The top three were compiled from more than 625 responses PRSA received. If you go to the site and click on “read annotations” under each definition, you can get a good idea of why certain words and phrases were used.

I’m really not crazy about any of them, although my initial preference is for definition #1:  ”Public relations is the management function of researching, engaging, communicating, and collaborating with stakeholders in an ethical manner to build mutually beneficial relationships and achieve results.”

I don’t like using the word “stakeholders” in this definition. Perhaps the phrase “various relevant publics” might be better. In the context of, say, marketing or media relations, a consumer may not really be a stakeholder, since he or she might easily have other options when considering a product or service. Thus, there is really no “stake” in what an organization does or says in that case.

Here’s candidate #2: “Public relations is a strategic communication process that develops and maintains mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their key publics.”

To me, #2, has a basic weakness in the words “mutually beneficial relationships.” This assumes there is any relationship at all between an organization and a key public, and it also assumes that what the organization wants would be beneficial to that public. Not necessarily so, for reasons similar to the problem with #1 and more.

Definition #3 is: “Public relations is the engagement between organizations and individuals to achieve mutual understanding and realize strategic goals.”

I think this is too simplistic is too simplistic and, like #2, makes some risky assumptions, in this case regarding “realize strategic goals.” Whose strategic goals might these be, and how can we assume all parties involved in the “engagement” have even remotely-similar strategic goals? And, by the way, I don’t like the word “engagement.” It’s a buzzword at the moment, but it may be passé in a year. We shouldn’t include buzzwords in a definition, or the definition may become obsolete before the ink dries.

Jack O’Dwyer, who has been chronicling the PR industry for some 40 years, raised a good point in his comment to my own blog post on this subject. None of the proposed definitions make reference to specialization in PR. “The real story of PR,” Jack says, “is that large special practice areas have been built up in the agencies over the past 20 years and the O’Dwyer Co. is the only one tracking them (health care, tech, financial and about nine others). We had 594 such rankings for 2010, a gain of 20%.”

Although it means making the definition longer, perhaps we should heed Jack’s advice and make mention of the fact that PR can and often does take many different forms and functions since it’s hard to lump IR (Investor Relations) into the same boat as media relations or employee relations.

I have a feeling we’re going to end up with a definition that still falls far short of what PR does and its real role in an organization, but I am happy to see PRSA making the effort. Next, I’d like to see PRSA address issues of PR for PR and better PR education and training.

Think of the PR for Muse and for Branson’s vaunted Virgin brand if Sir Richard buys into the idea. Won’t the whole world be glued to this event if it happens? Won’t we all be following this as it unfolds on our iPads, iPhones, TV screens, and computers? How huge would the publicity be for both parties if Muse can pull this off? Just the possibility this might happen is grist for the PR mill—whether it materializes or not.

And if anybody thinks Branson doesn’t care about publicity as one of the richest men in Britain, think again. He’s often taken shots at breaking records and even tried to circumnavigate the globe in a balloon with Steve Fossett once.

From press reports, it seems this is no off-the-top-of-the-head whim. Bellamy has been interested in astronomy for a long time. Fans of the group know it, too. After a recent gig in Moscow, Bellamy was presented with a powerful telescope. When he set it up, he was reportedly awed by the views of the moon.

Bellamy’s comments about the possibility of recording in space: “Would I be scared? I think I’ll be all right.”

• Is this extreme PR or what? Would you be glued to this if it happens?
• What’s your favorite PR move by entertainers been?
• Do you think there ought to be limits to sensationalism or is our culture hungry for edgier “reality TV” kinds of fare now?

Dear Johnson & Johnson,

For many years, I’ve depended on you to be there for my family and me. Your products are our staples: Your Band-Aids have helped mend scrapes; your Children’s Tylenol has brought fevers down; your baby shampoo has never caused a tear.

I’ve been impressed with how you have consistently adhered to your company’s now-famous credo, crafted in 1943, that begins: “We believe that our first duty is to the doctors, nurses and patients, to mothers and fathers and all others who use our products and services. In meeting their needs, everything we do must be of high quality.” Your corporate actions and brands have always held the high ground.

But, J&J, I’ve been disappointed with the way you’ve handled the recalls of your products, as well as by some business dealings, in the past year. Little by little, your products disappeared from shelves—to be exact, there have been 22 product recalls, involving well over 300 million bottles of medicines, since September 2009—without so much as a peep out of you. (Most notably, OB Tampons went missing, only to return in April, more than six months later … without nary a statement as to why they’d been pulled in the first place.) I waited for explanations … silence.

Meanwhile, I saw you in the news and at congressional hearings (like the one a few weeks ago in which you were fined $70 million for paying bribes to European doctors to use your devices.) Yikes. Needless to say, this behavior doesn’t reflect the J&J I know and love.

This silence has taken its toll. Lost revenue stemming from recalls and the lengthy closure of a plant in suburban Philadelphia reduced J&J’s 2010 sales by $900 million. In the fourth quarter, J&J posted a 12% profit decline and a 5.5% drop in sales.

Fortunately, it’s not too late for you to make things right. J&J has always been in the business of building and sustaining trust, and if you take your own medicine, this may just be a tiny blemish on your rock-solid reputation. To regain your footing , you just have to look at your own credo for guidance. I quote:

We must be good citizens.
Johnson & Johnson has always been good about apologizing in a timely manner for mistakes. (When Tylenol turned up tainted in 1982, you jumped into action, even when the tragedy wasn’t your fault. Now THAT was good citizenship.) Now, unfortunately, you’ve already let more than enough time pass between the recalls and a public statement. It’s time to say “sorry” to regain the trust of your consumers.

Working conditions [must be] clean, orderly and safe.
Your Fort Washington, Pennsylvania plant has been closed for almost a year. Now, there is talk that you will shut down your plant in Las Piedras, Puerto Rico. Once you fix the problems at your plants (or better yet, build state-of-the-art new ones), go one step further and show us what’s really going on behind the scenes by adopting a policy of complete openness. Install 24/7 webcams in your plants. Post updates via YouTube. Keep us informed through Twitter to demonstrate your commitment to making things better.

Research must be carried on, innovative programs developed and mistakes paid for.
In recent months, Advil has tried to bank on Tylenol’s misfortune by launching a campaign, “Say Yes to Advil,” which is essentially encouraging people to, “Say No to Tylenol.” Show your customers and competitors you haven’t thrown in the towel. By continuing to create innovative new products (as well as bringing back your existing ones), you will show the public that you cannot be impeded by this blip on the radar, and that you are, and always will be, living up to your promises.

We are responsible to our employees. We must respect their dignity and recognize their merit.
If you want your staff to live up to your company credo, then you have to respect their dignity and recognize their merit—even if that merit is warranted because they’ve called out imperfections within your own company. Stand by the people who are helping rebuild your company, stood by you in hard times, and even the ones who blew the whistle on you because they are ultimately helping you to live up to the high standards that you have set for yourself.

It’s never easy for a mother to discipline her child, and it pains me to have to adopt this tone with you, Johnson & Johnson. But tough love is sometimes required in tough times. By getting back to the words on which your company is built, I think you can find your way back.

Full disclosure: In this article, the role of “Mom” was played by CBX’s managing partner, Gregg Lipman (an actual dad, who has spent enough time with his own mother and wife to dish out maternal wisdom—and who holds J&J in high enough regard to care).

Gregg S. Lipman is managing partner at CBX, a strategic branding company with expertise in corporate, consumer, and retail experiences.

Events marketing is fresh on my mind—having just returned from exhibiting at SXSW for a second straight year. Although different brands often have different objectives when exhibiting at conferences, I’ve noticed that timeless tactics always yield results. Whether you’re exhibiting to win new customers, meet key influencers, or create brand awareness, here are five tactics that have worked for my company (and I think they’ll work for yours, too).

As a believer of the Pareto principle (also known as the 80/20 rule), I think of events marketing this way: If you were to think of total conference marketing efforts as a pie graph, then what you see below is the 20% slice that yields 80% of your results.

1. Hustle.

During SXSW, one person who stopped at my company’s booth told me she was surprised when I greeted her. She told me that most booth staff sit behind their tables, immersed in their laptop/iPhone/iPad, rarely looking up to engage passersby. I can understand that—I know I was definitely nervous to approach strangers at my first conference. But don’t let shyness get in the way of your investment. Why wait on the prospect to make the first move?

I loved watching our neighbors work the expo at SXSW. The angel-backed startup, LifeKraze had a young team reaching out to passersby, dishing out swag, and inviting them to have a go at their High Striker carnival game. When traffic was thin, their team fanned out on the expo floor, respectfully approaching expo visitors and neighbors like me. When the expo closed, they headed for parties where key influencers were and introduced themselves. Their CEO admitted that on the final day, he had a hard time getting out of bed because he was so tired. That’s hustle.

2. Be Smart With Your Messaging.

Although our company exhibits at several conferences each year, SXSW is one of the only conferences where I can walk the show floor and shop for marketing solutions. I was surprised that so many booths featured cryptic messaging. Their headlines didn’t tell me what their product/service is for, and as a result, I kept walking.

When we designed our booth, we drew inspiration from book designs. Before Amazon and its digital bookshelf, smart book designers focused on making their books’ spines pop. The designer knew that, at the bookstore, the book needed to sell itself and stick out when jammed into the shelf with countless other books. Often, the designer would use eye-catching colors and a bold, effective title.

Imagine that your company’s booth is being jammed into the expo’s floor plan with countless other booths. Stick out and feature a bold, effective headline. Experienced headline writers know that a surefire formula is to appeal to a reader’s invisible HELP WANTED poster. What’s a HELP WANTED poster?

In everyday life, we’re almost always looking to hire something to do a job for us. For example, I hire Evernote to help me record my grocery list, in the same way that I hire an airplane to transport me from Kalamazoo, Michigan to Austin, Texas. I also hire Google to deliver helpful marketing tips, on-demand. Think about what your customers hire you for, and use that knowledge to create your booth’s headline.

For example, let’s say you deliver a web service that organizes every marketing article on the planet and makes them accessible via a search engine. You do it better than Google can. Your booth’s headline might be: Read the World’s Most Helpful Marketing Tips in One Click.

I can almost guarantee that every marketer will stop at your booth.

3. Listen.

Smart book designers know that a spine’s purpose is to convince you to read the cover. And the cover’s purpose is to get you to read the back cover. And the back cover’s purpose is to get you to read the flaps. If the designer succeeds, the prospect will begin flipping through the pages to read a sample.

When people stop at your booth, they’re going to ask for the elevator pitch. Give it to them—think of it as a canned presentation that is the equivalent to the front and back covers and inside flap. Then pause and turn the conversation to them. Ask them where they work and what they do. Listen.

Here’s an opportunity to learn about your guest’s needs, and with this knowledge, you can tailor your presentation to her. She’s moved from front cover to back cover to inside flaps, and just as she’s about to flip through the pages, you guide her through the book and read out the perfect chapter that promises to make her life easier.

4. Tell a Story.

If I learn that my guest is in the same shoes as one of my customers, I’ll ask her if she’d like to hear success story about someone just like her. Your guest will accept this offer 99% of the time. After telling the story, wipe the tears from your guest’s eyes and ask to swap business cards. Promise to introduce your guest to your customer via email, write a reminder for yourself on her business card, and follow through on your promise within one week.

5. Offer Handouts.

At this point, your guest will search for some kind of handout to take home. What’s really happening is that she wants to tie a piece of thread to her finger; in other words, she wants a mental bookmark to remind herself of her experience at your booth. Help her out—give her something that will evoke a reaction when she’s sorting through piles of handouts after the conference. Sparking a reaction should be enough to cause her to leap out of her seat and sprint for the nearest Internet portal (or maybe she’ll Google you on her iPhone).

I’ve witnessed countless efforts to design the ultimate handout. Unfortunately, Comic Sans, Papyrus, Museo, and tons of Photoshop filters have been killed in the process. For me, the simplest way to evoke a reaction is to print your handout on oddly shaped card-stock. Try a triangle. Or an octagon. Feeling wild? Tease them with a trapezoid.

What other advice would you offer for a positive events marketing experience for your booth’s visitors?

Nehemiah “Nemo” Chu is an ambassador of Bloomfire.

I’ve had some really great interactions with brands lately on social networks like Twitter and Facebook. I’ll be honest, I feel a sense of greater loyalty to those who talk with me and acknowledge me. I’ve also been ignored a lot. I hate being ignored. And on social networks, it seems to irritate me even more—because after all, why are brands on social networks if they aren’t, well, social? I can read about your news on your website. I want you to talk with me, not at me.

So I took to Twitter to ask my community if they feel that brands should be responsive when you talk about them on social networks. How do they feel if brands don’t follow them back? Does it matter?

Turns out most people, like me, also hate being ignored. While the majority of respondents said they didn’t care if brands follow them on Twitter, they did say that they feel negatively toward a brand that doesn’t respond to them when specifically called out to do so. Smart brands at least do that and also monitor and interact with the community talking about them, even if not specifically asked to answer a question or talk to them.

Here’s an example. I recently asked my Twitter followers who their favorite fashion sample sale sites are, and I mentioned Rue La La, Gilt Groupe and Ideeli. Only one, Ideeli, answered the question themselves in the form of a response to me. In fact, every time I mention Ideeli, they reply.

I also recently asked this question:

Only Entrepreneur Magazine responded, even though I’m an avid promoter of content in all three magazines. In fact, I probably share more articles from Inc. and Fast Company than Entrepreneur.

Now, of course, I was asking my followers their opinion in both of these cases and not asking the brands a specific question—but the point is, it was an opportunity for each company to interact with a prospect/customer talking about their brand, and to show that they’re listening – and that they care what the community says or thinks about them. I understand it might not be possible, if you’re a really popular brand, to reply to everything. But … why not? Companies like Jet Blue, Virgin America, Dunkin Donuts and LL Bean have done it right in my view. And here are a few other examples that some of my colleagues experienced:

• Cision actually helped me once.  I was generally complaining about Cision’s login expiring too quickly and other PR people were griping with me. Cision saw it within the hour, answered me and fixed my account so the log in time out would be longer.  It was a great example of monitoring your brand and making a dissenter into an advocate as I then tweeted the PR people back to tell them that Cision helped me and what they could do to fix the same issue.
• BumbleRide: I got on Twitter and complained about issues I was having with their Indie Twin stroller (which wasn’t cheap and I had just purchased a few months prior). The customer service rep responded to me via Twitter to learn more and, within two weeks, they shipped me a brand-new (and might I add, upgraded) stroller frame along with a little “snack-pack” add on “for my troubles.”
• I commented on Twitter about my satisfaction with the quick installation of Verizon Fios and they responded pretty quickly— thanking me and offering future assistance.
• I had very satisfactory, quick response/outcomes from both Comcast and American Airlines (about leaving my umbrella on a flight!).

I’m especially jealous of that last one because I once left a coat—a very nice coat—on an airline, and I tweeted about it immediately and they told me to call the 1-800 number. I did and never got a human on the phone and was never helped. And yes, it was extremely frustrating. The point here is that maybe it’s not even enough to just answer or interact, but to have a customer service action plan that includes social networks.

I dare to venture that most companies do not have a routing plan in place for how to handle customer service issues via social networks. Answering and acknowledging frustrated customers or interested prospects is just not enough anymore. It’s expected that, like a website, brands are going to be on Twitter. It’s further expected that brands are going to answer a customer talking about them or at least asking a specific question.

But now, as social media continues to evolve and integrate into multiple business divisions (marketing, PR, customer service, business development, etc.), companies need a smarter, integrated plan and organized process. They need to ask themselves:

• Who is going to handle complaints?
• What are the steps?
• Once addressed on Twitter or Facebook, do you take a customer offline?
• Who handles it?
• Who monitors niche communities (like, say mommy communities) to create relationships and address dissenters, or celebrate champions?
• Who replies on blogs mentioning your brands, further cementing positive relationships, or helping to fix damaged ones?
• Who makes sure any complaints in any social network are addressed to the satisfaction of a company or that a potential prospect was closed (or, if not closed, why not)?

Companies need to realize that just being present isn’t enough. Customers expect you to be there now. Building up large numbers of followers while following no one sends the wrong message. Businesses need better plans for integrating their social media efforts, processes and presence throughout the entire company.

You’ve heard of a social media policy for addressing employee behaviors online, but you rarely hear about a social media policy for addressing a brand’s behavior online. Do you have one? Why or why not? What positive or negative experiences have you had with brands on social networks?

A previous column “Is the Speed of Decision Making Accelerating?” cited how a century ago, managers could take weeks or days to make important decisions. That’s because before the advent of the telephone, it would take a substantial amount of time for information to travel by courier. Fast forward to the 21st century, most executives now have a mobile device and can be reached at a moment’s notice.

Our global society is moving towards a zero latency world, where the reduction of time between decision and action is drastically reduced. And we need to look no further than Wall Street’s high frequency traders for evidence.

John Plender of the Financial Times recently defined high frequency trading (HFT) as a “type of computerized dealing (that) exploits the millisecond gap between news events and their impact on markets … such trading has expanded rapidly to the point where 60-70% of the trading volume is in U.S. equities. Much of this volume is conducted by a very small number of companies.”

So what’s wrong with HFT? Plender cites potential problems, such as the “ability (for high-frequency traders) to see orders before they are public” and the propensity for high-frequency traders to co-locate servers on the floor of stock exchanges for faster trading (something not available to the average investor). In addition, the race is on where the winner in high-frequency trading can close trades as fast as 250 microseconds—faster than you can blink your eye!

The speed of decision-making is accelerating. In HFT, the trend is unmistakable. Machines are trading with and against each other. They’re moving ahead of individual investors, leaving day traders in the dust. And as a Financial Times article notes, speed isn’t just confined to Wall Street:  “Technology has changed many other big markets around the world and tied them more closely together … Such changes has created winners and losers.”

For marketers, the implications of zero latency are clear. For example, did you know that “robots” are purported to perform text mining on press releases when they hit the wire? With analysis completed in microseconds, advanced algorithms then execute trades based on what they’ve learned. Your company’s equity price could go up or down in seconds, based on the words in your press release!

In a zero latency world, what marketers (and other employees) say, write, tweet, and announce can all be used as fodder by the machines to either raise equity prices or destroy shareholder value. Our ability to react and “fix” our mistakes before they are noticed is greatly diminished. All it takes is a bad press release, poorly written whitepaper or negative analyst report.

And it’s not just PR. To borrow a phrase from Thomas Davenport, companies are now “Competing on Analytics.” Marketers must understand that they are now engaged in an arms race with competitors mining their own (and third-party) data for insights—increasingly by the hour and minute, and then taking action to better connect with customers. Companies without these capabilities will increasingly face mammoth disadvantage.

Zero latency decision-making isn’t the future. It’s now. Are you ready?

Consider the following:
Regarding decision-making, how fast is too fast? What could go wrong at high speeds? What happens when the human element is removed?

“In this economy, where most people are hesitant to buy, we still have to sell,” says Davis, who started doing seminars and coaching after he noticed a similarity between comedy and sales principles. “In both cases, the objective is to get a reaction from the audience.”

I asked Davis how these principles also could be applied to marketing and public relations. “Sales has an advantage in some ways because they can hear the person’s voice on the phone or read their body language in person. But if you understand how your audience thinks, you can anticipate how they will respond and set up your message just like a comedian would, complete with punch line or call to action. Copy should have rhythm and timing, and should be designed to get a reaction from the audience, just like a joke. Comedians design copy to make people laugh. Business copy should make people reach for the phone.”

Davis also advises us to try to make messages as entertaining as is practical. He says, “If it’s not entertaining, it’s just information.”

But wait, there’s more!

While social media is an important element to business marketing and PR, it’s not a replacement for additional, proven forms of promotion. With its low cost, easy barrier-to-entry and seemingly widespread reach, it’s tempting to think social media can replace other forms of marketing. But it’s important to remember that social media in and of itself isn’t a marketing or PR strategy: It’s but one promotional tool in the smart business marketing toolbox.

Two important things to remember in business marketing today are integration and interaction. Don’t abandon something that’s been working for you and your business just because social media is the hot new thing on the block. Integrate your online and offline campaigns, and integrate cohesive online campaigns across social networks  to get the most bang for your buck, enhancing all current efforts and maximizing reach in a way never before possible. Interaction is also important (talk with, not at) to engage audiences and make them feel an emotional connection to your company, brand or product. Prospects are much more likely to listen to you and follow what you’re doing if they feel that you care about them and that they’re important to your business.

For example, say you’ve always had an email newsletter in which you send out special offers to subscribers. Help to increase your subscriber base through “sneak peeks” into your newsletter content by sharing snippets or teasers across other social networks, such as Facebook and Twitter. Or post a survey or poll on your Facebook and share the results in your newsletter, again  reaching and encouraging new subscribers (and rewarding existing subscribers) with content reserved especially for them.

Another example : Most companies have always had speaking opportunities or event networking (even attendance of trade shows) on their marketing/PR “to do” list. Take these opportunities a step further by again involving not only the physical, offline audience that’s at the show, but also the online audience pre- and post-event. For example, say you’re speaking on the topic of franchise ownership. Post a pre-event survey across Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and/or your blog that asks your fans and followers if they’ve ever owned a franchise and if so, what their biggest challenges were. Incorporate these answers into your presentation at the show, giving credit where you can.  (If someone knows you’re going to mention them, they’re more likely to watch/listen and tell others to do the same). Or if you’re just attending or exhibiting at a conference, ask show attendees to stop and share their experiences or tips for others. Record their insights with a hand held camera (such as a Flip), edit into a compelling and helpful video when you return and post it on your blog with additional resources post-event. Tie these resources back to your website, or Facebook fan page, and promote on Twitter … again, back to integration.

One of the best marketing efforts has always been to have third-party, positive testimonies about your business or products. Whether it’s a customer, a reporter, an industry guru, a partner or an analyst, accolades from others hold more credibility than you standing on your own soapbox (or starring in your own ad). This traditional element to marketing is still incredibly important and can become a much  more powerful program with a social media element. For example, in the past, you might have interviewed a customer and asked them to sign off on a case study, which you’d then post to your website or in a sales kit. With social media tools, the case study can become so much more than words on a page; you can make them come to life as a much more intriguing story by including video, interactive comments from viewers, and more. “Case studies” can come in the form of an ongoing story, perhaps different chapters in an weekly video series, or the opportunity to interact with followers/prospects by asking them to join a Facebook event or Twitter chat where they can ask questions directly of the customer in the story. This gives them the opportunity to not just read your slick, well-written case study, but to engage with your case study subject and ask questions, a testament in and of itself that you truly do have happy customers that you trust to answer live questions about their experiences in working with you, or using your products.

The point is  social media in marketing can enhance your efforts and make them more interesting, interactive and memorable. But social media in and of itself doesn’t replace traditional efforts. Both are important for success today. Learn how to integrate them both for your best success yet.

• Know who you’re pitching and what they’re after
• Tailor your pitch
• Don’t bcc a “mailing list” of pitch recipients (pitchees?)
• Don’t pitch journalists when they’re on deadline

When it came to print journalists, that last bullet translated to “don’t pitch journalists after around 2:30 or so.” I’ve stuck to that as much as possible since that time (of course, it varies for radio and television depending on when the show runs, and hence when people are around). However, a conversation I had recently with my colleague Karen Nussbaum has got me rethinking that approach.

New rules for timing pitches?

Here’s the theory:

The idea of print journalists’ deadlines has always centred around the 24hr news cycle, where stories were assigned in the morning, researched and drafted during the day and which culminated in a deadline for the story to be filed mid-afternoon. Trying to call a reporter anywhere near that deadline would result in you getting ignored or (sometimes) told off for not respecting their time.

In today’s media environment, stories are filed for the web throughout the day. Often they’re filed multiple times, with information being added as stories develop. As a result, the afternoon deadline has turned into constant pressure and ever-looming deadlines. For the media relations folks, that means:

1. Journalists are always pressed for time (as one said to me a little while back when I asked if it was a good time to talk, “it’s never a good time – I’m always busy”).
2. Afternoon pitching is no worse than morning pitching. In fact, it may be better as they’ve had a chance to clear out their inbox from the morning… and if everyone else is calling in the morning, you may have a better chance of getting through in the afternoon.

What’s more, the emergence of email as a pitching tool means initial outreach can be asynchronous- if journalists are busy they can read them later.

Is it time to re-think the old rules around when to pitch print journalists?

Public relations pros: does this picture fit with your recent experience?

Journalists: does this ring true for you?

Mainstream news outlets use the web heavily to supplement (or in some cases, overshadow) their broadcast or print counterparts, but the fact remains, tech writers were there long before the masses showed up. Tech journalists (and the technologies they bring into the spotlight) maintain an enormous advantage when it comes to share of voice online. And tech news isn’t just fighting general news for marketshare, it heavily influences what news outlets are now choosing for their top stories. Just look at Apple and the pending announcement of their new tablet computer. This isn’t just a trending topic on Twitter, it’s also mentioned as a top story on CNN, USA Today, and elevator screens across the country.

The implication? When possible, it is extremely important to time your PR efforts carefully so you are not competing for attention from the likes of Google, Microsoft, and Apple.

Obviously breaking news about the latest gadgets or operating system cannot always be predicted. These companies tend to be quite secretive about such matters. But that being said, there is still a great deal of predictions that can be made and implemented into an editorial calendar meant for brands you represent. Apple often schedules its conferences and Google is beginning to do so as well to build anticipation for their upcoming products. They don’t reveal the topic of discussion, but you will know when something big is coming. Additionally, conferences like the Consumer Electronics Show, E3, or SXSW are all scheduled far in advance. These events make web conversations soar, and they absolutely steal the spotlight from other categories of news in social media and mainstream blogs.

Do not plan your PR efforts in a vacuum.

Obviously not all campaigns can be shifted over a week or two, but when it is possible to have some flexibility with launch dates make sure you’re planning for maximum share of voice. Here are a tactics to help maximize your story vs. being crowded out by the tech crowd:

1. Create an evolving calendar which maps out known future conferences, announcements, etc. Keep launch dates away from those events.
2. Watch for spikes in tech news using free/paid monitoring tools. If you see something that might develop into a big story in a week or two, try to see if you can shift your launch to sooner or later.
3. Watch who you pitch based on current news. If the brand you represent is also going after tech bloggers or mainstream blogs that also cover tech news, you are much more likely to be ignored.
4. If possible try to latch onto pending tech news. This will only work with a certain type of product, but if your product/brand can ride the way of upcoming tech news, help it do so (but don’t get  yourself sued).
5. Select your channels carefully. Even traditional vehicles like newspapers are gobble up tech news these days, but if you do see a looming tech story on horizon, examine what places you might be able to have conversations that will be least likely to carry chatter about the latest nifty gadget from Cupertino.

• The lines have truly blurred. It’s becoming increasingly difficult to draw a line between different forms of communications, especially when considering the online space.
• Successful communications programs need to integrate owned, earned and paid media to achieve their goals.
• Two-way communication is increasing. Wherever you look, previously one-way information flows are becoming two-way. Mainstream media feed off social media while also driving it. Advertising drives attention but also content strategies.

The line between public relations, advertising or social media is artificial – the overlap between the disciplines is becoming greater and greater. While I doubt the disciplines will ever completely merge, the ‘Venn diagram’ of communications disciplines is moving closer to being a single circle at a rapid pace.

When we talk about integration and lines blurring, it’s easy to head down the thought path that you need to excel at everything. I’d argue it’s not that simple.

Public relations agencies (for example) don’t need to shift to pitch pure-play advertising accounts. However, agencies of all disciplines do need to hire or train people who can think media-agnostically when developing communications strategies. I’d argue they also need to be able to execute the integrated tactics that sit in the grey areas between disciplines. PR firms won’t suddenly start producing TV ads, but they may start to roll online advertising campaigns into their service portfolio.

As always, it comes back to:

• What are the objectives?
• Who are the key audiences?
• What are the key considerations?
• How do we best reach those audiences to accomplish the objectives, and how do we measure against that?

Is this new thinking? No. Is the urgency for a shift to integration increasing? Yes. It’s a long road to travel to build those skills-sets, but the need is pressing.

Instead of differentiating by marketing vertical, we may need to approach our strategy from a different perspective – whether we’re marketing our clients or our own agencies. To fail to do so raises the risk of fragmented, ineffective communications and sub-par results.

The question is, what form do those strategies take?

I kicked off the panel with “The Future of Public Relations: What’s Old is New Again” because I felt it was really important in this day and age of online communications that organizations and people understood that public relations (PR) is NOT media relations/blogger relations alone. In fact, that is only 1/7 of the management activities that are associated with PR.

Let’s look at the definition of PR from “Effective Public Relations” by Cutlip, Center and Broom (8th edition, 1999):
“Public relations is the management function that establishes and maintains mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and the publics on whom its success or failure depends.”
The key phrase here that has been forgotten during the age of mass marketing and consumerism is “the publics on whom its success or failure depends.” If publics can make or break your business, wouldn’t it be wise to tap into that?

What is PR?
I mentioned above that media relations (i.e. publicity) was only 1/7 of management activities that are associated with PR. So what are all of the PR activities?

• Publicity (non-controlled media placement)
• Advertising (controlled media placement)
• Press Agentry
• Public Affairs (i.e. Community Relations)
• Issues Management
• Lobbying
• Investor Relations

Media/blogger relations equates to “publicity,” not public relations. Most organizations don’t have any issues with getting publicity because they have a well-oiled machine in place. But where they do struggle (or what they’ve forgotten) is the part about establishing and maintaining mutually beneficial relationships.

I bet you are surprised (and probably disagree) with advertising being listed. That’s because the first thing people think of when they hear “advertising” is a way to push products, services, etc. In public relations, advertising is used for things like: announcing recalls, class-action lawsuit settlements, or to provide corrective information that the media or bloggers have not provided to the public. But today, in the online world, a lot of these things can be handled on a website or blog, saving a lot of expense. It really depends on who an organization is trying to reach or what’s been mandated by the government.

The Past Is Still With Us.
The idea of people gathering together or being social isn’t anything new. For ages that’s been the case and it’s not going to change anytime soon. If we look back at the 18th century (and, of course, many centuries before), citizens gathered together and spread the word about their causes, politics or store-owners via word of mouth, pamphlets, and demonstrations. Today, people do the same thing, they’ve just moved online.

How PR Can Work For You In Today’s Online World.

• Stop broadcasting.
• Listen to your publics.
• Be found online.
• Communicate with your publics.
• Partner with your publics.
• Tell your story.
• Get people talking.
• Don’t rely on tools. Rely on people.

Words of Wisdom.
“He that speaks much is much mistaken.” …. Benjamin Franklin (18th Century)
“Learning to speak like a human isn’t a parlor trick.” …. Cluetrain Manifesto (20th Century)

Questions:

• How will you ’speak’ in the 21st Century?
• Will you look at PR differently or will you continue to only focus on the media?
• Will you engage your publics online (and off)?
• Have you always engaged in all aspects of PR?
• Will PR become the frontrunner of marketing?

What else would you add or ask?

P.S. If you haven’t read the Cluetrain Manifesto RUN and pick up a copy soon or read the free online version. You won’t regret it! David Weinberger, co-author, will be joining MarketingProfs as our B2B Forum Keynote Speaker in May 2010 to discuss “What Marketers Are Still Missing: The Power of the New Digital Disorder.”

David Meerman Scott’s chapter one title of “The New Rules of Marketing and PR” sums it up best: The old rules of marketing and PR are ineffective in an online world.
Why are online content producers different than more traditional content producers? Well, like traditional content producers, some still have editors, reporters, editorial guidelines, timeframes, readerships to cater to and, more importantly, competition. But unlike traditional content producers, a lot of online content producers offer a way for readers to comment on content. Meaning it’s no longer a one-way avenue to content sharing or message pushing. readers have the ability to “talk back” and share their opinions, thoughts, suggestions, disagreements, etc. In doing so, often a community forms around the content producer and when new content is available conversation happens on the content producer’s site, but also extends beyond it to places like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, blogs, forums, etc.
So what does this mean for the marketer or PR pro and what steps can they take to help their content be included?
Stop Pitching!
The first place to begin is a change of mindset and vocabulary. Pitching is for baseball and softball, not content. To be successful at content placement the marketing or PR pro needs to have a firm understanding of the content producer’s world.

• How many writers participate? Do you need to know them all?
• What’s the style of writing?
• What topics do they cover (breaking news, tips, opinions, educational, etc.)?
• Where do they participate outside of their own site?
• How do they drive traffic to their own site?
• What conversations do they have?
• What do their readers think?

Until a marketer or PR pro understands those key things (and probably much more depending on the content producer) they won’t be able to produce content that’s a natural fit.
Natural Fit
Producing content that’s a natural fit is often a struggle for marketing and PR pros…that’s why they pitch. But the fact is square pegs don’t fit in round holes no matter how good the pitch may be. It’s the job of the marketing or PR pro to make sure their content seamlessly fits.

• Read the content producers content every day
• Read the comments to get a sense of what the community’s reaction
• Look for search engine optimized (SEO) keywords built into the content
• Check social networking sites to see how popular the content is (number of retweets or shares) and what the reactions are (comments)
• Participate in the community and get a sense of its vibe

Community
I’ve tried to write this post without using the words “social media,” but it’s the ability to be social with content producers and their readers via social tools that has changed the game for marketing and PR pros. There are unspoken rules in each and every community and no two are the same. It’s the marketing or PR pro’s job to understand what those unspoken rules are. And the only way to truly find out what they are is to “listen” (i.e. read for clues, monitor, etc.) or actively participate. Some key items to becoming a part of the community you are trying to reach include:

• Be human first and a marketer/PR pro second (i.e. it’s not about branding or message pushing)
• Educate your client, employer or co-workers to join the conversation (especially if the content includes them)
• Share your thoughts, interests, opinions, agreements/disagreements
• Don’t self-promote that the content producer picked up your content, let the community help you out with that
• Be polite and have manners (sounds obvious, but there is often a lack of both)

Getting Seconds
With traditional marketing and PR getting seconds was always easy once that relationship was established. That’s not the case with a lot of online content producers–especially content producers that have a strong relationship with their communities. They will watch to see how you handle the fact that your content has been placed and this is where manners come into play.

• Was there a thank you?
• Was there participation with the community that responded?
• Was there self-promotion on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. without mentioning the content producer?
• Was there interaction from the client or organization mentioned?

If any of the above questions can be answered with a “no,” chances are there won’t be a second chance.
Is pitching and getting that one hit worth it? Doesn’t it make more sense to put forth more effort, become a part of the content producer’s world and potentially continue down the path of success for placement, reach, and brand awareness that goes beyond just a name but to an association of actually knowing the folks behind the brand?
What other tips would you offer to marketing and PR pros who are trying to reach out to content producers?

The man is a marketing wizard. I believe that a good part of his “show” is to generate prospects for his very expensive retreats, while the other may actually be genuine. It’s hard not to buy into your own hype after pitching it for so long.
Last April, I saw a calendar notice in the Arizona Republic - a free seminar with James Arthur Ray, one of the contributors to the film “The Secret.” Gee, I thought, maybe my 23-year-old son can benefit from this guy’s message, so I signed us up. Here was the automated e-mail response to my registration:
Congratulations, Elaine!
On Tuesday, April 14, you will obtain some of the most effective and powerful success secrets known to man. That’s because you’ve made the wise decision to participate in my ABSOLUTELY FREE live event on Tuesday, April 14 at 7:00 PM.
Please make a note on your calendar of the details so you don’t miss out on this life-changing opportunity.
Bypass the registration lines! Click here to print your Fastpass ticket.
Since the room promises to be standing room only, please make arrangements to arrive early to register and guarantee your seat. (Or better yet, click the Fastpass link above.)
This is going to be an amazing program where you’ll receive hard-hitting, real life, “rubber-meets-the-road” information that you can start using in your life immediately to catapult your results in all areas to phenomenal new heights.
Please don’t let anything prevent you from attending this life-changing event. While there’s still space available, you can invite your friends and family members to take advantage of this opportunity. Just click here to send them a personalized invitation.
Thanks again for participating, and get ready to enjoy more Harmonic Wealth® in all areas of your life just for committing to attend.
To your continued wealth and happiness,
James Arthur Ray
President/CEO
James Ray International
P.S. Get this, you’ll also get a free copy of my hot new book Answers to Life’s 11 Most Burning Questions. It’s a special pre-release version that’s yours free as a gift for attending, and it’s not available any other way.
P.P.S. Since every available spot for this event is surely going to be taken (and we’ll have to turn some people away), please, please, please be considerate. If you’ve registered for this fabulous event, make sure to participate. It wouldn’t be fair to take one of the available spots and let it go to waste while others who really want to participate get turned away.
This is formulaic direct marketing copy – excellent content. It has all the right stuff to entice, create a sense of urgency and scarcity; offers an incentive, and an incredible promise – “you will obtain some of the most effective and powerful success secrets known to man.”
The event was packed and Ray delivered on his speaking magic. By the end of 90-minutes, people were forking over their credit cards to sign up for his retreat. Quite amazing to witness. This wasn’t a series of books or tapes that many professional speakers offer. This was a very expensive retreat worth thousands. And the audience was comprised of regular people – vulnerable people. Wealthy people are already doing well, so why attend?
I received four more e-mails in August and September from Ray with the sender name reading: “Support JRI Intro Events.” He was looking for word-of-mouth referrals for the next three seminars in three different cities. And then, this week, I received another:
I’m continuing to devote all my energy to determine the facts surrounding the tragic accident at Sedona. I’ve instructed my representatives to meet with the authorities in Arizona and to share with those authorities the facts they learn. That process is ongoing.
In the meantime, I want to let you know that not only is this situation requiring all of my personal focus, it’s also consuming my entire team’s focus as well. For that reason, you can expect significant delays in responses to all general business requests. We have every intention of responding once we have helped determine what happened in Sedona.
Much love and respect,
James Arthur Ray
President/CEO
James Ray International, Inc.
We’re hearing snippets of information almost daily about this man. Forget the criminal investigation for now and let’s talk about his marketing activities and follow-up PR response to the incident. He abandoned his Sedona participants and took off after the incident. He continued speaking to conscript new retreat participants until last week in Toronto, when a sign notified attendees that the event was canceled. He sent a check for half the Sedona seminar cost (accompanied by a sympathy card) to the family of one of the victims. If you were his publicist, what would you advise him to do? What do you think of his marketing technique?

One of the areas that came up was citizen journalism versus professional journalists and the advantages and disadvantages. We discussed the fact that we didn’t truly believe Michael Jackson had died until a ‘real’ journalist reported it (even though TMZ reported almost an hour ahead), but we did believe that the USAir flight had landed on the Hudson River because a nearby citizen captured a shot of it and shared it on Twitter.

• Could it be that it’s really about having proof or evidence? (And, as we know, in some situations only a professional journalist with media credentials can get that exact proof/evidence.)
• Is it about integrity and the perception that professional journalists have integrity where bloggers do not?

Curious about the latter, I looked into journalistic integrity (well, as much as I could on Google) and found the following:
American Society of Newspaper Editors (founded in 1922) Canons of Journalism:

• Responsibility (of newspaper and journalist)
• Freedom of the Press (“a vital right of mankind”)
• Independence (fidelity to the public interest)
• Sincerity, Truthfulness, Accuracy (good faith with reader)
• Impartiality (news reports free from opinion or bias)
• Fair Play, Decency (recognition of private rights, prompt correction of errors)

And from the Society of Professional Journalists:

• Seek Truth and Report It
• Minimize Harm
• Act Independently
• Be Accountable

I was always under the impression that journalists took an oath of some sort, but in reality they don’t. Further from the SoPJ: “…Conscientious journalists from all media and specialties strive to serve the public with thoroughness and honesty. Professional integrity is the cornerstone of a journalist’s credibility.”
Why can’t a citizen journalist/blogger do the same?
If there is no oath what happens when a professional journalist lacks integrity? I found a rather stunning example of that recently. MSNBC ran a story on a town hall meeting where a man was carrying a semi-automatic rifle and pistol and the anchor asked if it equated to “racial tension because we have a man of color in the Presidency and white people showing up with guns…” (Paraphrased.)

• If you are a PR professional, who do you trust more with your organization’s news a blogger or the media?
• If you are a journalist, how do you feel about the canons and how it relates to your job today?
• If you are an organization, will you start taking citizen journalists/bloggers more seriously?
• If you are a journalism/PR professor, how does this convergence affect how you teach journalism?

I don’t have the answers…but I know you might. Care to share your thoughts?
P.S. If you are a blogger, you might consider signing the “Blogging with Integrity” pledge. BWI was set up by Susan Getgood, Liz Gumbinner, Kristen Chase, and Julie Marsh in response to “debates about blogger compensation, sponsored posts and product reviews, an alarming increase in ethical lapses and idea theft, and a growing backlash against poor blogger relations practices…” (From their About Us page.)

This tends to apply to any document that gets put into formal writing in PR. News releases, social media releases, letters to editors, you name it. If it’s going across the wire, or into a journalist’s hands, it gets attention.
The reality, however, is that the formal materials are only one piece of the media relations process. They’re important, but they sit alongside many other aspects of the media relations function. Your pitch, your story angle, your careful timing and more all play a role.
Perhaps the most important of these other aspects is the relationship you have with journalists (or bloggers). A good relationship will get your email read when it might have been deleted or your call answered instead of sent to voicemail.
In this respect, the ideal pitch isn’t really a pitch; it’s a timeline. It’s a long-term process of building a relationship; identifying the journalist’s needs and preferences, and building familiarity so you can make their life easier while achieving results for your clients. The pitch is just one stop along that road.
Who has time to do this?
Developing a relationship takes time. Developing relationships with many people takes even more time. And time is not something that agency folks have much of. So how does a person in PR manage the task of gaining the support of influential entities without dedicating unrealistic resources?
Be Informed:
Whether it’s travel, consumer goods, auto, etc, you NEED to be up-to-date in the latest trends in the industry you’re helping promote. Use tools like Snackr, Google Reader, or FriendFeed to know what conversations are taking place within your category. By passively using the tools above you’re not going to become an expert, but you are going to be aware of the major news that affects the people you’re going to be pitching. First of all, it will help you avoid making ignorant statements when approaching a blogger (if they see you’re not informed, they aren’t going to spend time to hear you out) and secondly, by being informed you have something in common to speak to. Without a common item of news to discuss, you’re just another PR person pitching.
Optimize:
Being informed is a precursor to streamlining your search. When forming a consideration set for an outreach program, a significant amount of time goes to taking a large group of subject authorities and shaving them down to a more refined set. If you’re staying active in the niche you’re promoting, instead of starting with a list of 200 bloggers, you’ll be able to start with 100. Anyone who has gone through this process will know that focusing on a well targeted group of blogs can get better results and avoid negative feedback from a broader outreach.
Contribute:
In the past, many PR Professionals traditionally went to Journalism school and thus were better equipped to talk to Journalists. Unfortunately there’s no such thing as “Blog School” and because of that it’s important that the industry takes time to expand its own curriculum. It isn’t necessary to be a full scale blogger in order to know how to communicate with one, but some involvement is needed. Commenting on other’s work or spending time with microblogs or lifestreams will help familiarize you with the attitudes and culture of the blogging community. The more familiar you are, the less time you’ll need to spend getting caught up when you have timely campaigns to launch.
Automate:
There are times when an all-encompassing press release or social media release makes sense but don’t let them take up all your time. Tools like PRWeb or CNW Group help in expanding your reach and are built to reduce the effort needed to create what once was a very time-consuming task. This isn’t going to eliminate the legal review of course, but it will help streamline your structuring, seeding, and measurement. However, this shouldn’t detract from the next point…
Customize:
The bulk of your time doesn’t need to go to building a press release (as we discussed above) but building a connection in the playing field that makes the most sense for the person you’re trying to engage with. The idea of “Blogger Outreach” has picked up steam over the past few years in PR and has caused us to sometimes forget that although a person might be a blogger, they might be heavily invested elsewhere. Instead of spending time to make sure your release gets seen everywhere, it may serve you better to make sure it gets heard where a blogger spends most of their time. If they’re a heavy Mahalo user, try initiating a conversation there, if they spend much of their time within a specific Ning network, try that. You may discover that the place that your key blogger spends a fair chunk of time, may be a place where the masses don’t. Forutnately for you, that means a better chance at grabbing their attention.
The Perfect Pitch is a Timeline
What ratio of time do you spend on your final release vs. establishing relationships with the audience of those communications? Because the PR business is built on a framework of Journalism majors, we often forget that our job isn’t to write the news, it’s to encourage that others do it on the behalf of our clients. This means focusing your energy and time where it matters. Use the amazing tools you have to your disposal in 2009 to deal with the aesthetics. Devote the majority of your resources to the aspect of the business you’re an expert in: people.
This post was co-written by Len Kendall and Dave Fleet. Dave heads the Social Media Practice at Thornley Fallis Communications in Toronto, Canada. You can find him at davefleet.com or @davefleet on Twitter.

I knew of a few people who were struggling with how they use social media, but I really took notice when Erin Middleton, a brand planner, wrote a piece titled, “changing the rules.”

“So how are we supposed to function on Facebook when my Director at work can see that I’m ‘recovering from a hard night out’ or that my relationship status went from ‘in a relationship” to ’single?’”

She concluded that this transparency shtick might cross the line into “Too Much Information” for her business contacts, and her business musings might be too dry and boring for her everyday friends.
Thus, she created a separate account for her business contacts and one for her personal contacts.
Then David Reich documented the mistake of a businessman who made this post on Twitter: “True confession but I’m in one of those towns where I’d scratch my head and say ‘I’d rather die than live here.’”
The problem was, he was in town for a business meeting with a client …. FedEx …. and they caught wind of it and took offense.
A fine PR pro himself, David said:

“It’s easy to get caught in a situation like this, since Twitter is about friendly dialogue–But what you write is going out there in public, and Mr. Big Agency Guy should have had a bit more sense and sensitivity.”

Over the next few weeks, the Internet was abuzz with people who pondered or took notice of the ramifications of their prolific use of social media tools:
From CK:

From Jeremiah Owyang:

Yes, folks, it appears Facebook is becoming mainstream. And even though that opens up lots of opportunities for marketers, it is replete with risks.
As of this writing, I have 312 friends on Facebook. I’m not trying to brag …. I’ve never even met a lot of them. Many of them are people I connected with while we were all trying to get a sense of how we could use these tools. As a whole, they cut a wide swath across political and religious spectra, and given my own strong beliefs, I know I’m bound to at some point rub somebody the wrong way.
Does that mean I must create separate accounts for friends who won’t be offended by discussions about Christianity, politics, business, and economics?
I don’t think so. After all, Facebook updates are easy enough to ignore, especially when your friends also have upwards of a couple hundred friends, themselves. Besides, that’s what groups are for.
The right answer for you probably depends on how you want to use the various platforms together.
However, it’s always wise to be mindful of what you say and how you say it. This is true if you’re talking to a group of friends or to a roomful of associates. And considering the fact that it’s much easier to document conversations that occur in the public space online, this is exponentially more true for what you say on Facebook, Myspace, and Twitter.
Mind your manners. Obey the Golden Rule. But find that nuance that still allows you to reveal your winning personality. And even if you’re a power user, try not to dominate the conversation. Listening is still twice as valuable as talking.

What does this mean for you? Well, when newspapers, magazines and other media go online, they are trying to create a conversation around a given article or topic they have written about. Why shouldn’t that be the case for press releases?
So I decided to get a podcast together with Todd so he could shed some light on success stories using the SMPR. Enjoy –

Link to Original Audio Source
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About Todd
Todd Defren leads client services and business development efforts for SHIFT Communications, a $10 million agency with offices in Boston and San Francisco.
Working in high-tech public relations for approximately 15 years, Defren currently specializes in social media strategies and is widely noted for creating the first template for social media news releases in 2006. He followed up with a template for social media-optimized online newsrooms in early 2007.
Prior to SHIFT, Defren was at Sterling Hager, joining in 1994 as an account manager and reaching the level of managing director of the San Francisco office in August 2000. His earlier experience included managing the strategic and tactical corporate communications at ENTEX Information Services, a $2 billion New York-based systems integrator, now part of Siemens AG.
Defren has served as a visiting professor at Emerson College in Boston, lecturing on marketing and public relations on the Internet. In 2006, Defren was named a Research Fellow and member of the Advisory Board of the Society for New Communications Research.
Full Disclosure: I have hired SHIFT Communications to help BearingPoint with our Social Media PR

How does the social media revolution affect the spokesperson role in your company? Should social media voices be controlled? How should they be trained and in what messages?
These are the kinds of issues keeping PR professionals up at night. To address them, Ann Handley at Marketing Profs helped me bring in a couple of experts – Doug Haslam and Shel Holtz. They offer some sage advice on social media, along with a “state of the union” view of PR today. We hope you enjoy the discussion and will join in.

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About Doug
Doug is a media and public relations professional with a career dating back to 1989. Starting as a jazz DJ, then cutting tape and pointing fingers (in a non-accusatory, rather more of a “cue-speak now!” manner) at public radio’s best, he embarked on a technology public relations career just in time to ride the Internet bubble. Now engaged wholeheartedly in social media, he has been plying the PR trade, as well as blogging and podcasting, with Topaz Partners since 2005. While also engaged in local blogging and Second Life, he is trying to maintain Gischeleman’s blog to catch all the other thoughts he feels like throwing out there.
About Shel
Shel Holtz, ABC (Accredited Business Communicator), is principal of Holtz Communication + Technology. His clients have included Intel, Sears, PepsiCo, Petrobras, Aetna, John Deere, Manulife Financial, Hewitt Associates, General Mills, USAA, Applied Materials, Symantec, Raytheon, The World Bank, Amdocs, Disney, FedEx, Freescale Semiconductor, The International Monetary Fund, National Geographic, The American Red Cross, and Monsanto.
Before forming Holtz Communication + Technology in February 1996, Shel was senior communications consultant and the communications practice leader for Alexander & Alexander Consulting Group in San Francisco, California. (A&ACG has since been acquired by Aon Consulting.)
Shel has more than 30 years of organizational communications experience in both corporate and consulting environments. He is experienced in employee communications, compensation and benefits communications, corporate public relations, media relations, financial communications, investor relations, and marketing communications. In addition to integrating technology into communications strategies, his expertise includes strategic communications planning, change management, organizational culture, communicating business initiatives, and communications research.
Please visit Shel at his blog, http://blog.holtz.com, and his podcast feed, “For Immediate Release,” at http://www.forimmediaterelease.biz.

To get some advice on how PR pros should handle new media, I conducted an interview with Cece Salomon-Lee. She runs her own blog called PR Meets Marketing, where she discusses how marketing is changing the way she practices PR.