The PR Coach

Never Hire a Bad Billionaire PR Client (Update)

PR Coach — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 05:56:51 +0000

Is PR having a Mark Cuban crisis?

You could see this public relations vs billionaire Mark Cuban crisis coming for miles.

It all started with Cuban’s advice in Entrepreneur.com to startup companies including: “Never hire a PR firm.”

His actual advice, number 11 in his 12-point list, was:
“11. Never hire a PR firm. A public relations firm will call or email people in the publications you already read, on the shows you already watch and at the websites you already surf. Those people publish their emails. Whenever you consume any information related to your field, get the email of the person publishing it and send them a message introducing yourself and the company. Their job is to find new stuff. They will welcome hearing from the founder instead of some PR flack. Once you establish communication with that person, make yourself available to answer their questions about the industry and be a source for them. If you are smart, they will use you.”

New York PR pro Peter Himler quickly responded and eloquently showed how Cuban is wrong in a Forbes.com article and on his blog.

My take is that Cuban is wrong on two counts: Never hire a bad PR firm. And don’t be ignorant about public relations Mark. PR is not just media relations. Unless you run your business by bluster and intimidation and use controversy to get headlines. Ahem.

As Himler says a good PR agency doesn’t spam journalists and the best consultants put clients directly in touch with reporters instead of blocking and tackling.

And for those startups who want sound PR advice? PR is not just media relations as millions of clients know. They benefit from corporate and internal communications, investor relations, crisis management, content marketing and social media strategies delivered by savvy PR pros.

You’ll find some sound advice for small companies in my recent post Did They Win Playing PR Blame Game? That startup desperately could have used a solid PR partner.

So here’s my PR advice Mark Cuban. Never hire a bad PR firm. And agencies? Never hire a bad billionaire PR client who would never take wise public relations counsel.

Updates: Mark Cuban Explains Himself

In a Jan 13th post on blog maverick , Cuban explains his comments. Not entirely wrong but still off the mark so to speak.

On Jan 17th, Keith Trivitt posted a PRSA PRSAY interview with Cuban where he added further perspective but stuck to his guns on PR’s lack of value to startups.

Is Cuban smoking a bad PR cigar? His definition of PR is wrong. Or is it? We’d enjoy hearing your opinion in the comments below.

You’ll find more in Bad PR…Bad in our virtual PR Library where we occasionally highlight bad PR examples to share lessons from those who should know better or should do better public relations. You can also get weekly tips and insight by signing up for our blog or getting the RSS feed in your favorite reader.

Author: Jeff Domansky

Photo credit: Proyecto Garaje via Flickr

PR 2.0 Trend: 10 Ways Tablets Will Impact PR

PR Coach — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 22:50:08 +0000

29% now own a tablet or e-Reader

If sales stats and trends are any indication, tablet devices will have a growing impact on public relations. Soon. Are we up to the challenge?

We’d better be because 29% of Americans now own a tablet or e-reading device according to a Jan 2012 Pew Internet study. That number grew an amazing 18% from just a month earlier.

Tablets are already influencing news, publishing, TV, and the music and film industries in a big way. Look at The New York Times which just reached 390,000 digital subscribers at year-end 2011. Or many magazines like The New Yorker, Wired, Sports Illustrated and Oprah which have unique applications built specifically for tablets.

Major news websites are now designed for visual appeal, impact and to fit on tablets and smartphones. So should your blog and company website.

Joe Pulizzi offers an excellent post on how tablets are affecting those in the content marketing game. Pulizzi says the tablet is a “curl-up” device.

Just look around on the commuter train, in the airport or at your local Starbucks. Consumers at home and wherever they go are “curling up” with their tablets just like they would with a good book just a year ago.

The difference is they’re not only reading. They’re watching video, listening to music, checking e-mail, browsing the internet, reading blogs, posting to Twitter and Facebook, taking pictures and even making phone and video calls using their tablets.

10 Tips for Better PR Content for Tablets & Smartphones

Given these trends, let’s look at 10 ways tablets will impact PR and how we should respond to stay ahead.

Produce more video content. We already know that PR needs to become producers and directors of video content. That includes superb video for news, internal and external communications, and social media. Video needs to become an important element to take advantage of the reach and audience size of channels such as YouTube, Vimeo and Slideshare. All increasingly displayed on tablets.
Make better use of visuals in your materials. With the explosion in microblogging and social media, we need to include more high quality visuals in our communication. This includes photos, infographics, charts and diagrams, even cartoons and other visuals. Then, we need to take advantage of new highly visual channels like Pinterest and Instagram to attract and keep our audiences entertained and engaged.
Socialize your news releases. A recent study by PRNewswire showed news releases with visuals can increase views by more than 77%. Make sure your news releases include visual elements.
Curate more content. Where you can’t create your own material due to time and budget limitations, you can link to material that supports, enhances or illustrates your own content. Curation is a useful tool to add to your PR quiver. You can see an example in my curation blog Public Relations & PR 2.0 Insight on Scoop.it.
Write crisp, concise content. Tablet and Kindle readers want brief information, presented for easy reading. Use subheads for easy scanning and add links for further info so they can follow up later.
Repurpose content. Offer a choice of formats. Think about ways that you can produce your content in several formats. More visual or audio content is ideal for tablet viewing. Reports, white papers, long articles and other lengthy documents are better produced for later reading on Kindles and other e-readers.
Design for mobile applications. Review your content channels. Talk to your web experts and make sure your website, blog and other content is accessible by tablets and smartphones.
Create two-way channels. Many new technologies and most social media channels are built on two-way communication. Instead of talking to people, we now need to listen and talk with our important audiences, fans and stakeholders.
Recognize the shift in consumption patterns. Both PR and marketing need to adapt messages and content that will appeal in both the office and home. Your readers may see a quick item you produce and then want to follow up in more detail at home.
Measure your digital ROI. Provide a single call to action and measure your response in a way that lets you know they are tablet readers. For example, use a unique link, landing page or other metrics.

It doesn’t matter whether you’re using traditional media relations or speaking directly with your own audiences and readers through social media. Visual is where it’s at because now, and in the near future, content will be consumed on the tablet, a smartphone or both.

What do you think? Are you using video and having success? And are you ready for the tablet world? Love to have your comments below.

Looking for more public relations tips? We have content marketing and social media resources in our PR Library with 7,500+ links, tips and more in 28 other categories for PR pros. Open 24 x 7 and you can sign up for weekly blog tips and posts or get the RSS feed delivered to your favorite RSS reader.

Author: Jeff Domansky

Photo credit: Samsung, The New Yorker

One Million iReporters: Is PR Ready?

PR Coach — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 05:06:13 +0000

CNN reaches 1 million iReporters

Recently, CNN reported it now has one million registered iReporters in its citizen journalism community. Imagine. Is PR ready to respond?

What other newsroom can possibly compete and what are the PR implications of these citizen journalists crowdsourcing news from around the globe?

The news channel’s CNN iReport site was completely redesigned, revamped and reinvigorated in November 2011. It launched Open Story, a storytelling tool that allows its citizens journalists and community to participate in the news in real-time. And it released a custom-built app for Android dramatically extending the reach of its iReporters to another platform.

Recent stories include New Years celebrations around the globe; Occupy Wall Street protests; East coast earthquake; Hurricane Irene; and more. In many cases, such as the London riots the pictures and video footage are dramatic and reporting ranges from acceptable to exceptional.

All presented online and often used to break stories such as the death of Osama bin Laden. Or to provide updates on tragedies and news stories around the world from locations where the nearest reporter or stringer and camera are hundreds if not thousands of miles away.

All filing and updating constantly.

The biggest problem is that many citizen journalists have no editors. Even CNN admits it vetts only 8% of the 500-plus iReport stories it receives daily according to Craig Silverman.

In broad terms, citizen journalism comes with big challenges for PR:

traditional media relations “rules” no longer apply; contacting a “reporter” is nearly impossible
news is instant, 24 x 7, unfiltered, global and viral
editorial oversight is limited or in many cases nonexistent; no fact-checking, re-edits or sober second thought at many sites
many and varied agendas of “reporters”
corrections are rare if not impossible
media competition usually means getting it first and not necessarily getting it right.

How Should Public Relations Respond to Citizen Journalism?

So with such big challenges, what’s a PR pro to do? Here are a few initial ideas:

prepare in advance and manage risk forward
listen, monitor and analyze traditional and social media for negative comment, trending issues or opportunities
be available; does your website provide easy access, 24 x 7 if necessary?
respond quickly to issues and seek corrections;
balance a developing story if badvocates hijack the story or agenda; credible media try for balance
create and update media contacts constantly
develop your own new information and social media channels, in advance, wherever possible
get your own information together fast and distribute it as soon as possible
remember, Internet and TV are visual media; sometimes good pictures or video can get you a higher position in a story if you can offer it quickly; prepare in advance if you can
sign up as an iReporter?

My ‘sign up as an iReporter’ suggestion is offered tongue-in-cheek but there is no reason not to respond like one in an emerging crisis.

Ironically, citizen journalism presents similar challenges for media itself as well but CNN seems to have them well in hand so far. Wikipedia provides a good overview and links to resources on citizen journalism.

Prominent citizen journalism sites include BlottR, Demotix, Allvoices, Wikinews, Digital Journal, Newsvine, Patch.com and Citizenside,

What do you think about citizen journalism? Do you trust them? Are they credible? Have you ever pitched a story or engaged with a citizen journalist? Do they add value to stories or are you getting tired of jerky cell phone images and inaudible interviews?

Most important, are you ready to engage, especially in a crisis? Would love to hear from you and your suggestions on how to respond in the comments below.

We’ve got lots more resources in the PR Library including media training, online crisis management and media relations. You can also get weekly PR and PR 2.0 insight by signing up for our blog or getting it in your favorite RSS reader.

Media Savvy: Are You Fully Socially Engaged?

PR Coach — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 02:44:45 +0000

: 73% of journalists using social media channels to interact with PR

A new research report may finally convince you to dump email in favor of social media channels when it comes to media relations.

The Cision/Newhouse School 2011 Digital Influencer survey found that more than 70% of digital influencers now engage with PR pros through social media.

These influencers included both traditional journalists as well as new “digital influencers” such as bloggers, writers, online publishers and news aggregators, academics and consultants.

73% of journalists interacted mostly through Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn while 69% of other digital influencers used blogs and other social media channels to interact in addition.

Highlights of the influencers report included:

55% interact with PR pros on Twitter, 47% on Facebook
63% welcome story pitches and ideas through social media
87% of journalists and 85% of “other” influencers maintain an active Twitter presence for their website or blog
81 percent (journalists) and 78 percent (other contributors) have Facebook pages.

“The Cision/Newhouse School survey results document the fact that we’ve hit a tipping point in marketing and communication, with social media now a key way to communicate with and through the media,” said Heidi Sullivan, Vice President, Global Media Research, Cision.

Old Media/PR Habits Die Hard

While the sheer scale and shift to social media interaction are impressive, it’s worth noting that traditional communication is still preferred in a couple of areas.

94% of media and 79% of other digital influencers (88.6% combined) still prefer to receive news releases by e-mail. Fewer than 5% preferred telephone or fax. Point taken!

Does that mean that life just got easier for PR pros pitching media? Not so much. There are still challenges in our relationship with journalists and other influencers.

While 47% of “other” digital influencers found social media “somewhat reliable” only 37% of journalists agreed. Clearly, you’ll still need a great idea and meaningful pitch to gain media coverage or influence.

Now and in the future, public relations professionals had better be getting way more “social” and engaged without losing the critical ability to find the news and make it compelling for every channel – traditional or social.

So, how are you doing? Are you fully engaged? Or are “influencer” relations gradually replacing traditional media relations in your everyday work? I’d enjoy hearing from you in the comments below.

Check into our virtual PR Library for more social media and media relations tips and resources. You can also get weekly tips and insight by signing up for our blog or getting the RSS feed in your favorite reader.

Author: Jeff Domansky

Visuals: Cision

Sponsored by:

Marcia’s Makeovers: 24 Press Releases Transformed from So-So to Sizzling
Get Marcia Yudkin’s popular self-study news release writing course. Learn how to transform your news releases from ho hum to hot!

PRWeek Magazine Subscribe to the leading PR news journal.

Never Hire a Bad Billionaire PR Client

PR Coach — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 05:09:57 +0000

Is PR having a Mark Cuban crisis?

You could see this public relations vs billionaire Mark Cuban crisis coming for miles.

It all started with Cuban’s advice in Entrepreneur.com to startup companies including: “Never hire a PR firm.”

His actual advice, number 11 in his 12-point list, was:
“11. Never hire a PR firm. A public relations firm will call or email people in the publications you already read, on the shows you already watch and at the websites you already surf. Those people publish their emails. Whenever you consume any information related to your field, get the email of the person publishing it and send them a message introducing yourself and the company. Their job is to find new stuff. They will welcome hearing from the founder instead of some PR flack. Once you establish communication with that person, make yourself available to answer their questions about the industry and be a source for them. If you are smart, they will use you.”

New York PR pro Peter Himler quickly responded and eloquently showed how Cuban is wrong in a Forbes.com article and on his blog.

As Himler says a good PR agency doesn’t spam journalists and the best consultants put clients directly in touch with reporters instead of blocking and tackling.

You’ll find some sound advice for small companies in my recent post Did They Win Playing PR Blame Game? That startup desperately could have used a solid PR partner.

So here’s my PR advice Mark Cuban. Never hire a bad PR firm. And agencies? Never hire a bad billionaire PR client who would never take wise public relations counsel.

Updates: Mark Cuban Explains Himself

In a Jan 13th post on blog maverick , Cuban explains his comments. Not entirely wrong but still off the mark so to speak.

On Jan 17th, Keith Trivitt posted a PRSA PRSAY interview with Cuban where he added further perspective but stuck to his guns on PR’s lack of value to startups.

Is Cuban smoking a bad PR cigar? His definition of PR is wrong. Or is it? We’d enjoy hearing your opinion in the comments below.

Author: Jeff Domansky

Photo credit: Proyecto Garaje via Flickr

Murdoch Tweets: Credible PR 2.0 Strategy?

PR Coach — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 23:43:31 +0000

Does Rupert Murdoch have a new PR & social media strategy?

So, Rupert Murdoch started tweeting on New Year’s eve? Now that’s news of the world! You could have hit me on the head with a two by four and I’d be less surprised.

Dude, I mean Sir. That’s awesome!

The octagenarian Chairman of News Corp and his PR handlers (Edelman?) have launched a brand-new 2012 public relations/social media strategy for the embattled publisher and free enterprise icon.

For someone who once described the internet as “predatory” writing, that’s quite a reversal. In Vanity Fair, Michael Wolff wrote “For him it’s a place for porn, thievery, and hackers.” It would seem he has now joined the club.

This is either a brilliant PR strategy or it’s a public relations train wreck just waiting to happen.

What can we expect next? Rupert in fuzzy slippers, sweater with elbow patches, warm fireplace chats? We’ll soon be able to see all-Rupert, all-the-time on Facebook, YouTube, Quora and Foursquare. Not likely on MySpace however.

I mean in just five days, @RupertMurdoch has 106,039+ followers and growing fast. Mind you, he’s only following 11 tweeps. That probably includes @God @MargaretThatcher @Wendi_Deng @ThePope @DavidCameron @MichaelBloomberg @POTUS @AlWaleedbinTalal @JackDorsey @ThePRCoach and a couple of other close personal friends from around the globe.

Talk about influence. I’m guessing his Klout score will jump from a paltry 75 to maybe 275 within the week. His score is climbing faster than Katy Perry’s hemline, Ashton Kutcher’s ego or the annual interest rate on Greek bonds. Just now, I invited Rupe to join Klout by the way. He hadn’t yet joined.

Oh and fun to note that Klout considers him influential about the topics “hacking”, “walking dead” and “media.”

It’s a clear sign that social media is now warmly embraced by the executive suite. PR people around the globe are sighing in relief.

Hmmmm. Let’s see. Run the global news corporation, appear in the British parliament, call Prime Minister Davy Cameron or the Mayor of New York, meet with my board of directors or tweet about tea with Sir Elton John and Sir Paul McCartney? I know what I’d do.

I’m following his tweets with bated breath. I really hope they are his because I kinda like them.

Rupert Murdoch on Twitter

Here’s a quick sample so far:

” Well, well! Values DO count. Santorum result pretty amazing. Policy very similar to Reagan. Now start to sound like him.” (Jan 4)

” Got to watch Foxnews at 5 EST. Liberal Bob Beckel and team great replacement for Beck and much more fun.” (Jan 2)

” @jack right on “simplify” but easier in startups. My resolutions, try to maintain humility and always curiosity. And of course diet!” (Jan 1)

” Back to work tomorrow. Enough idling!” (Jan 1)

” I LOVE the film “we bought a zoo”, a great family movie. Very proud of fox team who made this great film.” (Jan 1)

” Amazing! Alexander Hamilton born (illegitimate) 40 miles away. Best man never elected president. At least, founded NY Post!” (Dec 31)

” Steve Jobs biog interesting but unfair. Family must hate.” (Dec 31)

What kind of tweets can we expect in the future? Maybe some trash talk about Obama. Slagging his newspaper and FOX News competitors. His favorite beer or Bordeaux, bed and breakfast recommendations or Willie Nelson tunes.

A word of PR 2.0 advice though @RupertMurdoch. The little “@” sign means everyone can read your tweets. If you’re sending pictures of yourself to your wife @Wendi_Deng or anyone else on Twitter, remember Rep Anthony Weiner. Now that was a Tweet that shook the world!

What’s your view? Is this credible PR and social media strategy? You can predict the response if we learn he’s being ghost-tweeted. Or if he says something really politically incorrect. Stay tuned.

Oh and Rupert? I’m at @ThePRCoach if you ever want Twitter advice.

Our PR Library‘s virtual shelves are loaded with 7500+ PR tips and resources including Twitter & PR, Social Media Tips & Strategies and Online Crisis management. You can get weekly tips by subscribing to our blog or RSS feed.

Author: Jeff Domansky

Further PR 2.0 & Rupert Murdoch Reading:

Rupert Murdoch Joined Twitter Because He Was Bored On His 184-Foot Yacht [Business Insider]

Rupert Murdoch Joins Twitter, But Pretend Wife Makes It Interesting [Wired]

Rupert Murdoch begins tweeting [LA Times]

Rupert Murdoch’s Twitter: What it’s like inside the mind of the billionaire media mogul [Entertainment Weekly]

Sponsored by:

PRWeek Magazine Subscribe to the leading PR news journal.

PR Storytelling: Why’s This So Good?

PR Coach — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 05:05:01 +0000

Can you find PR storytelling inspiration?

Whether you’re in PR, a journalist, blogger or just a writer with a pulse, you’re always searching for writer’s craft and inspiration. Right?

You’ve come to the right place. There’s no better way to start 2012 than with inspiration for your writing.

That’s why the Nieman Storyboard series from the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard is essential reading. It’s my secret weapon when it comes to inspiration. The storytelling will simply make you weak in the knees or damn envious of some incredible writing.

The series features some of the best examples of visual, audio and multimedia narrative reporting. So far, there are 26 outstanding examples where you can learn how great stories get told. You’ll leave more optimistic about the future of journalism.

As public relations pros embrace content marketing, there’s no better source for inspiration for us too. These powerful stories are told in every medium and I dare you to read them without getting stoked about your writing craft.

One of my goals for this year is to try and dig deeper to find and tell interesting PR stories with lessons that are irresistible.

Here are just three of my favorite “Why’s This So Good?” stories, for example:

“Why’s this so good?” No. 25: Nick Paumgarten’s tower of terror – Michelle Legro calls Nick Paumgarten’s history of elevators “one of the most frightening, banal, effed-up, claustrophobic, and crazy-good pieces of nonfiction I’ve ever read.” If you ever wanted to read a great opening for a story, read this and marvel at the craft.
“Why’s this so good?” No. 18: Brady Dennis goes short – Ben Montgomery weaves an irresistible look at the impact short stories can have from Hemingway to Brady Dennis’ powerful story of only 296 words. Dennis writes evocatively about 71-year old Lloyd Blair working the overnight shift at a Florida toll booth. “The story is tight as a fist. You can read it in 45 seconds,” Montgomery says.
“Why’s this so good?” No. 15: Michael Lewis’ Greek odyssey – Michael Lewis travels to Greece and delivers a compelling, long-form, first-person account of the Greek debt crisis told from a Greek monastery. As writer David Dobbs says “It’s 12,000 words about bonds, corruption, politics and markets, yet it moves like an amusement park ride. How does he pull it off?”

Meanwhile, back at the PR reality ranch. Still struggling with that blog headline or news release lede? I think not. Get on with it and make it great!

Any other sources of PR for writing inspiration you’d like to share? We’d love to hear from you in the comments below.

We’ve got many more PR writer’s resources in our PR Library including writing & public relations, journalism writing and our newest section content marketing. As always, you can get weekly PR insight and tips by subscribing to our blog or get the RSS Feed delivered to your favorite reader.

Author: Jeff Domansky

Photo credit: Robert Snache via Flickr

Sponsored by:

PRWeek Magazine Subscribe to the leading PR news journal.

Crisis Management: Go Daddy’s 4-H Club

PR Coach — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 04:34:54 +0000

Bob Parsons & his Go Daddy Girls

If there’s one thing a company doesn’t need in a crisis, it’s the four Hs.

No, I’m not talking about the original 4-H agricultural club so popular in the 50s and 60s whose motto was head, heart, hands and health.

That would hardly describe GoDaddy.com Executive Chairman and Founder Bob Parsons.

I’m talking about headstrong, hubris, head-in-the-sand and hellfire. Each of those words fits him like a glove.

As a result, it’s not been a banner year for Go Daddy which now appears in full crisis management mode.

Headstrong Does Not Make Good PR

Go Daddy has always thrived on creating shallow controversy for its own marketing purposes. It has promoted its brand with a series of cheesy print, Super Bowl TV and online ads flaunting the assets of its provocative Go Daddy girls.

Despite its 14-year success, it’s generated its share of criticism and controversy and it’s modus operandi seems to be “there’s no such thing as bad PR.”

Can You Spell Hubris?

Enter March 2011, when then-CEO Parsons got embroiled in a running battle with critics, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and customers by insisting that his hunting of endangered elephants in Africa was somehow okay. Many denounced his position, loudly boycotting the company and some registering or moving their domains elsewhere.

He was so full of hubris he makes Macbeth look like a prom queen by comparison.

The bad PR continued as he refused to moderate his stance or apologize to those he may have offended. It would have been such a simple solution and fundamental crisis PR response.

Guilty of head-in-the-sand public relations.

Hellfire, Bad PR and Lost Business

The bad PR has continued right through the end of this year. Ill-advised support for the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) led to claims the company supports Internet censorship in the US.

The recent bad PR has raged on the Internet and has lost the company more than 37,000 domain registrations in protest even before a planned Dec 29 boycott of the company. A flip-flop and apology on SOPA have failed to turn down the heat.

In hindsight, it’s easy to see how even the simplest crisis management could have avoided each of these issues. That kind of smart crisis PR does not seem to reside in the DNA of some marketing-driven companies.

Other than Netflix, there was no better example of the impact of bad PR on a business in 2011.

The crisis PR lesson? Avoid the Go Daddy 4-H approach to crisis management at all cost.

The investors who bought into Go Daddy for $2.25 billion in July 2011 included KKR, Silver Lake and Technology Crossover Ventures. They must not be pleased. Maybe, even tempted to tell Bwana Bob to head for the exit and do not pass go, Daddy?

What do you think of Go Daddy and it’s public relations? Is any PR good PR? Comments welcome below.

Looking for more bad PR cases studies and crisis management tips? Our virtual PR Library is always open for your browsing pleasure with 7,200+ articles, tips and resources..

You can get weekly PR tips by signing up for The PR Coach blog or getting our RSS feed in your favorite reader.

Author: Jeff Domansky

Photo credits: GoDaddy.com, Wikipedia

Cirque du Soleil: A Merry Christmas PR Story

PR Coach — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 07:03:43 +0000

Savvy Cirque du Soleil social media story

This is a Christmas story about savvy social media, PR and customer service. It stars Cirque du Soleil as Santa and Ticketmaster as the Grinch who nearly stole Christmas from a six-year old.

Around 11:30 am on Dec 22, I’m browsing my son’s Facebook page to see pics of his trip to Las Vegas. He’s traveled 1,200 miles from Vancouver to see the Michael Jackson Cirque du Soleil show as a Christmas present for my grandson who adores the pop singer.

To my dismay, I learn that last night they showed up at the Mandalay Bay Events Center for the show to find it’s “canceled.” We exchange numerous Facebook messages and I learn a tale of mistakes, poor management and truculent Ticketmaster service.

Here’s what went down.

On Sept 27, at Ticketmaster in Bellingham, WA my son bought tickets for my six-year old grandson for the Michael Jackson THE IMMORTAL World Tour by Cirque du Soleil in Las Vegas on Wed, Dec 21. For the next two months, excitement about their holiday and the show grew.

They arrive at the theater last night to find out there is no show. A nearby restaurant maître d’ said the show had been “dark” on Mon – Wed for weeks because of slower tourism in the other city that never sleeps.

Ticketmaster had sold tickets even though the show is “dark” and failed to inform him of the cancellation in any way.

He returns to the closed box office and finally gets the attention of an employee. He asks to exchange his tickets for tomorrow night’s show. The ticket office says the less expensive tickets like his are sold out.

They suggest contacting Ticketmaster. A Ticketmaster call center employee says they can’t do anything, contact the box office. My son asks to speak to a manager who suggests he go to their local Ticketmaster office.

He spends 45 minutes getting there, arriving at 7:30pm just as a Ticketmaster employee is closing and is unwilling to remain open to help. He calls back to the call center and is told he will have to get a refund on the way home in Bellingham where he bought the tickets. Bureaucracy, blame and a classic “not MY problem” standoff.

Frustrated, with his son in tears, they return to their hotel to plan for another show or outing the next evening, their last night in Las Vegas.

My son returns to the box office the next morning for one last try. He asks again if he can get tickets for tonight. A helpful employee spends the next 15 minutes trying to assist. She tries Ticketmaster for a refund or other resolution without success. A good effort but she too has met the impenetrable Ticketmaster wall.

No go and no help from the creators of the problem.

So there you have it. Terrible Ticketmaster service. Unwilling to resolve an issue they created when it was easy to resolve on-site at the box office. The bureaucratic runaround. A frustrated father. A six-year-old in tears over not being able to see the Michael Jackson show after two months of anticipation. So much for the special Christmas gift from a father to his son.

Unbelievable Ticketmaster. Not a Tweet. No apology. No concern. Talk about the Christmas Grinch!

Now enter the power of social media – Twitter and the Christmas spirit.

Just before 12 noon, I tweet about the situation to Cirque du Soleil (@cirque) and Ticketmaster (@Ticketmaster) asking how they can cancel without notice to the customer?

Here were my two tweets:

Just 14 minutes later I get this response from @Cirque:

I immediately DM with my son’s cell phone number as he still has one more night in Vegas. Maybe there is a Santa Claus?

I message via Facebook telling my son to leave his cell phone on, expecting at best, a call with an apology. He gets a call asking him to come to the Mandalay Bay box office. An employee called “Joanne” helps with new tickets. An hour and a half later, I get a follow-up tweet from Cirque du Soleil:

My son calls shortly after, saying that Mandalay Bay box office sold him two comparable tickets for tonight’s show.

Problem solved thanks to a PR-savvy Cirque du Soleil social media tweep.

It’s a great lesson in customer service and social media. Cirque du Soleil was listening. Their instincts were correct and they responded quickly. Even when it wasn’t “their” problem. Good PR and positive social media are all about taking responsibility and action.

The next day my son and grandson couldn’t say enough about the show. “The break dancer with one leg was the BEST,” beams my grandson. Cirque du Soleil made this a wonderful Christmas story with a happy ending and earned some well-deserved public relations.

And the Grinches over at Ticketmaster? Not so much.

With this good PR Christmas story, I wish you all a festive and happy holidays with family and friends. May your New Year be bright too!

Author: Jeff Domansky

Photo credits: Cirque du Soleil & Kevin Collins via Flickr

Sponsored by:

PRWeek Magazine Subscribe to the leading PR news journal.

Newsknife Rates 2011 News Sites, Journalists

PR Coach — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 01:41:25 +0000

Journalist/photographer Felix Nadar in a balloon, late 1860's

Ever wonder who the top journalists and news sites are on Google News?

Newsknife is out with its 2011 ranking of top news sites and journalists based on an analysis of news items appearing on Google News.

News site ratings were based on a review of 202,143 listings by 3847 news sites for 8033 news items during 2011.

Why would PR pros be interested in this type of data? Mostly because stories that appear on Google News have the potential to reach large global audiences and drive huge website traffic.

And of course you are using Google alerts for free and easy monitoring of your company, competitors and industry aren’t you?

Three interesting data sets include the Top News Sites,Top Journalists and Top Categories.

Top News Sites of 2011

Rank   #Listed       Media
1       622              Los Angeles Times
2       616              Reuters
3       504              New York Times
4       439              Wall Street Journal
5       417              USA Today
6       327              Washington Post
7       213              ABC News
8       197              Bloomberg
9       172              MSNBC
10     168              Christian Science Monitor

You’ll notice only two sites are TV – ABC and MSNBC – though Bloomberg is a hybrid. Year over year changes are also interesting to note. In 2010, the New York Times was the top news site followed by the Los Angeles Times and Wall Street Journal. The Associated Press, CNN and ABC dropped off the 2011 top ten compared to last year.

Newsknife’s Top journalists for 2011

Country/Journalist                            #Listed
Australia:   James Massola                       139
Botswana:   Bame Piet                              52
Canada (English):   Mark Kennedy           84
Ethiopia:   William Davison                        42
Ghana:   Adwoa Gyasiwaa                        25
India:   Smita Gupta                                   56
Ireland:   Harry McGee                            110
Israel:   Herb Keinon                                 114
Kenya:   Bernard Momanyi                       158
Malaysia:   Charles Ramendran                41
Namibia:   Denver Kisting                          28
Nigeria:   Yusuf Alli                                    113
New Zealand:   Paul Harper                      107
Pakistan:   Syed Irfan Raza                       70
Philippines:   Christine O. Avendaño       186
South Africa:   Charl Du Plessis                59
Singapore:   Leong Wee Keat                   73
Tanzania:   Florence Mugarula                  58
Uganda:   Yasiin Mugerwa                        94
U.K.:   Andrew Grice                                 81
U.S.:   Frank James                                  97
Zimbabwe:   Kelvin Jakachira                   92

For top US journalists, NPR reporter and blogger Frank James had 97 listings. David Grice, political editor at The Independent led in the UK with 81 listings.

You can see the level of detail for subscribers on this sample page, where the top 100 Israeli journalists are listed. Links take you to each journalist’s Google News listing and stories. A useful research tool if you were trying to reach out to influential journalists whose work has substantial online reach.

Data is also available by news categories including: business, entertainment, health, science, technology, sports and more. This “category authority” can be strategically useful.

Newsknife monitors news sites on the main US-oriented Google News site and journalists on 22 English language Google News sites worldwide.

It produces data primarily for large media organizations who subscribe as a way to track and improve online news coverage, track trends and their competitors. You can read more about how Newsknife analyzes the news here.

While a small $10 subscription is required for three-month access to the data, some PR pros will find it valuable. Call me a PR research geek but it’s just another useful arrow in your strategic media relations quiver.

You’ll find much more strategic PR, media relations and PR research tips and tools in our growing PR Library. Get weekly tips by subscribing to the PR Coach blog or have the RSS feed delivered to your favorite RSS reader.

Author: Jeff Domansky

Photo credit: State Library of New South Wales via Flickr

Sponsored by:

PRWeek Magazine Subscribe to the leading PR news journal.

The PR Coach

Never Hire a Bad Billionaire PR Client (Update)

PR 2.0 Trend: 10 Ways Tablets Will Impact PR

10 Tips for Better PR Content for Tablets & Smartphones

One Million iReporters: Is PR Ready?

How Should Public Relations Respond to Citizen Journalism?

More Reading on Citizen Journalism

Media Savvy: Are You Fully Socially Engaged?

Old Media/PR Habits Die Hard

Sponsored by:

Never Hire a Bad Billionaire PR Client

Murdoch Tweets: Credible PR 2.0 Strategy?

Further PR 2.0 & Rupert Murdoch Reading:

Sponsored by:

PR Storytelling: Why’s This So Good?

Sponsored by:

Crisis Management: Go Daddy’s 4-H Club

Headstrong Does Not Make Good PR

Can You Spell Hubris?

Hellfire, Bad PR and Lost Business

More PR Reading

Cirque du Soleil: A Merry Christmas PR Story

Sponsored by:

Newsknife Rates 2011 News Sites, Journalists

Top News Sites of 2011

Newsknife’s Top journalists for 2011

Sponsored by: