stopped being a delegate andturned into a “goofball” when he gave the

hotel’s disposable pen to us. How manyDerek DeVrieses are there?O’Dwyer is society’s no. 1 competitorWe posted on the DeVries blog that the

reason for the Society’s bashing of us isthat we’re its No. 1 competitor.Our website, with ten years of stories,

editorials, databases, etc., as of Dec. 31,2010, dwarfs its website, which is onlypartially searchable. Major stories like theCommittee for a Democratic PRSA arebarely touched on its website.The October O’Dwyer’s magazine had

60 pages including 18 full page ads and 12partial pages.The current Strategist of the Society has

50 pages and 10 full page-ads.While the Society talks about PR in gen-

eral, each issue of the O’Dwyer’s maga-zine includes a focus on a specialty such ashealthcare, tech or financial and providesdocumented net fee rankings of the lead-ing firms in each category.Specialization is major trendSpecialization in PR is a trend that is at

least 20 years old that is not addressed bythe Society’s APR program.“Certification” of specialties was dis-

cussed a couple of years ago by Societyleaders but little has emerged.Other O’Dwyer products not matched

by the Society are our Directory of 1,700PR firms, our PR Buyer’s Guide to 1,000products and services in 57 categories andour weekly Jack O’Dwyer’s Newsletter.The Society, we acknowledge, has many

services that we don’t provide. Bothorganizations should be working togetherfor the advancement of PR people. But theSociety decided long ago to wage com-petitive war against us. �

We’re nutty and inaccurate, says PRSA delegate

Jack O’Dwyer

By Jack O’Dwyer

Nutty, or just tired? Jack O’Dwyer catchessome Zs during a break at the Oct. 16 PRSAAssembly. This was the only photo VP-PRArthur Yann sent to us a week after theAssembly.

Photo courtesy of PRSA.

OPINION

PRSA Assembly dele-gate Derek DeVries.



VMS replaces CEO

Monitoring company VMS hasousted CEO Peter Wengryn in amanagement revamp started this

summer.David Stephens, a Managing Director

based in Australia for medical publisherWolters Kluwer Health, has been named

President of VMS, reporting to ChairmanRobert Waggoner and taking on full oper-ating responsibility.Waggoner, who leads clipping and media

contacts supplier BurrellesLuce, citedStephens’ experience in senior informationand software, as well as his work in theinternational arena, as key to the hire. Stephens, who was educated in Australia,

oversaw WKH operations in China, India,Japan, Southeast Asia, Australia and NewZealand guiding a turnaround of its securi-ties and insurance group in Boston.Previous stints included Thomson, LendLease, and McKinsey & Co.Wengryn joined VMS as its Chief

Financial Officer in 1999 and was tappedas CEO three years later. He handled thecompany’s transition from providing tapeof broadcast clips to a services and consult-ing business steeped in monitoring.VMS is the longstanding veteran in a

monitoring sector of PR services that hasseen a series of up-starts and significantupheaval in the space as technologyimproved and social media came on thescene. “VMS has a strong market reputation

and platform for growth,” Stephens said ina statement. �

AOL taps comms. chief

Former MTV corporate communi-cations executive Lauren Hurvitzis joined AOL last month as head

of corporate communications for theInternet portal. Tricia Primrose Wallace stepped

down as communications chief at AOL

this summer after more than 10 yearsthere. The Internet company, which made a

splash by acquiring TechCrunch lastweek, split from $111 billion mergerpartner of 2000 Time Warner last year. Hurvitz was Executive VP of

Corporate Comms. and Public Affairsat MTV, which she joined after eight-years at WPP’s Robinson Lerer &Montgomery in 2004. Wallace was also an RLM alum. �

Allread named PCI Prez

Jill Allread has been promoted toPresident of Chicago-basedPublic Communications Inc.

The 47-year-old executive joined thefirm in 1995 as principal. Allread was a reporter for a dozen

years and PA/PR director of ChicagoZoological Society’s Brookfield Zoo.She serves on

the executiveboard of Girls inthe Game, agroup that nur-tures leadershipand self-esteem ingirls throughsports. She also isa commissionerof the IllinoisNatural PreservesCommission andpresident of Openlands, a conservationgroup.At PCI, Allread joins the leadership

trio of CEO Dorothy Pirovano andExecutive VP Ruth Mugalian.The firm has 50 staffers. �

Experiential firm addsDome

Veteran Chicago pro Doug Domehas been named President andChief Creative Officer at

Gigunda Group, a 16-year-oldManchester, N.H.-based experientialmarketing agency. He works out of hislongtime base of Chicago.Dome had been running his own shop

for the past three years, following the2004 acquisition by Hill & Knowlton of his 1997-founded firm DomeCommunications.“The fact that Doug had so many

options in front of him yet chose to bring

his talents to Gigunda is incrediblyexciting for us,” said Gigunda CEORyan FitzSimons.He has been CCO and Managing

Principal of Carmichael Lynch Spong,U.S. Creative Director for H&K, andManaging Director of PR and events atFoote, Cone & Belding. Gigunda clients have included Procter

& Gamble brands like Charmin, Tideand Bounty, as well as Sony,GlaxoSmithKline and Toyota. �

Fiber moves to Weber

Lorie Fiber, who establishedEdelman’s healthcare practice inLos Angeles and handled its life

sciences work in the U.S., moved toWeber Shandwick as Executive VP andGM of Southern California.She will report to Cathy Calhoun, the

Interpublic unit’s North AmericanPresident.Fiber spent nine years at Edelman,

departing as Executive VP and FoundingPartner of its DJE Science specialty unit. Earlier, she was a member of the

Executive Committee at FischerHealth,which was scooped up by Porter Novelli.At FH, Fiber focused on medical devicesand the diagnostics group. Fiber also established the PR department for the L.A. Regional Foodbank, the secondbiggest unit in the Second Harvest network.Fiber will work closely with Laura

Schoen, global healthcare practice chair. �

eBay vet joins F-H

Richard Kanareck, ex-communica-tions director for eBay’sEuropean operation, is the new

managing director of Fleishman-Hillard’s London office.At eBay, Kanareck was in charge of

the online auction house’s repositioningcampaign in a dozen markets.F-H CEO Dave Senay says Kanareck’s

hire is part of his firm’s effort to offerintegrated global communications pack-ages to its clients. Kanareck will work tomake sure that clients are “completely athome in the digital world.”The ex-eBay staffer has 15 years of PR

experience and reports to Kevin Bell,regional president of F-H’s U.K., Africaand Middle East operations. �

Stephens, Wengryn

Jill Allread

PEOPLE IN PR



WASHINGTON REPORT

The National Institutes of Health has issued an RFP toassemble a roster of firms to handle various communica-tions and public affairs assignments over the next five

yearsThe resulting contract, known as an indefinite deliv-

ery/indefinite quantity pact, will be for a base year with fouroptions. A handful of firms are typically selected from an RFPprocess to compete for assignments under IDIQ terms.The assignments, outlined broadly in the Oct. 6 RFP, will

cover tasks like research, media analysis and outreach, PR, andsocial marketing, among other communications assignments.The NIH is the medical research arm of the federal govern-

ment and has an annual budget of more than $30 billion and isbased in Bethesda, Md. As previously reported, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid

Services, like the NIH part of the Dept. of Health and HumanServices, is planning a similar review later this month or inNovember. Proposals are due Nov. 17. Documents can be downloaded at

odwyerpr.com. �

NIH eyes PR pitches

U.S. force in Afghanistanextends media analysis pact

McFarlane heads SouthernSudan Lobby

The public affairs office for the U.S. force in Afghanistan hasgiven a six-month extension to its foreign media monitor-ing and analysis vendor SOSi International.

“Disruption or loss of this service will directly affect the wareffort in Afghanistan,” said a document justifying the move to addsix months to the pact without putting it out for bids. The value ofthe extension to March 31, 2011 was redacted in the document.SOSi won the contract in an open competition in 2006, a

process which outlined a contract with options through 2010worth up to $67M. Its latest assignment was set to expire on Sept.30. The federal government said in July that it intended to extend

the contract by six months and it received no response from othervendors, making the move effective Oct. 1.SOSi’s media operation is based in Kabul. Its analysts track

reporting and identify media trends related to the U.S. militaryoperation in Afghanistan. The federal government said it plans to review the pact in a

competitive process in the near future, possibly two to fourmonths, but cited delays caused by the review of the U.S. missionin Afghanistan completed in May that may affect an RFP process.The Rendon Group previously handled the media analysis work

for the U.S. Strategic Operations Command before the 2006review. �

Robert “Bud” McFarlane, who was President Reagan’sNational Security Advisor, registered Sept. 23 with theJustice Dept. as president of the U.S.-Southern Sudan

Development Co.Voters in southern Sudan go to the poll in January to decide

whether oil-rich South Sudan becomes independent or remains part

of a unified country. Sudanese living in the U.S., U.K., Australia, Canada, Uganda,

Kenya, Ethiopia and Egypt will also vote. That tally was part of a peace treaty ironed out in 2005, a pact that

ended two decades of war between north and south. More than1.5M people died.McFarlane has been providing oral advice to south Sudanese offi-

cials on “enhancing the professionalism and readiness of the secu-rity forces,” “attracting foreign assistance from the U.S. and othergovernments,” and lining up private sector cash for infrastructureprojects.According to McFarlane’s federal filing, he has worked to pro-

mote the interests of Southern Sudan for the past two years, receiv-ing a payment of $700K in `08.McFarlane’s work put him in contact with Gordon England,

Deputy Secretary of Defense; Gen. William “Kip” Ward,Commander of the U.S. Africa Command, and Pamela Fierst of theState Dept.’s Sudan Policy Group. �

Mortgage trade group taps SVP

Mexico’s Committee of Tourism and Conventions for theimage-tarnished Mexican State of Baja California hiredAllison & Partners to lead a six-figure tourism PR

campaign starting last month.The trade group for mortgage bankers in Washington, D.C., has

filled its vacant senior communications and marketing slot afterfour months as mortgages draw national interest.Barbara Van Allen, Chief Marketing Officer for disability

employment non-profit NISH, has been named Senior VP ofCommunications and Marketing for the Mortgage BankersAssociation.“I am very excited to join the MBA at such a critical time in the

industry’s history,” she said in a statement.The appointment comes as the mortgage sector endures sus-

tained scrutiny and pressure mounts on banks and regulators amidreports of shoddy lending and foreclosure practices.She’ll join the trade group Nov. 1, taking over for Cheryl

Crispen, who held the post for eight years before leaving in Junefor the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association.Van Allen was managing Director of Global Communications at

Cushman & Wakefield and director of corporate communicationsat ITT after a seven-year stint on the Hill.The MBA counts 3,000 member companies. �


The Cedar Group, LLC, Fairbanks, Alaska, registered September 28, 2010 for Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in theUnited States, Washington, D.C., regarding improving and deepening relations between the United States and Taiwan.

Hills Stern & Morley, Washington, D.C., registered September 1, 2010 for Government of Aruba, Oranjestad, Aruba, regarding assisting theprincipal on issues of bilateral cooperation between the Government of Aruba and the Government of the United States.

Garvey Schubert Barer, Washington, D.C., registered September 30, 2010 for Global Guardian Trust, Tokyo, Japan, regarding researchingand analyzing Legislative and Executive Branch policies, proposals and actions that could impact fisheries policies of the Japanese governmentor the fishing practices of Japanese fishing vessels.

� NNEEWW FFOORREEIIGGNN AAGGEENNTTSS RREEGGIISSTTRRAATTIIOONN AACCTT FFIILLIINNGGSSFARA News

Below is a list of select companies that have registered with the U.S. Department of Justice, FARA Registration Unit,Washington, D.C., in order to comply with the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, regarding their consulting and commu-nications work on behalf of foreign principals, including governments, political parties, organizations, and individuals.

� NNEEWW LLOOBBBBYYIINNGG DDIISSCCLLOOSSUURREE AACCTT FFIILLIINNGGSSBelow is a list of select companies that have registered with the Secretary of the Senate, Office of Public Records, and the Clerk of theHouse of Representatives, Legislative Resource Center, Washington, D.C., in order to comply with the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995.For a complete list of filings, visit http://sopr.senate.gov.

Blank Rome Government Relations LLC, Washington, D.C., registered October 7, 2010 for Marine Spill Response Corp., Herndon, Va.,regarding monitoring and reporting on Congressional hearings, legislation and Administration policy related to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Capitol Counsel LLC, Washington, D.C., registered October 14, 2010 for Cisco Systems, Washington, D.C., regarding legislation pertainingto cyber security and net neutrality.

Carmen Group Inc., Washington, D.C., registered October 8, 2010 for Boulder County, Boulder, Colo., regarding wildfire recovery in BoulderCounty.

Cozen OʼConnor Public Strategies, Washington, D.C., registered October 14, 2010 for U.S. Travel Association, Washington, D.C., regardingpursuing legislative reforms of visa policies and policies relating to arrivals and departures of passengers at U.S. airports.

Patton Boggs LLP, Washington, D.C., registered October 13, 2010 for Association of Institutional Investors, Winchester, Va., regardingissues related to regulatory developments following passage of the Dodd-Frank Act.

Dan Perrin, Washington, D.C., registered October 15, 2010 for American Bankers Association, Washington, D.C., regarding healthcarereform and health savings accounts.

The U.S. State Department said Oct. 7 that it has finishedthe framework for its public diplomacy operations, nam-ing six assistant secretaries as well as a deputy assistant

for international media engagement experienced in the Arabworld to put a public face on U.S. policies overseas.

Dana Shell Smith, an Arabic languagespokeswoman and media hub director forState in Dubai, has taken the internationalmedia engagement post. She will be amonga handful of U.S. officials who will appearon Arab news shows to give a U.S. point ofview to coverage. Judith McHale, Undersecretary of State

for Public Diplomacy, said in March thatthe new position would be created, saying itwas to be created with the State Dept.’spublic affairs bureau to give “high levelattention” to foreign media.

Smith was a public affairs officer at the American Institute inTaiwan and was embassy spokeswoman in Jordan after a stintin Tel Aviv handling public diplomacy for the U.S. embassy inthe Gaza Strip. In addition to Arabic, the Foreign Service Officespeaks Chinese, Hebrew and Spanish. In addition to Smith, six deputy assistant secretaries comprise

the PD framework overseen by Undersecretary of State forPublic Diplomacy Judith McHale.McHale said in a statement that a key goal of the new

advisors and framework is to ensure a “close integration”between PD and policy formulation. The new deputy assistants and their bureaus include

Spencer Boyer, who handles PD and public affairs forEurope and Eurasian affairs; Grata Holtz, who handles PDand strategic communications for Near Eastern affairs;James Moore, overseeing south and central Asian affairswho was minister counselor for public affairs at the U.S.Embassy in Turkey from 2003-06; Fabiola Rodriguez-Ciampoli, western hemisphere affairs and former comms.director for Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Calif.); Jennifer ParkStout, east Asia and Pacific affairs and a former Hillstaffer, and David Bruce Wharton, African affairs anddirected PD and public affairs for the Africa bureau since2009. A GAO report released in July outlined significant cutbacks

in U.S. public diplomacy since the 1990s, but McHaleannounced a plan in February to “revitalize” the frameworkof PD ahead of its budget request for 2012. McHale told the Senate Foreign Relations committee in

March that the new regional deputies would be established toput a PR perspective in senior policy talks. �

State outlines public diplomacy corpsInternational PR News

Lobbying News

Dana Shell Smith




North American Precis Syndicate, Inc.,Empire State Bldg., 350 Fifth Ave., 65th flr.,New York, NY 10118-0110. 212/867-9000.Dorothy York, Pres. www.napsinfo.com;[email protected].

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BE PREPARED! Impact Commun-ications trains your spokespeople tosuccessfully communicate criticalmessages to your targeted audi-ences during print, television, andradio news interviews. Your cus-tomized workshops are issue-drivenand role-play based. Videotaping/critiquing. Groups/privately. Face-to-face/telephone interviews/newsconferences. Private label seminarsfor public relations agencies. Makeyour next news interview yourbest by calling Jon Rosen, ImpactCommunications. Over 25 yearsof news media/training expertise.

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With over 95,000 sq ft of spaceLog-On is the cityʼs largest and most technologically advanced PR/Marketing direct mail, digital print-er, packaging & distribution service.We assist agencies, corporations,non-profits, large and small. We mail,fax and e-mail news releases andpitch letters. We use your lists or ourmedia database. We assemble presskits, print marketing material and fulfillproduct requests. We reproduceCDs. And we maintain private lists.Thereʼs very little we canʼt do for you.

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We’ll bring you a steady stream of ideas to increase the visibility ofyour company and at low cost compared to print and broadcastadvertising. We will bring you an in integrated program that willuse all forms of communications. You'll find reporters consider usto be a dependable source of information and help and that theyrely on us to bring them good stories.

We’ll help you to put your newsworthy material in a form that willget their attention. Our key staffers have decades of experience inour three specialty areas--consumer, financial and technology.

Give us a chance to visit you and come up with some sample ideasfor your business at no charge. Milton PR Strategies operates bothnationally and internationally through membership in a worldwidenetwork of major PR firms.

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She votes with her thumbs,and her social network follows her lead.Where does she stand on your issues?

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be there.
