05.22.06

something that has helped me

Posted in General at 5:38 am by Paloma Cruz

Project management is a delicate thing. You have to learn from what you’ve done in such a way that it helps in future projects. This paragraph from Blog Business World struck a cord:

A post mortem of what went badly can go a long way toward making the correct decision the next time. Learn to recognize patterns in your current and previous businesses and careers. While history might not repeat exactly, the same general business issues arise again and again. There will always be cash flow shortages, the need to find new customers, problem clients, and a shifting economy and market place. Learning to recognize these similarities will ease the blow to your bottom line. The practice might even enhance your profitability.

Nice to hear other people advocating that which I already do. Validation is a good thing.

05.21.06

Links and recommended reading

Posted in General at 8:33 pm by Paloma Cruz

Does your business have a disaster plan? What about a worst-case-scenario plan? From Blog Business World’s “Business plans: Disaster planning“:

Simply looking objectively at the worst case scenario can help with the overall business plan. The worst that can happen to a business may not even be that disastrous at all. In fact, many worst case scenarios can be reduced in impact, or even negotiated into workable situations. Every business problem is not the end of the world or the company.

Once you know what is the deepest depth to which your company could sink, the issues involved don’t even look so bad. It’s much easier to work with a known factor than a completely unknown possibility. After all, the worst that can happen to your business, might not be so terrible after all. The fear of disaster is worse than the potential problem itself. Keep in mind that just because a problem could arise in theory, does not mean it will ever appear in practice.

Need help with your writing? Lifehack has “Fifty (50!) Tools which can help you in Writing” that can help even the most advanced writer.

Did you know that a “Blogging conference draws 400 in D.C.” or rather drew 400 people to Washington D.C.? “Approximately 400 Washington-area marketing, public relations and media professionals crowded into a standing-room only Mayflower Hotel ballroom Friday morning to try to discover what’s beyond blogging.” Beyond blogging? I’m still trying to get on board with blogging.

The Young PR Bloggers List at NewPR Wiki. This is a list of public relations practitioners who’ve been in the business for less than five years.

Have you found your Unique Selling Proposition? “Your business is as individual as you are. That unique nature of your company is its greatest strength. Your unique selling proposition (often called a USP) should reflect what makes your organization one of a kind. Offer a USP that only you and your business can provide.”

Do you know What’s an Online Community’s Value?  There are five tips to formulate one:

  • Release control.
  • Entertain.
  • Connect.
  • Be authentic.
  • Innovate.

That’s all for today.

05.08.06

what is the future of employee communications?

Posted in General at 4:32 pm by Paloma Cruz

For Your Approval gives us four key factors for the future of employee communications:

  1. The future is fragmented.
  2. The future works in all directions.
  3. The future is truthful.
  4. The future is full of unlimited opportunity.

So, what do we need to succeed?

To succeed, we need what we’ve always needed — a sound set of values and principles … the intelligence to understand and interpret the needs of our organizations….and an ability to know our employee audiences – what they think, how they feel, and how we can effectively reach them. The future is different only in the fact that there will be many more ways to reach them than ever before – and even more ways for them to respond, positively or negatively, to what we do.

I don’t do a lot of employee communications in my current projects, but I do agree with this. Good communications is good communications, regardless of the amoung of channels or delivery vehicles there are to push out the information.

05.07.06

ideas for good PR

Posted in General at 5:24 am by Paloma Cruz

Sharon Housley gives some ideas on things to use to generate good PR for your organization or company. But before I share the list, I’d like to share a quote from her article:

A well written press release can be published increasing brand recognition and exposure.

Ditto!

Things you can announce or use to help generate good media for you:

  • Awards
  • Studies, Surveys or Research Projects
  • Milestones
  • Innovative Usage
  • Educational Opportunities
  • Website Launch
  • New Product or Service
  • Unusual Products or Services
  • Sponsorships

What else would you add?

05.06.06

in copy, use whatever works

Posted in General at 2:45 pm by Paloma Cruz

From the Copywriting 101 series at copy blogger:

The length of your headline and your copy will depend on whatever works for whatever you are selling.

And the only way to know what works is to test different approaches. Test various headlines to see which works best at capturing attention and communicating a benefit. Test the amount of information you provide. Does more or less work better at producing the desired action?

Ultimately, that’s the only answer that will ever matter to you.

The important word in there is “test.” It seems to me that, online and offline, we have forgotten the benefits of testing copy, themes, product placements and making modifications based upon the results. In this always on world, I’ve seen a lot of people just push forward with one decision and never take a step back to see if they’re going in the right direction.

And I’ll admit, I’ve been guilty of this on more than one occasion myself. Let’s all strive do to better.

05.05.06

a shock to no one - workweeks are longer than 40 hours

Posted in General at 5:28 am by Paloma Cruz

Anyone who works in public relations, media or a related field knows this already: workweeks are longer than 40 hours. According to a recent study, this is true for many Americans. See story referenced below.

ABOVE AND BEYOND
Workweeks spill way over 40 hours
Flexible schedules and technological breakthroughs have pushed the idea of a ‘regular’ job into the evenings and weekends
– reported by the Houston Chronicle

[snip]

Baxter Strategies recently found that 13 percent of all full-timers in the United States regularly work more than five days a week. Almost 4 percent of full-time workers put in seven-day weeks, the marketing research firm found in its survey this year of more than 2,500 full-time employees.

“The 37.5-hour week is more of a minimum baseline these days,” said John Sweeney, an information specialist with the Society for Human Resource Management who was not surprised by the survey’s findings. “There is an expectation by many employers that you will give 5 to 10 percent above that to get the job done and to get ahead.”

Working more and varied hours is being driven in part by technological breakthroughs, Sweeney said. Another factor is flexible work arrangements that allow people to attend their child’s afternoon softball game or scoot out early to make a dentist’s appointment.

“For a lot of people, the workweek doesn’t close until they’ve caught up on unanswered e-mails on Saturday,” Sweeney said.

The society sees the trend of evening and weekend hours playing out primarily with managers and other salaried workers who aren’t eligible for overtime pay.

[snip]

“In general, most businesses today are challenged to produce more efficiently with reduced overhead, and that involves putting in extra hours,” Gatto said. “The competitive work force is here to stay. To differentiate yourself from others, you have to put in extra effort, especially to wind up with a better level of service to your customers.”

[snip]

Competitive work force. Competition is probably why 50-60 hour weeks have been a standard amongst my friends for years now. We’re all in highly competitive fields. And, thanks to technological advances, PR is going to continue to become more competitive, not less.

05.04.06

journalism program receives $250,000 grant

Posted in General at 10:17 pm by Paloma Cruz

I’d rather see “public relations program” as a recipient for educational funding, but it’s still good news.

UT journalism school receives $250,000 grant
– reported by the Austin Business Journal

The journalism school at the University of Texas has received $250,000 as part of a larger national effort to improve education in the subject.

Given by the Carnegie Corp. of New York, the money allows UT to join seven other U.S. journalism schools in the Carnegie-Knight Initiative on the Future of Journalism. Other participating universities include Northwestern University, Columbia University, the University of California at Berkeley and the University of Missouri.

UT will use part of its money to develop curriculum in partnership with its other departments. The journalism school will offer specialized courses in three areas: the Latino community, technology and media literacy.

[snip]

05.02.06

one way to get fired

Posted in General at 1:41 am by Paloma Cruz

From “Stupid things people do to get fired” found at HispanicAd.com, a list of five things that can get you fired includes the following:

Don’t Speak to the Press Unless You Are a Spokesperson.

It’s not a good idea to speak with the press about your company, even if what you have to say is positive. Most companies have one person or department who is charged with the task of speaking with the press. They typically have carefully crafted messages prepared to address particular issues or to diffuse difficult situations.

Color me impressed. Not only did it make the list, it implies that PR professionals actually have some proactive skills. Wow! :-)

I think I’ll have the whole thing laminated and posted on my office door.