This Is NOT Your Father's Online Newsroom

When companies first put their corporate and marketing information on the web in the mid to late '90s, it was mostly static content that was painful for journalists to use (horrible navigation, tough to download text and little or no images available). It's lucky for the corporate world that it took time for journalists to warm up to the web. Since we all know how gifted the PR community is in math, science and computers, it was no surprise that the company’s online publicity destiny was left in the hands of its IT staff—which was about as familiar with PR as PR is with the latest software patches that somehow magically appear on our desktops. You need a more effective news and information web site, but what will it include and how will you show the ROI to secure the necessary investment?

Clarke, David. Communication World Bulletin (2004). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>Online

The Twelve Laws of Media Relations

How you treat and respond to reporters, editors and analysts can greatly affect how your company is perceived in its marketplace. The relationship between “you” and “them” is so important it has its own name (media relations), its own experts (PR pros and firms that specialize in media relations) and its own set of rules. Below are 12 laws of media relations. Follow them, and you’re well on your way to gaining for your company the positive visibility you desire. Break them at your own peril.

Buchanan, James. Communication World Bulletin (2004). Articles>Interviewing>Public Relations>Business Communication

Twelve Strategies to Raise Your CEO's Profile

Some business leaders have a natural panache. How do you raise the profile of a CEO that lacks that kind of flash? The answer is to approach your communication strategically and to use your CEO wisely. This applies whether you represent a Fortune 500 company or a small non-profit group. Media training, presentation skills training and testimony training workshops can devote large amounts of time to defining and seizing strategic communication opportunities. Let's review a dozen techniques designed to secure strategic placements for your CEO and put your organization on the road to out-thinking the competition.

Barks, Edward J. Communication World Bulletin (2003). Articles>Business Communication>Management>Public Relations

Two Dozen Rules for Responding to Media Queries

All firms with more than one employee should have a clearly written media policy that spells out who in the organization may respond to media inquiries, what kinds of information can or should be released to reporters and what information must be kept confidential. It's important to assure your employees that talking to the media and establishing good relationships with reporters can and should be constructive. Reporters need you as a source of news and background information as much as you need them to give you publicity and clarify your point of view.

Freedman, David M. and Janice E. Purtell. Communication World Bulletin (2003). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations

Unbundling the Blog

Whether you're grappling with how to reach out to bloggers discussing your industry or contemplating creating a corporate blog, it's vital for you as a communicator to understand what's being said about your company in cyberspace—and how to play an active role in the dialog.

Taylor, Helen. Communication World Bulletin (2006). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>Blogging

Using the Internet for Public Relations

With the advent of the Internet and World Wide Web as an evergrowing and interactive media, public relations has a wondrous new tool in its arsenal for managing perception and attitude. Here we discover the leading edge of thought, opinion, and activity in using this new tool to accomplish Public Relations goals.

Stickler, Dwight. Sticklersites. Resources>Business Communication>Public Relations>Blogs

Using the Internet for Public Relations

With the advent of the Internet and World Wide Web as an evergrowing and interactive media, Public Relations has a wondrous new tool in its arsenal for managing perception and attitude. Here we discover the leading edge of thought, opinion, and activity in using this new tool to accomplish Public Relations goals.

Stickler, Dwight. Blogspot (2005). Articles>Communication>Public Relations>E Commerce

What Are the Bloggers Saying About You? Practical Tips for Communicators

The influence of bloggers and their readers has erupted into campaigns that have affected large, well-known companies and brands—Wal-Mart, Kryptonite Locks, Land Rover, Sony. Smaller firms could suffer even more, like the New York camera retailer that went out of business. Don't let this happen to your organization.

Papacosta, Donna. Communication World Bulletin (2006). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>Blogging

What Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy Is Right for Your Company?

Clearly no company today can afford to be oblivious to the needs of the community and society of which it is part. And certainly, in this age of corporate accountability and transparency, no organization can be perceived as pursuing its own commercial goals at the expense of the greater good of society.

Hatcliffe, Mike. Communication World Bulletin (2006). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations

Who and What are You, and Why Should Anyone Care? Shaping, Telling and Retelling Your Organizational Story

In the waning weeks of 2004, discussion of integrated communication is, to paraphrase my teenage daughter, “so yesterday.” Like cascading communication, any talk today about integrating organizational communication is on par with contemplating one’s navel. Integrated communication should be a given for any organization. What is integrated communication and why is it so passé? To have a chance at being heard in today’s cluttered environment, all facets of the organization’s story need to be coordinated and consistent. No matter where you touch that organization, the story must be the same.

Grates, Gary F. Communication World Bulletin (2004). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>Marketing

Why Craft Better News Releases? Because the Payoff Can Be Really Big

Written any good news releases lately? Though many of us in business communication churn them out regularly, we often don't take as much care crafting them as we do with other vehicles like articles or brochures.

Canavor, Natalie and Claire Meirowitz. Communication World Bulletin (2005). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>Press Releases

World Economic Forum Survey Projects Mainstreaming of Corporate Citizenship

A new report credits socially responsible investing, among other trends, for influencing mainstream investors to take corporate citizenship more seriously. Is corporate citizenship entering mainstream investors' consciousness? No and yes, according to a new World Economic Forum report that surveys CEO's and IRO's (investor relations officers) at 26 companies from 14 countries. Forty-two percent of the respondents felt there has been a major increase in the level of activism, engagement and sophistication from the SRI community regarding CSR. Over 70 percent of the respondents who hail from large international corporations believe that mainstream investors will have an increased interest in CSR issues.

Baue, William. Communication World Bulletin (2004). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>International

Your Seven-Step Online Reputation Crisis Plan

When you first discover an attack on your online reputation, it can be an unnerving event. If you’ve previously been oblivious to the online discussions about your brand, it can feel like a kick to the ribs to see someone wage an attack on your good name. When it happens, it’s important not to hit the panic button. If great companies such as Target and JetBlue can come under fire, then it can happen to anyone.

Beal, Andy. Communication World Bulletin (2008). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>Online

Strategies for Training the Executive Spokesperson 

CEOs and other executives often find themselves in the role of company spokesperson. More often than not, they have neither the background nor the proper training to be effective. As the communication professional responsible for media relations at your company, there are several things you can do to help prepare your executive for the interviews to come.

Sittu, Danielle. Communication World Bulletin (2009). Articles>Education>Business Communication>Public Relations

Teaching Spokespeople to Manage Risk 

There is a significant risk of being quoted out of context during media interviews. This risk can fall anywhere along a spectrum that ranges from mild to severe. Mild risk occurs when the information included in a media story appears to be less than accurate. If you’ve ever heard a spokesperson complain that reporters never get it right, you’ve probably witnessed this type of risk firsthand. Severe risk occurs when a portion of what the spokesperson says is twisted or turned, then included in a story to deliberately fan the flames of a smoldering fire. If this occurs, an organization may need to exercise damage control, and there may be significant risk to its reputation.

Bergman, Eric. Communication World Bulletin (2009). Articles>Education>Public Relations>Risk Communication

What You Don’t Say: The Power of Nonverbal Communication 

Most explanations of human behavior in the business world assume that people are best persuaded by reason and logic. Steeped in that belief, executives and senior managers have focused on delivering convincing speeches and finding “just the right words” when dealing with the public and the press. But what if that view is flawed?

Kinsey Goman, Carol. Communication World Bulletin (2009). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations

What Spokespeople Should Say and Do in a Crisis 

Powerful communication before a crisis and rapid communication during a crisis have the ability to move people out of harm’s way, save lives and protect reputations. Yet so many organizations second-guess what they should say, who should say it and when. Here are some rules to follow in these circumstances.

Braud, Gerard. Communication World Bulletin (2009). Articles>Business Communication>Crisis Communication>Public Relations

Companies Are Behind in Social Media Training for Employees 

Many companies continue to discount the power and potential of social media. Others are just beginning to flirt with the idea of using this new form of communication, while still others are in the process of developing social media policies to establish what employees can and cannot do. Then, there are those companies that have started allowing their communication specialists to engage in social media on behalf of the organization. But how many are teaching non-communication staff how to use this new media?

Armendariz, Rebecca. Communication World Bulletin (2009). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>Social Networking

Prepare to Take Charge of the Interview 

Don’t be misled by the word interview. It’s not about sitting down and passively answering questions. A successful media interaction requires preparation, and it requires the spokesperson to take charge. I don’t mean dominating or monopolising the conversation, but taking responsibility for the success of the exchange — for both the journalist and the spokesperson. Here are a few suggestions you can make to help your spokesperson prepare to take charge.

Gibson, Barbara. WordPress (2006). Articles>Interviewing>Public Relations

Identifying Spokespeople for PR and Social Media: Choosing the Right Spokesperson to Communicate the Message 

Identifying the right corporate spokesperson for traditional and new media strategies - including public relations, blogging, video marketing, etc. - is an important task. Whether they are speaking to Katie Couric, a New York Times reporter or a blogger, it is essential that they be well versed on the do's and don't's of effective communication. Whether its a formal, televised interview or an informal email thread that leads to a story in a blog, the spokesperson should represent the image and persona of the company at all times.

Vultaggio, Nina. Suite101 (2009). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>Social Networking

Social Media and Public Relations: You Can Do This 

For professional communicators, social media is like a new, wild river born from the converging streams of public relations and marketing. A good social media campaign requires the traditional PR skills of telling engaging stories and building positive relationships with constituents, and a marketer’s knack for knowing and finding “the buyer.”

Patella, John. Communication World Bulletin (2009). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>Social Networking

How To Write A Press Release For Your Services 

If you have an interesting story to tell, a press release will help you to make newspaper editors aware of it. Maybe you recently won an award. Maybe you stumbled upon some interesting information in the field you work in. Or maybe your design contributed towards some kind of achievement on behalf of your client. Depending on the scale and content of your story, you can send your press release to marketing websites, marketing magazines, the relevant trade press, the regional press, and even the business section of the national press.

Crowley, Shaun. FreelanceSwitch (2009). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>Press Releases

Top Five Tips For a Great Press Release 

A news publication gets a lot of press releases over the course of the day. In an ideal world, this document delivers valuable and maybe even actionable news and, if things are really well done, gets journalists excited about sharing it with the world. What's beautiful about this is that it is a realm over which you have some control, and improvements are easy to achieve.

Natividad, Angela. CMSwire (2007). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>Press Releases