Customer Disservice 101

by Dan Ward

If you have a few minutes, you owe it to yourself to read this GeekWire post about what is quite possibly the worst company/customer email exchange in history.

If you’re interested in learning every single thing you should never say to a customer, this one has it all. Curse at him? Check. Call him names? Check. Get his name wrong? Check. Belittle him? Check.

And when a member of the gaming media gets involved, make sure you get in a war of words with him as well. Don’t forget to drop names of the people you know, make a couple of empty threats and fail to do any research on the journalist you’re berating.

Oh, and by all means, don’t apologize until after your email chain has gone public.

Honestly, folks, this is one for the record books.

Life and Death on Facebook

by Heather Keroes

It was only a matter of time. The other day I switched my Facebook profile over to the new Timeline layout. Timeline is just what it claims to be – and lays out my life, according to Facebook, year by year. I daresay the profile better represents me in the sense that it looks more like me, with a large photo of my fabulous self at the top of the page (narcissists rejoice!). The Heather brand is alive and well on Facebook, but what about actual brands? What could this mean for them?

Profile changes on Facebook usually lead the way to brand page changes on Facebook. It’s not the first time Facebook has shaken things up (remember when Facebook tabs were actually tabs at the top of your page?). I believe that the look of the new layout is a good thing for brands and would allow them to display their visual message more prominently. The look of my profile, for example, is now much more “in your face” (or my face, pun intended).

I’m curious as to how apps would work their way into a timeline-centric layout for brands and how the year-by-year timeline itself would factor in. Will we be able to witness the life (and maybe even the death) of a brand online? Of course, all of my ponderings about this are pure speculation. Facebook is working on upgrading brand pages, but no dates or details have been shared as of yet. Once again, it’s only a matter of time …

A Nod to Lazy Journalism

by Roger Pynn

I could write a long post telling you why you should read this post from Seth Godin, but if you’re a news junkie like me his headline will make you click this link:  The new lazy journalism.

Hello from the Beach

by Heather Keroes

 

A family visiting the South Walton beach neighborhood of Seagrove in September

Sure, winter starts next week, most of the U.S. is feeling the chill and snow is expected in parts of New England, but let’s talk about sun and sand.  Technically just one season ago, in the midst of summer, we helped our client South Walton (a destination on Northwest Florida’s Gulf Coast) launch a program to thank travelers for returning to “their beach” more than a year after the BP oil spill.

South Walton’s 15 beaches were and still are as beautiful as ever, and we wanted to help the destination’s ever-important loyalists show off their fabulous beach vacations, while showing South Walton’s great appreciation for having them back.

It all started with us submitting a job post to Walton County community and college websites for “brand ambassadors,” and as blogger Laurel Abbe does a lovely job explaining in this post on SoWal.com, she was one of four lucky locals who found “the perfect job on the perfect beach.”  Be sure to check out her story of a very fun and unique summer job.

Dubbed the beach appreciation team, the brand ambassadors (or beach ambassadors, as Laurel puts it) took to the beaches, taking pictures of visitors for the South Walton Facebook page, handing out cool South Walton-branded swag such as beach balls and T-shirts, chatting with families about their visits and telling visitors about a contest through which they could win a trip back to their favorite South Walton beach neighborhood.  The beach appreciation team visited all 15 beaches multiple times over a two-month period, “thanking” more than 1,200 people.

After reading Laurel’s blog post, I was inspired to share this story on our blog as an example of how a destination’s best representatives can be right in their own backyard … the people who may not be on vacation, but live and breathe the community’s spirit, love their hometown and are proud of it.  We were honored to work with such enthusiastic South Walton residents.

Oh, and in case you’re curious, it’s currently sunny in South Walton, with high temperatures expected in the low 70s.

WFTV’s Spin is Dead on Arrival

by Dan Ward

PR professionals are often accused by the media of “spinning” stories rather than communicating truthfully.  So it’s gratifying to point out when a media organization goes into spin control.

On Wednesday, the Orlando Magic held a press conference to announce the departure of CEO Bob Vander Weide.  During the presser, WFTV Reporter Daralene Jones read a supposed transcript from a conversation Vander Weide had early that morning with Magic star Dwight Howard, questioning whether Vander Weide “drunk dialed” Howard.  Jones quoted from the transcript, asking if Vander Weide actually said “Orlando is a horrible place.”  (Note:  transcript includes foul language.)

Only one problem – the transcript was written by Barry Petchesky at Deadspin.com, a sports news site known for sarcasm, humor and occasional satire.  The transcript reported on Deadspin is filled with so many “I love you’s” and supposed sounds of sobbing, sobbing and more sobbing, that it should be clear to nearly anyone that it was meant as satire.  At the very least, the reporter should have checked the report before asking Vander Weide about the transcript in a “news” conference.

Here comes the spin.  When asked about the report by the Orlando Sentinel, WFTV News Director Bob Jordan supported Jones, saying “fact is sometimes woven into satires.  It’s one of the techniques journalists sometimes use … she just asked him to comment on something in cyberspace.”

Sorry, Bob.  That’s like saying it’s appropriate to do a follow-up on a “Daily Show with Jon Stewart” report because the show’s false reports are usually based on news stories.

What you should have done is what PR professionals advise their clients to do when mistakes are made.  If you’ve messed up, say so, then communicate the steps you are taking to make sure you don’t mess up again.  In a case like this, you could have easily done so in a humorous way.  Instead, you chose “spin.”

A Bit of a Stretch

by Julie Primrose

The Wisconsin Department of Tourism recently rolled-out its new winter marketing campaign, which features a mitten meant to signify the state’s unique shape.  The problem is the state’s neighbor to the east, Michigan, has long been known for its distinctive, and much more accurate, mitten shape.

Tourism agencies face a difficult challenge when differentiating their destinations from the competition.  And I certainly don’t envy the agency that had to brainstorm ways to encourage travelers to visit a state with an average high temperature just above freezing in December.

As with all brands, it’s vital that destinations distinguish themselves and clearly communicate the unique experiences they offer visitors.  Wisconsin’s disjointed mitten doesn’t do it justice as the place for cold-loving travelers this winter.  Instead, it says to me, “We’re like Michigan, but not quite as good”— not exactly a tourism-boosting tagline.

Making the Pitch

by Dan Ward

How refreshing to read a blog post about “The Pitch” that is focused not on media relations, but on any interaction in which you’re pitching an idea, product or even yourself.

Josh Linkner’s Fast Company post, “5 Disastrous Moves That Will Botch Your Pitch,” is not directed at PR pros, but those of us who have stories to tell should pay attention to what he has to say.

In short, Linkner advises us to stay humble, avoid hyperbole, stop selling once the sale is made, stick to the relevant facts and be concise.  To do otherwise can “sabotage an otherwise good pitch.”

Words to live by no matter who or what you are pitching.

If Only Media Counted

by Roger Pynn

This cute Forbes contribution by Peter Himler looking at “today’s headlines through the prism of PR/media/marketing” stops short of looking at our profession through the lens of purpose.

Himler writes of a test he began giving back in the pre-Internet days to prospective public relations hires … a test based on their knowledge of the news media they would ostensibly deal with if hired.  Then he tries to update it for a world that operates at a dizzying pace in which everyone seems convinced that success will be measured by clicks.

If getting to PR’s pearly gates was based only on media successes I’d start handing out Himler’s test tomorrow.  However, what clients really want from us is far more than Klout scores in the stratosphere or a seat on the “Today” show couch with Matt Lauer (although that could well be a home run).

They want brand definition and recognition … and reputation management … and corporate social responsibility programs … and candid internal communications … and many other things that aren’t dependent upon media habits.  Certainly, the shifting sands of technology-enabled communications are important to what we do … but public relations people will be far more valuable to employers and clients if they focus on what really keeps the boss awake at night.

Spam Depression

by Roger Pynn

I hate to have to check my spam filter.  It way too often quarantines friends … sometimes even people who are replying to my emails or have had exchanges with me in the past.  But, thankfully, it also prevents me from receiving such depressing things as a reminder from someone named Penelope to “protect family with burial insurance today.”

I wonder if she knows something I don’t.

Then there was the one reminding me of an open enrollment period for Medicare.  I won’t be qualified for that until I reach my 65^th birthday … if, in fact, there still is a Medicare program.

It makes me wonder just how many fools there are out there who actually open these blasted blast emails.  I love my spam filter.

The Best Communications Tool for Customer Service

by Kerry Martin

No one likes to be inconvenienced, especially at the airport.  When you come to a place that is supposed to facilitate travel, it’s irritating to be shuffled around through alternate gates and detours because the airport is under renovation.

It is here—when passengers have been awake for hours on end, flights have been delayed and people’s patience runs thin—that customer service needs to go above and beyond its normal function.  And sometimes a barricade’s message of “Please pardon our dust” just doesn’t cut it.

As I was traveling through Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), the obstructions around the terminal caught my eye and stuck out in my mind as a brilliant strategy to allay passengers’ annoyance.  LAX took the opportunity to use clever branding messages to make fun of the necessary blockades:

Through the campaign “Re:LAX It’s All Good,” the airport takes an “LA state-of-mind” approach to spoof those pesky airport construction signs. What’s more, they made me laugh more than they made me grumble.

To me, humor is always the best communications tool to deal with customers (especially jet-lagged ones).