A Major League Headache

Every PR person has one: The ultimate war story, the craziest thing they’ve ever worked on.  Mine happened 8 years ago this week, when an unsuspecting Cubs fan reached out for a ball and, in the opinion of many Chicagoans, stole the Cubs’ chances of finally getting to the World Series in the process.  Sports fans the world over remember a name that I will never forget: Steve Bartman.

All I need to know about crisis communications I learned in kindergarten

A recent conversation with my nearly five-year-old daughter has reminded me of the basics of crisis communications.  She started the discussion as follows:

Giving thanks to the media

For me, this time of year is busy with organizing editorial calendars and planning opportunities for 2010. It is also the time when I like to reach out to various publications to thank them for their support over the past year for VantagePoint and our clients.

5 steps to increase media coverage

Unlike traditional advertising where you know you’ll get what you pay for, media coverage through public relations is never guaranteed. When you purchase a radio spot, television commercial or print ad, you know exactly when and where you message will appear. You also get to control the message. With public relations, however, it’s not that simple. Below are five steps to help increase the likelihood that your next story will be covered.

Going straight to the source(s)

In the August issue of PRSA’s monthly periodical, Public Relations Tactics, I came across some interesting statistics provided by the Arketi Group. Simply put, the research shows the percentage of business journalists that utilize various sources for story ideas.