Adventures in Candyland

Today I worked with Soul’s Calling at the Los Angeles Gift Show. And here’ s my observation — very few companies think anything or even understand what a brand is and how portraying it with thought is meaningful to buyers, writers and consumers. When you are thoughtful about creating a pleasing poignant environment that aligns with the messages and products you are pushing out - the result is something so strong that people react and respond to it even if they’re not conscious of it. But, it should be very consciously developed by the company. Some brands do, and for me, I am automatically attracted to those brands. But, overwhelmingly and shockingly (though maybe it shouldn’t be), only about 10 percent of the company’s exhibiting made their brand a focus. For the rest, they just throw a bunch of stuff together in a booth. Here’s a shot of the Soul’s Calling booth - it’s an example of how someone puts a lot of effort into creating a booth that spreads her message and makes you feel a certain way when you step across the boundry into the brand’s world. She even had a booth scent….It’s time for every company to be thoughtful and take it up a whole bunch of notches.

I’ve been in the PR world for about ten years now, so I’ve learned and I think most people know it can be a tricky industry. For ages, agencies have charged their clients monthly retainers whether or not they pulled publicity that month. And many times, it’s not for lack of trying, often the story just doesn’t resonate with any writers. So there’s always this wierd struggle between clients and agencies. A client pays the agency to get publicity. The agency chooses an account person or team to work to get the publicity. The account person spends time researching, writing, pitching and then nothing happens. But, the client is still expected to pay the monthly retainer. And the agency still has to pay the account person. It’s definitely a dilemma. But, there does seem to be a shift occuring and frankly, I’m not sure what my opinion is on the topic — well, maybe I am.

Today’s WSJ featured a piece called, “Paying for PR — But Only When it Works.” It’s all about this semi-new trend of pay-per-placement PR, particularly in the small business arena. So, instead of hiring a agency or even consultant on retainer, a client would provide a story angle to a pr consultant or an agency who only focuses on pay-per-placement pitching and they would only get paid if the story got covered. In theory, it forces pr people to work extra hard and more strategically to get the placement. But, as much as I understand it, I think the business model is short-sighted (for the business being pitched) and unfortunately, a bit unfair(for the person doing the pitching).

Now, I completely understand and empathize with business owners who put a significant monthly retainer towards public relations and then barely have anything to show for it. There’s no doubt that this kind of agreement has the propensity to leave a bad taste in someone’s mouth as well as give public relations and it’s practioners a bad name (what doesn’t these days). And for agencies, yah, you might have made $60,000, but you’re usually left with a fractured relationship and bad word of mouth.

So, is there a middle ground? I think there is. Here at Sweet Talk, we always begin a business relationship by focusing on the overarching marketing goals of the business by developing a comprehensive marketing strategy plan. And strategy doesn’t exist on PR alone. And PR doesn’t exist on media alone. Today all the marketing rules have changed which is why marketing should start at the 10,000 foot level and then move downward. Many small businesses don’t see this or if they do, they don’t have the time or staff to do it- they might believe one piece of good PR is going to create an deluge of sales. But, readership and viewship is increasingly fragmented these days, so even if you do get one nice piece in your local newspaper you aren’t going to get the flood that being on Oprah would bring you (and yes that is every businesses dream and unfortunately it’s reality for a very lucky few).

The point here is that pay-per-placement agencies don’t really focus on strategy. They just focus on one piece of the pie. So, if as a business and you’ve created a cohesive marketing strategy and you want to farm out the media portion by providing the person with pitches that fit in the overall strategy that’s great! But, if it’s just a one off thing, you’re probably not going to get the response you hope for.

And I’m also not saying the answer is to choose a big agencies with more comprehensive services and overhead.

I think it’s more about finding a company that will work with you and your budget to build something a little more long-lasting, that just like trust, grows over time.

Our weekly Friday guest post is up over at GoBigNetwork.  The exciting news is that it talks about target audiences and key messaging for startups and small businesses.  (There’s a slight tinge of sarcasm in that part about exciting…)

Catch ya next week.

I love Wired Magazine (I read almost every story every month - went to WiredNext Fest and plan on seeing the WiredHouse in LA ) and The Long Tail is a genius theory from a genius man, but come on Chris Anderson. I get that you get a ton of spam that has nothing to do with you from PR people. Unfortunately, this is a frustration for every person these days, whether they are an editor of a magazine, a business owner or a uhhh, a human being. I’m not saying you aren’t justified in your opinion that PR people need to be more targeted when pitching a story, but have a little sympathy, people are just doing their job. This is my response to said editor’s rant on ignorant PR people in his blog, The Long Tail.

In essence and ideally, PR people exist to provide a very worthwhile service to writers and editors - to make them aware of companies, people, products and concepts that they may not have time to learn about as they are often harried individuals always on some kind of a deadline. But, somewhere this help that we are supposed to be providing has become an annoyance that journalists now thwart and harp negatively on.

But, instead of outing every poor person who is really just doing their job, even if they may not be doing it well, how about if as I have complained about for numerous years and this PR Week Q & A from one of the aforementioned outees seconds, that journalists be more proactive and detailed about keeping their beats and what they cover current on Bacons, Vocus or on the company website. For so many writers there is no detail provided and even so, beats change often and writers move around often. It’s not always easy to figure out who covers what - even if you are an avid reader of multiple publications. This would provide less of an excuse for PR people to flagrantly send mismatched pitches. No sob story here, but why not make it easier for both sides to give and get what is pertinent to and from them.

Would journalists prefer the whole business of PR would just go away for good? There is sort of a circle of life when it comes to editorial and PR, so I really don’t think that’s the solution. Besides PR people being consistently all-knowing, how can we solve this problem constructively and peacefully?

Come on, pitch me your ideas!

Check out how Sweet Talk is helping to differentiate HalloweenMart in a crowded field of competitors in today’s San Francisco Chronicle small business column, “Mind Your Business.”

Social networking can be a powerful and inexpensive tool for small business owners to market their business, but they need to be creative and know how to use it right!

Last week I attended the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) Convention. It’s basically wall to wall (and there were so many walls at this place) aviation. In fact, there were 1,152 exhibitors - meaning no lack of men wearing navy suits. Aviation is an odd industry. Though it would make the most sense that this industry would be technology forward and filled with early adopters, in actuality ,it’s the opposite. To illustrate my point, just look at the dated air traffic control industry who still use a 50 year old system of radar and radio beacons. The the lack of female representation is also paltry. At NBAA there are 10 men for every one woman, and many of those women are “booth babes,” strutting the floor in miniscule red numbers. With the way the men reacted to them, I felt like watching a scene straight out of Mad Men(fabulous show BTW). I’ve attended this show before, so none of this was too surprising, but again it represents the antiquated world of aviation. Thankfully, it seems change is in the air.

I know I’ve mentioned Very Light Jets(VLJs) and Eclipse Aviation which are probably the biggest advancement aviation has taken in a long time. In any case, these new mini-jets may very well change the way we all travel in the future. Take a look at Day Jet, a new airline carrier flying Eclipse planes. DayJet is the world’s first per-seat, on-demand jet service, an entirely new approach to short-haul (under 600 mile) regional business travel. And it’s supposed to be semi-affordable probably right now around $600-$700 a flight, but hopefully if it works, closer to the $300-$400 range -even I can afford that! Right now, Day Jet is trying the concept out in Florida - so we shall see how this new niche progresses. Day Jet believes time is at a premium, especially for their target, the business traveller. Time is also at a premium for the wealthy, which is a nice segway into why I attended the show.

Wouldn’t it be nice to fly from NY to Paris in four hours and 14 minutes? Doesn’t seem possible does it? Well, if you have 80 mill and can wait a few years, you’ll be sipping plus de cafe au laits sur l’avenue Montaigne(finally using my French minor). Aerion Corporation has designed a Super Sonic Business Jet which will fly above and just below mach speed to get 10-12 lucky passengers from NY to Asia in nine and a half hours… and in comfort and class to boot! And all made possible by the jet’s unique wing structure. Check out what this sweet machine will look like. It is a quite an interesting company with superlative leadership. Anyway - I was working the booth to handle the media who attended and wanted to speak to executives. Check out this picture I took of the wind tunnel model. Pretty slick hah? Just about seven more years till take-off! Now this would be an advancement in aviation.

We just need a few more clients so Sweet Talk can put the company name on a reservation list! Thankfully, we have a few more years.

This article in Marketing Week struck me as bizarre. Coke is creating a new Sprite that will launch in the UK next year called “Sprite Super Chilled” that includes a mechanism, that when opened forms ice in the drink. And how is the ice created and what is it made of? None of those questions were answered in the article. But even stranger is the fact it’s being developed for urban youth who prefer super cold alcholic drinks, particularly beer. What’s the difference between super cold and cold? Obviously I’m not an urban youth, but pray tell, who is it that likes their beer or their soda warm? What do you guys think? Wierd or cool? I think both.

If you live in LA like I do, especially in Santa Monica where you don’t have air conditioning, you would understand that it would have been impossible to work yesterday due to the suffocating and seemingly endless heatwave we are experiencing here.  Which is why I, along with the greater part of Los Angeles, fled to the Pacific to try and catch our breath.  Finally, I could actually form thoughts!

So, I was finally able to do a little work. There are really no holidays for entrepreneurs. Anyway, yesterday I came upon this post from Seth Godin where he talks about the definition of hard work changing.  How hard work used to actually mean hard work (i.e., working in the fields), but eventually it evolved into someone who spent the most time toiling away at their desk.  Thankfully, there is an evolution there as well, as I agree time really doesn’t equate to hard work.  He claims it’s not the amount of time you spend, it’s the risk you take which is the hard work.  And you know what, it reminded me what we’re doing, going out there on our own, taking a big risk and yes, we are working hard, harder then we have ever worked. We decided not to go with the status quo even though it would be a lot easier, but we are succeeding, growing and learning more than we ever could working for someone else. So even though we have some of the most frustrating days I have ever experienced, I know that the hard work is worth it and it will catapult us to a place none of us knew we could make it to.

Ok - enough of my little pep talk! Maybe the heat has melted my brain.

The article and picture featured on the front page of yesterday’s NY Times begged for some form of commentary. 

“Yes, They Deep-Fry Oreos, but Not in Trans Fat.” This is now the case at the Great Indiana State Fair where everyone should feel much more healthful while indulging in a Combo Plate,  which is composed of one battered Snickers bar, two battered Oreos and a battered Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup.  Thank goodness is all I have to say – I would be truly hesitant to purchase the plate while it was fried in the trans fat oil, but now I will fill my tummy full an assortment of these fried goods knowing I have much less chance of having a heart attack.      

Sarcasm aside, this article harkens back to Morgan Spurlock’s documentary, “Super Size Me,” which shockingly informed me that people actually believe eating McDonalds everyday, and even multiple times a day, is good for them. 

Sadly, both these examples prove the power of marketing over people.  Often, it is used for bad, but being the saint I am, I prefer to use it only for good.

Is anyone else sick of celebrities?  Of course, I used to check out perezhilton.com everyday, that was until I started my own business.  Now, I barely have time to read my email let alone pay attention to what some rude, blobby gossiper has to say about self-obsessed people who believe what they have to say is more intellectual and insightful than Pulitzer Prize winners.  Umm…hello, Tom Cruise. But, even if I did have the time, I wouldn’t spend it reading about someone leaving the Ivy.  

I only bring this up because I opened the LA Times online one night last week, and the first thing I see is Posh and Becks.  You know, the two platinum Brits who are being fawned over by the entire city of LA. Boy, is this a superficial city (not like that’s a shock or anything).  But, can these two really love each other?  Is it possible?  Or are they just two marketing entities that work together to produce this odd pop star/athlete money-making combo.  I mean how can he love her really – she always looks pissed off.  Ironically, she probably thinks she looks chic.  

I don’t know…I guess I just feel like celebrity culture is so oversaturated and its overrun people’s individuality.  That’s why it frustrates me when clients are so interested in getting their products to and on celebrities.  They think it’s the only way to get their product noticed and purchased.  I know it helps, but there are other ways that don’t have you begging some high school dropout to say they like your product. 

I know and hope it’s only a matter of time before people will flip again and they’ll decide they like something because they like it, not because some drug-addled, pregnant, anorexic girl does.